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Levanter

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Posts posted by Levanter

  1. I have had a part built Sophisticated Lady on the shelf for some time and this week I decided to finish it off.

    Not having tried film hinges before I thought I would have a go using this method for the elevator. Many many years ago I built a Caprice and that has a de-thermaliser tailplane to put it into a descending mush when the fuse burns through.

    Following this theme I wondered whether the elevator alone would have enough authority on its own to put the Sophisticated Lady into a mush. The reason for asking is that with the film hinge I will have limited travel in one direction and say up to 90 degrees travel in the other. Should I therefore arrange to have as much up-elevator as possible and more limited down?

    Or maybe it's not going to work anyway so it doesn't matter.

    Levanter

  2. And me blush

    Mine got stuck forming the second flap and when I found that I had made the nacelles so that I needed custom tanks or accept a very low capacity. Mine will run on 2 OS26 FS engines so probably I don't need much.

    Because I live right next to a harbour and miles away from an airfield I have taken to building some boats. Also a flying boat to keep my hand in.

    Very nice work Simon

    Levanter

    Edited By Levanter on 04/07/2020 18:12:40

  3. David

    This came as quite a shock. Maurice was my godfather and somehow, and I don't know how, my family lost contact. The photos are quite unmistakably of him although my memories are from a long time back. I remember him as a quiet reserved man but with a warn smile and clearly something very special going on inside. He must also have had considerable patience with the demands I surely would have made of him as a small and boisterous child.

    It is extraordinary that I did not know about his wartime experiences and plight but this seems to be a resounding feature of these brave people who simply saw it as their duty. Youngsters themselves drawn into the most horrific of circumstances in all ranks in all forces. I am sad but hope that he enjoyed his long life.

    As it happens, my other godfather was a pilot too but after the war. He died about 10 years ago but as a test pilot mainly involved on the English Electric Lightning that required a certain type of courage also.

    I am humbled by these people and will reflect while I putting together my next model aircraft.

    Bye Bye Maurice from Tim.

  4. I have joined myself to my models many a time.

    Worst episode was when the top came off and a big splash glued my shorts to the chair and me to my shorts. It wasn't the stickiness that was the problem it was the heat generated causing burning. The parquet floor was not improved either.

    Most irritating feature is when my smart phone does not recognize my fingerprints.

    Levanter

  5. Jason

    Do you have any idea how much it would cost to mount a legal challenge against the government and how little chance it would have with such a small lobby such as ourselves.

    I for one would like to distance myself from your views as aired on this forum and it would be a great disservice to other aero modelers if your attitude means an early prosecution is connected with a model aircraft and not a so-called drone.

    Are there no boats in your part of the sea?

    Levanter

  6. Hi Martin

    Is it possible, given the moronic treatment of the motor, that it is the wrong needle, the taper altered or has been shortened perhaps?

    Happened to me with a Supertigre 29 that looked fine in the photos but actually had been ruined be disc sanding and wire brushing. Went in the bin after salvaging the con-rod for a sculpture.

    Levanter

  7. Posted by Don Fry on 29/07/2019 08:57:06:

    If it's sealed, I would be surprised if it's not fine. Some time back, I "found" some lost unopened containers in the cubbyhole I store wine. Cool but damp. 10 years old. It was fine.

    And the wine tasted pretty good too ….. hic!

  8. Posted by Keith Miles 2 on 24/07/2019 10:56:43:
    Posted by ken anderson. on 24/07/2019 10:43:50:

    84 pages....this thread has some mileage?

    ken anderson...ne..1....motoring dept.

    I wonder how much of it has been fossil fuelled?

    😊

    Hard to say, but a lot of it has been wind powered!

    Levanter

  9. Posted by Doc Marten on 22/07/2019 13:04:54:

    It's interesting to hear that the government has announced a clamp down on e-scooters, seems contrary to the perks and encouragement given to e-bike users. Mixed messages from the government as to their commitment to green transport ?

    Edited By Doc Marten on 22/07/2019 13:06:43

    Same here in Spain but unconnected with any green transport. Some of them are now quite fast, completely silent and causing big problems on the pavements and promenades with accidents.

    I don't have very good use of my legs but I can't help wondering if the some of the kids will loose the ability to walk properly because they go everywhere on their scooters even short distances. It's a bit like seeing very large toddlers in pushchairs.

    Levanter

  10. I do a lot of flying for work but as a passenger. I like to observe things and this is what I find.

    At the end of the cruise all the aircraft pitch down and reduce thrust to keep within Vne. The pitch down is clearly a function of the elevators.

    Most aircraft maintain a pitch down for most of the descent with the engines on idle. Air brakes extended if the pitch down is steep to keep within Vne

    At the end of the descent the slats and flaps are extended (amount depending) and the aircraft pitches up and engine thrust increased as the aircraft goes on the back of the drag curve.

    Gear down and sometimes a bit more thrust.

    I have not experienced / noticed significant changes in pitch angle at the late stages of flight except on the Canadair Regional Jets and Turboprops. I do regularly experience big changes in thrust setting and the sink rate is instantly reduced (lift quadruples with doubling of speed) without changes in trim. The aircraft keeps the trim into ground effect and dropping the thrust reduces the flare until touchdown.

    In the Canadair series the aircraft seem to fly right down to the deck at a constant pitch down angle only to pull into a flare just before touchdown (hopefully). Same with the tuboprops which have massive prop breaking.

    Last week I was on a 20 minute flight from Mallorca to Menorca and the pilot made a very steep approach only settling into a nose up attitude at low height. It was quite disconcerting.

    Different aircraft are clearly flown on different flight profiles but I did find Rob Ashley's explanations surprising and turned my understanding completely on its head.

    Levanter

  11. Posted by Peter Jenkins on 16/07/2019 23:53:09:
    Posted by Sam Longley on 16/07/2019 18:50:43:
    Posted by Levanter on 25/01/2019 07:38:08:

    Taken to extreme and the windspeed is greater than the airspeed and the aircraft can appear to stand still or even go backwards! But we all know that is "impossible" in aerodynamic terms zo we readily accept the concept of a headwind. . It also explains the common and infamous stall on the downwind turn.

    I suppose it would be too much of a thread drift to ask for you to elucidate a bit more on that onewink

    The infamous stall on the downwind leg is caused by pilots thinking that a high downwind ground speed can be reduced by reducing airspeed! The result, is the infamous stall on the downwind leg.

    It is quire surprising how many experienced pilots, and even an examiner on one occasion, do not understand the vital difference between air speed and ground speed.

    An earlier comment by Simon Cragg falls into that category.

    Where things do get confused is when you are descending through a wind gradient (that is wind speed reducing as you approach the ground - exactly like the boundary layer on the wing). In this case, you need to increase your approach speed when landing otherwise as you descend your airspeed will drop away as the speed of the block of air reduces. That is unless you have a very light foamy that immediately reacts to the change in airspeed.

    Aerodynamics is not something most model pilots have studied. Where they have it tends to be at a very basic level. Some of us who post on here actually have studied aerodynamics to degree level, have done flight test courses and flew full size power and gliders. It's up to you if you wish to ignore the advice but don't complain when you end up with a broken aeroplane because you ignored the advice.

    Hi Sam

    Peter has answered your question for me and almost certainly made a better job of it too.

    Thanks Peter

    Levanter

  12. HI Bill

    Certainly a leading edge can be made any size. For me it is just easier to handle and fair in. I make the first strip just wide enough and bevel to match the top and bottom of the rib with a razor plane, protecting the ribs with masking tape.
    The second piece is again cut just wide enough and then a few swipes with a razor plane again gets the profile very close. Finished off finally by sanding.
    I don't think it is necessarily any stronger but for me, me better to get a good profile.
    Other's may find other methods better / easier

    Levanter

  13. I built one of those in my teens and I doubt I had the faintest idea what a CoG was for. I think it had a lifting tailplane and maybe it tolerated a CoG quite well aft.

    I tested it in long grass just in case but remember it flew very well just floating around. I certainly can't remember adding any more weight but it was a long time ago.

    Levanter

  14. Bill

    Reading your post I think you probably mean LE (Leading edge).

    I like the two layer / strip system that Peter Miller uses a lot.

    I don't like the BIrd's Beak because it creates a weak spot in the rib and if there is a knock on the leading edge it tends to cause a split. This method uses square section stock which is quite easy to fit and requires minimum sanding but I still don't use it.

    Levanter

  15. That's a good looking boat Percy and some interesting projects in the pipeline.

    Have you been over to the Model Boats forum. It runs at a snails pace compared to this one but lots of useful knowledge to tap into.

    Ray Wood has initiated a mini mass build" with HMS Cossack. A famous destroyer with the model designed by Vic Smeed. I am not really into warships but as it will be something completely different for me I am going to give it a go. There are four of us so far.

    Levanter

  16. Den

    I have built a number of floats and just use my favourite aliphatic glue which is water resistant when fully cured.

    As Percy says, covering with glass cloth is a good thing to do and I cover the float completely using epoxy. This gives a tough and totally waterproof coating. Some people can't use epoxy for allergy reasons or prefer other products but the results are more or less the same.

    I am planning a build of a Bombardier CL-415 water bomber and I am going to glass the whole fuselage with epoxy and then paint.

    I build models boats and have an RC racing yacht. Water has a habit of finding its way in somehow so it is important to thoroughly drain and dry the interior otherwise it won't necessarily just be the glue that fails.

    Levanter

  17. Posted by Martin Harris on 06/07/2019 13:20:49:
    Posted by Levanter on 06/07/2019 12:04:44:

    On the "motoway" going into town (Palma) there is a shunt a day at the moment often as not with a holiday makers hire car in the sandwich.

    Cash for crash scam targeting hire cars?

    Risky scam Martin seeing all that bent metal.

    The other thing I find curious here is that only the police and the Guardia Civil have flashing blue lights. The ambulances (which are mainly run through private clinics) and fire service only have flashing orange that doesn't show up anything like as well. Equal status to a digger, crane, oversized load etc. Must be a macho thing but I am sure it costs lives.

    Levanter

  18. Tailgating is taken to an art form in Spain. You get blocks of cars that look like centipedes going down the road.

    On the "motoway" going into town (Palma) there is a shunt a day at the moment often as not with a holiday makers hire car in the sandwich.

    Last week two in one day and one of them was just four cars in front of me. You have to work hard to keep a safe space because anything greater than a car's length and someone fills it. I haven't worked out the maths but theoretically you could go backwards laugh

    I drive an Audi and don't like my indicators that have a mind of their own.

    Levanter

  19. I have seen this elsewhere but the first time I saw it was in Turkey where there was a 20 second countdown to the green light. So many people were killing themselves and other jumping the lights and I believe it had some use.

    Side effect though was that every traffic light became a Formula 1 start with everyone revving to go.

    Don't start me on driving instructors. They catch them early here. (Spain)

    Levanter

  20. I have an MDS something or other in a second hand plane that I bought on a whim.

    After hearing so much about the engines I was quite shocked when after a quick prime and one flick, it burst into life and ran like the proverbial sewing machine. It's a keeper and I quite like the look of the double taper on the head and cylinder.

    Looks like I might have been lucky.

    Levanter

  21. Driving in Spain can be taxing at times but it does however prepare you a bit for driving in Italy. The most anarchic country I have driven in has to be Greece.

    Interesting thing about Spain is there is virtually no road rage. The Spanish are blissfully unaware of the dangerous goings on. If you resort to a the horn you just get a bemused look and presumably they put you straight down as a foreigner.

    Horn though, if you are a micro-second late getting away at the traffic lights, prepare to be deafened.

    (oops I forgot Turkey)

    Levanter

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