TopFlite Cessna 182 Electric Conversion

[Rickn816]

My Dad, brother, and I spent a week framing up the TopFlite Cessna 182. We figure we spent about 170 hours over 8 days.

Yes, long days, but we had fun.

Here's what we learned:

(1) The wing design is inadequate. No stringers and covered in ultra-soft 1/16th balsa. As I was packing to leave, my thumb punched a hole in the sheeting. Build the dihedral joints completely before inserting them. Cutting into the wing after the panels are joined is iffy.

(2) Cut the flaps from the ribs, and build them separately. If you follow the directions, you have waxed paper CA'd to the ribs. Not fun.

(3) Somehow (our error) we built a slight twist into the fuselage. At the stab saddle, we had a 1/8th gap on the right side.

(4) Although the instructions state that they don't match the plans, it would be REALLY NICE if TopFlite would include a table or chart in the instructions telling you what changed.

(5) The component layout will not work if you have a DSM or other digital radio. You have to be able to get to the Rx to rebind from time to time.

(6) The wing will not fit in the WingTote bag :censored:

I'll be posting photos from time to time. I have another kit on order so that I can rebuild the wing.

Rick

[Rickn816]

We cut out the plans as recommended. The board for the wing construction is 8 feet by 15 inches melamine shelving. I glued two acoustic ceiling panels to the surface so I could stick pins. It worked very well.

[Rickn816]

Lots of things to epoxy. Brother Bob is starting on the tail feathers. Dad is working on the fuselage.

[Rickn816]

I just could not figure out how to build the wing spar. It took me three times and a trip to the hobby shop in Cookeville to get replacement balsa. Probably due to brain worms :D

Because I wanted to use the Robart strut, we had to cut a new block for the nose gear to fit the larger mounting bracket.

Our first attempt at making skins.

[Rickn816]

Construction moving along well. Stab covered. Start on elevators. Dad is sheeting the fuselage.

[Rickn816]

More progress.

[Rickn816]

When we started building, I realized that I was missing a part from the kit. I had three "Part 10s" and no "Part 9.' Well, I did not check it when it arrived, we needed it, so I paid the extra money for overnight delivery. My brother and I were only going to be with Dad for a week, and I needed the piece.

As unhappy as I was with the way the wing turned out, driving home from Dad's, Bob and I discussed building a new wing. The easiest way was to order another kit. I did, it arrived Friday.

Guess what? Same part missing. :censored:

Two in a row.

I am not in a hurry to rebuild the wing, so I did not pay for speical handling.

More later.

Rick

[Rickn816]

Skining the wing and fuselage.

[Rickn816]

Continuing

[Rickn816]

We started on Sunday, so by Thursday, we were running out of gas. We had been putting in 10-hour days.

The bottom of the fuselage is planked, and I'm covering the top of the wing.

[Rickn816]

It's Friday, and the weather was rainy every day since Monday. Finished covering the wing, worked on servos and lingage for the nose gear. The plane will have lights, so we built a platform behind the passenger cabin for the electronics.

We mounted a switch behind the gear support structure. When the Rx is switched on, the lights come on as well. We will also have switchable landing lights.

We have to go home on Sunday, so it is pretty clear that we won't finish. The construction is pretty much on schedule as I originally envisioned it. We spent a lot of time driving up to Cookeville for replacement balsa and parts. I had to make two nose gear linkages before it worked correctly.

We were tired and cranky, so I treated supper at O'Charleys in Cookeville. Nice meal and good waitress.

[Rickn816]

I used spray laquer to seal the balsa. First, it is very light. It does a good job of both raising the grain and strengthening the wing. After the laquer dries, it is very easy to sand and you can easily tell when you are done sanding by the sound.

The motor is AXi 4120/18 driving a 12 x 6 prop. Power is EVO25 2500 mAHh 5s. At half throttle, it runs 10 minutes easily. Rx and lights are on separate batteries.

[Rickn816]

We could not believe how fast the week flew by. Time to get the vertical fin on and clean up the mess.

[Rickn816]

I built the flaps using the same method recommended for the Stab.

I'm debating using the Robart Fowler tracks/hinges. Anybody have any experience with them?

[Rickn816]

After my misadventures with balsa skins, I decided to cover the wing with 1/32nd birch ply.

The covers for the servo bays are 1/16th, the new sheeting is 1/32nd so I needed to modify the rails so when the cover is in place, the surface is flush.

I also added 1/8th balsa stringers to the leading edge of the ribs to help give the covering something to hold to. My balsa skins ended up with a scalloped joints at the leading edge.

[Rickn816]

The wings are ready to join, but I'm holding off until I decide on the flaps. I ordered a catalog of parts for the actual aircraft. Maybe I can see from that how the actual flaps work.

In the mean time, I'm working on the fuselage. Attached the dorsal fin. Filling, sanding, filling, sanding. Put a light coat of primer (spray) to help with the finish sanding.

Rick

[TRWXXA]

Rick,

Which lighting kit are you using on your Skylane?

[Rickn816]

Rick,

Which lighting kit are you using on your Skylane?

All Ram parts:

RAM 03 landing lights switched to the gear channel
RAM 04 "rotating beacon"
RAM LED Naviagion - Big Plane.

The beacon and nav lights are plugged into AUX 1, and come on when I switch on the Rx. They are powered by a 9V battery.

I'm not happy with the lens choice. The lenses the correct size are can-shaped.

Rick

[TRWXXA]

Thanks, Rick.

I've been looking for RC aircraft lighting, and hadn't seen the RAM system. Very cool!!

[Rickn816]

Thanks, Rick.

I've been looking for RC aircraft lighting, and hadn't seen the RAM system. Very cool!!

They also sell sound effects. My Cessna needs a machine gun :D :D :D

Rick

[TRWXXA]

They also sell sound effects. My Cessna needs a machine gun :D :D :D

RickI'm thinkin' the "General Lee" horn would be a nice addition to any scale aircraft. :D

What are you using to control the lights? The RAM site is a little vague about what else is needed to make the systems work. I want to have a set-up similar to yours -- navs. and beacon ON with the receiver, and landing lights ON with the flaps extended.

[Rickn816]

I'm thinkin' the "General Lee" horn would be a nice addition to any scale aircraft. :D

What are you using to control the lights? The RAM site is a little vague about what else is needed to make the systems work. I want to have a set-up similar to yours -- navs. and beacon ON with the receiver, and landing lights ON with the flaps extended.

Landing lights are switched through the Gear channel on my DX7.

All other lights come on when I power the Rx. They are attached to AUX1.
I will post a photo tonight.

Rick

[Rickn816]

I'm using RAM 1 (big airplane navigation) and RAM 2 (strobe). I removed the 9 v connector from one of the sets and connected both power leads at the RAM circuit board. They are connected through the strobe to AUX1, so when I power the Rx, the lights come on.

Rick

[TRWXXA]

Thanks for the pix, Rick!

[Rickn816]

Yesterday was the first Saturday in months when it wasn't raining. I had yard work and I really need to fly :D . So work on ths was postponed a bit.

I struggled with the hinges for the elevator and rudder. I discovered that I did not drill the hole for the rudder tiller bar straight, so I had to redo that. The hinges were a real pain, but everything is in OK. The adjustments to linkages were only a turn or two on the clevises, so I feel pretty good about that. Now, I can block in the tail and finish the forward deck on the fuselage.

I have not decided what to do about the battery. I may want to cut a hatch in the bottom of the hull for a battery box. I don't know yet where the C/G is, so it will be slow and careful until I get that scoped out.

Rick

[Rickn816]

So this is what we did wrong. When you are ready to plank the top, aft fuselage, have the tail cone ready to make sure you are close to a fit.
I haven't even started to work on the top side yet. This took 3 to 4 hours to get this far.

I did remember to rewire the rear nav light and mount in in the tail cone.

Rick

[3 pointer]

Very nice Rick.

You guys really get stuck in. Do you guys all just tackle a seperate part of the plane or all work together on one item till its finished?
Just ask, because I would never trust my brother to build up any part of my plane. LOL

Any colour options already in mind for her?

[Rickn816]

Very nice Rick.

You guys really get stuck in. Do you guys all just tackle a seperate part of the plane or all work together on one item till its finished?
Just ask, because I would never trust my brother to build up any part of my plane. LOL

Any colour options already in mind for her?

We did this as kids, so the skills were rusty, but not gone. Free-flight and control line, mostly. Dad did a few primative RC (back in the late 50's).

I'm home, now, working alone. As we are all aging, this is something that I wanted as a keepsake from my brother and Dad. My brother asked if I was redoing the parts (tail feathers) that he built, and of course not. Built with your hands. Yes, I paid for it, but it is ours.

I'm probably going to use the colors on the box - white with red and gray trim. I'm working two jobs, and don't have much free time to go find one locally that I can duplicate.

Rick

[3 pointer]

Thanks Rick

Good luck, awsome that you can do something like that with family.

[Pilatuspc12]

We did this as kids, so the skills were rusty, but not gone. Free-flight and control line, mostly. Dad did a few primative RC (back in the late 50's).

I'm home, now, working alone. As we are all aging, this is something that I wanted as a keepsake from my brother and Dad. My brother asked if I was redoing the parts (tail feathers) that he built, and of course not. Built with your hands. Yes, I paid for it, but it is ours.

I'm probably going to use the colors on the box - white with red and gray trim. I'm working two jobs, and don't have much free time to go find one locally that I can duplicate.

Rick

Rick,

You can go to www.airliners.net and find a few dozen different paint schemes you might like. Hope this helps. :)


Randy

[Rickn816]

Rick,

You can go to www.airliners.net and find a few dozen different paint schemes you might like. Hope this helps. :)


Randy

I have HUNDREDS of photos. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find ONE aircraft that shows all painted surfaces, unless I want to make it a purple sky-diving plane :D Wait until you see my instrument panel - most of it from Airliners.net.

This particular model is a "Q", which somewhat limits my options.

Rick

[Rickn816]

Thanks Rick

Good luck, awsome that you can do something like that with family.

It's a cliche, but when it's all over, Family is all we have. For better or worse, they are us.

Rick

[Rickn816]

As you can see, I did not get it on straight - Again! :censored:
So, I took it off and tried again. This time, I tied a string to the nose gear so that I could get a straight line back to the tail cone. If you look closely, you can see the LED navigation light.

I decided to order the Robart Fowler hinges. Don't know if they will fit. According the the plans I downloaded and printed, it will be close.

Lots of family commitments this weekend, so I did not get much work done.

[Rickn816]

The Robart units arrived yesterday. If the plane were 1/4 scale, they would fit perfectly. They missed it by that much :D

Not sure what I want to do at this time. I have the units and drawings and could try to cut a smaller set myself.

Rick

[kelvin]

I commend you and your father for taking on quite a project with a kit that seems to have been neglected by the manufacturer. I don't know why Topflite produces kits anymore. They can't be selling many due to ARFs. Good luck and thanks for sharing.

Kelvin

[Rickn816]

I'm back! School has been over for a couple of weeks. I'm almost caught up on my honey-do list, and working on the wing.

I had so much trouble with the soft balsa skins that I decided to try 1/32nd birch ply.

I have the bottom covered, and tubing in place for feeding the lights and strings for the servos. I can sheet the top surface starting tonight.

I don't want to talk about the new ARF machine. :D

I downloaded the manual (which has parts for conversion to electric) and now I have some good ideas for battery placement, etc. I intend to order the new landing gear, cowl, spinner, etc.

Rick