Tony Nijhuis 45" spitfire build (first for donkys years!)

[Danny Fenton]

Lovely job Simon, really nice finish, and unusual too

Cheers

Danny

[David Bess]

Stunning , Simon; just the best , your attention to detail shows WOW What a beauty

[Trots]

Hi Simon, she looks absolutely superb, I do hope she flies as good as she looks. Meanwhile mine looks every bit the bad job that it is! Just got the exhaust stacks to make and fit and she's ready for the air!......Trevor

[IanR]

Simon, you're surely not going to fly it are you? What if you crash it? Gulp, indeed.

No, mate. I think you've got it wrong - your Spitfire belongs in a glass case. You must have nerves of steel.

As a newcomer to the hobby, I take my hat off to you, and those like you, who have the nerve to fly such works of art after all the time and effort you've taken. I assume the pleasure you get from a successful maiden flight must be intense. Personally, I don't think I would ever have the nerve to make that maiden with such a model, no matter what. ( Now, where's me Parkzone catalogue?)

Well done, mate. Regards

Ian

[Cyclicscooby]

I've stumbled into here, and have just spent an hour reading EVERY post...

Amazing quality... I like the way you go about things... Methods and tools most of us have, just not put to such good use in our hands..!!

Look forward to seeing this fly, and more builds in the future..

Luv

Chrisie.. xx

[mightypeesh]

Hi chaps, Thank you so much for the positive comments. The maiden will be very 'gulp'!!! The thing is though until I fly her she is just a big static model. Wont make it easy though! I do love the Parkzone range - I just wish they would stop bringing out such desirable stuff - I need a new ESC, but that micro spit they have just bought out looks great.........Here is a pic of my PZ Spit fitted with one of my pilots and some invasion stripes - I could not see it on low fly bys against the trees - who would have thought camo would work?

just awaiting a bit of weathering.

anyway it is far too windy at the mo, so that is a great reason not to fly her yet. 

Thanks again, Simon

 

Edited By mightypeesh on 10/06/2012 11:00:16

[Trots]

Hi Simon, here's what mine looks like with paint, I've based it very loosely on AB910 of the BBMF , but depicted her as she 'might' have looked in 1944 , she was actually engaged in D-Day activities ( I was born on D-Day!) , I haven't included the invasion stripes as the paint has not keyed well enough to withstand masking , shame but my partner said she likes it better without them! AB910 was also famous for taking a WAAF Margaret Horton for a circuit clinging to the tail , she was keeping the tail end down as was practice on grass or rough ground and the pilot took off not realizing she hadn't got off following a power check ! The Sqn markings AE were of 402 Canadian Sqn. who flew her in 1944........Trevor

Edited By Trots on 15/06/2012 18:40:31

[Trots]

Think I should paint that spinner!

[mightypeesh]

Hi Trevor. Looks superb - top job! I really find that invasion stripes help a lot with visability when flying, but you might have better eyes than me! Still not maidened mine.....it will come.......my excuse is the weather has been so bad. It has either been too blustery, or when the wind stops the rain starts.....or both. Still am sure it will settle down when winter arrives. Cheers, Simon

[Concorde Speedbird]

Has she flown? It is beautiful, brilliant job.

CS

[Rich too]

Great build and write up - thanks for sharing.

[Trots]

CS assuming you're refering to my AB910 yes she has flown ,I've had several flights now and she flies a treat , the only problem ,and Simon needs to be prepared for this, due to the weight, landings are fairly fast and I haven't quite mastered this yet! I've found that the undercarriage legs don't take to hard landings too well and I've had to correct a slight bend each time . I'm dissappointed in the U/C as I thought the legs would put up with a bit of punishment but it looks like nothing less than a perfect touch down is required! .....Trevor

[bouncebounce crunch]

Hello Simon

The big "N" produces top class and inspirational jobbies, with added research into squadrons/pilots, his designs make that model yours and that much more special, I think that must be his aim, remember the special issue with Mr Boddington and his building advise; was it called the Nijhuis special? Keep up the great work. from im just a jealous guy.

bbc

[Concorde Speedbird]

Posted by Trots on 25/07/2012 06:52:26:

CS assuming you're refering to my AB910 yes she has flown ,I've had several flights now and she flies a treat , the only problem ,and Simon needs to be prepared for this, due to the weight, landings are fairly fast and I haven't quite mastered this yet! I've found that the undercarriage legs don't take to hard landings too well and I've had to correct a slight bend each time . I'm dissappointed in the U/C as I thought the legs would put up with a bit of punishment but it looks like nothing less than a perfect touch down is required! .....Trevor

Sounds like a Spit! I thought that a small spit with retracts would need somr speed, I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon. Well done!

CS

[Shane Sunday]

Any flight report?

[Trots]

Simon seems to have stepped off the edge of the planet, (apologies if you're in some kind of dificulty Simon). Flew my 46 inch TN Spitfire today in quite a strong breeze , take offs no trouble just need a touch of rudder to keep her straight, flies like it's on rails , plucked up the courage to loop and roll her , brilliant, mucked up the landing a bit but got away with it! Delighted with it. .......Trevor

[mightypeesh]

Hi gents. Ok, Ok. I admit. I have gone quiet. But all is well in the land of balsa and glue. I will get onto the maiden in a mo, but first a bit of a catch-up and a bit about my flying history. I came back to rc modelling about 4 years ago, and all had changed. Lipos, brushless motors, 2.4ghz had revolutionised the world. I am fortunate enough to have a very large farmers field at the end of my garden that the farmer lets me fly electric in, but because it is for crops ROG's are out of the question. So I was in the situation where although I have been flying for four years, I had never taken off (or landed) using those round wheelie things, and all of my aircraft have lumps missing from underneath (as well as any detail) from belly landing on stubble. I wanted to do a proper build, and the TN spit seemed perfect. small enough to hand launch, not too expensive a set up, no uc to worry about, and fully sheeted to take a bit of a battering. But then you know what happens.....E-flite bought out those fantastic retracts, I start adding this that and the other, make a pilot, vac form a new canopy, add rivet detail, and all of a sudden it is a very precious airframe, with all the time invested in the build. So I need to find a club with a nice strip. I joined Ashford Radio Aeromodllers a few months ago (If anybody is reading this from the club, thank you so much for a very warm welcome from all that I have met down the patch so far) to sort this out. Here is a pic from yesterday to break the monologue

Having sorted the strip problem, I then had the task of learning to land, not just dump it down, but to come in and not put too much stress on the uc, not wanting to rip it out on the Maiden! now i have a park zone spit with retracts, but compared to the seafire it feels like a feather. So I built another airframe just to practice ROG with (it was based around an old Super chipmunk I had) But you know How it goes. I ditched the composite fuse and designed a new one, changed the tail feathers, stripped the wing and gave it a full service, sculpted and cast a new pilot, used solarfilm for the first time.........

[mightypeesh]

But you know How it goes. I ditched the composite fuse and designed a new one, made it an open cockpit, changed the tail feathers, stripped the wing and gave it a full service, sculpted and cast a new pilot, used solarfilm for the first time, made a new hard wearing uc, got an e-flite stearman cowl to nick the radial off..........and this is how it ended up after initial flights and getting the c of g sorted and rebuilding the front a couple of times due to my lack of experiance with tip stalling

she flys great now though, and has prove to be up to my ROG learning curve. Still need to practice a lot, but at least I take my planes home in one piece now. I have used her to practice coming in low, level and fast, and finally got he Seafire out yesterday for her maiden.

 

Not sure I can do a quick build

Yesterday morning at the patch I ran through six packs with the XSC, (ex super chipmunk) lining up for touch and goes at full pelt, before going round again and again. felt good, so time to give it a go.

Blimey its heavy. AUW ended up at just over 4lb (note to self - build light!!!!), but I am getting 600 watts on the meter, so i need to keep the speed up and I should be ok. I ended up with over 1/2 lb of lead in the nose, even with the battery and stuff squashed into the front. hey ho. few quick photos just in case. Check and check again. perfect breeze, about 7mph, coming straight down the strip. Time to boogie!

I lined her up and opened the taps, holding her down to pick up speed before leaving the nice safe green stuff after a good distance, having learnt the hard way with my first flights on the XSC that not enough airspeed and tip stalling do not mix.

Wow!!! She flies!!!! A bit of frantic clicking on the trim - she is a bit tail heavy, and takes a bit to get to fly level, amazing presence in the air though, so different to my other planes. I carry out a few circuits, getting a feel for her, and making a mental note of adjustments to make, but soon the timer is beeping on my DX7. I came around for the finals low and straight, with maybe a third throttle, fast, but good. I touched down a 1/4 of the way down the strip, no bounce, and she streaked past. straight as a die as the tail came down. I even impressed myself. Trouble is I ran out of strip, and she carried on into the long grass before coming to a abrupt halt due to meeting the biggest pile of fresh sheep deposit I have seen. Note to self. Carry more kitchen roll to clean up retracts after abrupt halts!.

So there we go. I am so pleased with the results. The purpose of this build was to learn new techniques and to move on in this hobby from foamies and artf's, and I have certainly done that. Ok I made basic errors along the way, but I recognised my weaknesses and took time to hone the skills that I needed to get to this point. Once she is trimmed out I feel she is going to be a real pleasure to fly, and I have loved every aspect of the build. Next step is some own designs, which I will post on here when they are under way, also I have a review/build of a Jamara bd-5 ongoing in the forums if you want a look.

Thank you so much to Tony Nijhuis for a complete and great design, and thanks to you all for your support and input into this build, it makes it seem more worth while some how.

Ps. Do any of you techno wizzes know how to programme flaperons into a DX7? I need some way of bleeding off some speed for landing -

not liking sheep do do's to much!

Cheers, Simon

 

Edited By mightypeesh on 25/08/2012 09:06:11

Edited By mightypeesh on 25/08/2012 09:11:52

[mightypeesh]

By the by my Bd -5 build is here. **LINK**

Simon

[Concorde Speedbird]

Lovely, the Seafire livery is great, nice to see something different. Sort out the minor problems, get her up and tell us how she goes, I think she'll be a wonderful plane. Nice job!

CS

[Trots]

Hi Simon, well done with the maiden ! Mine came out around the four pound mark and like yours wanted to climb all the time , I'm currently working on saving some weight on mine will let you know how it goes. I like your XSC , I'm a sucker for low wing open cockpit jobs which is why I have a Turbulent and PT19 , your training for fast landings is an excellent idea and is what I should have done . Not too sure about flaperons have you considered retro fitting flaps? Two Spitfires have gone in where I fly so I was a bit nervous yesterday not wanting to be the third! Needn't have worried , had a good flight and landed her perfectly! So stable and good in the wind too. Yes thanks to Tony he knows how to design an airplane....Take care and happy landings.........Trevor

[GrahamC]

Hi Simon. Just to pick up on your comment about flapperons. I would be inclined to say, don't do it. I think that you would massively increase the chances of her dropping a wing and spinning in due to tip stall, which is always the danger of a Spit anyway. Flapperons in effect add washin to a wing.

What you need is more drag. I'm not the expert, but I wonder what effect raising the ailerons a little as spoilerons would have, rather than dropping them as flaps. It may reduce lift and allow you to increase the angle of attack a little.

What do others think of flaperons on a Spitfire?

[Concorde Speedbird]

I agree with Graham, Flapperons on a Spitty is probably best not to try. They can cause tip stalling problems on Wot 4's, and they are impossible to tip stall normally (from my experience) so a Spit with them could be a mahusive problem (if that's a word!)

Spoilerons, never tried before, they do bleed off lift though, so be careful if you try that.

What I think you need is some more flight time on the Spit. Not saying you are a bad pilot, I'm sure you are an ace but I had landing troubles initially with my Funfly, always overshooting. After lot's of approach practice, I was then fine.

If still a problem then you could try and make some flaps, but watch the weight! Again, your Spit (or Seafire) is superb!

CS

[mightypeesh]

Thanks for the advice on the flaperon idea Graham and CS, I wont go there! same for adding flaps, she is heavy enough already. Glad you noticed that I am an 'ace pilot' CS. When I fly the whole club stops in awe!.........Ok, ok, they are waiting to see which way up the plane is going to go in today .

Seriously though. I do need to get more time with the Spit. She is much heavier than my other airframes, and being aware of tip stalling I probably over-egged the speed when coming in. Then again, that is the point of building this, to push my skills and to learn more about flying and building. I admit that I of course went for possibly the worst airframe on which to hone my skills- ie a Spitfire rather than a nice sensible plane, I am only on this planet once however and you never know when your bus will come. A lot more practice and I am sure I will be fine. But I know my weaknesses, which is a good thing in this hobby, and I love the challenges that it brings. Congrats on the flights Trevor, glad it is all good.

Cheers, Simon

[Shane Sunday]

Congrats on the maiden Simon. I've started revisiting my TN Spitfire. It seemed a shame to see it sitting there in the corner as it was my first balsa build and deserves to be flown. Yours is absolutely beautiful. One thing I can't understand is how did Tony get his to come in at 2lbs 8oz? I've torn the retracts, tail wheel and poked holes all over the air frame and she still comes in at 3lbs 12oz. The holes are at the rear to help balance the model and I've got 7oz of lead up front. She balances at 8cm back of the leading edge so... tail heavy still. Ugh

Anyhow So glad to hear of your success and stear clear of cow poo. It's even worse than sheeps.