O.K., 'bout time I started my own thread so I don't have to mess up Greg's or Gordon's thread anymore.
As you know, I'm working on a 1/4 scale Balsa USA SE5a. I hope to have it ready for next flying season.
I did manage to find time for a little building this weekend. The first set of wings are off the board, waiting for the center section to be built so it can all be joined together. I'll start taking pictures to show that I'm not just making this up...
I'll also use this thread to slot it the odd progress on a couple of other planes I'm working on (I use that term loosely). I'm recovering my old Canadair CL-215 Water Bomber that I've been flying since 1997 and have recently (a couple of years ago) stripped off the covering, refurbished the structure a bit, ran new wiring for a brushless set-up (the plane used to fly on old Astro 05 bushed motors and NiCd/Nimh cells), and have now started the recovering process. I'm really looking forward to having this plane flying again with a modern power system as it has been my best performing seaplane to date. So much fun, and easy to fly.
My other project that I'm itching to get started on is the Supermarine Seagull that I mentioned in Gordon's thread. This will be a cool little flying boat of a subject that's rarely modelled.
I would really like to have all three of these flying next year. I'll do my best, but time is limited. :-\
Wish me luck!!
Robert
Very cool Robert!
Missed you this weekend, but if you got some building done, you are off the hook! lol! Good to see that we are building again! ;D
Well, it seems the instructions would like me to start the next set of left and right wings before I move onto the center sections and the joining of all the bits. Both the upper and lower wings are identical until the center sections are added and specific hard points are added. So I need to do it all over again.
I'll do some shaping when the next set are done. No point in messing up my shop at this point (especially when my CL-215 recovering job is in progress on the other bench. Sanding dust and covering don't mix).
Here's some proof as requested. Not much to look at yet, but progress is being made. ;D
Robert
looking good!!! Colin better watch out that wing looks strong ;D
Oh, no.. better get my butt in gear! Ok tonight I am building again! Yesterdays MonthEnd killed me! So tired!
Got a couple of hours in last night. The second set of wings will be at the level of the first set very soon. Hopefully tonight.
I want to have the wings and tail feathers all finished by the end of October so I can use November for the fuselage.
It's so nice to be building again!!!
Robert
Great! I am starting the top wing this weekend. Hopefully have it framed up by Sunday night.
Still plugging away!
Robert
Wow, see you could do it! You are moving!
I had a bad/good dream last night that you had it done before me... Caused me to go in the basement and get two more steps done... ???
You have nothing to worry about. I haven't been able to get to it all week, but maybe tonight.
Stop having nightmares. The hobby is getting to you!!!! ;D
Piker aka. Future SE5a Pilot...
I was finally able to put a little time into the SE5a tonight, but only about 45 minutes before I ran out of time and have to go to bed.
It was time to do a little shaping of the outer wing panels before I join them to the centre sections. I had almost forgotten the joy you can get from the 'chore' of sanding. Yes, it's a messy job, but I'd much rather vacuum up balsa dust than foam "dust" any day. And the joy of seeing a wing take it's smooth, final shape is a big part of the reason I enjoy building. It's the time when the structure of various bits of sticks, sheet parts, and sheeting transform into the shape of a flying machine. You can start to see the smooth shapes that the wings will take when covered and it's a very satisfying process. I'm anxious to get back at it as soon as I can.
Robert
Any more progress?
Ugh! I've been away for the past week, then swamped before that. I have three days left in October and I'm not done the wings yet. And, of course, I haven't started the tail pieces either.
Oh well, I'm still very motivated and will get back at building tonight. Maybe 1/2 an hour between 11:30 and 12:00 :)
Robert
Keep going...
I have both fuse side together now.. I have to swap the plans out now and get my but in gear.....
Well, I got a fair chunk of building time in this wekend (the greatest chunk of time I've had in a LONG time). The wings are VERY close to being finished (maybe an hours worth left) then I can move onto the tail surfaces, which shouldn't take long. There was a lot of stuff to build into the wings, but they're looking pretty good now.
I know, not much to say, but I wanted to let you guys know I'm still moving ahead :)
Robert
Good stuff.
There's a lot of pressure to produce these days!!! Whenever I'm building I'm thinking..."gotta get this done so I can put a new post up! Other's are posting more than me. I don't want them to think I'm not moving ahead. I want to have this plane framed up so I can take it to the December Pilot's Meeting...UGH!" ;D
Actually, I'm motivated because I'm having fun, and it's fun to work ahead with other builders in the club. I think having this interest in each other's projects is going to help us produce some nice, new planes for next summer.
Robert
I think we need live UStream webcams in all TEMAC members' workshops so we can keep tabs on each other.
Or GPS trakers on each member so we know if they're watching TV instead of working on a plane!
Robert
I am all covered in saw dust. Lol. It is fun. Especially we are all building ww1 birds this time. The dr1 fuse is pretty good. I am starting on the outter wing supports soon. This frame seems to be moving a bit faster than my first one.
Ha! Wings are done, except for final sanding, which I'll do later. Oh, and I'll separate the ailerons during the final sanding process.
On to the tail surfaces tonight!
Robert
looking good... but why does an SE5 need three wings?
Oh, this is a very special SE5a...
Actually, those are the wings and tail bits for my 1/5 scale Ryan ST Special (that I'll be finishing as an STM... the original military version of the aircraft) that I framed up YEARS ago. It's on my short list to finish off. I only have about an evening's work before I can start covering it. I really should finish that off one day. I'm planning to use Flite Metal (the stuff that Gordon just received) on the whole fuselage, cowl, and wheel pants, and silver solartex on the flying surfaces (I have all the stuff ready to go). The fuselage would need to be glassed before the Flite Metal goes on. I want it to look like this:
nice... so we'll this one in the spring as well :)
Umm... I don't think so. I'll be lucky if you see the SE5a in the spring.
My goal for the spring is the SE5a and the recovered CL-215 water bomber. Probably the Ryan for next year.
Robert
Just spend every waking hour building. I just find that sometimes the instructions ae not clear and I get stalled.
I'm WEAK, I tell ya! :o
I went by A&J's last night (I try to support A&J's and Pinnacle equally... A&J's is relatively convenient for me on weekday evenings, and Pinacle is better for weekends) to get some more glue and a couple of sticks of balsa for my SE5a build, and walked out with a new plane as well.
Now, as spontaneous as this sounds, it's not completely without some fore thought. As you may know, I'm now a big fan of Seagull Models. They're inexpensive, well built, covered very nicely, are VERY lightly built (which is very important to me), and best of all, offer some interesting subjects. So far I've had the Mew Gull, which looked and flew beautifully, the Decathalon, which I liked the least of the three I've flown so far, but I was really starting to enjoy it...especially from floats, and most recently, the Zero, which flies very well and looks pretty good too. Well, with the loss of the Mew Gull in the Spring, my thoughts turned to the Seagull Sparrow Hawk. I resisted buying it for the summer as I had other planes to focus on, but last night, with cash in hand, I couldn't resist any longer. I took a look inside the box and was hooked right away.
So there you have it. Another plane to have ready for the Spring. The biggest challenge will be to not have it interfer with the SE5a build. Oh the temptation! :D
Robert
Oh man! That looks great! I hope that I don't buy something like that on my trip south! Good stuff! ;D
come now you could build that in a day or two and be back on the SE5 before the weekend ;)
It would be a quick "assembly", but I'm going to resist the tempation as I don't need it til the Spring and I'm rollin' on the SE5a. But oh so tempting. It's like getting a new toy at Christmas and having to wait until March Break to play with it :) Wait, it's like getting a new toy on November 7th and having to wait until a 1/4 scale biplane is finished before I can play with it. Ya... something like that.
BTW, I also bought 5 metres of drab green covering last night and had to order another 5 metres. Sheesh! This building thing is expensive! Got the 7" wheels too. I need to order me some machine gun kits now...
Robert
Sparrow Hawk looks AWESOME! very nice looking real plane and a fine model! Who dosent think 30's racers are attractive. Hopefully it flys as well as the Mew Gull as that was a favorite of mine.
Don't forget to put saw blades in the leading edge for that tree in Oakville.
I just had a visit from Colin, who wanted to see what this building with sticks was all about. Well, because he was over, I figured it was a good time to start on the fuselage of the SE5a, as the construction of the fin and rudder isn't very exciting. I did manage to get the stab and elevator halves built up before he came over, so at least that's done. They just need the hard points for the control horns added, and then sanding.
We didn't get far on the fuselage tonight, but it's a start, and I'm looking forward to getting it framed up.
Good times!
Robert
Cool visit as usual ... but besides the usual chit chit when I come over I acvtually learned a couple of things last night. ;D
1. This man Robert is a patient, patient man. (at least as far as "building" is concerned! ;) )
2. Despite the fact that I don't think at this point in my life (with all the stuff I have going on NON RC related) I have the patience for a kit build, I AM very interested in "trying" one, but nothng as complicated as the stuff you guys are building.
Hmmm ... are there any CL 215/415 kits out there? ;) (seriously)
Colin
Here ya go:
https://mraerodesign.securicom.ca/en/products/info.cfm?ProduitID=1
Robert
So after I kicked Colin out the other evening, I was able to get some work done ;D
I've run into a few errors in the kit that have required a second to figure out, but nothing that'll slow me down. For example, I seem to be short on several stick stock pieces. I've had to run to the LHS a couple of times to get replacements. Then on Saturday, I was looking for an F5 former, as mentioned in the instructions and shown on the plans, but could not find the die-cut piece, or even a reference for one in the die-cut reference pages. I did, however, have an F2a, which didn't seem to be mentioned anywhere, or shown on the plans. And it seemed to be exactly what I was looking for in an F5. So I've made the assumption that THAT's the piece I need. I hope I'm right :)
Anyway. Things are moving along well and I'm enjoying the build. Especially now that the fun part, the fuselage, is well underway.
Robert
Quote from: piker on November 10, 2012, 08:30:00 PM
Here ya go:
https://mraerodesign.securicom.ca/en/products/info.cfm?ProduitID=1 (https://mraerodesign.securicom.ca/en/products/info.cfm?ProduitID=1)
Robert
Yeah that one just seems too heavy ... kind of like the Albatross I was looking at originally. remember?) I'm looking for something more along the lines of your 215. I found the the "plans" (Steve Gray?) and considered buying them but since I've never even build a kit yet I'm thinking building one from plans (without the bits) might be a more more of a challenge than I'm willing to take on right now!
I posted the following over at RC Groups and will do the same over at RCCanada ... anyone here is welcome to chime in cause I'm serious about this now ... I've put of building for far too long! :)
Colin
Flying boat kits Are there any traditional (balsa ply etc) flying boat kits available? Was originally looking for a CL-215 or 415 kit (which I can't even find) but would love to see all that's available ... all I seem to be able to find are plans! Help anyone?
Colin
I just ordered these plans a few days ago: ;D
http://www.myhobbystore.co.uk/product/16452/rsq1731--vickers-supermarine-stranraer (http://www.myhobbystore.co.uk/product/16452/rsq1731--vickers-supermarine-stranraer)
Probably next year's building project.
Way cool! :)
Kits for scale flying boats are pretty rare. There are a few non-scale kits available, like the Sig Sealane:
http://www.sigmfg.com/IndexText/SIGRC85.html (http://www.sigmfg.com/IndexText/SIGRC85.html)
Robert
Still moving ahead on the SE5a!
Big step type progess slowed down a bit over the weekend as I needed to do some detailing work. The SE5a has a large wall of a cowl that looks horrible aerodynamically, but was used as an engine cooling system with adjustable shutters to control airflow to the engine. This is a pretty cool detail for the scale model, so I was interested in working on it. It took some time as the individual slats had to be cut accurately to length (I created a mini mitre box), then they had to be glued, at the correct spacing and angle, to the fuselage front plate. This whole front plate is removable for motor access. See pictures below.
Another cool feature of this particular model is that, not only does the whole front plate remove for access, but so does the lower engine compartment cover and the whole top section of the engine area (essentialy the top of the dummy engine). This is awesome because it makes mounting the motor REALLY easy and I'll have tons of access for mounting the batteries without having to remove the wings or flip the plane over. In other works, the battery hatch is aleady designed into this gas model design. Saweet!
So after I finished the shutter detail, I moved onto the next boring "must do". The mounting of the motor. The plan called for a massive sliding box that slots through the formers back further in the fuselage. This places the motor mount at the upper engine position that was used for the geared motor (full size) version of the plane (the version that used a four bladed prop). But I want to model the lower thrustline version of the plane so the kit position is useless to me, plus it filled up the space that can be used for battery mounting. So I threw out their approach for mounting the engine, and created my own firewall that will mount quite forwad in the engine campartment, leaving tons of room for everything else. So easy.
Anyway. Lot's of fun. Now I can get onto the upper part of the fuselage. The part where the charater of the plane comes together.
Robert
wow very cool!!
Quote from: piker on November 08, 2012, 11:00:02 AM
I'm WEAK, I tell ya! :o
........my thoughts turned to the Seagull Sparrow Hawk. I resisted buying it for the summer as I had other planes to focus on, but last night, with cash in hand, I couldn't resist any longer. I took a look inside the box and was hooked right away.
Robert
I'm sure I already know this, but did you get the big one, or the little one?
S
I got the "little" one. The 70" span, 950sq.in. area, 10-11 lbs, Eflite 160 on 10 cells (same power system as my Mew Gull and what the SE5a will have.
Edit. I see that they also have a smaller one.... a 63" version (yellow). Mine is the larger red one, but not the largest 85" one.
Now I see they have this... Ugh!:
http://www.seagullmodels.com/ProductDetail.asp?id=129 (http://www.seagullmodels.com/ProductDetail.asp?id=129)
Robert
I wondered if it was the 35" version!!!
I might get the Grob Tutor. That's on my fantasy plane list!
Sorry to go off the SE5 topic. The build looks amazing.
There's a 35" one too? Sheesh! I can't keep up.
The Tutor looks cool too. I like the wheel pants on the trike gear.
Robert
Still plugging away on the SE5a build and I'm still enjoying it very much :)
My goal was to be finished the wings, fuselage, and tail surfaces by the end of November. Well, I'm one day late, but I can't complain about that ;D
The lower wings are mounted and I'm in the process of mounting the top wings with proper alignment and incidence.
Robert
Ooh that looks sharp, Rob! It's come a long way since we (you ;) ) laid the first side of the fuse down on the plans! ;D
Colin
P.S. Still waiting on my first "kit" to arrive ... CL-415 ... woot woot! ;D
Wow, you did a lot in a short period of time.. I am actually a bit disturbed that I am not further now. :-[
Nice!
Ooooh, pretty!!!!
Thanks guys.
Just did a bit of bending and soldering (tacking) last night for the cabane struts (between 11:00pm and 12:00). Great care has to be taken to get the upper wing incidence correct and aligned properly. The kit has us build a simple alignment jig for doing this as you can see in the picture. I borrowed a digital level from work. I was aiming for a 1.5 degree positive angle relative the the bottom wing (the instruction call for 1 to 2). In the set-up shown in the picture, the bottom wing is at plus 0.4 degrees, hence the plus 1.9 degree showing on the level.
The wires are all just tack soldered right now and the framing is already very rigid. I'll wrap with fine wire tonight and solder for real. Then I can bolt the top wing on and work on the interplan struts.
Robert
I'm calling unfair use of inclinometer. You should have to get that right via crashing like the rest of us.
Ben
Crashing is what I'm trying to avoid by (hopefully) getting it right the first time... but you knew that.
BTW, I've never thought about the incidences on biplanes and how / why they're set-up the way they are (or at least the way THIS one is). The idea is to have a different incidence for each wing (doesn't matter which is higher) so when one wing stalls, the other wing hasn't yet, which prevents abrupt tip stalling. The result is a lossof lift on the stalled wing, but maintained lift on the other wing. The second wing doen't have enough area to keep the plane flying at that speed, so the plane transitions into a gentle drive, which increases airspeed and gets the stalled wing flying again. A cool benefit of having two wings ;D
Robert
Interesting. I guess that also means that top speed is limited because a faster airspeed would cause the wings to pull apart/squish together because of the different angles. Bipes are slow anyway so I guess that isn't much of an issue.
Progess has been a little slower over the past week, but I'm still working away toward getting the SE5a ready for covering. I'm getting close!
The wings are all mounted with the cabane struts and interplane struts all soldered up and ready to have the wooded fairings added to the wire. The instruction list this function to be done after covering, but I'll probably add the firings before so I can get a nice, precovering photo.
I'm working on the underwing belly pan currently. Will have that done tonight. And on Sunday I completed some of the tail end details in the steerable skid (see below).
All that's left to do, after the belly pan, is to solder the landing gear and add the fairings, add the fairings to the other struts as mentioned, build the engine details, mount the servos and other radio gear, and create the mount for the upper wing gun. I'll also do some cockpit work before covering too, while I still have pretty good access through the uncovered fuselage framing.
I have the new motor, esc, and BEC. I have a 23x8 prop on it's way. I received the kit for the Lewis machine gun, and some instruments for the cockpit. Gettin' there!
Robert
Great looking carpentry work. Very neat.
Jack.
No pictures for today, just an update:
Landing gear wires are soldered and mounted, and the three tail servos are mounted in the fuselage, so all servo mounting is in place (including ailerons). I chose to put the servos at the front end of the lower wing mounting portion of the fuselage so I have clear access and so the servo arms are as low as possible in the fuselage in an effort to keep the pull/pull wires below the pilots seat. Tonight I need to run some representative wires to get the exit holes in the fuselage sides located properly. Properly for function, not scale location. As it turns out the rudder horns are at about mid rudder location and the elevator horns are at mid elevator half location requiring all sorts of pullies and access holes. My rudder mounting will be below the stab, as that's where the kits hard point is, and I can't be bothered changing it, and the elevator horns will be close to the root, as usual for models for simplicity of cable runs. Not scale locations, but I think it'll still look cool, and you probably wouldn't have known if I hadn't just told you ;D
Robert
Man! You're like a man possessed! I've never known you to make such fast progess on a build. ;)
Colin
Thank you for noticing :)
I'm really enjoying the build and feel motivated to work on it whenever I can. Not only do i want to have this plane finished for the Spring, I also need to finish off my Water Bomber and perform some TLC on my other planes to get ready for the Great Summer of Float Flying to come!
I'm actually really re-energized when it comes to building. "Back in the day" it was standard practice for everyone to use the winter for their annual build then at the summer fun flys we'd see the great creations that everyone would show up with. That was the most exciting part of the hobby for us. I personally have gotten out of the routine of building to a point where I couldn't imagine getting through a build within a building season, so I wouldn't bother trying. I've come to realize now that I CAN find the time to get through a building project and enjoy every minute of it. And if I can find the time to build a plane, anyone can. Remember, I work close to 70 hours a week... every week. But even by tackling a small job each night, the work accumulates and you can see the result. Much more satisfying than spending the winter watch X Factor! :P
I'm looking forward to having more people learn / relearn the joy of building...
Robert
My SE5a is getting closer and closer to being ready for covering. I decided it was time to do a little detailing before the covering stage. These thing do not need to be done before the covering process, but, as I mentioned before, will make that "just before covering" photo more interesting.
After finishing the lower wing belly pan, I moved onto the engine details as you can see below. I still need to do some filling, and then, after covering, will seal the wood grain, prime and paint, and add some more details. For now, I'm done...other than making the mounts for the exhaust pipe that run down the fuselage past the cockpit.
Next up was the top wing mounted Lewis gun and mount. I ordered a kit for the gun from BUSA and built it as you see here. The mount is built per the instructions with the plane, and I had to figure out a way to mount the gun to the mount so it could be removed for safe transport. I used our trusty magnets for that as you can see. The mount is removable too. I figure it worked out pretty good.
The gun build was a lot of fun and rather challenging, but once I dove into the operations that were described in the instructions, it worked out quite well. For example, the flared and hollowed end of the gun had to be turned on a lathe (drill press) from a piece of dowel. The cocking handle and the larger handle at the rear were turned the same way, from pieces of dowel, the metal straps had to be cut, bent, and drilled from strip stock, the bullet magazine had to be stacked and have all the vertical embosses added separately, and the mount guide rail had the be laminated and drilled very carefully. The pieces that the mount attaches to the top wing with had to be shaped, drilled (for strengthening dowels) and mounted as you can see in the photo. When I do the finishing stage, everything will have the be sealed and painted to look like oiled steel.
Last picture is just of the servos mounted as viewed through the lower wing saddle ready to have the pull/pull wires attached during final assembly.
Next up will be the wooden fairings on all the metal strut work.
Robert
Oh sweet ... I really like the gun!
It has been a while since I've added a progress report, so here it is:
It feels like I haven't accompliahed much on the SE5a over the past few weeks as I've been busy with work, but I guess, when I look back at it, I am still moving along.
I shaped and assembled all the Cabane and Interplane strut fairings to the steel wire contraptions I made a while ago, so that's a chore out of the way. I've also been working on the final sanding of the entire model in preparation for covering, which feels like it's delays by several weeks. I finished the final sanding last night, and started stainging the inide of the cockpit while I have good access before covering. I also added a basic seat platform (the real seat was not much more than a couple pieces of plank wood with cushions and a lap belt added on) and a control stick mount (a piece of light ply with a hole in it) so I can added the control stick during cockpit detailing.
It's a matter of an hour at most before I can start covering. That will be a good time to tidy my workshop a bit after all the construction and sanding :)
Robert
Great! I was up till 12 am fixing some issues on mine... I glued the mid wing and noticed it was 1/8 off center.. had to tear it out of the base and start again... Not sure what happened?
!/8" off center? Close enough! ;D
When you way glued, are you saying that the wing is permanently attached to the fuselage, or are you referring to gluing the bolt mounts?
Quote from: Gregor77 on January 07, 2013, 09:47:25 AM
Great! I was up till 12 am fixing some issues on mine... I glued the mid wing and noticed it was 1/8 off center.. had to tear it out of the base and start again... Not sure what happened?
of an inch?... trim will fix that ;D
O.K. I'm finally ready for covering... well, except for separating the ailerons and cleaning up my dusty workshop.
The most recent activity on the SE5a has bogged me down a bit. It's the fine tuning work and the work where some of the fiddling has to be done in preparation for the covering stage. It's the part where progress seems to slow way down, and most of the excitment of the build deminishes for a while. The work becomes a bit more of a chore as we don't see the big construction steps to keep us motivated. On the otherhand, it's nice to finally get to the covering stage and the fine tuning work is necessary in order to end up with a good quality covering / finishing job in the end.
There are still details to add that I can do after covering. In the pictures below you may notice that the landing gear doesn't have the fairings glued on. That's because I'm not happy with the way the kit suggests to do them, so I'll do a slightly more scale version during my detailing stage. I also have to add details like the windshield, exhaust pipes, a bit more detail to the front end, etc.
What you may also notice in the photos (besides my messy living room/dining room...we're in transition as I'm laying new hardwood upstairs and will be doing the same on the main floor next) is some blotchy paint and stain around the cockpit area. That's the base finish that I applied inside the cockpit while I have reasonable access through the fuselage structure. My goal was to have no unfinished balsa or ply visible through the cockpit opening. Unfortunately, I found (as I should have already known) that the stain doesn't soak into the wood where the glue joints are, so some fine tuning/creative painting will have to be done there during cockpit detailing.
Anyway, below are some of the pre-covering pictures that I took last night. The photo quality leaves a little to be desired too :)
Going back to my 1/8th off comment. It is a tri-plane, 1/8 can effect all three wings. I need to be off by 1mm max! >:(
So I fixed everything and this is great motivation to keep going.. did another all nighter.. as stated in another thread. I need to start to solder and I am scared. I guess worse case, if I screw up I can just torch the parts again and start over... lol!
Wow looks great! I was trying to post some images but my phones are over 2 megs each.
I only have 20 pages of instructions left before I can cover....
Quote from: piker on January 08, 2013, 10:25:09 AM
O.K. I'm finally ready for covering... well, except for separating the ailerons and cleaning up my dusty workshop.
The most recent activity on the SE5a has bogged me down a bit. It's the fine tuning work and the work where some of the fiddling has to be done in preparation for the covering stage. It's the part where progress seems to slow way down, and most of the excitment of the build deminishes for a while. The work becomes a bit more of a chore as we don't see the big construction steps to keep us motivated. On the otherhand, it's nice to finally get to the covering stage and the fine tuning work is necessary in order to end up with a good quality covering / finishing job in the end.
There are still details to add that I can do after covering. In the pictures below you may notice that the landing gear doesn't have the fairings glued on. That's because I'm not happy with the way the kit suggests to do them, so I'll do a slightly more scale version during my detailing stage. I also have to add details like the windshield, exhaust pipes, a bit more detail to the front end, etc.
What you may also notice in the photos (besides my messy living room/dining room...we're in transition as I'm laying new hardwood upstairs and will be doing the same on the main floor next) is some blotchy paint and stain around the cockpit area. That's the base finish that I applied inside the cockpit while I have reasonable access through the fuselage structure. My goal was to have no unfinished balsa or ply visible through the cockpit opening. Unfortunately, I found (as I should have already known) that the stain doesn't soak into the wood where the glue joints are, so some fine tuning/creative painting will have to be done there during cockpit detailing.
Anyway, below are some of the pre-covering pictures that I took last night. The photo quality leaves a little to be desired too :)
Damn, that's a clean build Rob! Now I'm embarrassed because you saw the innards of the Typhoon last night where I just threw together some rough servo rails etc. (I guess I figured that's an area nobody sees!) BTW, I still can't get over how great that gun looks! FANTASTIC job!
Colin
Just a quick update:
I'm full-on into covering the SE5a. The fuselage is covered, but waiting for a treatment to the front end to recreate the look of painted metal, the upper wing is covered as is the stab and fin and rudder. The lower wing has the lower covering on, and last night I started to install the wing servos before I can put the top covering on, but I ran out of time. I'll finish the servo extension soldering tonight, then cover the top of the bottom wing. After that, just all the bits and pieces (ailerons and elevator halves) to be done.
I will have the covering done by the end of the week. I will probably then finish off the covering on the CL-215 Water Bomber while I'm in the covering mode. :D
Photos - make me jealous!???? ;)
Since Simon insisted, I took some photos last night. Not much to look at, but:
I got the servos installed in the wing and started the bottom wing upper covering (first two pictures) last night. I'll finish that off tonight. The other pictures show the fuselage, stab and fin/rudder as covered. 10 points if you can spot the mistake I made that I noticed when I laid the parts out for the photo. You may not see it if you're not really familiar with the SE5a. Don't worry, I will be able to fix it. The last picture shows the top and bottom of the top wing. I will add the appropriate perimeter edging, as is done on the stab, to the wings and fuselage bottom.
I need to pick up another roll of drab green covering tonight. That will be 12 metres of covering in total!
The mistake is that you should have used the beige or light covering on the rudder for the nationalmarkings?
You made a float mount by mistake???
A float mount would not be a mistake ;D Actually, I did consider that and figured that if I do want to put floats on, I can simply use the mounts that are there for the land gear.
Greg, you are right. That IS a mistake that I'll have to strip and redo. Thanks for pointing that out. But also not the mistake I was talking about :) I was referring to the trim around the bottom of the stab. First, i've determined that I made it too wide, so I'll adjust that, but the mistake I was talking about is the trim at the TE of the stab. Shouldn't be there as the "real" TE of the system is the TE of the elevators, not the stab. I know... not very exciting ;D
Finished the covering on the bottom wing, the elevator halves, and one aileron. Three ailerons to go, then a recover of the rudder (ugh), and the fine tuning of the perimeter trim. Then I'll see about the painted metal look for the forward fuselage.
Hey Robert!
Why is the beige covering so transpartent.. I think you ordered the wrong covering... Not like it matters... but looks very transparent..
I noticed and was surprised by that too.
What colour Solartex did you use on your Bristol?
Gordon's covering looks transparent too. I used "Antique", which is supposed to represent doped canvas.
edit... Found the answer I think. There's Linen and Antique. Linen is opaque and Antique is translucent. Perhaps linen would have been better for my SE5a, but.... whatever ;D
I kinda like showing off a bit of the structure :)
I used Antique Worldtex for the EIII. It's translucent. There's also an opaque version in the same colour called "Linen". http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1748801 (http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1748801)
O.K. So, all the covering is applied to the SE5a, and I'm happy with it at this point. However, I need to "cover" the forward area of the fuselage, which would be the cowl on other aircraft.
As I mentioned in another thread, I'm looking for a simple, yet, convincing way to do this. I've pretty much settled on Jack's suggestion of applying aluminum tape to stabilize the grain of the wood and give a smooth, metal looking surface to paint on. I also like the idea of the opportunity to leave some panel line spaces between the tape and some "weathering". But the problem I'm having now, is getting the latex paint that I had matched to the covering, on the test pieces nicely. brushing won't do, and my airbrush that I've had for years, still sucks! even though I determined a good thinning ratio tonight. The flow is just too fine to get the paint on wet and evenly covered as needed.
I can get a beautiful coverage with Krylon spray paint cans, but I can't get the correct colour.
This leads me to my next plan. I've been looking for an excuse to buy a compressed air spray gun for years now. They're not too expensive, so I'm going to pick one up tomorrow. I'll let you know how THAT works out :)
Well, I said I'd let you know how the new spray gun went.
HOLY CRAP! I could paint my entire house in 5 minutes with that thing! I went from not having enough paint flow to WAY more than I need, but, I was able to adjust the flow rate way down to a point where I'm getting a nice flow for the type of painting I want to do.
Which brings me to what I'd like to have. The thing I like about the airbrush is the very delicate (thin) layer of paint it applies. I feel like I have complete control over the amount of paint I apply. The problem is, it's too little. Lacquer spray cans spray way to much and tend to apply a really thick coat that is almost guaranteed to run. I really like the way the Krylon paint applies (from a spray can) but the colours are limited and even that spay is a bit much at times. Well, it seems I have the best control I can get with this spray gun. I guess the only drawback is the support equipment needed (compressor, etc) and the need for cleaning... although that's not difficult.
So, there you have it. I know this is probably old news for people who spray cars, etc., but it's a new tool for me that I'm quite excited about.
Hmmm.... I wonder what else I can paint. Is it time for a new paint job on my truck? ;D
Quote from: piker on January 22, 2013, 12:03:44 AM
Well, I said I'd let you know how the new spray gun went.
HOLY CRAP! I could paint my entire house in 5 minutes with that thing! I went from not having enough paint flow to WAY more than I need, but, I was able to adjust the flow rate way down to a point where I'm getting a nice flow for the type of painting I want to do.
Which brings me to what I'd like to have. The thing I like about the airbrush is the very delicate (thin) layer of paint it applies. I feel like I have complete control over the amount of paint I apply. The problem is, it's too little. Lacquer spray cans spray way to much and tend to apply a really thick coat that is almost guaranteed to run. I really like the way the Krylon paint applies (from a spray can) but the colours are limited and even that spay is a bit much at times. Well, it seems I have the best control I can get with this spray gun. I guess the only drawback is the support equipment needed (compressor, etc) and the need for cleaning... although that's not difficult.
So, there you have it. I know this is probably old news for people who spray cars, etc., but it's a new tool for me that I'm quite excited about.
Hmmm.... I wonder what else I can paint. Is it time for a new paint job on my truck? ;D
Show us photos and specs for your new spraying rig. Also, what are you using for your airbrush and how for how big an area do you find it unsuitable? I have a double-action Paasche which works beautifully, but does not have a high application rate.
Andy
I'll be the first to admit that the cheap airbrash I have is probably not the best, but for general spray application (not art work) I fugured it would do, for the amount of spraying I do. But, as I've said, although the flow is nice, it's not enough for the kind of coverage I wee need for RC planes. It would be great for plastic display models.
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_info.php/cPath/201_1103/products_id/113286/n/Aztek-A320-Workhorse-Airbrush-Kit (http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_info.php/cPath/201_1103/products_id/113286/n/Aztek-A320-Workhorse-Airbrush-Kit)
So I got this:
http://www.homedepot.ca/product/gravity-feed-spray-gun/996376 (http://www.homedepot.ca/product/gravity-feed-spray-gun/996376)
The 5 minute test I dud last night before beddy time, showed that I can certainly get anough paint out of the thing, but the control is really nice too.
So perhaps there's a place for both spray guns. The big one for overall application, and the small airbrush for detail work, like when I paint the machine guns for the plane
Hey Rob, that's exactly the kind of "looking" gun I had been researching in the not too distant past ... only I was doing HVLP (High volume low pressure?) ones but had gotten the impression (cant remember now) that it may not be the best for RC application.
However yours seems to be "normal" but with more flow which is what I too have been looking for. (I had a b%#*h of a time doing the Typhoon with my itty bitty airbrush. Talk about a painstaking process ... thank goodness t came out perfectly "acceptable" despite the hundreds of back and forth quarter inch strokes! lol! Would love to see your new gun in action!
Colin
I was considering the HVLP (High Volume, Low Pressure) gun too (as it was recommended), but figured it wouldn't work with my small compressor 'cause I assumed the "high Volume" was referring to the required airflow. But I asked a question and apparently the "High Volume" refers to paint flow, which I certainly didn't need for painting models. I'm happy with what I got even though my compressor has to turn on quite a bit to provide the volume of air necessary, but I figure I could cover a whole plane in about 30 seconds, if needed, so who cares ;D
As I said, I only had time for a quick test blow last night (hey! no dirty jokes!), but I'm impressed so far. You can borrow it if you like.
BTW, I thinned the latex paint at a 3:1 (paint to water) ratio with a few squirts of windex for good measure. Sprayed well and seemed to cover well.
How can we have "quick test blow" "latex" and a "few squirts" and not make a joke?!
Weirdo! ;D
Ya couldn't resist, could ya?!!!
So, as a result of Greg's harsh criticism, I've decided to NOT use foil tape for a base for painting on the SE5a, but rather fibre-glass and fill. At least that's my plan as of tonight. BUT, I wanted to make sure my old epoxy is still O.K. so I mixed up a bit to let it cure overnight. Unfortunately, I won't be able to work on it tomorrow (wednesday) night because there's some meeting going on.
So, while I was waiting to see how the epoxy cured, I did some covering on the Water Bomber, since my workshop is relatively dust free right now.
Anyway....
Finally got around to glassing the forward fuselage on the SE5a tonight. That should keep Cadez happy. No short cuts, eh?
I'm moving along on the covering for my Water Bomber as I give the epoxy, on the SE5a, another day to cure (it's a very long working time epoxy, so takes a long time to cure fully). I plan on sanding then applying a filler coat of primer to the glassed SE5a tonight.
The covering job on the Water Bomber is not going as well as I'd like. I guess it looks O.K., but with a sub-par surface underneith, it's impossible to do a perfect covering job. Oh well, I never planned on it being like brand new. Just a bit prettier than before the refurbishment so I can get it back in the seaplane fleet. I'm actually more excited about having the Water Bomber flying again, with it's new covering and power system, than the SE5a.
Progress on the SE5a has been slow over the past week or so, but I'm still moving ahead. No pictures yet as there's not much to look at. Currently the fuselage is sitting on the bench wrapped in a clear plastic bag, to protect the rear part previously covered with Solartex, and masking tape and paper, to close in the openings in the forward section. The remaining exposed areas are covered with grey, high build, primer sprayed over the fibreglassed forward section. It took me two evenings just to get the masking tape/paper/plastic applied before I could prme (there were a lot of open sections to mask over).
Tonight I'll sand the primer and add some spot filler to fine tune the surface before final priming and paint.
Are you gonna paint with the new gun?
Sure am! Hopefully Saturday.
Sand and fill tonight, sand and prime tomorrow night, sand and paint on Saturday... I hope.
Hey Colin, this is the compressor I have. It's generally on the low side for spray (continuious airflow) applications like painting, but as I said, it worked well enough for me for now.
Just a quick post to show the current, ugly state of the SE5a fuselage. Base primer as mentioned before with spot putty on the less than perfect places. That'll be sanded smooth (and mostly removed) tomorrow evening, then the final primer coat applied.
Just wanted to show this for people who are not familiar with the painting process.
Superb work!
Looking great. Lots of work to get to that stage. Why is it taking so long though? Michael started and finished his balsa P47 build already what is taking you so long?
Based on Robert's work on this model, I predict that his Sandringham will stop winning prizes at funflys.
I predict this SE5a will win Best Biplane and/or Best Finish and/or Pilot's Choice and/or Contest Director's Choice at more than one Funfly in 2013.
OK Robert, the pressure is on! ;D
Quote from: Ededge2002 on February 03, 2013, 12:16:32 PM
Looking great. Lots of work to get to that stage. Why is it taking so long though? Michael started and finished his balsa P47 build already what is taking you so long?
Simple. Michael is AWESOME!
Quote from: Michael on February 03, 2013, 01:41:23 PM
Based on Robert's work on this model, I predict that his Sandringham will stop winning prizes at funflys.
I predict this SE5a will win Best Biplane and/or Best Finish and/or Pilot's Choice and/or Contest Director's Choice at more than one Funfly in 2013.
OK Robert, the pressure is on! ;D
I dunno. There's a lot of building going on. Lots of competition. We just need to get the guys out to the fun flys!
O.K. It's been a bit slow as I work my way through the painting of the forward fuselage. It hasn't been pleasant, so hard to get motivated. But I finally got a coat of paint on Saturday evening, then an extra coat on Sunday to cover some thin areas. Last night I fine tuned the transition from the paint to covering and below is the result.
I'm happy with the way the paint went on and how my new paint gun worked. I had added a bit of aluminum tape strips before painting in hopes that it would help create a flanged look in the area of the fuel tank on the full size. I plan to add rivets in that area as well, but for now I just wanted to get the paint on so I can move forward. If/when I add rivets I can airbrush locally to match the paint.
The paint I used is Home Depot, eggshell, latex that I had them match to a piece of the covering I took in. Well, they failed. The colour isn't an exact match, but I don't mind. If it matched perfectly, you may not notice the difference between the two finished and the results may not have been worth the effort. So I can live with a little inconsistence in the colour.
Time to start assembling the plane with control surfaces and radio and motor, then on to detailing.
Yup! A prize winner for sure!
Amazing work!
If I said it looked like crap could I have it?
Lots of work there and I agree with Michael it will be a prise winner!
Michael's been giving me a hard time about my lack of picture posting in my SE5a thread, so, although I don't have any pictures with me today, I figured I'd give a little update with a promise of pictures to come.
Unfortunately, I've done little on the SE5a since my last post, but I DID get all the control surfaces hinged. This was a bit of a pain in the butt as, although I had made the hinge slots before covering, the wood used on this area of the tail is very hard, making it difficult to insert the hinges (I'm using the kit supplied, flat plastic, hinges with removable hinge pins). There's no way I was going to be able to glue three hinges in to the stab half (for example) then slot three at a time into the elevator half. I had to install each hinge half separately, line them all up before gluing (even shifting them to line up was difficult), then wick in thin CA to hold them in place. It worked out well, but I was a bit sloppy and filled in the hinge pin holes on several of the hinges, and I couldn't push the CA plug out with a pin after as I had hoped. The solution was to get a 1/32" drill bit, press fit it into a thin brass tube, and with my power drill, drill out the hinge holes again, while the hinges were still mounted on the surfaces. This could have made a horrible mess of it, but fortunately, the drill bit followed the original holes nicely, and this major problem of mine was solved very nicely. I was relieved ;D
Anyway, in the meantime (while waiting to get a drill bit) I mounted the stab, fin and sub-fin to the fuselage, and added some strips of covering to the seams to tidy the look a bit. I'm happy with the way this detail has worked out (owing to the ease of working with Solartex).
So curently, the plane could be ready for flight with some control surface hook-up and the bolting on of the motor, but there's no point in finishing that stuff at this point as it'll just get in the way of the detailing. So, at this point, it's time to dive into the list of detailing that I want to do. First up is the sealing, sanding, priming, painting, and detailing of the nose shutters, engine blocks, exhaust pipes, struts, landing gear and machine gun (all the yet unfinished wood stuff).
I will post pictures as I get through that process.
Just a couple of pictures to show some of the detail items I've been working on.
Things like sanding, filling, priming, sanding, filling, etc of the wooden Lewis gun and mount, the engine parts, front shutter cowl, interplane struts, etc. One thing you can see, that I'm pleased with, is the wrapped cabane struts as done on the full size. They worked out nicely and just need a bit of touch-up paint to get the areas that the covering didn't reach.
Also just a shot of the fact that the tail surfaces are mounted and trimed nicely.
Tonight I'm going to expore rib stitching and maybe fuselage lacing. I'll let you know how THAT turns out :)
The wrapped cabane struts really look great. That's a terrific scale detail.
Does your wife know that you stole her red towel????
Yes. I noticed that she used a couple of old, red, towels for our bunny to sit on while he's out of his cage. He doesn't like the hardwood floor 'cause he slips. I asked Tara if I could use the old towels for my workbench, to prevent the covered planes from getting scratched up, and she asked what the bunny was going to use. Anyway... she gave in and I acquired them.
I set one on fire tonight (just a little) when I was using it to protect my jeans while cutting though the thick, wire, landing gear for the SE5a.
More than you ever wanted to know about my old, bench towel... but you asked.
Since I'm here chatting, I spent some time not making much progress tonight. But I did refine some techniques that should work well when I get the right material and when I can do a test when the glue dries.
O.K., I know you want the details (ya right) so here goes: I was planning to add rib stitching to the biplane tonight but the thread/string I got was too thick. The plan was to wrap the string, back and forth across a board (at the correct, scale spacing), iron on some covering, cut it into strips the width of the ribs, iron the strips to the top and bottom of each rib and then cover with a wider strip to represent the cap strip. The little bits of string are to represent the stitching. I've done this before but used dope and coverall. That worked well, but because of the thick string, and the gentle adhesive on the covering, some of the string bits fell off. I could use finer string, but while I was a bit discouraged, I thought I'd try a different technique that I've heard of. That is using little strips of white blue over the rib with a cap strip over top. I tried a sample rib on the elevator and now I'm waiting for it to dry before I cap it. BTW, made some test rivets with the same technique that I'll use around the front part of the fuselage. I've known about the white glue technique for years but have never tried it. It's not too bad. Easier than I thought
The other thing I tried was the lacing that is used for maintainence access along the side of the fuselage on the SE5a and other WWI planes. My technique has promise, but again the string is too thick. Too bad because it's a good colour. I hope to go to Fabric Land tomorrow.
I also worked a bit on the engine and exhaust pipes to get them looking right. They both need more work.
Finally, I started working on my redesign of the landing gear. As mentioned a while ago, the kit supplied approach is not scale and the landing gear is very distinctive on this plane, so I'm trying to figure out my best solution. More on that later. I need to get some basswood for that.
I haven't had a chance to get back to the fuselage stitching yet (still need to get to Fabricland), but I have experimented a little more with the rib stitching look and I've made a little progress on my "more scale" landing gear mod.
In the first picture below you can see my second attempt at rib stitching, on the left, with my first attempt on the right. I like the way it looks now, so it's just a matter of applying the technique to the entire plane, top and bottom, with hopes that I can finish before the end of 2013!
The next picture is the landing gear wires with the kit supplied fairings held in place for you to see the original plan. The next picture is the fairings that I came up with that looks more like the real thing. I just have to finish grooving out the other pieces (right landing gear strut) then I can glue them on and stain. I need to also solder on some bits of metal, here and there, to hook the bungee shock too and something to stabilize the little wing that goes between the struts (like Gregs, but smaller).
I've spent the last few days... really a week of bits of time, here and there, working on the fuselage stitching for the SE5a. See below.
Quote from: piker on March 22, 2013, 12:01:04 PM
I've spent the last few days... really a week of bits of time, here and there, working on the fuselage stitching for the SE5a. See below.
Guys, having seen this in person I have to say that its stunning!
Colin
Just a quick update so you guys can't ignore me completely ;)
I HAVE been working away (very slowly) on the rib stitching detail on the SE5a. Each rib on the wings, top and bottom, and on the stab, fin, and wiggling sirfaces has received a covering "cap strip" to create a bit of depth. Then I've applied about 2000 little lines of glue across this cap strip to represent the rib stitching. I finished the wings last night and just need to do two ailerons, and all the tail surfaces. That won't take long (couple of hours). After that, I have to apply all the stitcjing cap strips to finish the detail. I hope this part doesn't take too long, but it might as the strips have to be ironed around all the little glue stitches. I'll take some pictures when I have some finished. hopefully done the rib stitching detail by the end of the weekend.
Robert
Awesome Robert, it's starting to look like my Parkzone ARF!!!!! ;D
Quote from: sihinch on April 04, 2013, 01:05:04 PM
Awesome Robert, it's starting to look like my Parkzone ARF!!!!! ;D
You be quiet and just keep bringing snacks to the field ;D
O.K., since i know Simon is anxious to hear... I finaly finished all the rib stitching the the SE5a, and although it was a lot of work, I think it'll really add to the realism of the build... at least I hope it does...
So I have a question for all you painting experts out there. I need to paint the roundels on the wings and on the fuselage but i don't want to spray paint with a spray can. I may consider airbrushing, but will likeyly prefer regular brushing. I know regular brushing will give a "brushed" look, which normally would be considered a bad thing, but I think it would add to the realism a bit. I'm going more for the "shabby chic" look ;D
My question is: where do you guys get your paints. All I need is acrylic white, primary blue and primary red. I got some at Michaels last night and although it brushes well and is the correct colour (close enough for me), it paints on very thin. I'd need several coats of each colour just to get the look I want. And the look I want is a weather, thinned kinda look. Is there a better source for paint with more pigment in it.. or at least better quality? Maybe there are better paints at Michaels and I just need to look closer.
Thanks,
Robert
Michael buys his at Home Depot, the sample size.
Oh! you mean the craft store.
Try the acrylic in Dollarama. It's American made and has a lot of pigment.
Jack.
I use model master... Testors.. But $$$$ if you are doing something this size.
Quote from: Papa on April 09, 2013, 03:01:59 PM
Try the acrylic in Dollarama. It's American made and has a lot of pigment.
Jack.
I agree with Jack ... and if you roll it on with a mini foam roller you can get the best of both worlds ... shabby chic and "even". lol!
Colin
Thanks guys. I really like the Games Workshop (War Hammer) paints, but they are expensive too, and over kill for my roundels. I may go that route for the pilot painting.
I'll check out the Dollarama, and I like the roller idea.
I'll report back.
Greg. What paints are you using for the DR-1? Not Testors, I assume.
I am praying it with tamiya ts paints. Rattle cans. I did my covering in natural solartex. All my graphics are from calli-graphics. Once the base colours are down, I will dry brush the patterns with homedepot acrylics watered down. I am using a 2 inch brush to make the streak patterns.
Thanks for the feedback, Greg! My SE5a is on hold for a bit while I get my Nooner ready. I'll be back to the Bipe soon!
BTW, we're on the Team of Diamonds together with Ken C. and Fabiano! I hope you're getting your Nooner ready as we need to whip the team into racing shape as soon as we can!
Applause for your build, Colin's and all the other experienced guys who are posting builds and inspiring!
Thanks!
O.K. After a two month break to get my Nooner and Sparrowhawk ready, I'm back to work on the SE5a. I'm so glad to be back at it as I would like to have this plane flying soon. How soon, I don't know.
I've attached the control surfaces and have started running the pull-pull cables for the elevator and rudder. I'm not very far yet, but it's a start.
Hey Rob,
I know this is a different thread but I missed the Sparrowhawk? How does it fly in comparison to the Mew Gull (which I also haven't seen). I noticed you opened a hatch from the top for batteries but how to lock it - just tape?
Can I ask what motor and batteries are you using?
Thank you
Bobby
Quote from: piker on June 12, 2013, 01:57:07 AM
O.K. After a two month break to get my Nooner and Sparrowhawk ready, I'm back to work on the SE5a. I'm so glad to be back at it as I would like to have this plane flying soon.
Great to see you back at this! I have to get back to the Typhoon myself. ;D Been so busy around here with "other" stuff, just haven't had a chance to do RC stuff for a bit. :( (even my Nooner's been sitting waiting for its maiden for a while now)
Colin
I know that we have all been busy with other projects.. .But how is it going? lol!
Greg! Are you asking me or Colin? Either way, I'll answer :) I'm in the process of hooking up the control surfaces on the SE5a. Specifically the pull-pull for the two elevator halves. Moving slowly as I only get a few minutes, here and there.
Hey Bobby, the Sparrow Hawk flies beautifully as did the Mew Gull. The Mew Gull had flimsy landing gear which made each landing stressful (and noisy). The Sparrow Hawks gear is much simpler and robust. Also the Sparrow Hawk has a bit more wing area. I'm using the E-Flite 160 on 10 cells in the Sparrow Hawk, and that's the exact power system that the Mew Gull donated after the great crash of 2012!
Robert
I'm back at the SE5a and moving ahead.
I've got the control cables hooked up for the two elevator halves and the rudder. I would have been done sooner is I hadn't accidently cut through the cables when crimping... TWICE. For years I've simply used side cutter that obviously weren't as sharp as my newer set I'm using now. The first time I cut through was simply a surprise, while crimping, as it had never happened before. The second time was just last night as I was snipping off the extra length for the rudder and accidently caught the cable for the elevator that was already finished, adjusted, and ready to go. I was not impressed. Anyway, everything is in place now and all that's needed is a little touch-up paint on the horn bolts and nuts. Oh, and I painted the rudder and I'm happy with the way that turned out. It's hand painted with a brush.
I figured while I was taking pictures I would show some of the rivet detail I added quite a while ago. I think it looks pretty good. These rivet are on the fuel tank that sits between the engine and the cockpit. Some other careful detailing to create the look of a tank, separate from the rest of the fuselage, my be in order.
Up next, landing gear!
Robert
Phenomenal detail! Wow. You must have amazing patience - no wonder Michael's ceilings look so good!
Looks too good to fly!
S
wow it looks great!
Beautiful work! Man ... this is gonna be sweeeeet when it's done! ;D
Colin
I'm fixing a hole where the rain gets in
And stops my mind from wandering
Where it will go ....
I'm confident to say that I think Michael needs a holiday. He is slipping in to the level of thinking I normally occupy and that is frightening from such a level headed individual.
Nice work Robert its coming along beautifully a bit at a time
My Friday mind.......
Thanks guys. I'm trying to get it ready for the TEMAC Fun Fly. Got some landing gear shock cord from Fabric Land... at lunch today.
BTW, Michael and Simon, you shouldn't drink at work...
Looks like something got Robs juices flowing again on this 1/4 scale stuff. Wonder what it might have been......
;)
Well, I'll admit that it was very nice to see your D7 in action, but the juices were already flowing before Kingston. I just didn't have a milestone to take a picture of before the other day ;D
Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to work on the SE5a since. Too many work and social obligations! But I do what I can, when I can :)
Robert
Successful maiden!
Cut grass and no wind made for perfect conditions, and Robert maidened his nearly-finished biplane.
It was amazing!
I'll post some images, but I'll let Robert talk about it.
On its second flight, Robert let me fly my 1/4 scale Tiger Moth at the same time; that's more than 40 pounds in the air between only two planes! ;D
Gorgeous!
Way to go Rob, you beat me to it! (I'm jealous) Looks awesome in the air! :)
Colin
Thanks for posting the pictures, Michael, and for your kind words, and for your encouragement and company this evening. Thanks to Jack and Bill who were also there taking pictures and video.
Yes, I'm happy to announce, after a year's work, that the SE5a flew tonight. The take-off was smooth and straight forward and the plane flew nicely after a touch of trimming. I found that I had reduced the aileron and elevator throw too much, and put them back to 100% after landing. The landing was a little "firm" as I may have brought it in a bit slow and ran out of elevator travel. Still, nothing the shock absorbing landing gear couldn't handle,
For the second flight, Michael and I (our planes actually) flew around together and we enjoyed the look of the large, graceful, biplanes in the air. I did a roll on the second flight and that was simple and quite axial.
I landed before Michael and my landing was almost perfect with a couple of flat, controllable bounces. Of course Michael couldn't let that alone, so his landing with the big Tiger Moth was greased in perfectly with a long roll out on the mains.
I am certainly pleased with the successful first couple of flights of the SE5a. Now I just have to finish the detailing and dirty the thing up a bit. It's too clean and simple right now. I will be flying it at the fun fly next week, unless the winds are too unfriendly.
Robert
Thanks Ben and Colin. Yes, I'm pleased.
BTW, the plastic hinge on the steerable tail skid broke before I even got a chance to take-off the first time. Thanks to Michael and his fancy tape work, he was able to get it functional again to survive the two flights, including taxiing.
I'll have to fix THAT before next weekend.
Robert
Very nice... I'm sorry I missed that
Congratulations Robert. the hours of labour and thinking have paid off. Beautiful job.
Congratulations Rob! Here's the video I took of the maiden. Sorry it took so long to post....my upload speed is pretty slow. I'll post the flight of the two models tomorrow...
Rob's SE5A maiden (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_rKvttGCU0#)
Fabulous! Congrats Robert.
And if you think back a few months, when Greg was getting away with his Fokker, and you two decided there was a mini challenge to finish first? Looks like you win! :)
Wonderful airplane.
Way to go Robert. Once again you have set the bar so high. Great video Bill!
It was even better being there. It looked awesome in the air, so much 'presence'.
I'm looking forward to the video of the two biggies in the air at the same time.
Jack.
A few more photos from last evening.
Thanks guys! It's nice to have all the pictures, and the video is great, Bill. I like the music and the credits :-) It's great to have this record of the maiden.
Robert
Sorry if you tried to view the movie I posted here yesterday. After a few views, YouTube shut it down, so I removed it. I think the music I added probably broke copyright. Re-did the movie without music :'( and re-posted. Should be available today (2013/08/18) at http://youtu.be/CfuZzu75Qs8 (http://youtu.be/CfuZzu75Qs8)...Michael, your landing will be documented!
What was really impressive is how slowly these large and heavy models appeared to be flying.
I understand if you delay the music 15 seconds youpigs won't pick it up. Don't know for sure though.
As in the maiden video,I started the music as Michael began his take-off roll. I'm pretty sure they found the music in both as they sent me a little heads up about the music from the Blue Max that's in the Rob's maiden video. Ben, do you know? Should I get rid of the music on the Maiden video too?
Quote from: Wingnutz on August 18, 2013, 05:17:58 PM
As in the maiden video,I started the music as Michael began his take-off roll. I'm pretty sure they found the music in both as they sent me a little heads up about the music from the Blue Max that's in the Rob's maiden video. Ben, do you know? Should I get rid of the music on the Maiden video too?
Google will find it. No tricks will avoid it. Maiden videos are better without music anyway because you can hear Piker's teeth chattering.
Ya, Michaels landing was O.K.... I guess....
Congrats of the maiden. I am jealous. :)
Thanks guys.
Hey Greg! We need yours in the air too!
I guess I should keep updating the SE5a build since the plane is not finished, even though it's been flown.
I'm trying to get some more detailing done before the fun fly on Sunday. There will still be lots to do after, but at this point I'm working on things like, staining the landing gear wood and painting the wheels and fuselage front grill. The biggest impact to the looks of the plane will be the hand painted roundels. These are large, circles on the top and bottom of the wings that have required several coats. I had to stop last night to help Colin screw up his retracts... but that's another story...
Most important: fix the tail wheel.
Fixing the tail skid (no tail wheel on this thing) was the first priority... and it's done. ;D