Richard Wood

I found the Magician was easily prone to nose over with the U/C in standard position & eventually bent it forwards a bit - it might have been my inadequate ground handling skills mind! The Mystic isn't a Magician of course but perhaps something to bear in mind.   Edited By Richard Wood on 01/04/2015 12:12:46

It probably means sheeting all tail surfaces - fin, rudder, tailplane & elevator on both sides, with grain lengthwise.

With Bob on the single servo with torque rods arrangement. It works perfectly well in a sports model & has the advantage of being enclosed.

A 27mm narrower overall track width between the wheels shouldn't be much of a problem. Incidentally M6 nylon bolts into captive nuts is the best way to fix these things. Metal bolts will rip out bits of the fuselage in a heavy arrival, but nylon bolts should shear - as intended, & leave the fuselage undamaged.     Edited By Richard Wood on 26/03/2015 16:35:39

Yes, it's fibreglass - very light & strong. They're the same type as supplied in some Chris Foss kits: **LINK**

Even those other two shamed transgressors - Keys & Gray, have turned up again as pundits. Clarkson will no doubt be back soon.

Hi Trebor, I changed the u/c on latest Magician to an Alpha Wing composite job. (Mainly to make room for LiPo as it's electric.) Not cheap but available in a few sizes & good quality. A 1/4" ply plate is used for mounting, using captive nuts & nylon bolts.

Galaxy (shame they're gone) used to recommend a 75 2 st., but no harm in going larger as there's always a throttle control. Built a couple of Magicians & they fly superbly & look great in the air - the rear set canopy configuration gives it a unique look. The Wizard has a few differences but some of the techniques, such as foam wing construction will be similar. Good luck with it.

Hi Mike, One thing you can also try is moving the engine further out on the mount a little if there is space on the bearers to do so. I did this on one model with reasonable success & no problems with engine security or increased vibration. Alternatively you could fix the engine mount to a ply plate secured to the bulkhead to shift weight forward a tad. As said though, a little extra weight will not harm a Wot4.

That's terrible news, very sad to hear that. Really enjoyed Pete's column - his knowledge, enthusiasm & sense of humour made it a great read. Very best wishes to his family & friends.   Edited By Richard Wood on 23/03/2015 10:41:37

Both sizes of the Mascot are great models to fly. Good luck with it.

Solartex is tough & easy to apply & I used it on my Super Mascot. If you'd prefer a gloss finish there are a few films to consider - Solarfilm is probably the cheapest but can be quite critical of temperature. Personal favourites are Solarfilm Supershrink Polyester & Profilm which go on well & produce a good finish.

Do you know what kind of covering it is? Different types need different shrinking temperatures. Standard Solarfilm shrinks at around 120C but polyester types like Profilm need a higher temp. You could try increasing the travel iron temp a bit & start on a less conspicuous part - eg bottom of the fuse. A domestic heat gun on lower setting can be successful but be careful not to overheat the film as it can burn. Again try it first where it's not seen much if poss.

Hi Stephen, It''ll be an ABC engine which means no piston ring. When the engine is cold the piston/liner fit can be very tight but will loosen up when warmed up.

Perhaps it's just part of the spinner back plate rubbing against the fuselage spinner ring causing the clicking? This could easily happen if the plastic spinner back plate is distorted.     Edited By Richard Wood on 16/03/2015 17:05:21

Looks very smart Dai The only thing about the kit I wasn't too happy with was the thin veneer supplied for the wingtips, which were just a tad warped. Nothing really wrong with using veneer here it as it's similar to the rest of the wing but would have preferred balsa sheet.

Hi Stephen, Check the spinner alignment - it shouldn't wobble as much as that. Could be worth replacing it as the backplate can distort as said. Good idea to check prop balance as well. The 71" span Super Mascot flies well with no shortage of power on a .47, so there'll be power to spare. Try & get those wrinkles out!

Right then. The DVIII build article in RCM&E was spread over a few months but the April 2011 issue shows 12g micro servos mounted in the wing - one per aileron. The wing construction was beefed up a little around the servos. It looks like a Himodel 2815 motor was used, bolted via a 1/2 " or so ply block onto the bulkhead with a 40A esc. Not sure if this motor is still available, but there's an Emax version from BRC hobbies. Two 2200mAH 3S Lipos were used in parallel & mounted well forward to help locate CG. Power with this setup was 400W full throttle on a 12x6 prop & it was reckoned to be more than enough.

The trike u/c will possibly limit you to an 11" prop - this combo would be worth a look : **LINK** With a 4S 3700 - 4000 mAH Lipo Good luck with it.

Nigel Hawes did an electric conversion article of this kit a few years ago in RCM&E. Will try & dig it out.

I'm sure you know this but key the surface before spraying. I didn't on one model & sprayed primer then top coat straight onto a highly finished, smooth fuselage. Tamiya masking tape pulled off some of the base coat paint & primer. I've had this happen with spray paint on Solartex too however.   Edited By Richard Wood on 06/03/2015 11:08:06

When spray painting over a base coat be careful when peeling off the masking tape that it doesn't pull off some of the base coat with it. A bit of a frustration!

Just to add my recommendations for Airtek. I placed an order for a motor at lunchtime on Monday & received a despatch notice email a couple of hours later (as well as the immediate order confirmation email). The order arrived the next day. Very professional looking website with good product information & stock level indication. I will certainly use Airtek again as a first priority.

Interestingly the Wot 4 has only two extra hinges shown when using a torque rod to drive ailerons. Mr Foss has 40+ years experience, but of course the model wasn't intended to be flown at high speed. Is aileron flutter a high speed problem?

The original Magnatilla did have the motor mounted via the backplate bolts onto an aluminium square which was in turn bolted to the bulkhead. Lots of cutting out of the bulkhead was needed for a 4 st. to clear the carb. The Mk2's construction is different as it uses lite ply in the forward fuselage frame & wing ribs etc. The Mk1 used mainly balsa in it's construction but was replaced by the Mk2 many years ago.