Climb rate on 503 Aquila with Aquila1 wing

[Triker]

Morning ladies and gents


I find my Aquila trike with a 503's rate of climb very low. I realy struggle to get height and even to maintain ALT. My Stratomaster indicates a maximum rate of climb (winter mornings, SOLO and three quarter 50lt tank) at about 450ft/min.
My glide ratio is also low, seem to drop like a stone. I have ordered the blue prints for the battons for the wing, just to check that it's fine.

If there's other Aquila 503 pilots with a Aquila 1 wing, reply with your Rate of climb details (it might be in my head also )

CHeers
Enjoy the weekend flying!!!. Hope the wind is calm !!!

[Wargames]

Hi Triker,

I have a windlass with aquila 1 wing with 503. Climb rate is about 700fpm.

From what you said I asume that your fuel consumption is very high, then you are going the right direction to check the battens.

What is your speed straight and level??

[Kalahari]

Hi Triker

What revs are your engine running on full throttle while climbing?

[Trikenut]

Hi Triker,
Where do you oporate from?
I know that in certainj parts of the country people have probs...
When I fly my instructors 503 Aquilla (With an Aquilla 1 wing) in lessons. e.g. dual with 1/2 tank. We climb out @ about 600 to 700 fpm. (As far as I can recall) This is in Cape Town.
Cheers
Ross

[Africa]

Hi Triker,

you definatley have a problem. Like asked in a previous post, the RPM at full throttle is first thing you need to check. you need to get at least 6500 RPM. if you are getting less than this you need to change the pitch on your prop. Then, your hang point position will also have an affect. when cruising straight and level you should be able to maintain ATL solo at 5500 RPM easy. If you are needing more RPM to maintain ATL then you have a wing problem. Do you have any trailing edge flutter? when on the ground is the under surface of you wing tight or baggy? you can either tention your spreader bar cable and also reset batterns. Solo wings can help you with all this. Solo your trk should cruise easy at 5250 to 5500 RPM and it should climb at 700 FPM unless you weigh 300 KG's..

I have flown 503 Aquilla's with wooden props that do not get the RPM and under perform. PM me if you need to get into more detail. I can go on for hours on different issues it could be. Jamie

[Triker]

Good morning gentleman

Thank you all for the feedback.
Wargames: My fuel consumption is definitely high. I burn on avg about a 12litres per 30-40min flight time which is kind of high for a 503
Not even counting that I run on Castrol R2 (previously known as Castrol TT). Last purchase was about R100 for 1 litre. My speed is
about 46-48Mph dual and 50-52Mph solo
Kalahari : My revs on the engine was a bit high before I re-pitched the prop this weekend. My static Rpms was about 6400 and full throttle
in the air about 6750rpm. But I hardly feel any climbing when full throttling(normally you feel the trike climbing, I don't)
But I have set my prop pitch now to 17 degrees as explained by ALAN. Static is now 6000 rpms, so I should get about 6300-6400 in
the air? I haven't flown it yet since changing my pitch.
Trikenut: I hangar at Aeroden in Brits (North west) ALT here ground level is 4100ft I normally operate at 4800-5000 feet. I you fly in the Cape
Town area, remember that your performance on the engine is much better because the ALT is sea level (or thereabout, depending
on where exactly).Air density plays a VIP role here. But I hear what you say !! Mine should at least get 550-650 fpm climb rate.

Africa As per previous posts (good observation! ), I had problems with my engine over revving. So I changed the pitch on my
prop this weekend. Static rpm is now 6000 on the ground. My pitch was very lean. 13 degrees. Most probably causing the engine to
overrev to about 6750 in flight. Peak performance of the Rotax 503's are between 6400 and 6500, according to Rotax charts. My
hang point on the wing is set far back. So I should get max climb on it. I do not have trailing edge flutter, and my wing's
under surface is tight. I did get my chart from SOLO for the battens. I assume that I need to take my wing from the trike to be able
remove all my battens and check them? Or can I just loosen the spreader bar while wing is still fixed to trike?


I weigh about 75 Kg's, so its not a case of me going on a strict diet thank goodness.
Thanks all for posting tips. Like to hear from you guys!

[Wargames]

Wargames: My fuel consumption is definitely high. I burn on avg about a 12litres per 30-40min flight time which is kind of high for a 503
Not even counting that I run on Castrol R2 (previously known as Castrol TT). Last purchase was about R100 for 1 litre. My speed is
about 46-48Mph dual and 50-52Mph solo

Based on that, I would suggest you send your wing to solowings for a check. Or just have a batten profile sheet and set all battens accordingly. At 46-48mph you should have fuel burn of 8-10lph. Your revs is good, only problem can be your wing.

Regards,

[Africa]

Triker,
static your revs need to be at 6300RPM at least. it makes a very small difference when rolling or static. When you check your battens check to see if there is any tape on the tips of the battens. it is a way solo wings use to mark left and right when test flying. If they are marked then that means that your wing has a turn in it. I then recomnd that you take it to an experienced wing person. When you reshape your battens you need to take the wing off the trike and loosen the S/Bar cable. this will put less stress on your batten pockets. MOve your hang point to the middle or one behind middle. This will put your CFG in a better place. when you have it all the way back your control bar tends to fly to far forward and this actually make the trike climb alittle less. But, listening to everything you are saying, getting about 6400 RPM in flight and those speeds you are getting something still does not sound right. What prop do you have? there is a test that we did at Solo Wings to make sure the prop is putting out the correct amount of thrust. You can use a bathroom scale and put it up against a wall and then put your front wheel up to it and run at full power. the front wheel will push up the weight on the scale. I cannot remember what a 503 should push but you need to call and talk to Dave Miller at Solo wings. I know he has retired but ask if you can get his cell#. he is a genious and will help you. That will tell you if your prop is pushing out enough. Another thinh you can try is to borrow another prop on an aquilla that is working well and try fly that and see if there is a difference. If all this does noty work Call Larry at Freedom flight school in Bapsfontein and he will help you. Have a good week. jamie mathewson

[Triker]

Good morning Wargames and Africa

OK, what I will do first, before repitching the prop, is to fly with it on 17 degrees and check what RPM's I get full throttle in the air, and based on the outcome, will do changes on the pitch again. Most probably set it a bit more lean (about 16 degrees) I have the Aero prop, bought the trike second hand and prop came with it. I remember the last x country trip made (just got the wing back from Jenya) the wing was perfect and my rpm and speed was tops. I then had to de-rigg the wing and put it in the wing bag. In the process of doing this, I possibly bent a batten. Because after that, my wing was not giving the desired lift when I rigged it up again!


Thanks for the info Africa and Wargames, I will do as told.
If anyone has the number for Jenya, please post it here. Last time I checked his work is good, does anyone disagree on this?
Best is to take the wing too him for a check?
Thanks Alan for the pitching tips!!


Regards
HEnk

[windswept]

I had a similar problem. Even though the engine was giving close to max rpm, the compression on a recently redone motor was not good. A chemical decoke freed up a lot more compression and together with a couple more tweaks we had a major improvement in performance. Bungees where tightened up and wing moved forward to second last hole.

I recommend a good AP to help you out as I am a complete novice when it comes to such things.

I am not sure of the climb rate I have now, but I will check tomorrow and post again.

Flying from microland 2 up on a 12 degree day, once the work was done we got better performance during the heat of the day 2 up (25 degrees) .