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RE: Super Skybolt build from Italy
Francesco, the only thing I'd say after building one is to watch out for the weight, it creeps up very quickly on this model, most seem to come out close to 5Kg. Mine still flies fine with a 120 Surpass motor but I am very aware of the weight on approach to a landing. It really does excel at big flowing aerobatics though.
Posted on: 5/23/2013 6:10 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11520102
RE: Top Flite AT-6 Texan Gold Flight ARF
If it's .60 size then Robart make 5mm (3/16") replacement wire legs just for this model, I've used them on my H9 AT-6 which also suffered wobbly leg syndrome. As for retract units, I don't know what the TF units are like but I would have thought that it would be fairly simple to fit something like Robart or Lado units. The H9 units were pretty standard much like World Models, Dave Brown or Irvine mechanicals, all of which survive my arrivals on grass with similarly sized models. I replaced my H9 AT-6 ones with cheapo electric retracts from HK $7.99 each, they dropped in with a minimum of trimming on the ply mount plates. They have survived half a dozen days at the field so far without any problems. Bob
Posted on: 9/14/2012 1:30 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228603
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Dave, it's nice to know all that weight is serving a purpose come crunch time, leaving a minimum of repairs to be done. Skybolt evolution - I started out with an older ASP 120 four stroke but even with on-board glow I couldn't get a smooth transition from 1/4 to 3/4 throttle so I treated myself to an OS FS120 surpass pumper. As I fly from grass I stuck a Master 14*9 3 blader on to reduce the grass trimmings thrown up on take off and landing. What a great combination! As the OS is a few ounces heavier than the ASP I've taken a couple of ounces of lead out of the nose but I think it still needs another couple removing. Currently it hangs level when suspended 1/2" forward of the top of the rear cabane strut. What did concern me yesterday was that it carried on spinning a full turn after centring the controls, is that the nature of the beast or am I getting near the safe rear limit for the balance point? Everything else about it tells me to take a little more nose weight out but I'm wondering how tolerant this heavy beast will be?
Posted on: 8/27/2012 1:47 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11207281
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
It flew last weekend after all. Noise tested and range checked, I started up the engine for a flight and thought the cylinder head was moving around a bit. The engine bolts were coming loose. I've used 4mm bolts in tapped engine mounts loads of times without problems, but this plane seems to be trying to frustrate me at every step. Cowl off, longer bolts with locknuts fitted to hold the engine in tight (thanks Laurie), cowl back on and.... 2 clicks of left trim. That's all it took, and that was because I'd set the elevators very slightly out of line - easily corrected after landing with the twin snake setup. A very smooth flying model, but man those flicks are fast! All culminating in an absolute greaser of a landing, my best in a long time. Unfortunately rain stopped play before I could get any more air time. It was a good day, the NIB OS61SF in the Tornado got run in and was pulling like a train, the AT-6 got flown with it's Robart legs and HK $7.99 electric retracts (looked good and worked a treat), and the Skybolt was a definite hit with the other club members. More importantly I can't wait for the next chance to see just what else it can do. One thing I found, the struts were tight to get out of the wing - result one minor puncture in the lower wing from when the right strut finally came loose. I've trimmed a couple of mm off the front locating wires, this makes it much easier to assemble/dissemble.
Posted on: 8/8/2012 11:41 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11185766
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: robc57 I've just sheeted the fuselage and thought it felt a bit chunky, so I put it on the scales: Fuselage with 3 servos, tank and mount but less fin and rudder - 3lb 2oz Lower wing - 13 oz Upper wing - 12 oz Ailerons, elevators, fin, rudder, U/C, cowl - 1ib 2oz Engine - 1lb 13 What's that, 6lb 10 oz? Say another 12oz for aileron servos, prop, spinner, RX
Posted on: 8/4/2012 7:17 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11179375
RE: Flair legionnaire / Nieuport
I guess that doesn't really surprise me as they are quite a small company run by, erm, 'seniors'. They were very nice to speak to and very helpful when I had a chance to drop in, but technically advanced? Not really. I'm still surprised they got a website built without discovering email though. Just a thought, could you send a fax from your PC?
Posted on: 7/23/2012 5:01 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11165491
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
The learning curve on spraying has caught me out, in three ways. First, the DIY store superlight fillers appear to vanish when they get a whiff of cellulose, so much of my careful prep work has simply vanished. I'm guessing these fillers use some form of styrene bulking agent which dissolves when the paint goes on. Second, the Solarlac colours and Clearcoat needs a lot more thinning than the instructions on the can suggest, the colours needing 3:2 or even 2:1 paint to thinners while the clear could go 1:1. Result - orange peel. Luckily this is mostly in the orange paint, maybe I'll just call the model Jaffa! Third, I got impatient on the cowl and one spat, leaving me with heavy runs which now need sanding back re-masking and respraying. I'll live with the orange peel, and I've no choice about the couple of areas where the filler has disappeared and the surface sunk into defect I'm more frustrated about rushing the cowl and putting too much paint on. I did the struts in painted checkers to match the upper wing underside, and yes it is a pain masking them off. They're not perfect but good enough from a few feet. All in all I'm quite pleased with the results and looking forward to spraying the next build having (I hope) learned a few lessons on this one. Photos will follow when I'm happy with the rework!
Posted on: 7/23/2012 4:52 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11165484
RE: Flair legionnaire / Nieuport
Have you tried dropping Flair an email explaining the situation? Maybe they could send a copy. Otherwise try putting a post on some of the UK sites such as Modelflying.co.uk or RCMF
Posted on: 7/23/2012 4:31 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11165467
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Duplicate post! Sorry about the non-SB bits, but they were related to the build, honest!
Posted on: 7/6/2012 6:57 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11145143
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Thanks but the wings are filmed, the chequered bottoms using Ultracote (Profilm in the UK) patterned stuff and the tops using a mix of Solarspan, Toughlon and Ultracote. In the distractions I omitted the 'Scallywag' funfly type model that the guy with the AT-6 was also selling, equipped with Evo 36, JR 35MHz synth rx and JR servos - £20. I sold the receiver on e-bay for £22[:D]. Now if only every week was like that one! The H9 AT-6 looks a treat and flew quite nicely on that first fateful flip but strong it ain't. The previous owner had epoxy reinforced the engine bulkhead which meant the fuselage sides gave between that and the second former. Without the epoxy the bulkhead would have pulled out cleanly. If the fuselage had any doublers the model would probably have survived but then it wouldn't have been so light and with such nice handling. It's all about compromise, though those U/C legs are a compromise too far. I've been scouring the web for the Robart AT-6 legs in the UK, but they're not listed as spares anywhere. I guess they're only direct from Robart in the US? Roll on some dry weather so I can get it more air time with it. The SB is the other end of the compromise spectrum - whatever it hits, it should go straight through! That's more my style. I had noticed that the core of the fin looks a bit fragile consisting of just the 3/16" strip. There are definite stress points were the breaks in the cladding/fuselage sheet occur. I was thinking some bracing wires to the tailplane might not be a bad idea. 2mm carbon rods perhaps?
Posted on: 7/6/2012 6:45 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11145117
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
My skybolt has been subject to a few delays lately, now the weather is frustrating me. First I picked up a VERY cheap H9 AT-6 Texan with RCV90CD and servos for pretty much the price of a set of cheap servos. Of course on the first flight I clipped a fence post with the prop and ripped the front off so I've been reparing that. Then I as given an uncompleted Black Horse Extra 300, so I spent a couple of days bolting a Magnum 91 four stroke into it's snout and patching the holes in the covering put there whem a PO had wanted to put the batteries in the tail to balance the OS 91 FX 2 stroke he was trying to fit (in a .46 size model!). Them my first granddaughter was born. Now I want to put some colour on the SB's fuselage , but it's barely stopped raining for the last several weeks. I will be working in an unheated garage and it will be my first attempt using 'proper' spray gear - a DeVilbiss touch-up gun run off a decent compressor. I've got Solarlac paints by Solarfilm in the right colours, but I don't know whether it's ok to spray with our current weather - temperatures are between 15 and 20 depending on the depth of cloud cover and wind, but it's just non-stop wet! Any way, this sums it up to date:
Posted on: 7/6/2012 4:02 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11144963
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: Cougar429 robc57, that stuff sounds nasty. Want to see pics of the glassing process if you have them, along with some of the final product. [/quote] The Solarlac is really nice to use with a brush, but it has a strong smell unlike any other paint I've used, so I imagine it's got some exotic solvents in it. I actually like the smell of it but need to be a bit cautious
Posted on: 6/19/2012 8:11 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11123702
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Last night I drilled 52 holes in my 'Bolt - for the Robart pin hinges! 4 hinges per aileron, 3 per elevator half and 4 for the rudder. I've glassed the fuselage and fin with 16gm cloth and Poly-C water based poly resin, that went a lot easier than I was expecting. Now I'm just waiting on a new hose for the compressor I acquired before trying my hand at painting with a touch-up gun for the first time. Some warm dry weather might help too. Up till now I've only brushed or sprayed using rattle cans so it will be interesting to see how it turns out. I'll be using Solarlac paint from the company that makes Solarfilm, it's an exotic smelling brew that brushes on well, dries quick and is fuel proof.
Posted on: 6/19/2012 4:17 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11123466
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
The U/C came from here as did the cowl. The carbon composite (ie a mix of carbon and glass cloth) U/C is not an exact match being a little taller, so I raised the mounting plate in the fuselage by 1/2". After sheeting the underside and cutting out the U/C section, I attached a 1/16" ply plate under the heads of the leg bolts and glued the removed section of sheet to that. I still need to line the holes in the under-undercart panel that give access to the boltheads. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/CarboncompositeUC.jpg[/IMG]
Posted on: 6/12/2012 12:53 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11115255
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
I'm getting dangerously close to starting the covering. Here's how the cowl ended up after splitting the underside, opening it out and glassing over the gap [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0225.jpg[/IMG] I didn't like the way the dash panel was done so I faired it in with 1/16" sheet: [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0226.jpg[/IMG] and my u/c mount cover: [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0227.jpg[/IMG]
Posted on: 6/11/2012 1:32 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11114679
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
quick question - did anyone else find the cowling a very tight fit? I rebated the sides, top and bottom of the fuselage by about 1/16" so that the cowl would fit flush but it still wouldn't go back far enough to get the 6" prop drive to firewall measurement. I couldn't take any more wood off as there wasn't enough left to keep the lip intact, besides which that would have resulted in a step down to the cowl. I tried both the aftermarket fibreglass unit and the supplied plastic moldings but they were both the same size, as though my firewall was oversize to start with. I ended up slotting the bottom of the cowl so that it could expand by about 3/8" and patching it with glass and resin so it now fits flush with the fuselage top and sides. QQ#2 - did anyone need additional engine cooling measures? Those inlets either side of the prop look a tad small to me.
Posted on: 6/11/2012 5:20 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11114175
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: robc57 Fuselage with 3 servos, tank and mount but less fin and rudder - 3lb 2oz >> including throttle and elevator pushrods, on-board glow and (engine) mount ...... Ailerons, elevators, fin, rudder, U/C, cowl - 1ib 2oz >> ok, I left out the wheels but included the struts! [/quote] U2, I don't think I've left out any heavy items, but I know weight appears
Posted on: 6/8/2012 4:31 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11111015
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
I've just sheeted the fuselage and thought it felt a bit chunky, so I put it on the scales: Fuselage with 3 servos, tank and mount but less fin and rudder - 3lb 2oz Lower wing - 13 oz Upper wing - 12 oz Ailerons, elevators, fin, rudder, U/C, cowl - 1ib 2oz Engine - 1lb 13 What's that, 6lb 10 oz? Say another 12oz for aileron servos, prop, spinner, RX and battery, 1 lb for covering (does that sound right) giving a final weight around 8 1/2lb. Maybe not so chunky after all, or am I being optimistic?
Posted on: 6/8/2012 3:13 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11110956
RE: Slow CA
When CAs first appeared on the modelling scene I built more than one model usiing only CA except for the engine bearers, and the glue joints lasted the life of the models. Then I started getting asthma like effects from the fumes. These days I avoid CA as far as possible because it is nasty stuff, even the so-called fume-free varieties. I've gone back to white glues to preserve what lung function I have left.
Posted on: 5/31/2012 7:31 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11101118
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Top wing complete except for the centre sheet, so time for some assembly work. Rigging the cabane and wings square really is a bit of a lottery! Not to worry, I have a crafty plan! First I strapped a straightedge across the lower wing seat square to the fuselage - this gives me datum #1. I glued on the tailplane using this, the fin and the front of the fuselage sides as references to get it square. The tailplane is now my primary horizontal datum. I assembled the cabane by clamping the cabane holder ply plates around the wires and used tie-wraps to hold the wires roughly together. With the top wing on and propped up level I could check the incidence and squareness to the fuselage (wing tip to fin post measurements) and adjust the cabane holder cutouts to suit. With everything taped together I flipped the model and attached the struts and lower wing half, remembering to pack the trailing edge from the wing seat by 1/16 to allow for the sheet. Because the cabanes weren't glued I had some leeway to move the top wing back and forwards to get the lower wing lined up in it's seat. This now defined the lower wing dihedral so I glued the two halves together in place and added the large dihedral brace to lock it up. Now I have a one-piece lower wing so I can complete the sheeting on it, then bolt it on to the fuselage and use it as a reference for fitting the top wing and cabane assembly, which I'll assemble while the glue is still liquid to allow for tweaking the alignment. Simple!
Posted on: 5/25/2012 4:38 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11094110
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
The sheet went on ok after adding the capstrips and feathering them in, so no real problem. I was just surprised after the accuracy of everything else. The next task is to glass the strut ends then I'll be in a position to join the lower wing and finalise the alignment of the cabane. I guess some epoxy and micro balloons will be needed to fair in the glasscloth. I'm sure I've got a bottle of balloons somewhere, it's just a matter of digging them out.
Posted on: 5/21/2012 12:55 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11089118
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
I thought everything was going a bit too well. The ribs for the bottom wing were a perfect fit, matching the spars TE and LE perfectly, allowing for the LE sheeting of course. The top wing is another matter. The rear of the ribs is about 1/32" shallower than the depth of the TE. The TE matches the aileron stock once the 1/16" sheet is added top and bottom, so I'm sure it's not the problem, the ribs are. I've built the wing with the top of the ribs lining up with the TE stock. On the underside I'll strip some 1/32" sheet to 3/32" wide and cap the ribs from TE to spar, then feather this cap down to the spar. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/DSCF0220.jpg[/IMG] Its all ribs, which is odd. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/DSCF0219.jpg[/IMG]
Posted on: 5/19/2012 8:44 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11086764
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: Zor robc57, Thanks for your post and comments. There certainly is more than one good way of doing things. .................................... We just do things our own way and have fun. My best friend Tony that lived across the street from me and passed away two years ago was from Birmngham, UK and immigrated to Canada in 1969. Another best life time friend who retired
Posted on: 5/11/2012 3:18 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11077297
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: u2builder I also sheeted the turtle deck with a contest grade 3/32 rather than the supplied standard grade 1/16 because it bends easier, weighs a little less, and gives a little more thickness for sanding. I used the supplied balsa for the leading edge skins because going too light in the leading edge tends to result in cracked balsa when handling the plane. [/quote] Did you sand down the frames F3-F5 to allow for the 3/32 or just feather in the edges? That sounds like a good idea if only to reduce the risk of damage when handling the model.
Posted on: 5/11/2012 4:36 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11076712
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Just a quick reply to explain a couple of points Zor. First - the dowel hole. My practise with this is to oval the hole vertically by removing material from the top of the hole for a low wing design, or from the bottom for a shoulder wing. This is the non-load bearing side of the hole. You could use a 2" deep slot to locate the dowel in, only the bottom half of the hole which forms the load bearing surface is of any consequence. There will be no problem with fitting the wing in place! Second, where the wing is set into the fuselage to any degree, the rear face of the wing cut-out should be angled backwards slightly to allow the trailing edge with attached belly-pan to drop down and slightly back as you remove the wing. Third, the loads are spread by the wing skins, the block infill, the leading edge and it's ply doubler into the root ribs, from there to the spar. Honestly, it does work fine for our MODEL engineering![8D] Try it sometime, it's one less bolt to drill and tap for, and one less item to loose Oh yes, one other practise I use is to drill and tap the ply wing mount plate rather than using a captive nut. Harden the threads with a good soaking in thin cyno and it works a treat. These methods hold the wings on my .60 powered Tornado and .90 powered King Altair pattern aerobatic models. Back to the build - last night I bonded on the spar doublers and popped the lower wing ribs out of their sheets. I really can't believe the quality and accuracy of the die cutting in this kit. It's even good quality rib stock balsa! It a real revelation of what could be acheived pre-laser.
Posted on: 5/11/2012 1:15 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11076632
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
[quote]ORIGINAL: Zor robc57, I strongly suggest that you do not use dowel(s) at the leading edge of the bottom wings. Do I have to explain why ? Zor [/quote] erm - yes! I've used leading edge dowels for the last 30+ years in both foam and built-up wings without any problems whatsoever so I'd be interested to hear why you wouldn't think it advisable. There's a 1/16" ply
Posted on: 5/10/2012 1:05 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11076074
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
One thing I've noticed while doing a dry run of the cabane assembly is that the cutout in the ply beams is slack enough on the wires to allow quite a bit of longitudinal movement at the top of the wires - i.e. you can swing the uprights forward and back through a fair old arc. I'd say there's enough slack to easily give 1/4-3/8" variation on where the 'prongs' end up. That's the reason that I'm waiting until I've got the wings on hand before gluing and soldering the cabanes together. It wouldn't be the end of the world to have to adjust the lower wing sweep to accommodate it had I just gone along with the instructions but Zor's method seems more logical than GP's. By shaving the bottom front of the cabane holders rather than using packing at the back, I've ended up with them contacting the cockpit floor correctly, but my lower wing will loose maybe 1/8" dihedral compared to if I'd packed the cabane up. In the grand scheme of things that will not matter in the least. It may even reduce the yaw-roll couple that people report, but I doubt it will be enough to notice any difference. My plan is to do a loose cabane fit with wings and interplane struts in place while I join the lower wings nice and straight in order to set the dihedral, then epoxy the wires into the holders and re-assemble the plane to line everything up before the epoxy sets. This is the first power model I've seen in donkeys years that doesn't use a dowel or ply tongue into F2 to locate the wing leading edge. I'll be looking into changing the Skybolt lower wing fixing from two bolts to bolt and dowel, which would allow me remove the front ply plate and make access to the radio and tank bays easier.
Posted on: 5/10/2012 1:48 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11075411
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
There is some logic behind the UC plate move - the nearest glass replacement U/C I could find is about an inch and a half longer than standard, so raising the mounting plate absorbs some of that extra length leaving the nose just about an inch higher than stock. Just before bed last night I had a 'what if' moment which evolved into a 'let's just try' one. By moving the front of the right hand cabane mount outward by just over 1/8" and shaving the underside of both mounts I've got the wing mounting points to line up while still sitting flat on the cockpit base! Triangulating from the top of the fuselage sides the mounts are both exactly centred above the fuselage and I've got the -1 degree. Nothing is getting glued or soldered though, not until the wings are available for fine adjustments to be made. Talking of engine woes, I have a Magnum 91 FS which I was running in a WM Super Chipmunk. I'd bought the engine at a swap meet - 'good strong runner' - yes, right... Anyway, it wasn't short of power and towed the SC around ok, and it had an oddly realistic growl to the engine note. This rapidly got more realistic and more growly to the point that comments were made about the noise level (our site is noise sensitive). On stripping the motor I found the main bearing outer race spinning freely in the crankcase. I'd got a new bearing that fitted, but it's still a slip fit in the case, so I guess the case was bored oversize from new and got worse with wear. I've used locktite on it which took up the play but now I'm reluctant to fit that engine in an airframe as I've lost confidence in it.
Posted on: 5/9/2012 2:41 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11073913
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
So far everything has been straightforward with the fuselage structure, so tonight I got as far as trial assembling the cabane - having noted from Zor's post above that I really need the wings before doing anything permanent here (thanks Zor). I've epoxied the centre 1/8" ply holders to one side piece each, then clamped the rest together. It looks as though the front right wire needs 'tweaking' by at least 1/8" to bring the wing pins into line with the rudder. With tie-wraps and clamp assembly it looks as though I also need to drop the front of the holders by 3/32" to get the -1 degree incidence. Incidentally, I found I needed 1/32" packing either side of the fin stub to make it fit the slot in F5. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0202.jpg[/IMG] The alternative is to open the slot in F1 to move the front of the right cabane holder out by 1/8". Time enough to decide which way to go while I get stuck into the wings. I think closing up the top bend in the U shaped front wire will be neatest, but we'll see. Anyway, servos are in, the rudder servo in the centre and packed up to allow for the closed loop to clear everything. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0206.jpg[/IMG] Twin elevator snakes: [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0208.jpg[/IMG] You can see how I've used some 1/32" ply to pack the fin in F5. I've raised the U/C plate 1/2 by cutting a new slot in LG1 1/2" up from the original. I also added a doubler from the 1/8" ply leftovers. At the rear I epoxied a 1/4" * 1/2" beam across LG2 to support the rear of the new plate, which is the full width of the fuselage. 1/32" ply treblers between LG1 and LG2 and 1 1/2" deep should help spread the loads into the balsa fuselage sides. [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0207.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn131/RobC57/Skybolt/DSCF0203.jpg[/IMG] It's not such a dainty lightweight now the underside sheeting and cockpit floor are in! edit - the epoxy excess doesn't look half as bad in real life!
Posted on: 5/8/2012 2:47 PM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11073373
RE: Skybolt hangar and clubhouse
Thanks for the warning about the cabanes, that is definitely one to watch out for. The carbon undercarriage turned out to be a nearest fit stock item rather than a purpose made exact match, being a bit taller than stock. Not a bad thing, but I'm thinking of raising the UC mount inside the fuselage by 1/4 or 1/2" to absorb some of the height difference which is around 1 1/2" above stock. I shall have a play with that area tonight. As for the thrustline Dave, I'd guess the recommended amount was based on 2 stroke engines, a .60 turning an 11 or 12" prop would need less than a 1.20 four stroke turning a 15 or 16" prop. I hate messing with thrustlines as it means either having the spinner off-centre to the cowl/fuselage centreline, or redrilling the mounting bolts to reposition the mount. With the weather we've got forecast I think I'll be making more progress this weekend.
Posted on: 5/3/2012 3:27 AM by Author "robc57"
in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11066503
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