SZD16
Oct 27, 2002, 01:00 AM
<blockquote>So, you like scale sailplanes do you. Well, so do I! Hello, my name is Tom Pack and I'll be sharing scale columnist duties with Pete George here at the LiftZone. We will take turns writing every other issue. My columns will lean more towards the vintage, scratch built end of the scale spectrum, since that is where my main interest lies, but that doesn't mean that is all that you will be reading about!
</blockquote>
<blockquote>The format that I will employ for my column will be made up of three parts. The first will be about what I'm currently working on be it a new model, drawings for a plane, repair of a airframe (not that I ever need to repair an aircraft!) or something to do with scale sailplanes that I've found on the web that interests me.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>The second part will be about building techniques, such as building a pull-pull system, installing a tow release, or some other related matter. This is where I would love to receive input from you, the reader, as to what you would like to see. Maybe you have an idea, but aren't quite sure of how to do it. Send me your requests, and I will do my best to come up with a solution. Maybe you have a solution to a problem that you would like to share with the rest of us. Well, this will be the place to do that. The last third of the column will be devoted to you. So send me your stories, your tales of the good, the bad, and the ugly, and best of all, send me pictures of your latest project with a description of what it is and all the particulars about the aircraft, and we'll make you famous! Well, you may not really be famous, but it should impress your flying buddies. So, tell me what you want to get out of this column, and I will try my best to fulfill your requests.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/all3.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/all3_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/42.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/42_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>For the rest of this first column, I want to spend telling you about my modeling history so you have some idea as to where my thought process comes from. By the way, if you happen to figure that out, please write me and explain it to me! I have lived in central Virginia since 1983 and have been into scale since 1986. I first started flying R/C when I was 17 years old in 1978 when Santa brought me a Craft-Air Piece-O-Cake with a World Engines three-channel radio for Christmas. I proceeded to destroy that plane and rebuild it time and again until I taught myself to fly. Since then, I've had my share of sailplanes and electrics ranging from an original Sailaire to my current crop of planes consisting of a 3-meter Mantis, 2-meter Mantis, Acacia DLG, Orion Speed 400 electric 1.9 meter, NSP Virus park flyer, and my latest toy, a hollow molded Twin hotliner with a Mega brushless motor that is capable of speeds that will make your knees knock! All of these planes are fun to fly, and I do try to make it to as many club thermal duration contests as possible, but one of the reasons I fly these planes is so I can improve my flying skills to be able to fly my scale sailplanes to the best of my abilities. The other reason is that I just love to fly.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/dmini2.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/dmini2_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/mini.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/mini_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/daniel_mini1.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/daniel_mini1_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>Speaking of scale sailplanes, the following is a short run down of what is in my hanger right now. First, I have a 1/4 scale Minimoa scratch built from the old Chris Williams plan, using a HQ3.5/12 airfoil. This aircraft is the plane that got me interested in scale. Back in 1986, I was reading one of the sailplane columns, and the author had a picture of Gray Brokaw with his then brand new Minimoa, without paint. As soon as I saw the photo, I knew that I had to have that airplane. The next day, I sent off for the plans and canopy, and then proceeded to let it sit on the shelf until 1995 when I actually stated to build the thing! This past April 2002, it finally was finished and painted! So, it took seven years to finish an airplane. What can I say? I was busy.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>My next aircraft, a 100" Phoebus, was the first scale plane that I scratch-built in 1986. I bought the fiberglass fuselage from a guy in our club for $15 at the end of a swap meet one day. The wings are obechi over blue foam with an E193 section, which was the closest section I could find that matched the root rib fairings on the fuselage. It's a fun little plane to fly and can be quite a hand full when aero-towing because of its size, therefore it is flown mostly from the winch and slope.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>Next up is a 1/4 scale Pratt-Reid that I bought from a friend of mine who had inherited it from a friend of his. The Pratt-Reid hangs on an E214, and is quite the pussycat flyer. Much like my old Sailaire, it's slow and easy, and has two speeds of slow and slower. The E214 is a thermalling machine, and it will stay aloft for as long as your neck can last. After the Pratt-Reid, I acquired a 1/4 scale TG-2 from a club member that had scratch built it from plans. He winch launched it for a while, but later it became a hanger queen. He stopped coming out to the field, and I heard that he was selling off his planes, so I went over and picked up a new toy last summer. I did an extensive re-rigging of the machine because it was originally built with nyrods! Yuck! It also used a single servo in the fuselage to control both ailerons. I was able to pull three wires down the old nyrod outer tubing to where the bell cranks use to be and installed a servo at each aileron. I left the spoilers alone with their string pull set-up and a servo in the fuselage. The elevator was reworked in the style that some British modelers like to use. I added a braided cable to the inside of the yellow nyrod to make a Bowden cable out of it where the braided cable slides in the yellow inner tube that slides in the outer red tube. It works well now with positive control. The hardest thing to convert over was the rudder. All I had was the one red outer nyrod running to the tail, so I added another red outer nyrod to the other side and set it up with a pull-pull system. The last task was installing a tow release in the nose. This was not an easy task, since I didn't want to remove any of the covering. What I ended up doing was placing a brass tube in the nose that ran to the radio compartment, and then built a release there. I'm not really pleased with the way it works, so I will most likely pull it out and cut up the nose to install a real release this winter. The airplane flies great. At 3-meters, it is a little small for my taste. However, it looks real good in the air on a fly by and when it's coming in for a landing. It is the plane that I'll use to teach my 13-year-old son how to aerotow, since it is the one with the least amount of money invested in it!
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/022_19a.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/022_19a_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/021_18a.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/021_18a_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>Next, I have a Multiplex ASH-26 that I'm installing the radio gear in now. I hope to have it flying for Triple Tree this October. I'm also working on a scratch built 1/3 rd scale SZD-16 GIL which is a Polish pod and boom design from the late 1950's that uses a cross between the old and the new. The tail boom was an aluminum tube, the fuselage was constructed of steel tubing with fabric covering, and the wings were built up wood structure with fabric covering. Only one was built and flown in the late 1950's before they moved on to different designs. I liked the looks of it, and with the help of a friend I meet here on the Internet, I've been able to assemble quite a large file of photos and quality three-views, so I was able to draw the plans quite easily. Right now, I am working on the tail and rudder. After some research, I found that I needed to modify what I built so far to get the correct shape at the base of the fin. (I'll cover that in a later column.) Also laying around my shop is a 2-meter KA-1 that I am building from a short kit I purchased a few years ago. Right now, it is all framed up and needs to have the ailerons hinged, and the wings and tailed joined to the fuselage.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/13.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/13_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>My last scale sailplane related aircraft is my tug. It is a Senior Telemaster that has been heavily reinforced with 1/32 plywood fuselage sides installed over the existing balsa fuselage, and the wing has a balsa D-tube with cap strips. It rolls on 6" super light wheels with a custom aluminum landing gear. The rudder and tail wheel are driven by a single servo located on the bottom of the airframe at the tail. The elevators are split with a servo on each side of the tail. It is equipped with a 32-ounce tank and two 1800 mAh battery packs with a Jomar EMS battery backer system. All of my scale planes use the battery backer; it is a cheap $50 insurance policy against catastrophic demise of an airframe. Up front is a Zenoah G-38 swinging an APC 18x11 prop that works quite well. Two years ago, it was used to tow up a 28 pound 1/3rd scale ASH-26. You need to remember that two very skilled pilots were at each end of the tow, and the climb angle was shallow to say the least, but it did the job! In the real world, it is more suited to towing 1/4 scale stuff with an all up weight of under 18 pounds. The big thing with it is that I need to get out and fly it more so I can learn to tow with it! I've been flying R/C for over 24 years, and this is my first gas-powered plane! I figured that if I had to get a power plane, I might as well jump in with both feet.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>Be sure to send me your ideas, photos, questions, and what ever else you have. Remember that this column is written for you, so let me know what you want to read! Next time, we will start in with the basic steps involved in developing a true scratch built scale airplane. In closing, remember that scale sailplane flyers not only strive to keep it up as long as possible, but we also look good while we're doing it! Tom
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>The format that I will employ for my column will be made up of three parts. The first will be about what I'm currently working on be it a new model, drawings for a plane, repair of a airframe (not that I ever need to repair an aircraft!) or something to do with scale sailplanes that I've found on the web that interests me.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>The second part will be about building techniques, such as building a pull-pull system, installing a tow release, or some other related matter. This is where I would love to receive input from you, the reader, as to what you would like to see. Maybe you have an idea, but aren't quite sure of how to do it. Send me your requests, and I will do my best to come up with a solution. Maybe you have a solution to a problem that you would like to share with the rest of us. Well, this will be the place to do that. The last third of the column will be devoted to you. So send me your stories, your tales of the good, the bad, and the ugly, and best of all, send me pictures of your latest project with a description of what it is and all the particulars about the aircraft, and we'll make you famous! Well, you may not really be famous, but it should impress your flying buddies. So, tell me what you want to get out of this column, and I will try my best to fulfill your requests.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/all3.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/all3_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/42.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/42_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>For the rest of this first column, I want to spend telling you about my modeling history so you have some idea as to where my thought process comes from. By the way, if you happen to figure that out, please write me and explain it to me! I have lived in central Virginia since 1983 and have been into scale since 1986. I first started flying R/C when I was 17 years old in 1978 when Santa brought me a Craft-Air Piece-O-Cake with a World Engines three-channel radio for Christmas. I proceeded to destroy that plane and rebuild it time and again until I taught myself to fly. Since then, I've had my share of sailplanes and electrics ranging from an original Sailaire to my current crop of planes consisting of a 3-meter Mantis, 2-meter Mantis, Acacia DLG, Orion Speed 400 electric 1.9 meter, NSP Virus park flyer, and my latest toy, a hollow molded Twin hotliner with a Mega brushless motor that is capable of speeds that will make your knees knock! All of these planes are fun to fly, and I do try to make it to as many club thermal duration contests as possible, but one of the reasons I fly these planes is so I can improve my flying skills to be able to fly my scale sailplanes to the best of my abilities. The other reason is that I just love to fly.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/dmini2.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/dmini2_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/mini.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/mini_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/daniel_mini1.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/daniel_mini1_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>Speaking of scale sailplanes, the following is a short run down of what is in my hanger right now. First, I have a 1/4 scale Minimoa scratch built from the old Chris Williams plan, using a HQ3.5/12 airfoil. This aircraft is the plane that got me interested in scale. Back in 1986, I was reading one of the sailplane columns, and the author had a picture of Gray Brokaw with his then brand new Minimoa, without paint. As soon as I saw the photo, I knew that I had to have that airplane. The next day, I sent off for the plans and canopy, and then proceeded to let it sit on the shelf until 1995 when I actually stated to build the thing! This past April 2002, it finally was finished and painted! So, it took seven years to finish an airplane. What can I say? I was busy.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>My next aircraft, a 100" Phoebus, was the first scale plane that I scratch-built in 1986. I bought the fiberglass fuselage from a guy in our club for $15 at the end of a swap meet one day. The wings are obechi over blue foam with an E193 section, which was the closest section I could find that matched the root rib fairings on the fuselage. It's a fun little plane to fly and can be quite a hand full when aero-towing because of its size, therefore it is flown mostly from the winch and slope.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>Next up is a 1/4 scale Pratt-Reid that I bought from a friend of mine who had inherited it from a friend of his. The Pratt-Reid hangs on an E214, and is quite the pussycat flyer. Much like my old Sailaire, it's slow and easy, and has two speeds of slow and slower. The E214 is a thermalling machine, and it will stay aloft for as long as your neck can last. After the Pratt-Reid, I acquired a 1/4 scale TG-2 from a club member that had scratch built it from plans. He winch launched it for a while, but later it became a hanger queen. He stopped coming out to the field, and I heard that he was selling off his planes, so I went over and picked up a new toy last summer. I did an extensive re-rigging of the machine because it was originally built with nyrods! Yuck! It also used a single servo in the fuselage to control both ailerons. I was able to pull three wires down the old nyrod outer tubing to where the bell cranks use to be and installed a servo at each aileron. I left the spoilers alone with their string pull set-up and a servo in the fuselage. The elevator was reworked in the style that some British modelers like to use. I added a braided cable to the inside of the yellow nyrod to make a Bowden cable out of it where the braided cable slides in the yellow inner tube that slides in the outer red tube. It works well now with positive control. The hardest thing to convert over was the rudder. All I had was the one red outer nyrod running to the tail, so I added another red outer nyrod to the other side and set it up with a pull-pull system. The last task was installing a tow release in the nose. This was not an easy task, since I didn't want to remove any of the covering. What I ended up doing was placing a brass tube in the nose that ran to the radio compartment, and then built a release there. I'm not really pleased with the way it works, so I will most likely pull it out and cut up the nose to install a real release this winter. The airplane flies great. At 3-meters, it is a little small for my taste. However, it looks real good in the air on a fly by and when it's coming in for a landing. It is the plane that I'll use to teach my 13-year-old son how to aerotow, since it is the one with the least amount of money invested in it!
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/022_19a.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/022_19a_t.jpg" border="2"></a> <a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/021_18a.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/021_18a_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>Next, I have a Multiplex ASH-26 that I'm installing the radio gear in now. I hope to have it flying for Triple Tree this October. I'm also working on a scratch built 1/3 rd scale SZD-16 GIL which is a Polish pod and boom design from the late 1950's that uses a cross between the old and the new. The tail boom was an aluminum tube, the fuselage was constructed of steel tubing with fabric covering, and the wings were built up wood structure with fabric covering. Only one was built and flown in the late 1950's before they moved on to different designs. I liked the looks of it, and with the help of a friend I meet here on the Internet, I've been able to assemble quite a large file of photos and quality three-views, so I was able to draw the plans quite easily. Right now, I am working on the tail and rudder. After some research, I found that I needed to modify what I built so far to get the correct shape at the base of the fin. (I'll cover that in a later column.) Also laying around my shop is a 2-meter KA-1 that I am building from a short kit I purchased a few years ago. Right now, it is all framed up and needs to have the ailerons hinged, and the wings and tailed joined to the fuselage.
</blockquote>
<p align="center"><a href="/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/13.jpg"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2002/oct/scale/13_t.jpg" border="2"></a></p>
<blockquote>My last scale sailplane related aircraft is my tug. It is a Senior Telemaster that has been heavily reinforced with 1/32 plywood fuselage sides installed over the existing balsa fuselage, and the wing has a balsa D-tube with cap strips. It rolls on 6" super light wheels with a custom aluminum landing gear. The rudder and tail wheel are driven by a single servo located on the bottom of the airframe at the tail. The elevators are split with a servo on each side of the tail. It is equipped with a 32-ounce tank and two 1800 mAh battery packs with a Jomar EMS battery backer system. All of my scale planes use the battery backer; it is a cheap $50 insurance policy against catastrophic demise of an airframe. Up front is a Zenoah G-38 swinging an APC 18x11 prop that works quite well. Two years ago, it was used to tow up a 28 pound 1/3rd scale ASH-26. You need to remember that two very skilled pilots were at each end of the tow, and the climb angle was shallow to say the least, but it did the job! In the real world, it is more suited to towing 1/4 scale stuff with an all up weight of under 18 pounds. The big thing with it is that I need to get out and fly it more so I can learn to tow with it! I've been flying R/C for over 24 years, and this is my first gas-powered plane! I figured that if I had to get a power plane, I might as well jump in with both feet.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>Be sure to send me your ideas, photos, questions, and what ever else you have. Remember that this column is written for you, so let me know what you want to read! Next time, we will start in with the basic steps involved in developing a true scratch built scale airplane. In closing, remember that scale sailplane flyers not only strive to keep it up as long as possible, but we also look good while we're doing it! Tom
</blockquote>