Andy Blackburn Posted March 2, 2017 Author Share Posted March 2, 2017 Thanks, Maurice! Thought it was worthwhile showing the aileron servos: - they're glued in using a stiff mix of epoxy and microballoons; sounds suicidal if you've not tried it but F3F guys use this a lot and works really well because a) you're unlikely to need to take the servo out, and b) if you do need to, give it a sharp tap on the servo cover with a screwdriver handle and it'll pop off, leaving an accurately-moulded bed behind. The servo can be re-attached in exactly the same place with a very thin smear of epoxy. This is the view from the business side: ...and I'm thinking of installing the gear like this: - not quite decided where the switch will go yet. And finally, a journey of a hundred miles starts with the first step. I have done <pause for hyperventilation> a panel line: That's a Pentel 0.5mm propelling pencil with 2B leads, and it works quite well. Dunno what all the fuss was about... More in a few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 So... It's probably a bit strong to call it "finished", but after I've stuffed nearly three ounces of lead in the nose to get it to balance, I've stopped working on it until it's flown. Really pleased to have got to this stage, though, so here are some hurried pictures of it pwning the coffee table (because that's how we stage photos now, or so Scotty tells me. I get more points though because rather than waiting until SWMBO is out of the house, I did this while she was at the dining room table on the computer, round the corner, about 7 feet away...) And the underside, complete with taped-on matchsticks to help with c.g. measurement: Better photos to follow at the weekend. The total weight (including the aforementioned lead ballast) is a tad over 42 oz which gives a wing loading of slightly less than 14 1/4 oz/sq ft - which is quite gratifying, really. Looking forward to the maiden flight. Would I have done anything differently? If I was building another one, I think I might: Use slightly heavier wood - some of the planks and wing sheeting was a bit too soft. Cover it in film - much, much quicker than dope and tissue. Use a solid nose - on reflection, I don't think the bomb-aimer's transparency will last long! There are very few panel lines, I'm not really sure how many it needs in order to look right; I don't want to put all the panels on because a) it's quite a significant undertaking and b) it would then look like a Christmas tree - what an observer would then tend to notice would be the panels, rather than the overall shape. When you look at a real aeroplane it's usually either up close when you will notice the panels but you won't see the overall shape, or at a distance when you'll see the shape but not the panels. Somewhere in-between, there's a happy medium... Edited By Andy Blackburn on 23/03/2017 21:42:27 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denis Watkins Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Splendid, spectacular, superb Andy . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Cooke Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Lovely job Andy, that looks super!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Twist Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Superb Andy. Really like your colour scheme choice. Despite your concerns, I reckon having the bomb aimers transparency at the front is worth the risk - it sets off the nose of the model perfectly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete taylor Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Very nice indeed Andy - congratulations! She'll look amazing in the air and all of your hard work will be but a distant memory Bets of luck for the maiden and don't forget your camera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Very very nice Andy! It'll never do a 30 second free flight round Edlesborough school hall though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Model Monster Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Ten out of Ten. No need to try any harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Edwards 2 Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 Having been lucky enough to have seen this build evolve in the flesh, I can now pronounce judgement. You make me sick. Really. The finish, the attention to detail, the design, the plan, the craftsmanship, I mean, really ? What are you trying to do to mere mortal builders like myself ? Humph. I'm off for a sulk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 Scotty, I'm very sorry to have offended your delicate sensibilities... However, I assure you that there are many cruddy bits, and I'll happily (well, not really. I'm just pretending to be happy about it for the sake of Good Form) point them all out on request. And don't think that going off in a sulk has means that you won't be required to do the first launch... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted March 26, 2017 Author Share Posted March 26, 2017 Thanks for the kind words, chaps... Here are some better photos: The astute/observant reader (i.e. nearly everyone except me) will notice that the original crew windows (black Solartrim) have been removed and replaced with some that should now be the right size, in the right place. The original c*ck-up happened because I was rushing to get it done and used a 3-view without checking it against photographs first. Mea culpa. I think I'm going to add panel lines for the crew escape hatch around the crew windows... And I'm not sure if it will show up on any of the pictures but after some careful study of photographic evidence I've have added a few carefully-applied silver paint chips; serendipitously, many of these seem to have covered-up most of the existing paint blemishes... The lettering font isn't 100% accurate, but it's very close to scale and it was easy to apply. Here's the radio installation: All in all, it's come out quite well. Really looking forward to the test flight. Edited By Andy Blackburn on 26/03/2017 13:26:40 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denis Watkins Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Stunning Andy. I wish I saw your panel lines intention before you added the light colour. A useful trick is soft pencil on the primer shows through the light top coat, BUT you have to be very careful scribing the lines straight, as pencil is near impossible to get off a light colour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Chantler Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Fantastic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kettle 1 Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Nice very nice Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kettle 1 Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Nice very nice Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Garsden Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Looking forward to seeing this at the Orme in 2 weeks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Garsden Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Looking forward to seeing this at the Orme in 2 weeks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted March 27, 2017 Author Share Posted March 27, 2017 Posted by Peter Garsden on 26/03/2017 23:31:49: Looking forward to seeing this at the Orme in 2 weeks? Ah, sadly not - I'm indoor trimming at Peterborough in two weeks, and I do need to do it because the Indoor Nats is nearly upon us. Planning at least one of the later Orme events this year, though. Assuming, of course, that the wind cooperates... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted April 13, 2017 Author Share Posted April 13, 2017 So, Scotty chucked it off Ivinghoe Beacon yesterday in a 25+ mph westerly, and it flew; in fact I might go so far as to say that a) it felt really good within a few seconds (yes, it's one of those), and b) it exceeded expectations. The following photos (all taken by Scotty, for which I'm very grateful) are a bit fuzzy because they're enlargements and the model is, I'm told, quite quick and difficult to photograph when the wind is that strong. Also, the photographer was handicapped by a non-operative finger after an A&E Incident which he may choose to relate separately. And this one's on the approach: It does seem to be quite a good airframe; the wing is very short so it won't be very efficient, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of drag either; it gains speed quite quickly and at about 42 oz it seems to retain quite a bit of energy. I called "landing" the first time and it just cruised straight through and back out into lift again; I seem to remember Scotty's double-size Canberra doing the same thing, actually. The dive test shows that the c.g. is almost correct but still a little bit far back; it goes straight down with perhaps a slight tuck; personally, I like it to pull very slightly towards the canopy, so am going to add half or three-quarters of an ounce of nose ballast next time out. The stall was a non-event - it just nods a bit. It needs checking in lighter lift but it looks as though I've managed to guess a close-to-correct amount of geometric washout to help the aerodynamic washout along (Eppler E205 on the parallel section, outer panels blend to Clark Y at the tip with about 1 degree of washout. I think there's at least 1 and possibly up to 2 degrees of aerodynamic washout, depending which polars you believe at at what Reynolds number) And yes, the landing required care but the bomb-aimer's transparency lived to fly another day! Overall, one of my better efforts. Very pleased with it. I wonder if it'll thermal?... Edited By Andy Blackburn on 13/04/2017 09:10:07 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete taylor Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Superb Andy! Seeing such an iconic shape in the sky never fails to impress and when it's as pretty as this even more so. Here's to many, many more sorties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kettle 1 Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 As Pete said, Superb Andy, very nice indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Really excellent Andy an interesting build and beautifully executed. I am sure we would all like to see some video of it in it's element, if you are able some time. How about it being the subject of this years PSS mass build now that you have done all the hard work, - if SLEC are able to produce the plan and CNC parts? Any takers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Blackburn Posted April 13, 2017 Author Share Posted April 13, 2017 I'll see what I can do about a video. It's quite a complex design - planked fuselage, two nacelles, etc - so I'm not sure its the sort of thing that would be suitable for a mass build; I could be wrong, though - it's very nice to fly and I can see myself building another if this one gets terminally broken... Also, I think Phil & Matt might already have a candidate for the next mass build...? Edited By Andy Blackburn on 13/04/2017 11:47:59 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Jones Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Andy, that looks stunning, pleased the maiden went as hoped Piers, we run the mass builds alternate years so the next one will be 2018 and we already have the subject. Agree with Andy about the complexity for a mass build but I wouldn't rule out having one myself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Perhaps it's just as well it's 2018 Matt as, in truth, I wouldn't have time right now, particularly what with all the planking. A Camberra has been on 'my build list' for a while. Any clue what the next PSS mass build might be or would that be telling? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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