Assembly / Tuning / Piloting Whitewings    
Tuning Tips

The single biggest reason why many planes don't fly well at first is because they haven't been properly tuned. The importance of tuning cannot be overemphasized. You must perform one test flight after another and continue to make subtle adjustments until your plane flies straight. Once a plane is properly tuned, it will fly perfectly every time. Always remember that the most important part of tuning is patience.
  
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Pre-Test Flight Inspection  

Hold your plane up in front of your face and examine it carefully from the front. Then ask yourself the following questions.

  1. Is the fuselage bent? (If your fuselage is made of balsa wood, the answer is most likely no. In the case of paper-bodied planes, you may have to straighten out any bends in the fuselage.)
  2. Are both the right and left main wings straight and perfectly matched? Does each wing have a 15 degree incline? (Use the dihedral angle gauge to measure.)
  3. Are the horizontal stabilizer and main wings warped or bent?
  4. Is the vertical stabilizer warped or bent?

Now examine your plane from the rear and repeat steps 1-4 above.

  
Test Flight and Tuning  
Now it's time for a test flight.

Test fly your glider when there is as little wind as possible. You can even test fly your plane indoors, but be sure not to launch it into a hard wall. (Doing so will not only scar the wall but also damage the nose and wings of your plane.) Instead, try launching your plane into drawn curtains or a hanging sheet.

Gently toss your plane forward at a horizontal angle (or at a slightly downward angle) just as you would toss a dart. Pay special attention to the flight path. If you are working with a newly built plane, chances are it will not fly perfectly straight the first time.

When you tune your plane, you have to make adjustments to both the horizontal flight path and the vertical flight path.
First, let's look at the horizontal flight path. On your first test flight, your plane will likely veer off to the left or to the right. Since the goal is to have a plane that flies as straight as possible, you will have to make some adjustments.

Here is how to correct the flight path of a plane that veers to the right or left.

If the plane veers to the RIGHT, you should
  1. Slightly bend the back edge of the right main wing DOWN.
  2. Slightly bend the back edge of the left main wing UP.
  3. Slightly bend the back edge of the vertical tail wing to the LEFT.

If the plane veers to the LEFT, you should

  1. Slightly bend the back edge of the right main wing UP.
  2. Slightly bend the back edger of the left main wing DOWN.
  3. Slightly bend the back edge of the vertical tail wing to the RIGHT.
Please note that the right and left adjustments are exact opposites. You should continue to make subtle adjustments until the plane flies perfectly straight.

Once you get your plane to fly straight without veering to the left or right, pay attention to the vertical flight path. Your flight plane should do one of three things.
  1. Pull up hard, stall, and then nosedive.
  2. Nosedive upon release.
  3. Fly in a straight line.
If your plane glides smoothly in a perfectly straight line (3), then no further adjustments are needed. In the event that your plane nosedives upon release (2), bend up the back edge of the horizontal tail wing just a bit. If your plane pulls up hard (1), stalls and then nosedives, bend down the back edge of the horizontal tail wing just a bit .Continue to make subtle adjustments as you did with the horizontal flight path until your plane glides smoothly in a straight line without banking up or down.

Once your plane is tuned, it should fly perfectly every time; however, if your plane is roughly handled, bumped, or otherwise damaged, it will be knocked out of alignment, and you will have to repeat the tuning process above to correct the direction of the flight path. When picking up and holding a plane that has been tuned, it is important to grip it by the nose and not by the wings.