MGC
Bronze Member
Posts: 6
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Post by MGC on Mar 15, 2020 19:52:34 GMT -4
Hi Folks! Well, i smashed up my fms bf109 800mm one to many times. I decided to retire it and pull the electronics out, which lead to "what am i gona do with this stuff?" Build a plan from scratch naturally! I never built an RC plane before, so after lots of research I landed on building the Flite Test Simple Cub. I used dollar store foamboard and hot glue, and added a few small modifications like a steerable tail wheel. It was a joy to build and has some rather clever design work. The lads at Flite Test sure know their stuff! Today I took it out for its maiden, kind of accidentally! I had it out seeing how it taxied and checking its ground handling, then a puff of head wind came at the same time that I gave it a throttle bump, and well, up she lept! There was no turning back! And let me tell you it flew like a dream. If anyone is looking for a great Flight Test build, i would highly recommend the simple cub! Next I'll be painting it since it came back to earth in one peice. I'll post some photos when its finished. Cheers! Mark
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MGC
Bronze Member
Posts: 6
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Post by MGC on Mar 23, 2020 9:57:26 GMT -4
I've finished the paint! This is a color scheme based off a US Army Piper Cub. Won't have any trouble finding it in the bushes I used a mix of airbrush and bristle brush with acrylic paints. Everything on it has been painted, which was a challenge, but i didn't want to spend any money having decals made. I'm to cheap! lol I airbrushed a wing rib effect by placing a sheet of paper across the wing and lightly spraying down the side of the paper, leaving a crisp edge simulating the rib of a wing. A simple little technique that really brings some life to the plane. I put a single coat of Pledge floor gloss over the paint to give it some protection from the damp mornings. It's great stuff, very light and brushes on easily. It's not hyper glossy either. A great little trick for keeping the wheels on is to use a bit of fuel line to make a "cap". To make the rear tail wheel,I used some piano wire and placed it in a small straw filled with hot glue. Then glued it to the bottom of the rudder. I installed a spektrum AR636 in it and found a nice mix for AS3X stabilization. On that note, i've been spending a lot of time learning how to program as3x on the AR636 receivers. if anyone has any questions or needs help tweaking one of these, please let me know and I'll be more than happy to help! The instructions are ... "lacking" to say it nicely. lol Can't wait to fly this bird with her new paint!! See you out there Mark
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Post by mailman on Mar 23, 2020 10:13:15 GMT -4
Looks good, I've built several of their planes from scratch and they fly quite well. The best thing is you won't cry when you crash. I think most of mine were built for less than $50. Only issue is that the paper gets weak if you fly on a damp day. They're basically paper airplanes.
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MGC
Bronze Member
Posts: 6
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Post by MGC on Apr 5, 2020 14:36:29 GMT -4
Thanks for the tip! That makes a lot of sense. I'll keep it home on those misty mornings. Would hate to see it turn to mush.
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