Dave Wilshere

I was busy helping so many people today inc the two Joker guys I only got this one landing. The grass area we pitted on is cut exactly 450’ in length.
you can hear the point Phil actually cuts the throttle and his Joker stops before the end of the cut area. If he held it off longer the ground speed would have been much lower.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

HI,
I got a Joker kit. I have never glued a clear canopy in a fiberglass frame. What type of adhesive is recommended?

Thx!

patniven

My Feedback: (36)

Canopy Glue. It's called Formula 560. Dries clear, any brand will do. LESS is MORE! Sometimes takes 12 hours or so to completely dry.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

thank you - I actually have some of that stuff and didn't know if it will stick to the glass.

patniven

My Feedback: (36)

Lightly sand the area (of the fiberglass) where the glue will be applied and wipe it clean with Denatured Alcohol or Lacquer Thinner, then apply a bead of 560 about 1/8th" in diameter. You'll have lots of working time, so don't rush - just don't put too much glue on there...it will take days to dry and will squeeze out everywhere. You'll need to clamp, tape, etc. to hold certain areas in place while it dries, depending on the fit of the canopy glass to the frame. Leave it alone for at least 12 hours. Goes on white, and it's dry when it's completely clear. It's a water-based glue, so clean up excess with a wet paper towel.

Dave Wilshere

The area the canopy seats on will require some cleaning up of glass strands, resin etc until the thickness is uniform. Then order a bunch of 6-10mm dia magnets...

Dave

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

I've seen the thousand magnet trick. Perhaps I'll give it a go!

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

HI,
Nice build. How do you like the Powerbox Pioneer w/ Gyro? It looks like good deal for a Joker sized model.

patniven

My Feedback: (36)

I really like the Pioneer. It's very small, but still outputs 14 PWM channels, so it's ideal for a very small jet where you want Rx and Batt redundancy. The only drawback is that it does not regulate voltage - which is the reason it's so small. Not an issue for my builds, as I always use 2S LiPo batts anyway. I continue to use Mercury SRS units in all of my builds and love them as well. I just changed over to the Core radio and wanted to check out the Pioneer, so the Joker was the testbed. The setup is super easy with a Core radio. I bought a few more Pioneer units for a Boomerang Elan build and a SM F-15 build.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

Pioneer + Gyro cost as much as a Cortex Pro. I'm giving it a try.

Dave Wilshere

You can power the Pioneer with the new V3 Sensor switch to regulate the voltage for normal servos. iSat Gyro is amazing, so like you say it’s a great set up for normal size jets.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

Hi,
I started to mess around with my Joker.
I got some MKS 747R servos and fit them in the stab. The 'R' version has flat tabs which make more sense for this type of mount.
I used the longest arm that came with the servos. The last hole barely clears the cover and the slot will have to be widened to let the clevis move freely.

I noticed that the servo has way too much travel. The instructions call for 15mm up/down movement. With the set up I have there is 25-30mm of movement. Which means I'll have to limit the servo travel in the radio program. This is a loss of resolution and I'm guessing the servo travel will be around 75%. Ideally the mechanical setup would allow 100% travel. A shorter servo arm would do it but then the control rod will drop into the stab.





I was wondering what others are doing?

F1 Rocket

I have used that same servo arm with the HV747 on the three jokers that I have built. They all fly great.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

The Joker kit is surprisingly complete. All that is needed is radio, servos and turbine. I bought Electron Retracts for mine (after spending a couple frustrating hours with JP's in another model). The kit hardware is all quality and up to the job.
CARF took the time to bag and label all the hardware kits. I'm working on the stab and there's a bag labeled 'stab'. How nice is that!?

F1 Rocket

The last one I built has Electron ER30’s. It required a few adapter plates but that’s easy to do. There are photos in this thread.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

F1,
Do you have any more of the inlet ducts?

Bob_B

My Feedback: (11)

You can order them from Schübeler Jets.

Schübeler Jets - Home

F1 Rocket

Nope. Follow Bob’s link

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

HI,
I knew Schubeler makes them. I contacted them and they asked if I wanted the entire EFD set up, I said no and have not heard back. Perhaps Daniel doesn't want to sell me just the ducts, I was hoping there was a set in the USA already.

Tom ling

I’v had about 10/15 flights on my Joker now and it is superb! Very very easy to fly, i’m slowly taking nose weight out as it flew nose heavy. Jetcat 100 is the perfect power and with a timer set for 6mins I have about 1/3 of a tank left. It handles our grass strip smoother than my Xcalibur did. Also makes a great sound on a high ish speed pass.

very happy chappy :-)

Dave Wilshere

Joker does not need inlets, they change nothing on a turbine set up.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

True enough, but they look cool!

Dave Wilshere

Paint the inside the same as your fuselage or black and you will hardly notice!

kevin

My Feedback: (2)

or, you could make your own intake diverters from thick sheet styrene. They work fine at full speed, route the incoming air past my install tray, and you can't look into the fuselage from the side and see the install which drove me crazy...

CARF Joker build thread

I also made a cockpit floor because to me looking through the canopy and seeing the install is not good.

CARF Joker build thread

Bob_B

My Feedback: (11)

Dave, while it may not need them, I have to think cleaning up the inlet area has to help. The carbon inlet definitely have bling factor!!