RE: Everything Radial Engines
Notice the scale effect or lack there of. It fly's and reacts nice and slow unlike most models which dart around like insects in comparison. Call Guinness[:)].
Posted on: 7/1/2011 2:31 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10600989

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Lets see a video of your airplane. It's the next best thing to being there.
Posted on: 6/18/2011 7:04 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10580181

RE: Everything Radial Engines
You're going to think I'm nuts but I don't like the sound of the OS radial. It's too high rpm for me. It should have less rpm and a deeper sound.
Posted on: 6/14/2011 6:57 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10574425

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, Let me know when the first flight date is. VA is not that far from Ohio. I could drive down with my Nikon and a video camera and capture the event. It would be really cool to see you make your 1st flight.
Posted on: 6/10/2011 2:20 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10567094

RE: 1/4th Scale Flair Tiger Moth Project
Now that's HUMOR[:D]
Posted on: 5/31/2011 10:19 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10549967

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, She is looking really beautiful!!! I can't wait to see and hear her fly. Should be the best Flair Stearman yet!
Posted on: 5/10/2011 2:28 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10512444

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
[b]NOTICE THE UPPER WING INCIDENCE[/b] Here is a Flair Stearman for sale which apparently fly’s well enough to compete in Top Gun. Notice the incidence of the upper wing. It’s definitely is a couple of degrees less than the lower wing. According to Flair both the upper and lower wing should have the same incidence. More and more modelers who have built this airplane are lowering the incidence of the upper wing. My guess is to give it more stable horizontal flight characteristics. I have changed my incidence on the upper wing and dropped it 2 degrees. The upper is now 1.5 degrees and the lower 3.5 degrees. The more I see aircraft with the same modification the more excited I am to see if this resolves this aircrafts propensity to climb. [link=http://www.franktiano.com/planesforsale/Forsalemain.htm]Top Gun Flair Stearman for SALE[/link]
Posted on: 3/6/2011 4:27 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10383024

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
[b]FLAIR STEARMAN ON EBAY[/b] Guys...Mint Flair Stearman kit on ebay! [link=http://cgi.ebay.com/FLAIR-BOEING-PT-17-STEARMAN-SCALE-RC-MODEL-AIRPLANE-KIT-/170610837359]ebay Flair Stearman Kit[/link]
Posted on: 3/6/2011 3:50 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10382936

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, I used Epoxy to glue in my Ailerons. The great thing about Epoxy is that you can use Alcohol to clean it up really easy. I have never used Gorilla glue but read a review about it compared to other glues. Apparently it's a great gap filler but not easy to clean up.
Posted on: 2/21/2011 3:59 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10353566

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
01Vette, That's perfect. The way you reinforced the landing gear closely matches what I did although you were able to add more strength to the lower landing gear mount as well...excellent. You minimized weight and maximized strength. Unless you have a large 7lb + radial engine you would typically be adding a significant amount of weight to the nose to balance this aircraft. Better that the nose weight provides a useful structural benefit than to simply to balance the aircraft. This modification should have been part of the original construction plans. You nailed it on the incidence. Very nice job. I can't wait to see how your bird fly’s. Should be far superior to the BS I have had to deal with. Nice job on your other builds as well!
Posted on: 2/13/2011 5:57 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10332401

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
01vette, Because you are early in the build you can do better than what I did during my repair. The most likely force that will be applied to your landing gear durning a hard landing accident will be to bend them backwards. There are two allen bolts that hold on each landing gear One at the top near the center of the fuselage and one at the bottom near the outer edge of the fuselage. During my landing accident the struts and wheels were pushed backwards which caused the top of my right strut to tear out of the firewall as it pivoted backwards. I have no photos of the repair but I do have photos of the damage. It makes me sick to this day. If you put a block of wood on each side between the front 2-fuselage formers where the top allen bolt attaches it binds them together making one really strong assembly.
Posted on: 2/2/2011 3:53 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10307883

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, It's easier to stretch the fabric with nothing protruding from the surface. That said what's most important to me is that the brackets don't get ripped out of the wing mounting blocks. If they are attached really well the flying wire clevis pin will shear instead which is an easy field fix.
Posted on: 2/2/2011 3:35 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10305374

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Fredo, It's a thing of beauty!!! I want to buy one as well once Diego gets his radial engine business rolling.
Posted on: 2/1/2011 1:53 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10305382

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Horle, The only thing that worries me is that your wires might get yanked out of your wing if the airplane does a ground loop or something similar. It happened to me. The next time I am going to make sure that they are attached to hardwood mounting points and not balsa.
Posted on: 2/1/2011 1:46 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10303465

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, I covered the whole thing with Stitts. The second time around I would do the same thing, but here is what I would do different: (Note this is after the fuselage has been sprayed with the silver finish Poly Spray) 1. I would use the Stitts Feather Coat which is designed as a bridge between Stitts paints and non-Stitts fabric surfaces. This stuff goes on really easy and is super easy to sand. Once it fills the weave it will look like a solid smooth surface. 2. Use 1/32 pinstripe tape where all the metal gaps are supposed to be on the fuselage. 3. Shoot the fuselage with more FeatherCoat and sand lightly in between to keep a nice smooth surface. After a few coats the buildup should enough to create a nice gap when you remove the tape. 4. Shoot the fuselage with PolyTone paint and it should look really sweet. 5. I found some small Philips screws that are scale size. Add a little glue to the thread an screw them in the appropriate locations. 6. Add the rest of your detailing including rub on text in military font. 7. Shoot the metal portion of the fuselage with clear coat gloss. This will seal the text and give what is supposed to look like metal a very glossy finish compared to the fabric portion which will look like a satin finish. It will look totally scale with smooth shiny metal surfaces contrasted by the duller fabric finish[:D]
Posted on: 1/18/2011 7:08 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10272435

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, According to the Stits Lite color charts these were all of the colors used on both ARMY and NAVY Stearman. [b]Insignia Blue [/b]would be the color of the vertical stripe on the rudder. AN Blue is the ARMY fuselage. Boeing Stearman: 220 Nevada Silver 173 FED#15012 AN Blue (Army) 140 FED#13538 Orange Yellow (Navy) 139 FED#33533 Federal Yellow 190 FED#11136 Tennessee Red 176 FED#15044 Insignia Blue 117 FED#36231 Glacier White 208 FED#24064 Olive Drab [link=http://www.warbirdcolors.com/usa_home.asp]Look Here for Warbird Colors[/link]
Posted on: 1/11/2011 6:30 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10256580

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Aeroboy1293, Looking at your upper wing it appears to have a couple of degrees less incidence than the lower wing which is fixed at 3.5. What were your incidence settings for the upper wing and stabilizer? PS, How about a flight video? Nothing shows flight characteristics better than a video.
Posted on: 12/31/2010 6:25 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10229391

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
AM6, All of the ABS plastic parts for the Flair Stearman are available in Fiberglass from Fiberglass Specialties: [link=http://www.fiberglassspecialtiesinc.com/]Fiberglass Specialties[/link]
Posted on: 12/5/2010 5:30 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10177083

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Charsb, Keep up the good work! Lets go flying at an event when you get it finished. Maybe the Wright Patterson AFB event put on by D.O.G.S.?
Posted on: 11/28/2010 9:31 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10164289

RE: Everything Radial Engines
PRMEngines, This is very disappointing news. I am NOT in the group of MANY who know the details of what happened. It would be good to state the facts here to stop further speculation.
Posted on: 10/29/2010 6:25 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10103043

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT-17 Stearman Review
Charsb, That was a test flight and I didn't try to push it too hard. When I built up some speed I let the Stearman climb out gently to burn it off. The wires do add strength the way I configured them. That was the only time I flew without them. If you follow the kit the front flying wires are on springs and are useless. Instead of a spring I used 2-pices of piano wire across the front of the fuselage and connected both sides together.
Posted on: 10/13/2010 4:21 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10066527

RE: Everything Radial Engines
S.L.engines, I am really impressed! Your radial runs much smoother and has the best transition of any GAS radial I have ever heard. Early next year I will be purchasing a black SL150 radial engine from you. Congratulations on and excellent engineering accomplishment. Not only is it the most scale appearing GAS radial I have seen but it runs the best!
Posted on: 9/29/2010 9:02 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10036676

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Luigi, You HAVE to make a video of the SL 150 running WITH the EXHAUSE RING. In my experince the ring makes the engine run smoother and the sound is deeper especially at idle. I have got to hear it!
Posted on: 9/27/2010 7:06 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10031668

RE: Everything Radial Engines
[b]When does a model Radial Engine become a museum piece instead of flyable?[/b] I think a consideration we are missing here as we look at these great model engines is that not all of them are designed for flight. Manufacturing costs, weight, and reliability drive the design decisions of flyable engines whereas short run, super detailed, bench mounted, works of art, are not bound by these conditions. Any miniature radial engine is a compromise design. The flyable engines that provide a good balance of scale appearance, cost, and performance are in many ways a much greater achievement than a museum piece. You have to determine what your goal is. Are you a collector and you will never fly any engine you buy? Or are you trying to create a flyable miniature piece of history? Personally just as with real aircraft I find flying aircraft the most compelling.
Posted on: 8/30/2010 11:22 AM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9969011

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Super Puma, I don't think you will see one because of the weight plus the [b]ignition system and cooling system[/b]. You would also need a gear reduction unit to get the prop size near scale. Here is the most scale model Rolls Royce Merlin I have ever seen built. Despite the incredible accuracy of this engine it still doesn't sound quite like the real thing: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xe1LL1IC7Y[/youtube]
Posted on: 8/28/2010 6:48 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9965875

RE: Everything Radial Engines
S.L. Engines, I think you have already differentiated your engines from your competitors because your engine has 7-cylinders and is very scale. I don't think anyone is selling a 9-cylinder GAS radial so that would be very unique and you are correct that many aircraft had 9-cylinder engines. [b]Don't forget about making exhaust rings for your engines[/b]. Most modelers find the task of creating a good quality exhaust ring to daunting a task to undertake themselves. They often feel that any ring they create won't match the quality of the engine they purchased. They are also afraid of damaging the engine in the process of making the ring. We expect the engine manufacturer to supply it for us. If you do this you will sell many more engines.
Posted on: 8/27/2010 10:10 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9964498

RE: Everything Radial Engines
S.L. Engines, I don't think anyone would complain about a 7 or a 9-cylinder engine...Please just don't make a 5! I think what's important is that the engine must fit the power range of the projected aircraft being built. Many people who built the Balsa USA Stearman years ago used the Moki 250 engine. I think this was because Moki didn't make a 150 engine at the time so builders bought what they could get their hands on. You have a 150 so I think you're ahead of the game. I would look at the projected size of popular aircraft customers are building. For example 30% and 40% biplanes...the Air World FW190 and other large scale aircraft. If you make engines that fit the requirements of popular aircraft you can't miss!
Posted on: 8/26/2010 11:13 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9962575

RE: Flair 1/4 Scale PT17/Stearman Build
Aeroboy1293, Hold the fuselage firmly and then give the tail a little twist. Without a Warren Truss internal frame it's kind of easy to twist the fuselage. I added some 1/64th sheet hardwood between some of the formers to make the fuselage more rigid. It didn't add much weight but it REALLY added a lot of stiffness. If you feel you need this same tweak now is the time. PS, It looks GREAT!
Posted on: 8/22/2010 3:54 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9952110

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Radial1951, My Robart R780 has excellent sound when it's at idle or wide open. It's transision is verty smooth creating a wide usable range of throttle. Nothing lost here. What I am getting at is the SL 150 seems to exhibit a lot of the same charateristics as my R780. I want to see a really good video clip of the SL 150 in action on a flying aircraft. If the aircraft does a slow flyby a reduced throttle and the engine sounds like radial music at a variety of speeds I will be sold. A test bench is one thing...flying is another.
Posted on: 8/6/2010 10:36 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9916007

RE: Everything Radial Engines
Radial1951, We were speaking specifically of GAS radial engines. Glow powered radial engines don't apply to this comparison because there are too many significant differences: fuel, lubricant, carburetion, ignition system, compression...
Posted on: 8/4/2010 11:27 PM by Author "Cybertom" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9911886