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Next: Until Next Month... Up: Trim it Out! (Part Previous: That's a funny-looking tail...

The Balancing Act

Most planes center of gravity should fall near the main spar, about 25-33% back from the leading edge of the wing. Balancing where the plans say is sufficient for most models - but for precision aerobatic planes, a couple of tests can yield even more precise results. Hint: These tests are not useful for planes without at fairly symmetric airfoils. No matter what you do, a Kadet Senior will not fly inverted like it does upright. These tests assume that your plane doesn't care which way it's pointed!

To Test For... Do this... Look for this... And Adjust This...
Center of gravity tex2html_wrap211 tex2html_wrap213 tex2html_wrap215
(Method #2) tex2html_wrap217 tex2html_wrap219 tex2html_wrap215

What about lateral balancing? Here's a coarse test that works on most planes.

To Test For... Do this... Look for this... And Adjust This...
lateral balance tex2html_wrap223 tex2html_wrap225 tex2html_wrap227

Next month... we'll continue to explore ways you can make your plane fly even better!



Craig Kulesa
Fri Dec 4 18:53:12 MST 1998