CSD Review Xtreme Composite Edge 540T 50CC

HI, I'm Svein and I'm from Norway. I'm an accomplished builder and pilot of large scale RC aircraft and I'll be reviewing the building of European aircraft for the Carolina Sky Dancers. This Edge is actually a replacement plane that I got from the Norwegian dealer : www.throttlestore.com after my first Edge crashed.

On the second flight after about 4 minutes of flying the plane started shaking a lot, then we heard some cracking sounds probably the aileron servos that broke and then the plane started to shake like crazy. I had no control what so ever. Luckily, it went down kinda' upright so we could inspect the plane. What had happened was that the composite material had split apart on both ailerons and created some kind of air brake so to say, and then had broken the ailerons. After some serious discussion with the store I got a brand new Edge for free delivered right to my front door. This shows that this is a very serious dealer who takes care of his customers. Let's get on to the build.

Here's some of the stats

Edge 540 T Extreme Composite

W.S. 2 meter

L. 2 meter

Engine DA-50 R With Bisson Custom muffler

Hitec servos all around

Power Expander Sport

Here's some pictures of the components straight out of the box.

I first like to start with the engine.

The first thing then is to open up the front end so that the tip of the engine fits the opening of the cowling. I mark this with a pen an use a battery drill to drill holes all the way around an after I use a file and sandpaper to smooth down the edges.

When this is done I fasten the plane in the ceiling so that I can set the engine on place. Unlike the other versions of this model, the complete cowling can't be removed, only the bottom part where the exhaust vents. I don't know why they don't make a separate cowling that can be removed to make it easier to install the engine. It would make engine installation a whole lot easier.

I use masking tape on the firewall before I align the engine so it's easier to mark with the pen. Then I placed the engine inside an put on the back plate of the spinner to place the engine right.

I then mark off the standoffs, takes the engine out, and drill out the holes. This is the tricky part, because for the holes to be correct, I have to use hand drilling. I can't use the electric drill because it won't fit inside and an angle drill was not available at this time.

When this is done I drill holes for the pushrods for throttle and choke. And also a 25mm hole in the middle for the engine to get enough air. This I can do with the drill as it is centered with the crankshaft of the engine.

After this I screw in 4 hooks with threads in one of the corner to mount the ignition in. Shown in a picture.

When I fit the ignition I use something soft underneath the ignition and rubber bands to hold it in place.

Now I am ready to mount the engine. Stay tuned.

Something else I discovered was that the firewall had too much angle for the engine so I have to figure something out there. Some shimming with washers should do the trick once we learn how the plane responds on uplines.

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