Black Horse Model DECATHLON-EP Owner's manual

Instruction Manual book
SPECIFICATION
MadeinVietnam.
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Wingspan : 1,250mm 49.21 in.
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Length : 930mm 36.61in.
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Weight : 1.1kg 2.42 Lbs.
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Partslisting required(not included).
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Battery: 3CELLS-LI-POLY-11.1V-2,500mA.h.
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Electric motor : + AXI 2808/24.
+ KMS 2814/08
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Radio : 04 channels.
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Servo : 04 servos.
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Speed control : 25A.

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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This instruction manual is designed to help you build a great flying aeroplane. Please read this
manualthoroughlybeforestarting assemblyof your DECATHLON-EP.Use theparts listingbelow
to identify all parts.
WARNING.
Please be aware that this aeroplane is not a toy and if assembled or used incorrectly it
is capable of causing injury to people or property. WHEN YOU FLY THIS AEROPLANE YOU
ASSUME ALL RISK & RESPONSIBILITY.
If you are inexperienced with basic R/C flight we strongly recommend you contact your R/C
supplierandjoinyourlocalR/CModelFlyingClub.R/CModelFlyingClubsofferavarietyoftraining
proceduresdesignedtohelpthenewpilotonhiswaytosuccessful R/C flight. They will alsobe able
to advise on any insurance and safety regulations that may apply.
TOOLS & SUPPLIES NEEDED.
Thick cyanoacrylate glue.
30 minute epoxy.
5 minute epoxy.
Hand or electric drill.
Assorted drill bits.
Modellingknife.
Straight edge ruler.
2mm ball driver.
Phillips head screwdriver.
220 grit sandpaper.
90° square or builder’s triangle.
Wire cutters.
Masking tape & T-pins.
Thread-lock.
Paper towels.
Some more parts.
HARDWAREPACK
COWLING.
Landinggear.....
To avoid scratching your new airplane, do
not unwrap the pieces until they are needed
for assembly. Cover your workbench with an
old towel or brown paper, both to protect the
aircraftand to protectthetable. Keepacouple
of jars or bowls handy to hold the small parts
after you open the bag.
Please trial fit all the parts. Make sure you
havethe correctpartsand thatthey fit andare
alignedproperlybefore gluing! Thiswillassure
properassembly.DECATHLON EP ARFishand
made from natural materials, every plane is
unique and minor adjustments may have to
be made. However, you should find the fit su-
perior and assembly simple.
The painted and plastic parts used in this kit
are fuel proof. However, they are not tolerant
of many harsh chemicals including the
following: paint thinner, C/A glue accelerator,
C/A glue debonder and acetone. Do not let
these chemicals come in contact with the
colors on the covering and the plastic parts.
PARTS LISTING.
FUSELAGE ASSEMBLY
(1) Fuselage.
WING ASSEMBLY
(1) Right wing half with pre-installed
aileron.
(1) Left wing half with pre-installed
aileron.
Tail section assembly
(1) Vertical stabilizer with pre-
installedrudder.
(1) Horizontal stabilizer with pre-
installedelevatorhalves.
SUGGESTION.
NOTE.

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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+ This is not a toy
+ Be sure that no other flyers are using your
radio frequency.
+ The glow plug clip must be securely
attached to the glow plug.
+ Do not flip the propeller with your fingers.
+ Keep loose clothing and wires away from
thepropeller.
+ Do not start the motor if people are near.
Donot standinline withthe side ofthe propel-
ler.
SAFETY PRECAUTION.
A. Wing panel.
B. Fuselage.
C. Cowling.
 1. Install the rubber grommets and brass
eyelets onto the aileron servo.
INSTALLING THE AILERON SERVOS.
C/Aglue
C/Aglue
REPLACEMENT LARGE PARTS
REPLACEMENT SMALL PARTS
D. Motor mount wood.
E. Wing strut.
F. Horizon stabilizer.
H. Aluminium wing dihedral brace.
I. Decal sheet.
G. Vertical stabilizer
AA
B
C
F
H
EE
G
DI

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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 2. Using amodeling knife,remove thecov-
ering servo tray.
C/Aglue
 4. Using the thread as a guide and using
masking tape, tape the servo lead to the end
of the thread: carefully pull the thread out.
When you have pulled the servo lead out,
remove the masking tape and the servo lead
from the thread.
Thread.
Electric wire.
5. Instal servo tray with aileron servo into
the wing as same as picture below.
2x10mm.
3.Drill 1,5mmpilot holes throughthe block
of wood for each of the four mounting screws
providedwiththeservo.Installservointoaileron
servo tray as same as picture below.
Servo tray
Bottom side

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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 6. Using a modeling knife, remove the
covering wing.
Remove
covering
Remove
covering
Servo tray.
Wing.
Repeat the procedure for the other wing
half.
Remove the covering on to the pre-cut slot of
aileron at picture.
aileron control horn.
INSTALLING THE AILERON
CONTROL HORN.
Attach the micro control connector to the
servo arms. Be sure to use the lock tie but it
could free rotation.
Micro control connector.
C/Aglue

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Repeat the procedure for the other
wing half.
JOINING THE WING HALVES.
1. Locate the aluminium wing dihedral
brace.
 2. Test fit the dihedral brace into each
wing half. The brace should slide in easily.
Cut
INSTALLING ELECTRIC MOTOR.
See pictures below:
C/Aglue.

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
7
Secure
3 x 15mm
Motor mount wood
Push
C/Aglue
INSTALLING THE COWLING-SPINNER.


1.Slide the fiberglass cowl over the en-
gine and line up the back edge of the cowl
with the marks you made on the fuselage.

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Installthespinner backplate, propellerand
spinner cone. The spinner cone is held in
place using two 3mm x 10mm wood screws.
INSTALLING THE SPINNER.
Secure
MAIN GEAR INSTALATION
PARTSREQUIRED
11)Assemble andmounting the wheelpants
as shown in the following pictures.


2. While keeping the back edge of the
cowl flush with the marks, align the front of
thecowlwiththecrankshaftof the engine. The
front of the cowl should be positioned so the
crankshaft is in nearly the middle of the cowl
opening. Hold the cowl firmly in place using
pieces of masking tape.


3. Slide the cowl back over the motor
andsecure it inplace using fourwood screws.
See picture below.
3 x 10mm
3x12mm

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Markpoint
Drilla hole 3mm diameter.
Metalplate 3mm
M3lockWooden collars
2) A drop of C/A glue on the wheel collar
screws will help keep them from coming lose
duringoperation.
Repeat the process for the other wheel.
Metalplate 3mm
M3lock
C/Aglue
Wooden collars
Wooden collars
M3lock
Metalplate 3mm

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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1. Install the rubber grommets and brass
colletsintothe elevator servo.Testfitthe servo
into the servo tray.
2. Mount the servo to the tray using the
mountingscrewsprovided with yourradiosys-
tem.
ELEVATOR INSTALLATION.
SERVO INSTALLATION.
1) The blind nuts are already mounted in-
side the fuselage.
2)The holesin the landinggear shouldbe
to accept the mounting bolts.
3) Using the hardware provided, mount the
main landing gear to the fuselage.
Secure
3 x 12mm
3 x 15mm
INSTALLING THE MAIN LANDING GEAR

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
11
HORIZONTAL STABILIZER INSTALLA-
TION.
 2) Using a modeling knife, carefully re-
move the covering from over the vertical sta-
bilizermounting slotin the topof thefuselage.
Centerline
Removecovering
 3) Slidethestabilizerintoplace in the pre-
cut slot in the rear of the fuselage. The stabi-
lizer should be pushed firmly against the front
of the slot.
1) Draw a center line onto the horizontal
stabilizer. Then slide the horizontal into the
fuselage.
4) With the stabilizer held firmly in place,
use a pen and draw lines onto the stabilizer
where it and the fuselage sides meet. Do this
on both the right and left sides and top and
bottom of the stabilizer.
Markline
Top side
Bottom side
Remove covering
5) Removethe stabilizer. Using thelines
youjust drewas a guide,carefully removethe
covering from between them using a model-
ingknife.
When cutting through the covering to re-
moveit, cutwith only enoughpressure toonly
cut through the covering itself. Cutting into
the balsa structure may weaken it.

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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6) When you are sure that everything is
alignedcorrectly,mixupagenerous amount of
Flash30 Minute Epoxy. Applyathinlayertothe
mounting slot in the top of the fuselage and to
the sides and bottom of the vertical stabilizer
mountingarea. Applyepoxytothe bottom and
top edges of the filler block and to the lower
hinge also. Set the stabilizer in place and re-
align. Double check all of your measurements
once more before the epoxy cures. Hold the
stabilizer in place with T-pins or masking tape
and remove any excess epoxy using a paper
towel and rubbing alcohol. Allow the epoxy to
fully cure before proceeding.
C/A glue
Control horns elevator as same as method
of aileron wing. See pictures below:
CONTROL HORN INSTALLATION.
elevator controlhorn.
Remove covering
Epoxyglue

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Remove
covering
C/Aglue
ELEVATORPUSHROD INSTALLATION.
Elevator pushrod install as same as the way
of aileron pushrod.
Elevator
pushrod Elevator
pushrod
Secure
Secure
Remove the covering in to the pre-cut slot of
elevator as picture.

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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VERTICAL INSTALLATION.
See pictures below:
MOUNTING THE TAIL WHEELBRACKET.
1. Made the slot from the bottom of the rudder
and intall the tail gear.
Tail gear.
Nilon clasp. C/Aglue
cut
Elevator servo
Remove
covering
C/Aglue
1) Using a modeling knife, remove the
covering from the top of the fuselage and the
covering from over the precut hinge slot cut
intothe lowerrear portion ofthe fuselageThis
slot accepts the lower vertical.
C/Aglue

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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 2) Slidethe verticalstabilizer into theslot
in the top of the fuselage. The rear edge of
thestabilizershouldbeflushwiththerearedge
of the fuselage and the lower rudder hinge
should engage the precut hinge slot in the
lower fuselage. The bottom edge of the stabi-
lizer should also be firmly pushed against the
top of the horizontal stabilizer.
Hingeslot
Remove
covering
 5) Slide the vertical stabilizer back in
place. Using a triangle, check to ensure that
thevertical stabilizeris aligned 90ºto thehori-
zontal stabilizer.
90º Vertical
Stabilizer.
Horizontal
Stabilizer.
When cutting through the covering to remove
it, cut with only enough pressure to only cut
through the covering itself. Cutting into the
balsa structure may weaken it.
 4) Remove the stabilizer. Using a mod-
eling knife, remove the covering from below
the lines you drew. Also remove the covering
from the bottom edge of the stabilizer and the
bottomandtop edges ofthefillerblock. Leave
the covering in place on the sides of the filler
block.
 3) While holding the vertical stabilizer
firmly in place, use a pen and draw a line on
each side of the vertical stabilizer where it
meets the top of the fuselage.
Markline

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Remove covering
Control horns rudder as same as method of
aileron wing. See pictures below:
CONTROL HORN INSTALLATION.
6) When you are sure that everything is
aligned correctly, mix up a generous amount
ofFlash 30 MinuteEpoxy.Apply a thinlayer to
thetop andbottom of the vertical fin mounting
platform sides in the fuselage. Slide the verti-
calfin in placeand realign. Doublecheck all of
your measurements once more before the
epoxy cures. Hold the vertical fin in place with
T-pins or masking tape and remove any ex-
cess epoxy using a paper towel and rubbing
alcohol.
C/Aglue
Rudder control horn.
RUDDERPUSHROD INSTALLATION.
Rudder pushrod install as same as the way
of aileron pushrod.
C/Aglue
Epoxyglue
Pre-cut slot rudder

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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See picture below.
INSTALLINGTHE RECEIVERANDBATTERY.
Elevator
pushrod Elevator
pushrod
Rudder
pushrod
Elevator servo
Rudder servo
Secure Battery

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Wing attach to fuselage.
Markpoint
Receiver
WING JOINING.
Wing bolt
Wing bolt plate
WING STRUT INSTALLATION
3 X 15mm
Wing strut
Seepicture:

DECATHLON-EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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Secure
Remove covering on the pre-cut
slot of hole.

DECATHLON - EP. INSTRUCTION MANUAL
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 3. Turn the airplane upside down. Place
your fingers on the masking tape and care-
fully lift the plane .
Accurately mark the balance point on the top
of the wing on both sides of the fuselage. The
balance point is located 65mm back from the
leadingedge.Thisisthebalancepointatwhich
yourmodelshouldbalance for yourfirstflights.
Later, you may wish to experiment by shifting
the balance up to 10mm forward or back to
change the flying characteristics. Moving the
balance forward may improve the smooth-
ness and arrow- like tracking, but it may then
require more speed for take off and make it
moredifficult to slowdownfor landing.Moving
the balance aft makes the model more agile
with a lighter and snappier ”feel”. In any case,
please start at the location we recommend .
With the wing attached to the fuselage, all
parts of the model installed ( ready to fly), and
empty fuel tanks, hold the model at the
marked balance point with the stabilizer level.
Lift the model. If the tail drops when you
lift,the model is “tail heavy”and youmust add
weigh*tothenose.Ifthenosedrops,it is “nose
heavy” and you must add weight* to the tail to
balance.
*Ifpossible, firstattempt tobalance the model
by changing the position of the receiver bat-
tery and receiver. If you are unable to obtain
good balance by doing so, then it will be nec-
essary to add weight to the nose or tail to
achieve the proper balance point.

1) We highly recommend setting up a
plane using the control throws listed.
 2) The control throws should be meas-
ured at the widest point of each control sur-
face.
 3) Check to be sure the control surfaces
move in the correct directions.
CONTROL THROWS.
Ailerons : 8mm up 8mm down
Elevator : 16mm up 16mm down
Rudder : 20mm right 20mm left
Aileron Control
16
16
20
20
8
8

1) Completely charge your transmitter and
receiver batteries before your first day of fly-
ing.
 2) Check every bolt and every glue joint in
your plane to ensure that everything is tight
and well bonded.
 3) Double check the balance of the
airplane.
 4) Check the control surface.
 5) Check the receiver antenna . It should
be fully extended and not coiled up inside the
fuselage.
 6) Properly balance the propeller.
PRE-FLIGHT CHECK.
We wish you many safe and enjoyable
flights with your DECATHLON-EP.
CG
65mm
 1) It is critical that your airplane be bal-
anced correctly. Improper balance will cause
your plane to lose control and crash.
THE CENTER OF GRAVITY IS LOCATED
65MMBACKFROM THELEADINGEDGEOF
THEWING.

2) Mount the wing to the fuselage. Using a
couple of pieces of masking tape, place them
on the top side of the wing 65 mm back from
the leading edge, at the fuselage sides.
BALANCING.