John Manning

As I also do model engineering the idea of spending any money on tools that can't do their job is a non starter. Words like "touch" "barge pole" "don't" come to mind. JohnM

Due to circumstances beyond my control, I shall have to lay aside the Dawn Flyer build with the tail feathers done and the extended fuselage. I'll keep in touch via this thread, Internet in strange places willing, and I may get to Greenacres in June. So very sad face at the moment. I have even got the 3 gram servos to move the pilots head and arms. Best wishes JohnM

Well Kevin, Brothers can cause mayhem. Mine towed a glider into the ground the last time I did any aero modelling, that was 50 years ago! These Can Doo machines sound like a handful at times. Good luck JohnM

Hi, The special razor blades are available from SLEC they are called safety razor blades and are sold in packs of 4 part number SL031B-S. Sorry to go on at you Plummet but I worked in Hospitals for 30 years and I like to keep people out of them! I find that marking a line down the piece I am cutting helps me guide the saw straight. Regards JohnM

Plummet, Our A&E departments are already stretched without cutting ourselves to bits with wobbly razor blades. Either: A/ Razor saw. or jewellers saw. B/ Large scalpel blade in the correct holder. C/ last resort, single edge razor blades which have a safe thick back to hold. The saw option is best because the wood is thick and fairly hard.and the saw handles allow you to see the cutting line. Best wishes JohnM

Help. well sort of. I've started the fuselage and F4 seems to be too tall and not wide enough. I have glued it at the bottom of the slope ans indicated on the plan. The notch in the top is above the cut out for the wing bearer plate. Have I stuck it in the wrong place? Is it the wrong size? any comments would be most welcome, including a lnk to BEB's build blog! Many thanks JohnM

Plummet, well done for starting, Interesting point is that my laser cut Dawn Flyer came from SLEC. Although I ordered it from Myhobbystore it came direct from SLEC, looks very nice. my workshop has had a tidy today and another project has been progressed (lathe modification). John M

I had the self same thing happen on my Gym Star, indoor trainer. Fortunately I noticed it as the rudder had also reversed. They have stayed the same ever since. Yesterday was a fab day, I went for a family walk and wished that I had revamped the foamy cub that I have. John M

Helium escapes the Earth, it drifts off into space. The planet is losing helium which is why it's use in frivolities like party balloons is being stopped. Nobody can make helium, it is an element once lost it is gone so we have to be careful with it. America controls the stocks of Helium and has done for a long time. The Hindenburg disaster in the 1930's was caused by America not selling Helium to Germany. The Germans used Hydrogen, the rest ,as they say, is history. the American airships Macon and Shannandoah swapped helium as there was only enough to fill one at a time. It is nice to see another attempt to use airships and to re-use the Cardington facility for the purpose it was built for. Not a lot of lift from a very large ballooon. Interesting but I don't think it will catch on. John M

Well Tavina,a question like this can generate a lot of different opinions. "Budgie" likes his DX7 because it does what he wants. I like my DX8 because I now don't need to buy another transmitter because the DX8 does all that I can think of. It probably does more that I have not found out about. If this present is a surprise then I would say that the DX8 will last him for a very long time. It has enough features to handle all the usual helicopters, gliders and fixed wing airplanes. It feels solid in my hands, It feels like I am holding something special. If it is not a surprise and you want to buy the right thing then take him to the local model shop and get him to choose. You loose the surprise but you know that he has got what he wants. If he chooses the DX7 then you have enough to buy him a Blade 120 helicopter to go with it.

I doubt it. 0.1mm is quite a lot in fit terms. To get two bits to slide into each other you need the hole to be bigger by 0.15+0.35 thou of inch =5 tenths. this comes out at .00002 mm so the hole needs to be 2.4002 for a push fit. As you can see 0.1mm is a lot. Try finding a 2.4mm prop adapter. Have you tried 4max? regards John M

Hooray, Postie, well courier just delivered the CNC and wood pack. May have to do some serious building. I tried ordering the wheels (flair) from SMC I think but the site fell over when I clicked on pay. shall try telephone ordering. Next re-read BEB's build blog. John M

Kev, where did you get your wheels from? I may as well order them then I can try the undercart while I wait for the cnc and wood pack to arrive. I could try and get my pilot 1/12th scale to move his head and arm. Then Alex W. will see the pilot wave! John M

Hi Chris, If you read back through this thread you will find quite a few variations on the theme. Mine with it's extended nose, BEB with his D box front to the wing assembly and little variations among the others. I don't recall anyone going for I/C power though. The extra weight may help the balance problems some have encountered.

Just returned from the copy shop with both full size and 66% plans. The smaller plan looks good for an indoor machine. All in depron with moving canard. Cliff, I thought that applying power generated lift so the aircraft climbs, see the "What goes up articles" in the mag. There are some fantastic colour schemes about. May have to start building soon, along with the Saab J21 and the Dawn flyer for the RCM&E fly in.

Kev, Thanks for your build blog. A few pointers that I must note as I move on with my build. JohnM

Must take the plans to a copy shop to make a 60% Mini Can Doo for inside flying made in Depron or similar. It will need rudders. The hall is long but only 75ft wide so the walls can come up a bit quick even with slow flyers. cheers JohnM.

Fuselage sides have been cut to the new lengthened size, some more laminated surface edges have been made. Two have made it to a nearly filled shape. I use six laminations of 1mm or thinner sheet. Soon I shall need the wood packs. When I phoned about the outstanding items the person I spoke to could offer no dates or reason for the delay. Got other things to do, like replace the ESC on my Gym Star. I managed to plug the battery in the wrong way round. smoke and funny smell. With a bigger battery pack on the Dawn Flyer I must choose a positive connector system. JohnM

Darran, When did you order your replacement packs? My first packs have been on order for several weeks now and still no news of their arrival time. To position the motor , I just laid it on the plan and marked the position of the mount. Regards JohnM

Hi John, The lack of CNC pack is why I am pursuing the route of building the tail feathers and undercarriage first. Then I can do the wings when the boring to cut out parts are done for me. We may both need to re-read BEB's build blog as there are some tips about non fitting parts and work arounds in it. Regards JohnM ps people will confuse the two of us!

Hi Kevin and Vecchio, The laminations are from 1mm X 6mm balsa and there are six of them. I made a former from 6mm depron the outside is 6mm smaller than the shape on the plan. The balsa is soaked in water for about 20 minutes. I use aliphatic glue applied with a fine nozzle dispenser ad pin into the building board with lots of pins. Remember to cover both the board and former with cling film. after the final strip is in place the straight parts of the laminations are clamped with depron sheet. the whole is then left to dry. The idea works and the final piece is stiff and seems to be OK. When I get the model bits out again (in about a week) I will take some photos and try to put them on here. Lengthening the fuselage idea came from builders saying that large weights are needed to balance the model and is aimed at increasing the effect of the battery weight. Yes the sides are in the CNC pack but I have not yet been given a dispatch date for that bit of the kit. Starting the fuselage and tail feathers means that progress can be made before all the bits are to hand. JohnM

Hi everyone. I ordered the CNC pack before 18th Jan, the plans arrived a couple of weeks ago, but still no date for the balsa and CNC packs. I have been building the tail feathers using laminated 1mm X 6mm strip as per the Hawker cygnet plans. The advantage of a non scale model is that you can alter some of the detail without upsetting the scale appearance. I have been practicing the lamination technique ready for the cygnet. It will also give a slightly lighter tail and help with balance of the model. I have also redrawn the fuselage sides to add 20mm into the nose. I can now start cutting the fuselage sides before the CNC and wood pack arrive. Regards JohnM

Just for the record, I bought my electric set up from George Worley, better known as 4-max. a 2837 1120 kv 310watt outrunner and mounting cage. 45 amp esc unit a Jfx 12x5 wooden prop. and a power meter. The esc unit was the most expensive single item but I diliberately over rated it. I am still awaiting the wood pack and the laser cut pack. BUT I have started with a laminated rim rudder in an attempt to get the tail weight down and the crash strength up. As I have the wood stripper going I shall make up the wing tips, 3 layers 1mm balsa. It is easier to bend than 3mm square section. I have some 6mm balsa in stock so I can remodel the nose to extend it by 20 mm. The idea is to give more lee way for balancing. The J21 is also being planked at the same time. regards JohnM

Thanks, Lindsay. The plans have now arrived, they are much better quality than those in the magazine. It makes me wonder if Myhobbystore will do scaled plans. I would like a 66% plan of the Can-doo and creating one is proving a bit difficult for the printers in the village. I know that I could use my bus pass and go into Nottingham. It would be nice to buy scaled plans straight from the digital store at Myhobbystore. What do others think? One thing I have noticed is that the digital magazine does not include the plans! John M

My hobby Store dispatched the plans this morning, Electrics arrived the other day, need to find out all the hiccups that BEB and others found. Then it's time to start. Flying training not to good as I have not set up the ESC on my indoor trainer and it did not fly well. It gave that feeling of not being well so I flew the 130 red bull heli instead.