This isn't a new plane - by a long shot. But it's coming around for a 3rd life.

History:

I built the Champ back around 1970 in my dorm room. It had an Enya 19 in it and I used a World Engines, Digit Migit 3 on 27.045 mHz as the radio. I flew it for a couple of years until life and work got in the way. Then it was stored in my parents' attic for about 20 years.

In 1999, D Rocket Glide was scheduled for NARAM that year. I figured it was ripe for radio control, but I also knew I needed to get my thumbs back into shape, and doing it in a 6 second ballistic boost was not the answer, so I dug the Champ out of my parents' attic and converted it to electric with a geared Astro 05 and replaced the Digit Migit with a modern (for 1999) Futaba 6 channel system. Few better than with the Enya, but on NiCds it had only about 5-6 minutes of flight time.

It's now been in the back corner of the hanger for about 8-9 years, and I came across it a few weeks ago.l while cleaning out. I also found the old Digit Migit, but no Rx and only one servo.

Also, last winter I came across a Kraft two channel brick that I'd had back in the '70s. And I was in a tinkering mood. The brick was on a pre 1990, 72mHz channel which I no longer had a transmitter for, and it ran on a center tapped 4 cell NiCd pack, so it was going to be a problem using the original electronics. No problem, I gutted the brick an just kept the servo mechanics, motor and pot. I dug around in my junk box and found a couple of old, gear stripped, Hitec standard size servos. Out came the electronics boards and into the brick. Next I pulled the case off a Tactic 624 Rx - it fit perfectly across the width of the brick to make a 3 channel REM airborne system (the 3rd channel is throttle - which is both functional and uses the grommet the the battery connector used to use). I checked it out and set it aside to find a plane to put it in.

The present:

I thought it would be fin to fly the Champ with the same radio I'd originally used in it. Well, atleast one that looked like it, but with modern RF sections. so I probed around on the transmitter board and found the PPM signal from the encoder to the RF stage. Removed the Xtal to kill the 27 mHz RF section and routed it to an Anylink 2 module. To make a long story short, it took about 10 hours of experimenting, a transistor, LM7805 regulator to get it running (but that's a different story).

So now I had an updated, period transmitter and an updated, period airborne pack for a 1970s DeBolt Live Wire Champ (yes the Champs atleast 10 years older than that, but...). All that remained was to pull the no period, Futaba gear out and install the Kraft brick and hook up the linkage.

Now I just need the weather to cooperate.

- Roger

When the field dries out I hope to fly my Unique Models F4U Corsair.

Dynam Tiggy

gnofliwr,

Great job on putting new electronics into the old Kraft brick airborne! And figuring out how to convert the TX as well. Back in the 70's I flew two Kraft brick radios; they were my first proportional radios. Flying a vintage model with an updated vintage radio is fun.

I built this 60" span Spruce Goose a few years back. Haven't flown it in over a year so I'm going to dust it off and get it back on the water. It's electric powered and weighs 29.3 ozs all-up. It's fun to hear eight motors running in sync as it makes slow fly-bys. The 60" span makes it 1/64 scale (that's S scale if you're into model trains).

and here it is, video of Le Fish at Shell Ridge :

Le Fish Movie (2 min 40 sec)

I really miss being able to fly indoors!

We have several excellent venues locally but all remain closed do to the pandemic... The Sparta Dome in Crown Point, Indiana (shown below) is 200x400' with a 70' ceiling. Almost like flying outdoors!

I'm looking forward to flying my Wilga and her playmates again!

Don

Winners
10th - JureZ
11th - gnofliwr
Congrats!

New Plus Account Contest coming in new thread in the next few days....