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The closure of Laser engines was inevitable. It is sad for me as I formed the company in 1983 with Reg Gross, Geoffโs father. I have not been involved for over 10 years. Geoff is now 70 and there is no one to take over the Company. The good news for Laser owners is that they were manufactured from very high quality materials, will run for many hours and will survive quite serious crashes. With modern fuels there is very little maintenance or wear. Spares or repairs are rarely required. Bearings are standard, easily and cheaply bought from suppliers. Engines made from 1996 are the best made and I am sure will be powering models for many years. Aeromodelling has declined, we have lost most model shops, magazines and the membership of the BMFA has dropped from36,000 in 2004 to 2,6000 now. Skills have been lost, it is far easier to buy a ready made foamie complete to fly. CAA legislation does not help. Thank you to everyone who has made Laser Engines a British success. Best wishes to Jon for a bright future and being part of the Laser legacy.20 points
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Years of reading model mags and huge amounts of balsa dust, Glue fumes and paint fumes have had a negative impact on my resistance levels and ability to think clearly at times. I have just paid for a new airframe that I will only get in a months time when My son is on holiday in Durban. It was built by a very well known and respected South African modeller so I could not help myself as it has been on my must build list for 20 years!16 points
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Jaydeez an genulmen, I give you... ...Dusty Crophopper. My 2 year old Grandson has taken a huge liking to the Planes movie. If you haven't seen it, it's really rather good and the aircraft are well represented. To stoke his interest, I've built a flying version that if we ever get some decent weather, he'll be able to see in the air. My usual B&Q laminate flooring insulation depron construction. Glass cloth/ B&Q water based varnish covered and painted with sprayed emulsion. The orange in Valspar matchpot, and a story in itself. I had a picture on my phone, but of course you can't match to a phone image, so I grabbed a B&Q bucket. This was too translucnt, so the match was dark, so we scanned the B&Q apron of the young lady operating the machine! Span is 47", 3536 1200 motor and will use 3S 1500 packs. Weight is just a touch over 2 pounds ready to go. I think it might qualify as a scale model... Graham13 points
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Late one night, a burglar broke into a house he thought was empty. He tiptoed through the living room but suddenly he froze in his tracks when he heard a loud voice say: "Jesus is watching you!" Silence returned to the house, so the burglar crept forward again. "Jesus is watching you," the voice boomed again. The burglar stopped dead again. He was frightened. Frantically, he looked all around. In a dark corner, he spotted a bird cage and in the cage was a parrot. He asked the parrot: "Was that you who said Jesus is watching me?" "Yes", said the parrot. The burglar breathed a sigh of relief, and asked the parrot: "What's your name?" "Moses," said the bird. "That's a dumb name for a parrot," sneered the burglar. "What idiot named you Moses?" The parrot said, "The same idiot who named the Rottweiler Jesus."13 points
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Dear All, I'm sorry but I'm a late comer to the party. I received my kit in time for Christmas and I only get limited opportunities to build but I've managed to finish my Focke Wolf. I also received an air gun for Christmas and have used Tamiya paints after giving up with water based acrylics. There are no surprises in the build, it went together well, the same as the others. This one has been glassed all over using Easy Composites 25gm per sq metre cloth and their resin. I use a foam roller as this leaves a really smooth surface. I've added weight here and there, a printed fan at the front, a printed pilot from Thingyverse, total weight is 4lb 12 oz (2150 grams) I'm using a 4 cell 3000 lipo with one of Richards motors turning a 12 x 6 prop and hope to maiden it this coming Saturday . I've added far more colour than is scale but it all helps to see it in the air. I'm pleased with the build, I do have a Bf110 waiting patiently in a box too. Bucks.13 points
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Most clubs have entirely sensible rules that are their for everyones benefit and safety and almost always the rules have been voted on and accepted by the membership.12 points
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Not Winter in South Africa, we are having a very hot summer around 30 during the day, some have been around 35 and even hot at night! My son and I visited a local club on Saturday and had some good flying. Both scratch built aircraft.12 points
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12 points
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Just finished this Chilli Breeze built from the RCM&E plan (Electric version) using the setup recommended by Delks and 4 max with 4s 3000 mah lipo Ready for a decent day to maiden it.11 points
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I didn't think the rain in the last few days was enough to cause further flooding but the ground here in the Trent Valley has been saturated so much during these winter months that our flying field was again under several inches of water. Our starting benches floated off to one edge of the field a few weeks ago and are now inaccessible without a boat(!), and the storms a couple of weeks ago ripped the covering off the work benches. Despite all that, I again took advantage of the good weather today to get the waterplanes out for a great day's flying.11 points
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Following the success of the Mass build Fw190 , we obviously need to balance the books with an equivalent allied fighter . We are hoping to produce something as friendly and robust as the 190 but with a totally different look . Not super scale but as believable as possible given the simple construction . The aim would be produce something approaching the picture shown .10 points
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Hi Guys. Thanks for the comments so far. After 13 years here its going to be a bit of a fresh start for me but i am looking forward to my new job and a new challenge. I am sure there are questions, so here are some answers that i hope will cover most of them. When will production cease? No exact date has been set. We are in the process of manufacturing the parts needed to balance up components we have in stock so the engines can be finished. Providing everything works as planned I will be leaving the company on the 22nd March. In the meanwhile I will be working to finish as much as I can. This will continue after my departure until the component supply has been depleted. It would have been ideal for me to stay until the end, but things didnโt quite line up that way. Most likely the final engines will be completed in the early summer. What about warranty on these new engines for sale? Warranty support will be provided on all engines sold within a year of the final close date. I have agreed with the boss to do the work to support the engines in this regard after I leave the company. Parts will also be held back to cover our warranty obligations, and I will do any warranty repairs on my own time to support our customers. This is for warranty support only and things like crash damage will not be covered irrespective of the age of the engine. What about spares? Provision for spares support will be made and the most common spares will be available into the future. Once production of the engine themselves is finished and total remaining parts is known a final production run of spares will take place to give a good stock for future years. There is no need to panic buy spares so please donโt. Will I be able to get my engines serviced? Effective immediately we can no longer accept engines back to the factory for service. Other companies offer rebuild services and they should be contacted for your servicing needs. An exception will likely be made for Laser inline engines as I am the only person who knows how to assemble them, but I will discuss this with their respective owners as we go along. How many new engines are coming? And can I pre order one? Batches of most sizes of engine are currently underway or planned. Batch sizes vary and are not yet confirmed. The exceptions are the inline engines, petrol engines, and all 160 size engines as there are no plans to make more of any of them. There may be a few 160vโs towards the end, but that is not clear at the moment. We will not be able to accept any direct sales after my departure and will not accept pre orders for items not in stock. After I leave, all engines and spares will be purchased through Model Shop Leeds. In the meanwhile I do have engines here which are available for sale. Once you leave the company can you still offer service and technical support? No. With the closure of the company I am back to being a modeller again and the assistance I provide will be in line with that status. I will post on Laser related topics on the forum when I see them, but I am no longer a direct point of contact for servicing or tech support. So I think thatโs it. If there are any more questions post them below and I will answer as best I can. I will be posting other details here as they become available. There may also be some odd bits for sale that are here at the factory. Sadly the Frankenstein FT200 twin prototype was dismantled, but there may be a few things for sale for those who are interested. There will also be a bunch of random parts left at the end like odd crankcases etc. These may or may not be sold off on ebay or similar but that is also unclear at the moment. As Geoff has already said, we would like to thank all of our supporters over the years and I would like thank all of those who have supported me personally during my time here. I am sure I bump into you all again at shows in the future.10 points
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Im adding some balsa triangle at the lower edge of the rear fuselage sides. This will allow me to sand the lower corner to a gentle curve . It also provides further stiffness to the rear end . After that , I can add the second fuselage side making sure one side is not ahead of the other by checking that they both arrive at the rearmost point in unison . Note that the long former at the bottom of the first picture inserts into a circular hole in the central crutch and then is twisted through 90 degrees to sit across the rear fuselage .10 points
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Maiden flight today 6th March 2024 weather fine a bit blustery. The model tracked well a little bit of toe in on the wheels so no problem. flying on low rates but not low enough so a bit skitty on elevator. Second flight with much reduced rate on elevator it was a different model and turns well on rudder doesnโt need ailerons. The Saito 40 FS is well matched in fact flying at half throttle. looking forward to flying the Elf on calm sunny days this summer. Mike10 points
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Just remember Jon. If your new boss calls you into the office. DON'T SIT DOWN. ๐คฃ9 points
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Ok , so both wing panels have the correct dihedral and are firmly reunited as single entities . My joints are good enough not to need filler . The brown paper covers most minor blemishes so that's fine for me . A word of caution here . If you are going to get "particular " about the joints , then add some lightweight filler and only rub down the filler . I say that , because our braces and Gorrila glue have "tricked " the panels into thinking they are as before , a continuous member , we do not want to thin the veneer in the position and create a new weak spot . Remember that a foam veneer wing has no ribs or webbing so effectively the skin is one big (but thin ) flat spar . Don't sand it away to get a perfect look . It wont look perfect after you don't come out of a loop ๐ฌ Next we join the wing . The two inner panels need to be flat on the desk , so weight is a good idea . I have also used the old pin and elastic band method of keeping tension on . You will notice that the two panels are not exactly the same plan view . One is maybe 2mm longer at the route . That is something that does happen with foam veneer . The sections are very accurate but the outer size can vary . Its a little bit of Kit cutter (sorry Phil , but when you do 50 its easy to not fuss too much ) The other factor is that as the glue dries out there can be some shrinkage . Never bothers me anyway , so I will simply sand right across the two trailing edges . How we doing out there ? Still keeping up ?9 points
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Once the little dihedral braces are in , even without glue , they hold the wing nicely together . I shall mention now that I will be using the "golden syrup " Gorilla glue for the wing joins and the dihedral braces . It reacts with moisture so I paint a little water on one side first . Epoxy would also work. You have to admit that although to some it may seem a little unorthodox , it's a very fast and effective way of making an otherwise complicated elliptical wing . Dead accurate and tough too. I took care to pin the leading edge so that the ply cores lined up and also put a clamp on the trailing edge joint . The inner panel is weighted onto the bench . Finally I stabbed a couple of big pins in so that an elastic band could tension the joint . Anybody out there spooked by the method or need a little reassurance ?9 points
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I am glad to report that the test flight went very well, very nice flying aircraft with plenty of power. We are using 12 cells and a 20x10 prop and are getting 2300 watts with an all up weight of 8.7 kg. Some clever person decided to do donuts on the runway in his car which did damage the ground but as it has been very hot it was not that bad. Some aileron trim was needed and that was all so the airframe can now be painted. My building skills are luckily better than my video skills so here is a poor quality video that shows just how comfortable Byron was with the flying qualities:9 points
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The new version canopy and cowl arrived today so we can commence with the build . Here are some pictures of what you get in the box . The spinners are pretty close to the right shape and readily available from Slec . To be honest it would be better for you if I put a spinner in each kit and added a the few quid they cost as it will save you all postage . I will stock red and yellow , so you can decide . The new canopy has come out well and seems to sit quite nicely in a Tempest sort of way !9 points
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This has been a good week for the FW190. 2nd in the club 'Winter build' concours ( the Sopwith Pup float plane was superb!), and a successful maiden today. The sun even came out. Set the Cg 75-80mm back and she flew great. I cautiously dialled in a touch of up elevator prior to the first hand launch, then ran out of down trim to compensate so took it out again. Hand launching was easy, although my finger grip holes proved to be a bit small. I fitted a 620kv motor turning a 14x8.5 prop and am really pleased with it. Pulls away from a light launch easily, is less buzzy than higher Kv motors and flies at scalish speeds. I was easily getting 9 1/2 min flights using 1800 mA out ouf 2600 4S batteries. I preferred mid rates (about 80% of the plan deflections) but then dropped the elevator further to 60% which helped scale flying. It's a keeper :)9 points
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After a few modifications to my take-off dolly I was ready for a maiden - and the weather this afternoon was pretty decent so I had finally run out of excuses. I must admit I was pretty nervous as it's a heavier model than anything I've flown before. But... Oh wow. What an absolutely lovely flyer! I had the CG about 80mm back from F2 (so a little further back than the instructions recommend, but Ron had flown his there so I knew it should be OK) and had a 2800mAh 4s with a 12x8 prop. It took off smoothly from the dolly and climbed away with hardly any input from me at all. I was flying quite slowly as the spinner clearly wasn't adequately balanced, and the recommended throws (with 30% expo) were very gentle - I'm sure if I were going faster it would be more "decisive". Landing was easy, once I'd got my head around how much energy it carried - it seems to glide for ever. I also was amazed how much it would slow down - even at 2Kg weight. All in all I am extremely chuffed - congratulations to Richard on a fabulous design. So - remaining jobs are 3d print and paint a pilot, fit the canopy and finish the painting, weathering and decals. Can't wait to fly it again with all that lot done! I'm off for a celebratory glass of something! And last but not least - thanks to fellow club member Helal for capturing the excitement on video...9 points
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Hi folks, thanks for the support. I have thought long and hard about making a batch of pilots to sell but am a bit reticent, as although I have sculpted the body and flying hat etc, the original head sculpt that I used is somebody else's work, downloaded for free. As they were generous enough to share their work I am going to do the same and attach the .stl file for you to print your own free copies. The file is a scan of the original which has the base that I sculpted it on attached to the bottom as a lip. Also it does not quite align with the Z-plane. I killed two birds with one stone and lowered the model in Cura to eliminate the base and give it a flat bottom ๐. He was printed on the highest resolution with 5% infill and a brim without support. It is a great community on here and I get much enjoyment from reading it on pretty much a daily basis so am more than happy to give a something back.. All I would ask is that you do the same with the file and keep it not for profit if you do pass it on to fellow modelers please. pilot small.stl Looking forwards to seeing clones of 'Piglet' take to the skies. Cheers, Simon9 points
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Rain over the weekend and Monday fed the river at the bottom of our field, so my floats came out again earlier this week ๐.9 points
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This weekend saw completion to active service of two of my Dark Nights Fix Up projects and I couldn't be more pleased with how they turned out. The Balsacraft Spitfire refinish as a Spitfire PRXIX has been covered earlier and had her maiden flight on Saturday, which was perfect - the model is wonderfully stable, has a decent turn of speed and good vertical performance and looks smashing in the air. Flying pals Derek and Steve captured some lovely images on Saturday and Sunday, as seen below - thanks gents. ๐๐ The Durafly Spitfire Mk 24 to Seafire Mk XVII conversion hasn't had any in progress pictures included in the thread, so I'll put some in here. The swapmeet bargain was a bit beaten up, I don't particularly like the latest Mk of Spitfire but was somewhat surprised how well she flew, as quite an early Durafly model. I had to do something with the finish though and get rid of that horrid FMS pilot. I much prefer how these late mark Spits look in FAA colours and set to to make it a little more like a Seafire. That involved removing two of the cannons and cannon blisters, then 3D printing an arrestor hook and adding a fairing around that from litho plate. I wasn't keen to split the rudder, so plead artistic licence on that. New cockpit interior and 3D printed pilot figure and eventually decided to replace the Durafly servos and do away with the flaps. After some deliberation I patched up the worst of the dings in the foam and then covered the model with EzeTissue and water based EzeDope, before painting with appropriately thinned B & Q acrylic emulsion paint, Cut vinyl national markings and serials done with my Silhouette Cameo, prior to adding some relief to the canyon-esque panel lines with a light grey water soluble pencil and a final blow over with satin WBPU applied by airbrush. I think the Seafire XVII looks so much better than the Spitfire Mk 24 and yes, I know the wing is more like a Seafire Mk47, but there's no massive five bladed prop or contra rotating set up here. Remaiden of the Seafire was unfortunately cut short on Saturday by tipping up in the moss and breaking a blade off the four bladed prop. However on Sunday a drama free handlaunch was followed by a very comfortable flight and again the model looked lovely in the air, admirably captured by Steve. I'm really pleased with how both of these have turned out and added another couple of Spitfires to active service - you can never have too many Spitfires!9 points
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Hi, Surprisingly, I've not been on this forum before and thought it was high time I signed up. I write the 'One Man and His Shed' articles, plus others that may be of interest. A long-time modeller - a mere 68 years thus far - I design, build and fly almost anything, but have nil interest in drones and helicopters. Sorry about that, but at least I've got the mention out there! I'm always interested in other model flyers and their particular preferences, particularly traditionally built craft. I've been known to delve into Depron for models, but for me 'wood is good'. Anyone out there that wants to chat, just begin tapping the keyboard... All the best, Dave.9 points