Bug HLG

This is from the LittleNipper group here on Yahoo and Chris Lewis. You have got to see this. He has done some great innovations. I've been reading the comments about both planes and thought there must be a way to settle this. Here's the result: Combine a Bug wing stretched 5" (2 extra #3 ribs), a LN pod and boom and a Drela inspired crucifrom tail and you have the "Lil' Bugger"! (Rich Davies was also thinking along this line.) My apologies to any european or Australian members who might use a different definition for the word. It has a 34" span, 17" Skyshark 2P boom, modified LN pod, GWS Pico Rx, HS55 servos & 2 CR Lithiums for power. AUW - 3.5 ounces. I've posted the photos in a new folder. Building report: The Bug wing is a breeze. I photo-copied the ribs from the plan and went to work. All balsa is Poly-treated, per LN typical construction. The details on how to stretch the wing are on the Bug site. I also filled in the left wing tip w/contest grade balsa to make a good thumb pad. The servos are recessed into the wing and mounted on an extended boom brace as described in other LN posts. The pod is a basic LN pod modified to allow the boom to exit under the wing. The tail is just a personal preference. Mark Drela has designed several outstanding planes using this shape and I've had great success with it in the past. Light weight and perfectly straight launches. It also lands in the grass nicely w/o catching due to it's +/- ratio. The horiz. stab is a new design that pops off w/o tools. Quite slick. Flight report: I initially tried some 170mAh NiMH's, but found the plane to be tail heavy and went back to the trusty CR2's. I launch the plane using an underhand SAL (thumb on top of the wing) and was easily over fifty feet on the first try. Practice will add more height. It launches straight w/o using a gyro and does very well in calm winds. I can ballast it for higher winds, but I don't have any experience with the Bug airfoil's ability to penetrate. Time will tell. Feel free to comment. The pictures can be found in the Photos section in the Lil' Bugger folder. Enjoy. Chris Lewis aka Raincity Flyer