Zulu ET

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Very nice Marcel

[ian ludwell]

Hello Lyndsay,like the skis,Marcel, a very nicely finished model.

been wondering where to source the glazing for this model and my beloved brought down a box of crackerd and the clear top looks ideal.

[Ton van Munsteren]

WWWooooo Dutch registration looking good Marcel.

 

Ton

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

Yeah, nice job Marcel - she looks great.

 

BEB

[Lindsay Todd]

Very pretty, hope you enjoy her.

 

Lindsay

 

[Old AL]

Hello

I have just started building ZULU ET and was wondering what the all up weight should be, I am a little bit belt and braces with the glue and things. I have been reading the posts and have found them very helpful. My previous experience with model planes was control line back in the 1950/60 so the weight did not seem so important. I have recently started RC flying but as yet do not have too much flying time.

Alan.

[Lindsay Todd]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtnOrNBR3is

 

Bit of flying off piste with Zulu ET

 

Lindsay

 

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Nice one Linsay, plenty of power there and looks great fun with skis

 

[ian ludwell]

Hello Alan,According to the RCM&E October this year the AUW is noted at  2lb 6oz (1072g),have fun...ian

[Lindsay Todd]

Thanks Ian, saves me going back into the workshop to weight it.

 

Lindsay

 

[Old AL]

Thank you Ian

Hope I can keep it down to 2 lb 6 oz. Half way into the fuselage now. All the best with your wings.

Alan

[Kit Davidson]

At last I had a completely successful test flight with my Zulu. I took the aircraft to Fairbourne on the Mid-Wales Coast yesterday. Its easy to find your own 100 acre expanse of hard sand when the tide is out. There was no wind and I could take-off in any direction. Minnie the Minx took off like a scale model. It looped, rolled and generally disported itself to my almost entire satisfaction.

Almost? I wasn't able to move back to half throttle without losing altitude. I am new to electric flight and I probably have not got the power train dovetailed together well enough. This time I was using an 11 x 5.5 propeller. Earlier I had tried a 10 x 5 and there was barely enough power to get airborne. There is still time to experiment and I might try an 11 inch propeller with more pitch now that I am more confident in what is going to happen after rotation.. My motor can produce 243 watts, so on the 50 watts per lb maxim, there should be enough power for a 2.5 lb model. The makers recommend up to a 12 x 6 propeller. I might try that too. Such fun! 

I have 40 per cent exponential on everything and I have limited the range of the flying controls. My earlier flights were twitchy, perhaps because of my inexperience but also perhaps because of the close coupled elevator to the C of G. I have coupled 10 per cent rudder to the ailerons.

There is no video of the test flight. I am sorry but you already know that my wife and cameras don't mix. Nevertheless, I flew until just before sunset and I have attached this photograph of the beach car park taken just as the Barmouth train crossed the Maddwych Estuary.  Come and fly in Wales!

 

Edited By Kit Davidson on 02/01/2011 21:10:28

[Lindsay Todd]

Glad to hear that kit, hope you get the motor set up sorted, I'm no great expert on this but sounds like your heading in the right direction. Hope you have lots of fun with the model.

Lindsay

 

[Joe Hull]

Well done Kit, Glad to hear of your successful flight with Minnie the Minx.

 

I lived in Wales for 8 years at Aberystwyth in the 1980's, so I know south west Wales (Dyfed) very well.

 

With 243 watts and a 2.5 lb model you have got nearly 100 watts per lb haven't you?

 

I was interested to hear of you experiments with different prop sizes.

 

here is a link I have found useful

http://adamone.rchomepage.com/index.html

 

If you scroll down the page you will find a prop matching program.

 

Quite useful for checking prop sizes and current draw and efficiency.

 

The program shows that a 10x6 or 9x6 would give best compromise of thrust and efficency, but I have yet to launch mine. I have just started covering, a 1st for me. I am learning new skills that's for sure.

 

The program shows that for larger prop sizes the thrust increases but the efficiency  drops and level flight speed drops. I guess the important thing is to get the model off the ground.

 

Best wishes Joe

[Kit Davidson]

Thanks Joe - I have resorted to experimenting because there are losses. Probably the most valid of these is the masking effect of the large frontal area of the Zulu. If I had more time I could work out the effective area of the 10 inch propeller disc that is not obstructed and can produce clean thrust. My experiments so far show that a 10 x 5 prop is not enough to get my Zulu off the deck. I have not weighed my model and I did use Solartex. However I think I can improve upon an 11 x 5.5 which was adequate. I am going for a larger diameter next. If I crash - I crash. It didn't deter Hanna Reitsch! 

[Joe Hull]

OK, I see Lindsay said (page 7)he had increased the motor size  and was using an 11x5 with 320 watt motor

 

Joe

[Tony Hudson]

Hi Guys

 

I am planning to build the Zulu ET and am gathering the materials to start construction. On the plab (Page 2) there are 2 peices that I can't identify where they go.(1) 6mm Medium Balsa Wing Support. (2) 3mm Medium Balsa Wing Support.

Can anyone help me indentify where they fit?

[ian ludwell]

Hi Tony,the 2 pieces you refer to are a bonded pair for either side above the glazing for the cabin,the 6 mm and the 3mm are bonded together with the 6 mm piece being on the outside.

The 3 mm piece if you look at the shape latches onto former f4 at either side.

On the plan the glazing is shown shaded and the wing support is the thick piece starting at former F3 and going back to F5 on either side which gives you your top rail for your cabin as well as your wing supprt.

Hope this was not too long winded..best of luck ..ian

ps look at Lyndsays pics they explain a lot.

[ian ludwell]

Well gentlemen,here we are at last 1 Zulu ET ready to fly.

Problem i have is that it i 1 lb overweght with everything fitted ready to go.

The motor i fitted is 400 Watt brushless ourunner with an 11x5 prop and 40 Amp ESC powered by 3s 2200mAh li-po.

We shall see hopefully this week.

Pic has been uploaded today but will have to wait for clearance,colours almost identical to Lyndsays Orange or Yellow and Green.

[Dan Sadler]

Hi,

I'm relatively new to model planes and have decided to have a go at building one from a plan. I had no idea where to even start but having looked online and seeing the great walkthrough guide that Lyndsay has taken the time to put together I decided to have a go (Thanks Lyndsay - I probably wouldn't have started this without it!).

I have got a couple of quick questions I was hoping someone could help with? Fistly I ordered some wood from the balsa cabin (Thanks kc for the recommendation) but the only diameter balsa wood they had anywhere near was 6.5mm not 6mm. It sounds like such a small amount that I can't see it being a problem but it would be good if someone could put my mind at rest?

The second question relates to adhesives. What do you use on what bits? PVA is the obvious option but I just wonder what people recommend?

Apologies if these are stupid questions but I'd rather ask than cock it up

Thanks in advance.

Dan

[Lindsay Todd]

6mm is effectively 1/4inch but 6.5mm should not cause any issues. I generally build with pva glue or aliphatic wich sands easier. Cyno or epoxy work just as well and obviously speed up the construction process. If this is your first model keep the cg forward of the indicated position by up to 10mm as the design is primarily a sports model with the indicated cg on the plan, moving it forward will just aid stability further. Enjoy.

Lindsay

 

[ian ludwell]

Hello Dan,welcome to the world of what do i do now.

Building from plans is not for the faint hearted but most enjoyable.

And with the amount of pics and information on here it helps a great deal.

The only advice i can give is take your time and spend wisely.

I have built and crashed this model,the fault was due to stripped teeth in the wing servo,maybe shold have used metal geared servos.

But it does fly from the plan,and it's a joy to build,have fun....ian

[Dan Sadler]

Thanks for the quick feedback guys - much appreciated. I am enjoying it so far but something tells me I might be back with more questions .

 

It's good to see that people are so quick to help!

 

Thanks again.

 

Dan

[Andrew Bourne]

Hello Lindsay, and all Zulu fans and builders,

 

Thank you all for the very useful tips and assistance. I have been building from plans for many years, but still managed to get some of this one wrong!

My Zulu build is nearing completetion after several misinterpretations of the drawing and incorrect dimensions for formers, but all is looking good now and ready for windscreen and u/c. Has anyone prepared a template for the glazing? or have I missed it in the forum? How do you upload photos to share?

 

Many thanks

 

Andrew

[Dan Sadler]

Hi,
I'm still (slowly ) working away at building this and got to the bit where I need to stick in f4, the wing supports and f5 and got stuck. I carried on and built the wings and tail sections thinking if I came back to it all would become clear but unfortunately it hasn't quite worked as planned.

I have got f4 stuck in place using the revised formers and when I came to line up the wing supports and insert f5 the wing supports sit slightly outside the shoulders of f5. I've rechecked the measurements and they all look right. The only thing I can see is that when you look closely at Lindseys pictures it looks like there is something stuck across the top of the first vertical on the lattice below f5. Is there as I can't see any mention of it in the instructions? Thanks in advance for any help received!

Dan