Forum members' new models: Let's see them.

[Jonathan M]

5 hours ago, Cuban8 said:

Thirty metres or around a hundred feet of runway may well be OK for foamies and certain other models that get away PDQ but your model is pushing its luck with so small a strip IMHO and especially if the grass isn't very closely cropped. From the photo of the model sitting on the ground, the grass is a bit lumpy but far from poor compared to that which many clubs fly from. Is there  a slight upwards incline that might make things difficult on certain wind directions?

My original trainer from over forty years ago was a heavy Hi-Boy powered by a knackered Merco 35 and the usual 10X6 prop - minimal power to say the least but it did lift itself off the deck without a problem  in something like half as much again as your strip. The model weighed in at about  five pounds IIRC.

Are you certain that the Irvine is producing its full power, I'd expect your engine/model combination to accellerate quite smartly - have you checked it with a tacho? I'd guess that the Irvine should be over twice the power of my original old tired Merco, so something sounds a bit odd to me. I'd be interested in getting a reading of the static thrust figure as well.

Give the tail dragger configuration a try, but I wouldn't have thought there would be a significant difference between that and a tricycle in terms of wheel drag (an extra wheel obviously with three v two) to effect the take off run. If the intention was to have the model as a club trainer then the advantage of a tricycle config is lost - also having to keep the tail down during the first part of the take off run will retard its progress somewhat from the start. You mention the main thin wire gear becoming easily distorted and bent out of alignment - maybe an aluminium unit will help with that.

 

Thanks for that, very helpful.  Had a further flying session last week after I'd posted and sorted the U/C, with two outcomes:

 

Undercarriage - with new nose-leg and steering-arm there was no wobble and the model tracked straight as a die, so wheel-braking effect now gone.  Will definitely keep it as trike, will fit the alloy legs to the rear so that I don't have to keep bending the spindly wire ones back.

 

Engine - something is amiss here..?  This Irvine 46 doesn't seem to produce the goods in the same way my previous 46 did or my current 53 does.  It seems to get very hot very quickly on the ground, whatever prop I tried (12x5 10,600rpm, 11x5 11,100rpm), using a new OS No 8 plug, and the engine is of course totally exposed.  In the air (sometimes on takeoff, sometimes when doing aeros, sometimes when just flying S&L) the engine randomly strains and cuts.  It might be a fuel plumbing issue (I haven't yet had the old tank out to check), but I can't help feeling that excessive heat is the culprit.  I get advance warning of this with a few seconds of straining before it cuts (gives me time to plan my deadsticks!) and it happens whether I'm running slightly more rich or running normally (i.e. max revs leaned, then back off a bit etc).

 

But the engine issue is now going to be historic (certainly in this model).  The club is funding an electric powertrain and set of four 4s lipos, so I can use it for training on Sunday mornings (the only time IC is restricted) from Autumn onwards.

 

 

 

[Paul De Tourtoulon]

1 hour ago, Jonathan M said:

.  It seems to get very hot very quickly on the ground,

Probably lost it's chrome around the exhaust port, like my .53 did.

[Paul Marsh]

Xfly A10 and Eflite ME262.

[GrumpyGnome]

A10s are ace! Bŕrrrrrrrrppppppppp... 🙂

[Cuban8]

18 hours ago, Jonathan M said:

 

Thanks for that, very helpful.  Had a further flying session last week after I'd posted and sorted the U/C, with two outcomes:

 

Undercarriage - with new nose-leg and steering-arm there was no wobble and the model tracked straight as a die, so wheel-braking effect now gone.  Will definitely keep it as trike, will fit the alloy legs to the rear so that I don't have to keep bending the spindly wire ones back.

 

Engine - something is amiss here..?  This Irvine 46 doesn't seem to produce the goods in the same way my previous 46 did or my current 53 does.  It seems to get very hot very quickly on the ground, whatever prop I tried (12x5 10,600rpm, 11x5 11,100rpm), using a new OS No 8 plug, and the engine is of course totally exposed.  In the air (sometimes on takeoff, sometimes when doing aeros, sometimes when just flying S&L) the engine randomly strains and cuts.  It might be a fuel plumbing issue (I haven't yet had the old tank out to check), but I can't help feeling that excessive heat is the culprit.  I get advance warning of this with a few seconds of straining before it cuts (gives me time to plan my deadsticks!) and it happens whether I'm running slightly more rich or running normally (i.e. max revs leaned, then back off a bit etc).

 

But the engine issue is now going to be historic (certainly in this model).  The club is funding an electric powertrain and set of four 4s lipos, so I can use it for training on Sunday mornings (the only time IC is restricted) from Autumn onwards.

 

 

 

Good idea to go electric with a club trainer. IC is otherwise fine of course, and obviously was the only practical choice for many of us who've been at this hobby for many years. However, the advantages of a modern electric set up are are just too good to ignore these days, both for the pupil and instructor. No reason why the IC route can't be explored by new flyers as they progress further and if they wish to do so.

[Jonathan M]

15 minutes ago, Cuban8 said:

Good idea to go electric with a club trainer. IC is otherwise fine of course, and obviously was the only practical choice for many of us who've been at this hobby for many years. However, the advantages of a modern electric set up are are just too good to ignore these days, both for the pupil and instructor. No reason why the IC route can't be explored by new flyers as they progress further and if they wish to do so.

 

Absolutely agree.  I prefer to fly IC when I can (and am the only member of this club who does so) but trained and got my A Cert a decade ago on my own original Riot, 3s.  We've got the odd younger member who'd like to find out more about IC, so they're welcome to learn from me (as much or as little as I know!) when they're ready.

[Jonathan M]

PS:  In terms of exposing folk to IC - my superb-to-fly Gangster 63 (Irvine 53)  needs a longer t/o run than this patch comfortably allows, so I only fly it now at my old club, which is now unfortunately further away... and is also almost exclusively electric these days!

 

But I've recently bought an old Wayfarer 53" bipe to refurb over the winter for my ASP 70FS, specifically so I can fly IC locally here.

 

It is not pretty in its current state, which is however mostly sound, and it is a "members new model"... so here's a picture or two! 🤣

 

 

 

 

[Richard Harris]

New to me is this unflown Galaxy ME109 gifted by an old mate. If I get chance I may give it the once over during the winter months. I've freed off the OS91 and tested all the servos.

It's been in a loft for 30 odd years  so the horns etc will all need replacing. The canopy has yellowed with age but I think they may still be available. 

Despite its age it is quite light for its size so should fly ok.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dave windymiller]

My f86 is finally airworthy so all being well it will be maidened at Elvington at the end of the month.  If all goes well, i will add stenciling, rivets and weathering!

 

Home made twist and retract nose gear, Futaba 16sz and Xicoy x95 (a tiny little engine for its thrust!!).  The part finished kit was bought at the nationals swap meet about 7 years ago. Dont know what kit it is but the latest theory is its a 1/7th BVM clone by Peter Leibertraill (not sure of spelling), the Graupner hotspot designer. 

 

Windy

 

[Nick Cripps]

Lovely job, Dave. Look forward to seeing it in the flesh at a club meeting soon.

[Merry Mark]

3 hours ago, dave windymiller said:

My f86 is finally airworthy so all being well it will be maidened at Elvington at the end of the month. 

 

 

Best of luck with the first flight.  Great subject and lovely model.

[Peter Miller]

Rivets?  What rivets?

Yours Truly on visiting Canadian Sabre

[Peter Jenkins]

They used flush rivetting so there are ni drag inducing rivet domes.  There was no other way of securing panels in those days.  The Hunter, a slightly later design than the Sabre used the same technology.  If the aircraft is newly painted then you are unlikely to see the rivets.  However, after a few months they tebd to become visible as oul and dirt streaks show them up.

 

On a polished skin, they are dead easy to see.

[Peter Miller]

Which would mean hours of painstaking work with a sharpened piece of tube for something that would only only be seen in close inspection.

 

In the picture that is yours truly back in about  1958-9. (must check service record)

 

The Canadians visited St Mawgan and then found that our Houchins could not produce enough electric power to start the Sabres so they had to fly in their own starter  trolleys.

[dave windymiller]

Thanks chaps,

 

Will defo add weathering and stencil text.  Im going to try to spraying through an "EZ Screenprint" silk screen made on an injet and developed with sunlight!  Anyone tried this?  Jet magazine featured this approach a few years back.

 

 Rivets?  Yes subtle ones. Its with all good intentions but as soon as a new project starts, such plans go out of the windows.  We will see

 

Could have done "Mig Mad Marine" all polished finish as i can easily get the decals but was advised silver is a pig to see under some flying conditions.  The luftwaffe at least had some colour!

 

Edited September 11 by dave windymiller

[Hangsegler]

 

[Paul Marsh]

Hanger 9 P-47 fun scale.

 

[Karl-Georg Krafft]

After having built and flown my Jupiter  Bipe  with great success ,I now tried the next creation of the same designer Thomas Buchwald. It's the Jupiter  Coupe.

Again I took the exact dimensions of the download plan, but the original plane looks like a Mr Mulligan and my version resembles more a Cessna  CR-3 with an inline engine. Built mostly from 6mm Depron it's again a fantastic flyer.

 

Karl

[John Lee]

 

My DB Tinker had its maiden today, went OK as I nudged it around the sky trying not to make it wallow too much as all that dihedral makes it inclined to do.

 

I picked up an old Chart kit a couple of years ago & assembled the woodwork over last winter as a bit of a nostalgia build. We have had some appalling weather over the last 10 days so I set to and got it finished. Apart from the kit everything else has come from my bits & pieces store on a 'near enough' basis, much like we did when the model was designed in the late 60's.

[martin collins 1]

First flight today for my Max Holste Brussard, 92" span Laser 80 power. Flies a treat, got 4 flights in, didn't need to use the flaps, it comes in very slowly without them, will try them out next time i fly it. 

[Paul Marsh]

Xfly F-18

 

 

[Peter Jenkins]

Two of us maidened our BJ Craft Anthems today.  It's spooky seeing two identical aircraft sitting next to each other. Mine's the far one.  Mark hadn't managed to cut the prop slots in his carbon spinner so flew without the spinners.

 

 

In case you are wondering what happened to my first Anthem, I'd used the JR X-bus system to control the 3 servos in the tail i.e. 1 rudder and 2 elevator.  On the 3rd flight of the day at my second and smaller flying site, as the Anthem came level with me it appeared to be having difficulty wanting to lift off.  As the 4 ft high crop was getting closer by the minute, I applied full up elevator and the Anthem leapt off the ground and despite applying full down elevator there was no response from the elevator!  It appeared to be stuck in full up!  As the Anthem approached the top of a very low loop, it was clear there wasn't going to be a good ending.  I closed the throttle and that responded but the aircraft impacted almost in the middle of the patch and was pretty much destroyed up to about 3 inches into the wings.  Aft of that there didn't appear to be any damage at all!  There was no response from either elevators or rudder but the motor clearly responded and the ailerons worked.  After removing all the kit from the wreckage, I connected up all the components of the radio system and.......everything worked!  So, I suppose the conclusion one could draw is that the X-Bus converter - it turns X-bus signal into PWM for non-X-Bus servos - must have suffered a glitch!

 

My new Anthem has forsaken X-Bus and uses standard JR PWM control.

 

Both maidens were uneventful.  In my case, apart from needing a dose of down elevator, it was the same with the first Anthem, there was no need for either aileron or rudder trim - clearly the time spent in set up was worth it.  There are a few more bits of trimming to do before the aircraft is ready for prime time.

 

 

[Adrian Smith 1]

Ouch! I feel your pain Peter. Good that you are back on an even keel with a new Anthem.

[Peter Jenkins]

Thanks Adrian. I have to say I was the tensest I've ever been on the maiden flight given the incidents that bedevilled my first Anthem.

[Erfolg]

Karl, where did you get the down load for the Jupiter Coupe?