500 series builds

[wingnut]

Well I've been busy these last few months...but I finally got my stuff together and uploaded some photos!

First up is my spitfire, built according to plans with no modifications except a nose block and removable landing gear. Oh yeah...I moved the motor peg forward one former.




The Spitfire is extremely tail heavy (no surprise there!) and weighs in at 30g without balance weight/rubber. A bit heavy, I expect she'll be closer to 45g flying weight so I'm not planning on great flights, but I'll be thrilled just to see her go up a few times regardless.

[wingnut]

and then I built the Rufe as a zero ala Scigs30. I'm not ashamed..I blatantly copied most of Scigs' work (why mess with a good thing anyway?) She weighs in at 27g with no clay or rubber, so decent for a guillows kit I think.

[wingnut]

Sadly I haven't been able to attempt any flights yet, in between horrible weather here in MI and starting a new job there just hasn't been opportunity yet. In the meantime..a teaser for the next one:

[scigs30]

Just awsome. Good clean build and excellent covering. I noticed you use domestic tissue, good job. What brand of tissue did you use, and how did you attach it to the structure? Good job on the tissue seams, did you cover wet or dry, large or small sections? Please let us know how they fly.

[wingnut]

I used Easy Built tissue, I absolutely love working with it, and they offer a great variety of colors. To attach the tissue, I found this very handy Comprehensive Covering Guide that you might recognize , I followed that pretty much to the letter with the exception of using a glue stick instead of 50/50 white glue/water. I still used the white glue mix to finish edges and seal down seams but I find the glue stick is a little more tacky and doesn't weaken the tissue as much by getting it wet, so it's easier for a novice like myself to work with. One thing I did have issues with is getting the decals to stick to this tissue, when finished with 2 coats of thinned aero gloss dope, the decals just wouldn't stick. On the spitfire I used the trusty glue stick to fix the decals in place, on the zero I tried using a spray adhesive. Both worked, but I think the glue stick was nicer for sticking to the model, because I could move stuff around slightly after contact. The spray glue was a lot easier to get on the decal without damaging it but you only get one shot at positioning.

[scigs30]

Waterslide decals don't like tissue models very much. One reason is because of the irregularities of the models surface, that is hard to overcome. Second is dope does not provide a very glossy surface. You can use microscale products to help and also spray a glossy clear on the plane then apply the decals. When the decals are dry spray some Testors dullcote, that may help. I am glad the tutorial helped, for me the glue stick method did not work. That being said, when ever I teach someone how to cover I strongly encourage them to learn with the glue stick and seal the edges with 50/50 Elmers/water. Covering using 50/50 Elmers is hard to learn since the domestic tissue is so weak.

[wingnut]

Finally had a nice morning to get outside, trimmed the zero out without too much trouble, it's a bit heavier flying weight than I'd like, at roughly 36 grams. The spitfire took some working with though. I built a nose block for both models, but the spitfire's just won't hold up and keeps cracking, even though she isn't really nosing in, just the prop is levering out and splitting the balsa. The spit is pretty heavy too (she took 11grams of nose weight) for a flying weight of 43 grams....we'll see. The spit has a pretty big wing so the wing loading isn't that much worse than the zero, and they both glide real nice. I haven't got a "winding buddy" so haven't had a chance to wind them up and get real flights in yet..maybe this evening if the wind calms down again. Which brings me to another topic. Do you guys use a device to hold the planes while you wind them? I'm thinking of building something to hold the motor peg, but I can't quite get around the problem of varying widths for fuselages. if you could share some images of your hold downs or techniques for winding I'd appreciate it...and so would my friend I'm always bugging to help me out.

in the meantime..the stuka is coming along nicely.




I decided I didn't like the stock landing gear so I thought I'd see if I could build some for the same weight cost. The verdict: stock gear is .7 grams each and my version is .8 grams each. A little bit heavier but I think I'll go with it just cause it's waaaay better looking in my opinion, and .2 grams probably won't make or break it. (plus it's forward of the cg so technically it'll help balance )

[scigs30]

Nothing fancy, just an old stool and some parts at Home Depot. Your Stuka Wheel pants look much better than the kits. I think I am staying with the kit design....don't know why My Spitfire was a pain to trim, thinking about building another one just for the heck of it. The Zero Trimmed out perfect and flew great. I think with my next Spit I will add more dihedral. What it really needs is a larger stab.

[jimbothehotdog]

scigs... How are you getting the rubber attached to the dowel in the rear. Do you have an access hole cut in the fuse?

Thanks,
Dave

[scigs30]

I just use a little dowel to push the rubber back. I also use an access hole if I am having troubles.

[wingnut]

Aaannnnnnd.... It's been well over a year now... Life has been crazy. Got a new job, got a girl, moved...etc. But I got it done
there are a few glaring imperfections that I'll learn to fix for the next one, but overall I'm pretty happy with it. The decals are a mess, but I was experimenting and made a few silly mistakes (such as not double checking placement on a few). I know, the stuka isn't a flyer, but she glides real nice and with 150 turns completed a smooth 5 - 8 second hop. It was getting cold and windy so I didn't push for more, but time will tell. weight is 27.6grams without ballast or rubber. Took a small amount of nose weight with four strands of 1/8th. I don't know the all up weight yet.

[BassettsAllSorts]

Superb they all look amazing - you must be really pleased with them.

I started the spitfire last night and the wood is terrible some really heavy and one sheet looks like someone has attacked it with a cheese grater!

I'm just going to build it and see what happens to use it as practice. I'm definitely going to scratch build though with good balsa in the future. I'm still on a learning curve so I'm in no rush!

Great work again!

Tom

[krob]

Great build! How do you do your multi colored camo tissue? Looks like you cover completely in the light tissue then lay down the darker camo over the top?

[wingnut]

Thanks!

I do use different layers of tissue, depending on how the colors work together. On the spitfire the grey went on first then green, the stuka has the brown and then grey which made the grey a little darker. I use a glue stick on the tissue then let it dry face up. I wet it with an alcohol/water mix and lay it on carefully. This reactivates the glue enough to stick well and makes the tissue just damp enough to wrap around mild curves well. The tail feathers and fuse is pretty easy, but the wing can pose some difficulties with the sometimes odd curvature.

I like the look of a finished tissue on the models, to me it just looks "proper". There are some fantastic looking models out there that are painted as well, it's my opinion that on my own models I like the look of tissue. Now that I say that I am planning on trying some painted just to experiment and see what happens. if you don't care or prefer paint I would paint, as it's a bit easier most times than cutting and figuring out patterns and curves. I'm not sure about the weight argument, could be a toss up with all the extra glue/tissue that gets added.

[Phugoid]

You do make a super job of the tissue only finish. In the UK comps we have something called "kit scale" which is judged on how these should have turned out if we built them as kids, ie no airbrushes allowed. So the finish you have done is perfect for that....

Andrew