This eBook can be read on your laptop or tablet computer (eReader or iPad) or printed out if one prefers a hard copy. The book is packed with over 50 pages of pictures, live links to my videos and information about this eclectic collection of RC flying model aircraft. This eBook: is an Adobe PDF version that can be read on any device that is equipped with PDF reading software loaded.
This eBook is available at our Trading Post follow the link to download a copy.
This tiny airplane was sold with a CO2 motor and was intended to be a free flight model. After a few flights with the CO2 motor the plane was put back into the box and forgotten for years. Now it sports a peppy brush-less electric out runner motor with a prop saver hub and tiny radio which controls the motor speed and rudder. The rudder is actuated with a pull pull set up using dental floss for doing the pulling. Watch this fun little bird do it's thing on a windy autumn afternoon.
De Havilland DH 9 -RC model by Dave Hughes of Ottawa Canada of the WW1 Observation 2 seat aircraft.constructed with many unique features such as fully functional flying and landing wires. The left and right wing panels are fully rigged and adjusted units, which means that minimal field time is required before flight. The two panel sets are simply attached to the fuselage by two lone wire pins when it's time to go flying. Power is supplied by a vintage OS 60 4 C glow engine.
Click the play button below to view a short video featuring the flying of this interesting giant scale model aircraft.
This Old Time diesel powered free flight model was converter to electric RC resulting in a relaxing Sunday Flyer.
Powered by a speed 400 size out-runner brushless motor, with a 30 amp. ESC, plus a 3 cell 800 MAH Li-Po battery equals 10 minutes of relaxed RC flying. Watch it flying here on a very windy day.
Modified SYNCHROGYRO:-
Model Airplane as published in Model Builder Magazine in September 1979. Designed by George Chaulet to be flown with 2 channel RC control for the engine and rudder and said to be simple to fly.
Testing continued as the wind speed increases from 5 to 15 kph. The copter manages a takeoff during ground trials but, a blade strike on landing caused the testing to be suspended while design changes are contemplated.
Looking back on the results of the flight trials last season I have to say that control flight has not been demonstrated at least not with this particular one.
Conclusions:- I have come to the conclusion that maybe Cierva was right when he stated that the rotor must be of the articulated type for successful controlled flight of an auto gyro aircraft. Initially I believed that since the Synchrogyro had two inclined rotors, it would be capable of controlled flight in the same way as a fixed wing airplane with high dihedral was rudder controllable. Now I am beginning to look for a simple way to modify the Synchrogyro rotors to articulating type. During the ground testing the model tipped over several times due to the high center of gravity and the rough surface of the flying field. The aircraft was originally fitted with a tricycle landing gear and that set-up proved to be unsatisfactory so the nose wheel was replaced with an axle with two more wheels plus a tail wheel for steering. This set-up improved things somewhat but it did tip over occasionally even then. There was not enough clearance between the rotor blades and the vertical tails, which resulted in one of the three rudders being clipped off by a rotor strike shortly after takeoff.
Modifications:- Several modifications were made to the craft to correct the problems noted above. 1. The rotor head is now fully articulating and is controlled by roll and pitch servos;
2. The rotor head has been raised by 3.4 inches to provide additional tail clearance; and,
3. The main wheels track has been widened by 3 inches to cure tip over problem.
Watch a short video clip which demonstrates the modification process.
Specifications:-
Weight....................... 5.86 Pounds
Rotor Diameter.......... 46 inches X 2
Power........................ OS 46 2 Stroke Nitro
Servos........................5 standard Size
Controls.................... Rotor Pitch, Rotor Roll, Rudder, Elevator, and Motor
WAR BIRDS First is a collection of old video clips shot with a VCR Camcorder that have been spliced and uploaded. The models featured in the video are described more or less, in the order that they appear:
FW190
The FW 190 was constructed in 1970 and I am still flying it: at least once every summer. The model is from a kit by Fiberlin produced and marketed in Germany by Ernest Topp or something like that. The model has a wing span of 65 inches and features a light weight fiberglass fuselage and a wing and stabilizer constructed of foam covered with balsa. The model is powered with an OS 61 2-C and has mechanical retracting main landing gear.
RYAN STA
The STA was constructed by George White of Ottawa. The kit was of a traditional built up construction of balsa and plywood. This model is no longer around. It was totaled one day when I attempted a axial roll too close to the ground. It was if fact a half decent flier in spite of being a little on the heavy side. It was powered with a Fox 61 Eagle 2-C. The model was from a SIG kit designed by master modeler Maxi Hestler, who won the US Nationals for sale way back when (a long time ago).
Lockheed U-2
The U-2 was constructed with a fiberglass fuselage and foam wing and stabilizer sheeted with balsa. I was powered with a K&B 7.5 cc (.45 CI) high powered ducted fan engine turning a matching Turbax II fan. The model featured a retracting main undercarriage mounted on the centerline and steerable tail wheel and fixed wingtip wheels to stabilize against the scraping wingtips. The model could fly like a high-performance glider due to the high wing area and aspect ratio. The two wing panels were fixed to a single aluminum tube which feed through the fuselage to react wing root bending. The model was flown from a grass runway using the High-Start method to get airborne. The model was badly damaged one day when radio contact was lost shortly after takeoff and was never repaired.
FOKKER DR-1
The DR-1 was scratch built in the mid 1960's from Aero-Modeler plans designed for free flight using a unique pendulum arrangement to stabilize the model in the pitch mode. The design featured a flyaway wing components to limit damage in a rough landing; of which I am sure there were many. This particular model retained many of these damage tolerant features as well as adding 3 channel radio control. The model was flown successfully using an Enya 19 RC engine in it.'s early days. After all these years of storage in my hanger, the model has been updated by adding ailerons using 90 g micro servos mounted in each wing, installing a micro radio and adding an OS 30 Wankle engine up front for power. It was briefly flown in this configuration but was found to be dangerously tail heavy and in desperate of nose weight added.
Specifications:-
Weight ........4.65 pounds
Wing Span...........40.5 inches
Center of gravity.............2.75 inches aft of upper wing leading edge
Wing stagger ...........3.0 inches
Power .......OS 30 Wankle
Propeller ............10X6 inches
Curtiss JN4 Jenny
This is a model of the famous WW1 Training aircraft known as (Jenny) was built from a kit by Aerodrome Models. The model has a wingspan of 66 inches and a flying weight of approximately 5 pounds. It was powered by a HP21 4-C engine witch was later replaced by an Enya 52 4-C . The model features a full compliment of flying and landing wires
Specifications:-
Weight .............5.6 Pounds
Wing Span ........68 Inches
Power ...........Enya 53 4C
All those wires resulted in the model having a very high drag factor and after several I attempts to fly it I am convinced that the steel cables used for the rigging wires interfered with radio range. On each flight the model became uncontrollable after flying about 100 meters and landed it's self without suffering any damage. In an effort to correct the range problem I replaced the steel end fittings with nylon ones but the results remained unchanged. I have plans to have another attempt at flying her; this time using my newly acquired Spektrum 2.4GHz DSM radio system to see if that will cure the range problem.
P-47 THUNDERBOLT
I have two versions of the Thunderbolt in my collection. The first one I acquired was a very early version kitted by TopFlite that could be built as either a razor back or bubble canopy version. This is a 60 size model Powered by Nitro burning Super Tiger 61 2-C Engine. Mine was built with the bubble canopy, with flaps and fixed landing gear. Originally the model had a single center mounted servo for aileron control but was later modified to duel outboard mounted servos to increase response time. The model is heavy and very prone to snap roll on take-off and was damaged and repaired on several occasions due to this type of accident.
The Razor Back version is an 1/6 size ARF by Global. Equipped with a Nitro Burning Thunder Tiger 80 4-C Engine, mechanical retracts for main landing gear and on-board ignition. The model is, as the manufacturer says "The sweetest flying Warbird you could ever own" Constructed with a balsa built up fuselage, wing, and tail, it is very light and with the 80 size engine it can really scat.
1/6 size Spitfire
This model was powered with a balky old Super Tiger 60 2 stroke engine, which was really not powerful enough to reliably fly this heavy model. After two or three flights semi successful flights I crashed it on take-off, when the left wing suddenly stalled shortly after take-off; Attempts to regain control by applying opposite aileron were taken several times and each attempt precipitated successive snap rolls each more violent than the last. The last snap was quickly followed by a a head long nose dive into the ground, destroying the fuselage back to the cockpit . The plane was slowly rebuil a little bit at a time over the next 10-12 years which is sometimes of the way that I operate. Difficult unpleasant tasks are sometimes easiest when taken one step at a time, I find. The current Fox engine engine was installed when it suddenly became available the day I crashed my Sig, Goseny"s, Ryan red and white STA which was designed by the renouned Maxi Hessiler. The first flight after rebuilding was not totally successful and I was very lucky to wrestle it back to the ground in one piece. The problem this time was a very severe aft center of gravity condition. I have since added six iron weights from a diver's belt to the engine compartment which has brought the center of gravity forward to an acceptable position approximating the quarter cord position. I have just put in a very nice flight with the model with the cowl removed. All attempts to operate the engine after that flight have proved unsuccessful. I have since uncovered the source of the problem and the engine would start after I plugged an open hole in the crank case cover. Apparently an attachment screw had loosened and fallen out at the end of that flight. I find that the Fox 61 is not a good engine for modeler like myself; not because it is poorly designed but, because, Phillip's head screws were used to assemble it, instead of socket heads. The Phillip's can't be tightened enough to prevent them from loosening from vibration.
FW 190
This 40 year RC FW190 is still flying well with its OS 61 FSR 2 Stroke Engine, which can really turn up a storm , under cowl, even on a hot summer's day. Originally fitted with a Super tiger 56 the OS has been working reliably since installed 25 years ago without even having to adjust the fuel mixture setting. The model is from a German kit by Firerlin.
Judging from the way, the camouflage scheme hides it against the green background its a wonder that I can manage to control it.
Junkers JU 52/3M
This 72 inch WS Balsa RC Flying semi-scale model of the Junkers JU 52/3m WW2 transport airplane was built in the 1960's for nitro power now flies well with 3 brushless electric motors. The nitro powered model flew adequately on it's center line mounted OS 30 and the 2 WenMac .049 engines mounted in the wing nacelles. The updated electric powered model now flies with 3 brush-less 20 size motors coupled with 3 30 amp ESC's and 2 2000 mah Li-Po batteries. The model has more than adequate power from the 3 electric motors and takeoffs are energetic even from our grass flying field. With all that excess power it is tempting to fly this JU 52 model like a pattern plane but I have to agree that it looks the best while doing slow fly-by's at scale like speed.
Hobby King's JU52-3M
The Junkers JU-52, or "Iron Annie" as it was nicknamed was originally developed as an Airliner and transport and served in Germany from 1932 until 1945, unsuprisingly, it was pushed into military service and was even used as a medium bomber for a short period. So succesful was the JU-52 that licence built versions were still being used as a civil and military carrier right up to the 1980s. The H-King JU-52 is a model of the Lufthansa operated aircraft regularly seen at airshows around Europe and is painted in the historical 1936 Deutsche Lufthansa scheme.
This superb scale Plug and Fly model is simple to assemble with the motor, ESC and all servos pre-fitted. The single motor has more than enough power, the out-board props are just for effect and spin easily, the prop wash from the main motor is enough to spin them up, this configuration was chosen to keep the model simple, light and capable of excellent flight times. The JU-52 is very practical, it features a 2 pc removable wing that is simple to wire up as there isnt a spiders web of ESC wires to hook up, a steerable tailwheel for excellent ground handling, rubber tyres for durability and most importantly, it is made from tough EPO foam.
The finish on H-King JU-52 is excellent, the full corrugated effect skin adding to its scale appearance. Scale flight is what this superb looking model is all about and this is where the Junkers excels, a combination of 4 channel control and light wingloading means this model can be flown slowly but with authority, it is another unique and exclusive model from Hobbyking for the scale enthusiast that will stand out at any flying field!
Specs:
Wingspan: 1200mm
Length: 820mm
Flying Weight: 700g
ESC: 20A w/BEC
Servo: 9g x 4
Motor: 900kv 3128 Brushless Outunner
Requires:
Your Own 4 Channel TX/RX
1800mAh~2200mAh 3s Lipoly Battery
PT 17 WW2 Basic Trainer This aircraft is probably my favorite trainer aircraft. Back in the 1960's I attended a model airplane contest featuring scale A/C. The model which most impressed me was a PT-17 from a Sterling kit. I knew at that moment that I just had to have one someday. Then in the 1980's Sterling under the leadership of the founder's son turned out a new production run of the old PT-17 kit. Building from a box of balsa was not that attractive to me at that time since I had just moved in to the old farm house in Russell with a thousand things to maintain and a barn half full with 3 horses, I had no time or place to build the big biplane. Luckily I did have a good work friend who loved to build and was somewhat of a craftsman to boot, so I engaged him to construct the model for me. After a couple of years of waiting my Stearman was ready for flight. She flew straight as an arrow without any trim adjustments and to my delight landed with a constant sink rate and perfect flare. The big disappointment came when I walked up to her, it was then that I discovered that the landing gear had completely flattened out, even though the touchdown had been very gentle. When I tried to straighten the wheels I discovered to my horror that the wire reformed to it's original shape with almost no resistance. The wire was soft and not heat treated and it would have to be replaced. After much thought I came up with a practical repair which did not involve tearing apart the beautifully built structure. This repair which is far too complicated to describe here, involved pealing away the balsa wood strut fairings and attaching another reinforcing member fabricated from 5/32 music wire and fixing to the bulkhead at the wing leading edge via J bolts. For a number of years I worked at Rockcliffe airbase home of Canada's Aviation Museum and on special occasions I treated myself to a ride.
Ryan PT 20 STA
Powered with a Thunder Tiger 52 4-C fully cowled, Nitro burning engine. Featuring full flying wires and on-board ignition. This ARF flies beautifully but the fully cowled engine if prone to overheating and some modifications will have to be made. There needs to be a larger cutout at the bottom of the cowl to let air to escape.
120 Size Zero
Now like everyone else I have discovered how good the ARF's are:-
Just finished putting together my new Will Hobbies 120 Size Zero ARF Warbird. Although I am not a perfectionist when it comes to scale model aircraft (more of a semi scale guy I would say) This model looks good to my eye. I opted for retractable landing gear over the fixed gear material supplied with the kit. The 60-120 gear legs that I installed were to short fit the wheel wells and had to be lengthened by about one half inch to fit properly. I accomplished this by using a pair of Dubro Axel fittings which was a little unorthodox in its application. I threaded 6-32 bolts into the threaded hole at the bottom of the fitting, intended for the axle locking grub screws and fitted regular axle fittings to the screws. The Engine mount set-up allows me to run a 120 four stroke inverted or a 90 two stroke side mounted with a Pitts style muffler located at the bottom of the cowl. The pictures show an Enya 120 four stroke fitted. The completed model ready to fly (wet) weighs 11.33 pounds or 5.14 KG. The center of gravity is a little too far aft and will have to be moved forward about a half inch before attempting the next flight.
This next video clip shows the Zero in flight after a one pound weight was added to the firewall.
WW1 SE5 Scout
This is a 1/6 Scale model of the famous Royal Aircraft Establishment SE5 WW1 Fighter aircraft, built from the old Top Flite kit designed former world scale champion Dave Platt. The model flies in a scale like manner using a rare Webra 40 4C engine.
Specifications:-
Weight ............6.6 Pounds
Wing Span ...........54 Inches
Power ...........Webra 40 4C
Yours Truly was even encouraged to log a flight on an old Platt SE5 from a Topflight kit. The first one for at least 10 years. Happy to report that all went amazingly well. The plane is under powered with its Webra 40T 4 cycle. Certainly under powered, but the sound was ever so sweet.
Safely back on the ground after a very long flight
After a flight hiatus of 10 years at least I was coaxed into putting her in the air again. What a thrill it was to watch her soar overhead for twenty minutes powered by a sweet running almost silent Webra 40 T4 engine.
History:
The Focke Wulf FW 190 was a true engineering masterpiece of its time, it served with distinction from its inception in 1941 until the final days of the war. Originally, the FW 190 was produced with a BMW 801 radial engine, the radial-engine powered version is the "A/F/G/S" model or "short nose" 190. The only reason the FW 190 was initially allowed to be produced is because it used a radial engine, virtually all of the Daimler Benz 600 series engines were allotted for Messerschmitt 109 and 110 aircraft. If the Focke Wulf had been designed to use the Daimler Benz engine, it would never have been produced.
Because of a need for better performance at high altitudes, the FW 190A was re-equipped with the Jumo 213 series engine. Again, the Jumo 213 was chosen because the Daimler Benz engine was produced primarily for the Bf 109. It is interesting to note that the Jumo 213 was used in bomber aircraft not high performance fighters. Because the Jumo 213 is an inverted inline V-12 engine as opposed the BMW 801 radial design, fitting the Jumo 213 to the FW 190A airframe caused the appearance of the Focke Wulf fighter to change significantly. The nose of the aircraft was much longer, and in order to maintain the correct C.G., an extension plug was added between the tail section and the fuselage. These design changes give the FW 190D version a stretched look when compared to the FW 190A. The Focke Wulf FW 190D-9 "long nose Dora" became operational in the summer of 1944 and was universally acclaimed as the best fighter available to the Luftwaffe at that time, and is generally considered Germany's best mass-produced piston engine fighter aircraft of WWII. Approximately 700 FW 190D-9's were produced and served on western and eastern fronts in a variety of roles.
Specifications (Fw 190 D-9)
General characteristics
* Crew: 1
* Length: 10.20 m (33 ft 5 1/2 in)
* Wingspan: 10.50 m (34 ft 5 in)
* Height: 3.35 m (11 ft 0 in)
* Wing area: 18.30 m² (196.99 ft²)
* Empty weight: 3,490 kg (7,694 lb)
* Loaded weight: 4,350 kg (9,590 lb)
* Max takeoff weight: 4,840 kg (10,670 lb)
* Powerplant: 1× Junkers Jumo 213 A-1 12-cylinder inverted-Vee piston engine, 1,287 kW, 1,544 kW with boost (1,750 PS / 2,100 PS)
Performance
* Maximum speed: 685 km/h at 6,600 m, 710 km/h at 11,300 m (426 mph at 21,655 ft / 440 mph at 37,000 ft (11,000 m))
* Range: 835 km (519 mi)
* Service ceiling: 12,000 m (39,370 ft)
* Rate of climb: 17 m/s (3,300 ft/min)
* Wing loading: 238 kg/m² (48.7 lb/ft²)
* Power/mass: 0.30 - 0.35 kW/kg (0.18 - 0.21 hp/lb)
Armament
* 2 × 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine guns with 475 rpg
* 2 × 20 mm MG 151 cannons with 250 rpg in the wing root
* 1 × 500 kg (1,102 lb) SC 500 bomb (optional)
Cockpit details from IL-2 screen shots shown below in the following 3 images
The Cockpit details of the model generated from flight simulator screen images:
Irvine 120 2 stroke installed with the radial mount which was supplied by the manufacturer with the engine and attached to the plywood and oak sandwich spacer by 3 number 10 rubber well nuts providing a measure of vibration isolation.
With the batteries still to be installed the model balances about an inch behind the recommended center of gravity location which is indicated by the line made with a black felt marking pen. At this point I am estimating that a pound or so nose weight will be required before I will attempt to fly it.
Since writing these words I this model has successfully completed its maiden flight. I took the model to the flying field yesterday together with its forty five year stable mate; another FW 190 A which incidentally is a very good flyer with many flights logged over the years. The plan was to have three or four flights on the trusted 190 then switch out the flight battery and satellite receiver and install them in the new model, then do some serious shake-down testing. It all went so well when she became airborne on a high speed taxi run and rather than abort at 10 feet altitude
we decided to do a few circuits of the field and land. The landing was controlled into a 12 kilometer headwind with 15 degrees of flaps, so the touchdown speed was quite low with a gentle sink rate. To my surprise the port landing gear unit separated the wing cleanly and the plane slid to a stop on one wheel. I was prepared for the eventuality that reinforcing would have to be made. I have already filled the area with gap filling foam to help stabilize the built-up structural members; its a trick that I often perform for high stress areas and the results have usually been quite positive.
During what was to be a high speed taxi test the plane became suddenly airborne and the decision was made to do a circuit and land rather than to abort from 10 feet altitude.
The gap filling foam can be seen in the picture below as well as the pathetic glue area for securing the gear retract mounting beams.
