Align F-16 super 400 Amendments

C of G

The stated centre of gravity in the supplied user manual is not correct. The tried and tested C of G suggested is

40mm (+-5mm) in front of the carbon spar

Carbon spar channel

I would recommend cutting along the channel for the carbon spar and removing the plastic lamination from the base of the channel. This is so that you are gluing the carbon spar directly to the polystyrene inner foam of the wing. This will provide more strength and also ensure the spar does not protrude in the airflow of the underside of the wing.

Wing sticky tape

In the manual the recommended methods of gluing the wings is by using double-sided sticky tape. The tape is actually pre applied to the wing tabs ready for use. I would remove the backing tape and then remove the adhesive using a “sticky stuff removing product” (often sold in aerosol form as a label remover) Once the adhesive is removed you should sand the plastic surface of the wing tabs before epoxying the wings to the fuselage.

Recommended Motor and ESC

We have found that the best performance has been achieved using a 3200kv outrunner a 30A speed controller and 2100mA 11.1V LiPo. This results in exactly 30A current draw using the supplied prop and is the fastest aircraft I have ever flown!!

Cooling

With the above motor setup we found that we needed to add a flow of cooling air through the rear of the model past the ESC and motor. The most direct way to do this was to remove the rear access hatch (previously cut as per the user guide) and cut forward facing angled intakes from the leading edge on both sides. When replaced on the model this provides a cooling intake on each side of the model drawing in air as the model is in forward motion.

Ailerons

The user guide says to score the ailerons. I recommend bending them back and forth until they move freely. Then reinforce the hinge line with some glass reinforced fibre tape (sometimes called strapping tape)

Nose cone

The nose cone provided is formed with the point off centre. This means when applied the tip of the nose should be pointing slightly downward.

Control throws

The control throws on our test model are :

Elevator : 12mm up and down with 30% exponential.

Aileron : 8mm up and down with 20% exponential.