The new FT Bushwacker is such a fun plane to fly! It can do so many things-- everything from STOL and aerobatics to roof landings and hovering. There are two ways that you can configure the wing: flaperons and aillerons+flaps. The former is good for extreme 3D maneuvers, while the latter is perfect for short takeoffs and landings. Trouble is, you can only run one setup at a time.
My desire was to program a setup on my DX8 so that I could have the best of both setups. With this setup, I have an airplane that can take off quickly and then, at the flip of a switch, transform itself into a wild 3D machine.
For those of you who are using a 6+ channel receiver, I have included a setup that will allow you to run this configuration at the expense of the Rudder channel.
Why the Rudder channel? Aileron, Gear and Aux 1 are already used, and you have to have Throttle and Elevator to fly, while the Rudder is only necessary for coordinated turns.
A few things to note:
1. You will have to have at least an 8-channel receiver and transmitter;
2. Your transmitter will have to have at least 2 (8CH receiver) or 5 (6+CH receiver) programmable mixes;
3. Your Bushwacker will have to have a wing with 4 servos;
4. This setup assumes that your flap servos are not mirrored, as seen on the plans. If they are, you will
have to change your settings;
5. No Y-harnesses will be used, of course.
Also, I have included a SD card file for each setup so you can just download the file and install it on your radio.
So let's get started!
8-channel Setup:
SD Card File: Bushwacker-8ch.zip
The 8-channel setup will require you to perform the following steps:
First, go into the "System Setup" menu by turning on the transmitter while holding the scroll button down.
Now, go into the "Wing Type" section and select "2 ailerons 2 flaps".
After that, go back to the list and go into "Switch Select". Adjust your settings to match those shown.
Then turn off the transmitter and turn it back on. This will get you to the "Function List" menu.
Scroll down to "Flap System" and set your values to match those shown.
Your first mix should be Aileron to Right Flap at 100% in both directions. Be sure to program the mix to only be activated when the "Mix" switch is set to 1. That way, you can change flight modes by flipping this switch.
Your second mix should be Flap to Left Aileron at 100% in both directions. Again, be sure to properly set up the Mix switch.
That's it for the 8-channel setup!
On to the 6+ channel setup...
6+ Channel Setup:
SD Card File: Bushwacker-6ch.zip
Everything is the same except for the mixes.
Mix 1 should have Aileron to Right Flap at 100% in both directions. Be sure to program the mix to only be activated when the "Mix" switch is set to 1. That way, you can change flight modes by flipping this switch.
Mix 2 should have Aileron to Rudder at 100% in both directions. Again, be sure to properly set up the Mix switch.
Mix 3 should have Flaps to Left Aileron at 100% in both directions. The switch is still Mix 1.
Mix 4 should have Rudder to Right Aileron at 100%. The switch is still Mix 1.
Mix 5 should be Flaps to Rudder at --100% in both directions. Note that this time, the switch selection is always turned to "On", as you want this mix to be on at all times.
These are the setups.
One concern that you might have is that with the flap servos centered (so they can also act as ailerons), you won't get full throw on them anymore when they're moving separately as stand-alone flaps. There are a couple of ways to get around this:
1. Increase your servo travel to 150% on the flap and aileron servos (and mix it to the "mode" switch, so you'll get the extra throw only when the flaps are separate from the ailerons);
2. Use the outermost hole on the servo arm and the innermost hole on the control horn (this decreases resolution, but on 2- or 3-position flaps, resolution doesn't really matter).
These should increase your flap throw to something more extreme.
This was the proof of concept and the test that everything worked.
I hope that you'll enjoy these settings! Let me know if you have any other mixing ideas.
Until next time,
--The One Who Never Crashes
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