The
use of aluminium Profilm
and Day-Glo Protrim
worked very effectively
and it is apparent why
this scheme was chosen
for the training
aircraft of that period.
(I
used the same scheme for
my HS Gnat which I built
in the late 90`s
from Alan Hulmes` plan)
All
up weight came out as 39
oz in flying trim
including a standard AA
600 maH nicad, Futaba
138DF receiver, Futaba
switch and 4 mini servos
(metal gears on
ailerons.) Given
the wing area of 398 sq.
in the wing
loading comes out as 14
oz/sq ft. Plenty
of scope for reducing
that now I have changed
to 2.4GHz!!
Dummy
scale undercarriage
gives it a nice sit on
the ground and, yes, I
think it would fly ok
with them fitted for
those that may insist,
because being made of
blue foam and light wood
they weigh very little
(but are draggy.)
Wingtip fuel tanks are
made of pink foam and
are temporarily attached
but I'll try them later
in flight.
It
was a pleasant build in
all, plenty of balsa
bashing and balsa cement
fumes. Against
that I suffered with the
dust which I seem to be
hyper allergic to these
days but then that
applies to every thing I
work with now.
At
1/18 scale it is quite a
large model (43") plenty
of presence, easy to
hold and launch, and
classic proportions for
a good flying model.
So far I have test flown
it over long grass and
it is very stable so I
expect no problems off
the slope. Since
writing this it has
flown very well in light
and strong winds and aerobats just like the
full size!)
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