Lindsay Todd

D7 is about 56" span, and has had a few motors in over the years but started life with an OS60FS

yes really hope to get there

would be a great shame to loose although i admit to observing more than being active these days although this did prompt me to log on.

Not a Flair D7 but my own design from 1986 and still going strong, ok its a bit oily and covering a bit saggy but flies a treat Lindsay

looks very much like an older Mick Reeves kit to me

Chris can i be first at least on here to say would like to come as missed last year due to work Linds

Yep keep this one live, i'd like to finish my Spit on the same thread - nearly there!

Lots of info about the methodology the Weight Brothers developed in creating solutions of controlled flight and effectively the development of 3 axis control as we understand today. They were significant in there time for practical and empirical experimentation and developing formula that could translate into practical solutions to the problems and have subsequently been proven to have been remarkably accurate in there results. I am not sure if there was ever a definitive C of G program of formula development but they certainly had access to data from other experiments and documentation and through there own practical approach I would imagine they had a considered and measured approach that for all intensive purposes could predict optimum mass and incidence to provide balanced and therefore controllable forces. The flight and subsequent developments of the Wright Flyer are merely the figure head of a significant contribution to understanding aerodynamics and flight stability behind it.

I have been away without email / phone for the last two weeks and quite literally just found out so like everyone else I am truly shocked. Alex was a friend and colleague and i have worked (if you could call it that) on so many occasions over the last 20 years. His passion overflowed for model flying and this shone through in his writing and personality and to say he will be a loss to the magazine and the model flying community would be an understatement. I have very fond memories of photo shoots of some of my designs with Alex shouting at me 'lower' , 'slower' ; it was always such good fun and i will miss that so much. I have done the occasional show and event as a photo journalist so have a true appreciation of the effort and skills required and Alex taught me so much over the years. I can't believe he has gone so swiftly. He will be forever with me I am sure as will he be with so many others. My deepest condolences to his family, friends and everybody whose lives were touched and marked by him. Lindsay & Sandra

My new design Kestrel now finished and flown

Well had a chance to carry out the test flights today, nice bright sky if a little bumpy but the Kestrel performed beautifully. It was one of those models that just felt right straight away and needed absolutely no trim at all. The ASP 52 provides plenty of power, the controls felt balanced and comfortable and the flight characteristics are smooth and predictable. Just a couple of circuits and we were in to low passes and touch and goes, loops, rolls, inverted flight needs a little forward pressure on the elevator and spin recovery was simply on centering the sticks. Slow speed flight is good and the stall is very predictable and needs to be almost forced. In other words a great success. First take off, smooth, predictable and ground handling and rudder authority really nice, just a slight nudge of elevator to get airbourne Plenty of excess power climbing away A couple of circuits to get a feel, not that I felt I needed it as it felt so good straight away A bit of a Farnborough pass for the camera Time for some low passes and touch and goes A bit more fun dodging the farmer water cannon (further away than it looks on the photo) Touchdown after first flight, they really don't get any better! Ok time to crack on with final details on the plan, finish off the words and then get everything away to the Ed. If you chose to build his one it is a cracker. Lindsay

Well not flown yet but have added a few simple graphics and lettering just to finish things off and of course a suitable pilot (quite normal on this occasion) I have kept things really simple and just gone for basic lettering down the fuselage side. Tail wheel also now added, this is just a screw fixed commercial unit I picked up some time ago The wing graphic was created on cad and then cut on my Cameo Vinyl Cutter from some stock black film. The pilot is an old Flair ABS moulded affair with a bit of a repaint and of course ribbon scarf added. I also made up a basic windshield from scrap timber and clear acetate sheet. The original idea was a wrap around affair but this simple unit just felt more appropriate. Final addition was a battery monitor on the dash for those important visual check! After installing a 5cell nmh under the tank i checked the CG and did need to add a little nose ballast bringing the all up weight to 6.5lb and a wing loading of just about 23oz a square foot so not a floater but not a fighter either and should be fine. just need time and the weather to align now for test flights Linds

Many thanks for the positive comments guys, much appreciated. I never thought i had a reputation for 'interesting' pilots but thinking back you are probably right Nigel. I have indeed been looking for something appropriate and by that I don't necessarily mean a human figure. For a while I have fancied a gorilla with long fur to blow in the breeze, equipped with suitable goggles and scarf of course. Its about fun, god forbid I ever grow up! Linds

Well i nearly got this finished for my planned day (today) but with the wind howling through the trees it is a none flying day at least for new models anyway so with that in mind I can resume a more leisurely pace in adding some finishing touches. I though it worth posting a couple of pics though as the model now in a fully assembled condition and ready for flight if not in her final colours and markings. The forward fuselage has some paintwork but the wings still have some detailing required on this front. Note the silver centre section, you never have quite enough covering do you! I will get this to blend into the final design somehow although i actually think it looks ok. British racing green with a slight metalic hint adds some period charm i think. I need to work on getting the clearance hole around the needle valve better, you would think after all these years i could do that but a little detail plate over the top will disguise that guff! the details remaining are the tail wheel steering linkage, windscreen, pilot and more paint and graphics so just a couple of leisurely hours should see things complete and then just wait for a descent day for flying. Linds.

Spent the last few days or at least a couple of hours in the evenings doing a little covering of the wings and hinging the ailerons using a top hinge techniques with the heat shrink fabric then cracked on installing the ailerons servos, hitec mini metal gear in this case side mounted onto hard wood blocks that are glued onto the ply plates with arm passing through a slot and short 2mm wire link to the ailerons a bit more paint work now required before final set and then off to the field. Linds

just a bit of an update on progress starting with the struts witch have been clad with balsa strip to give some more dimension to them once the glue had dried these were shaped and sanded to an aerofoil profile I will probably glass cloth these to add a bit more strength rather than using just heat shrink fabric Next job was to make the ailerons which are basically two strips of 6mm to form the leading edge, a 1.5 sheet makes up the base which has a 3mm ply plate added and then 3mm balsa riblets on top once dry the leading edge is chamfered as these will be top hinged and sanded to match the wing profile next job is more covering and radio installation so not to far away now. Linds

Time for an update and both outer panels have now been completed and aluminium tube cut to length so a first proper assembly check was required so far so good So pretty happy with that, just a general sand a few little fill bits but all good and square so the next job was to make up the wing struts and brackets. The struts will be 2mm wire with a loop bent one end for screw fixing and a 90 degree bend and clevice keeper at the other. a couple of simple 1mm aluminium strip brackets are kinked and drilled to receive the 2mm wire and screw fixed to the undercarriage plate behind the main undercarriage nto t simple loop and screw fixes at the other ends. next job will be to clad with 2mm balsa to add some shape, then onto the ailerons. more soon. Linds

You know what Ron, until your question i had not realized, clearly I am a creature of habit but it should not cause any issues as the wing loading should be quite low and I do not envisage any serious tip stall issues short of dodgy piloting by yours truly but I do need to tweak the plan to show the same construction now I have done it. There are lots of claimed benefits for tip shape and profile but these are diminished by factors of scale so it is probably a case of visual appeal rather than aerodynamic performance on a model like this. Thanks for your input. Linds

Thanks Steven, yes i invested in getting the parts laser cut by Slec when buying the timber, makes life easier as i do all the design work on cad these days and the cost i think is quite reasonable compared to buying sheet stock and the time required to cut all the bits. It has been a bit of a retro update but i have caught up with progress now so updates may take a little longer but we have a local fly in on 20th June so hope to have the design ready for that. I find its good to have a target to aim for as it keeps the distractions at bay. Will hopefully look like this. Linds

ok so cracking on with the outer panels and starts with fixing 6mm spars (front being spruce as i has some spare but hard balsa wold have been fine) and then positioning ribs and gluing in place. tr next top spar and then the wing tubes were cut to length and slotted into place together with ply doubler's and glued in place followed by strips of 6mm balsa for leading edge and trailing edge to aileron cut out. I also added some 6mm ply blocks for the strut fixing and a couple of triangular sheet strengthening pieces between ribs and leading / trailing edges. straight onto the 1.5mm sheet to the top surface starting with a 25mm wide strip aligned with the aileron cut out, then to the trailing edge between the two outer ribs each side, extended hen to the trailing edge of the front spar and then the front section to leading edge. extra 6mm balsa is added at the leading edge tip to aid shaping. Then time to add the top sheeting and the cap strips on the underside the cap strip needs to be off set and glued to the edge of the rib at the aileron position to allow fitment of the 1.5mm ply servo hatches wing tips are 3mm balsa profiles glued on centre line of the outer rib and the 6mm wedges glued top and bottom aligned with the spars and leading edge when dry this will be sanded to shape, then time to make the second panel. more soon Linds

Bit more glass cloth done to the fuselage followed by trim and sand and further coats of acrylic resin (not sure why this photo loaded upside down) then time to make the 3mm lite ply engine hatch and servo bay hatch on the underside including a test fit of the u/c Once i was happy with the finish coating i installed the rudder and elevator servos and connected to the rudder and elevator next job will be the outer wing panels. more soon Linds.

the forward fuselage and hatch has been covered with glass cloth and acrylic finishing resin from Deluxe Materials and is really nice to work with, no smell, fast drying, can be applied with a soft brush which can be cleaned with water. A few coats with sanding between is all that is required to get a really good surface for paint. I have overlapped the glass cloth by 12mm or so over the heat shrink fabric so we have no joints and everything is sealed. Linds t

Time to align the fin and tail and make up the fairing blocks from laminates of soft balsa. a temporary fit of fin and tail to mark center lines then having removed the fin and tail i added a couple of scrap pieces of 6mm on the lines and then glued laminates to the back of former F9, when dry planed and sanded to match the fuselage. i have used snakes for the rudder and elevator linkages which have been located and supported down the fuselage so time to do some covering to the open structure using and antique heat shrink fabric. this was applied giving a short overlap the the front fuselage of circa 1/2inch (12mm). the fin and tail where covered in the same and glued into place checking all was square and to finish off this area, the rudder and elevator were covered in the same, horns fitted and hinged with fuzzy mylar strips and thin cyno. The covering is pretty shear so shows up all the construction this can be both good and bad but also is a very good base for paint so i think this model will have a mixture.

Time to crack on and next job was to fit the 6mm undercarriage plate, this has a 3mm ply laminate on the inside not visible here and also triangular balsa reinforcing pieces around the inside edges. 3mm balsa sheet was then added from the front of the undercarriage plate to the front of the engine mount former. forward of this will be a removable hatch so hardwood blocks were glued in place in preparation. since i was fitting screw fixing blocks i also added for the top hatch which are inset into the 6mm square longerons On a similar theme i added the fixing blocks to the underside servo access in the fuselage for a 3mm ply plate that will form the cover final job for the day was the 3mm aluminium undercarriage which was cut and bent to shape and then drilled for 4mm piano wire axels and screw fixings into the undercarriage fixing plate. The axle is a bent 4mm piano wire that is bent to shape and flexed into the aluminium form and then retained with a central saddle clamp and fixed with self tapping screws to the undercarriage plate more soon. Linds

well ultimately that is down to the editor but it will certainly be offered so hopefully yes it will be a future free plan.