Electric power and controls

I set my target AUW of 453.6 grams, or 16 ounces, for the Chicken Hawk according to a build article I read on the February issue of Model Aviation. The article was written by Bob Benjamin and described his impressions of the Chicken Hawk kit available from Retro RC.

By sticking to the original plans posted on Outerzone I managed to achieve an AUW of 416 grams or 14.7 ounces. This weight gives might give a bit of a margin to use slightly higher capacity LiPo batteries.

The power plant I am using includes an E-MAX CF2822 1200Kv motor, with a 30A ESC (slightly over-sized), driving an 8x6 propeller. The measured power draw is just over 9 Amps, which yields about 52 Watts.

The overall power to weight ratio is between 57 Watts/Lb, which seems more than sufficient to drive the Chicken Hawk. Wing loading is 8.95 ounces per square foot, and Cubic Wing Load is 7.0. I have a similar weight and wing span foam plane with the same power plant, which also gives me a good idea of the expected fight characteristics.


The ESC is Velcro'd to the right side of the fuselage behind former #2



Receiver Velcro'd at the back of the cockpit with one antenna tucked under the top wing pylon and the other freely pointing upward.
 

Servos mounted up-side-down just behind and below former #4



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