Recycled GLH Racer
02-12-2012, 07:15 PM
#1
Recycled GLH Racer
This plane was built for "old rules" pylon, based on the GLH.
The fuselage was pretty heavy..fiberglass over wood, then painted.
It's even heavier now with this Cyclon hanging off the front.
The wing only had 1 aileron, it never worked very good that way. I'm adding the other aileron.
The wing is balsa sheet over white foam, hopefully there is a spar in there.
It looks like this one will end up weighing 19 ozs...it'll probably have to run with a 4.5x4 prop.
With the relatively thick wing and weighing more than the ASP .12 powered GLH, it will be interesting to see how fast this one is.
I think the thick wing will hamper upwind flight speed more than anything.
The fuselage was pretty heavy..fiberglass over wood, then painted.
It's even heavier now with this Cyclon hanging off the front.
The wing only had 1 aileron, it never worked very good that way. I'm adding the other aileron.
The wing is balsa sheet over white foam, hopefully there is a spar in there.
It looks like this one will end up weighing 19 ozs...it'll probably have to run with a 4.5x4 prop.
With the relatively thick wing and weighing more than the ASP .12 powered GLH, it will be interesting to see how fast this one is.
I think the thick wing will hamper upwind flight speed more than anything.
02-17-2012, 01:05 PM
#4
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
Here it is rarin' to go. It's about 45 degrees with a drizzle so it's a pretty nice day to head out to the field and give it a throw.
This plane is somewhat thinner than an original GLH. The thickness of the airfoil tapers towards the tips and the fuselage isn't as wide or as deep.
And there aren't any of those stupid looking wheels glued to the belly like the original has...
That reminds me of when a doctor told me he wanted me to do daily walks but he didn't want me to pump my arms up and down like some folks do.
I asked him why not and he told me, "Because it looks stupid".
This plane is somewhat thinner than an original GLH. The thickness of the airfoil tapers towards the tips and the fuselage isn't as wide or as deep.
And there aren't any of those stupid looking wheels glued to the belly like the original has...
That reminds me of when a doctor told me he wanted me to do daily walks but he didn't want me to pump my arms up and down like some folks do.
I asked him why not and he told me, "Because it looks stupid".
02-17-2012, 02:15 PM
#5
My Feedback: (66)
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
that one looks good maybe closer to 95-100. You can also add a small tear drop shape just behind the engine to help clean up the air behind the engine. I do that on most of my small ones like this. not sure if it helps but in my mind i think it does lol.
02-17-2012, 04:29 PM
#6
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
ORIGINAL: airraptor
You can also add a small tear drop shape just behind the engine to help clean up the air behind the engine. I do that on most of my small ones like this. not sure if it helps but in my mind i think it does lol.
You can also add a small tear drop shape just behind the engine to help clean up the air behind the engine. I do that on most of my small ones like this. not sure if it helps but in my mind i think it does lol.
The plane flew but it was massively tail heavy.
It flew best if I didn't mess with the elevator stick, just breathe on the stick and instant loop and snap roll. I managed to run the tank out, then it landed like a falling potato chip without any harm.
The plane will get a nose job tonight, then try it again tomorrow.
I took the time just now to use the Geistware CG Calculator and I was flying it at 38% MAC.
Don't really want to turn this into a big "project" because with such a fat wing it just isn't going to be very fast.
02-17-2012, 07:22 PM
#8
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
The CG checked out at the same location as a stock wing, but this wing is different enough [tapered chord instead of constant chord] to make a big enough difference in a bad sort of way.
It's raining pretty good now, so I might as well take the time to do a decent job of mounting the battery up by the engine.
It's raining pretty good now, so I might as well take the time to do a decent job of mounting the battery up by the engine.
02-17-2012, 09:43 PM
#10
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
I've got the battery moved up front now.
Had to make a divider to seal off the bladder compartment.
The battery just barely fit. Got to knock down a coat of Bondo and get it ready to paint.
It's really a nuisance to mix up a batch of epoxy paint 2 nights in a row to shoot the same 20 square inches of area on the same ole plane.....[:@]
I'm not going to bother with primer...just down and dirty from this point on.
Had to make a divider to seal off the bladder compartment.
The battery just barely fit. Got to knock down a coat of Bondo and get it ready to paint.
It's really a nuisance to mix up a batch of epoxy paint 2 nights in a row to shoot the same 20 square inches of area on the same ole plane.....[:@]
I'm not going to bother with primer...just down and dirty from this point on.
02-19-2012, 03:14 PM
#12
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
The weather calmed down and warmed up a little, so it was time to try the rebalanced GLH.
Even though the battery was moved above the fuel compartment, it took about an ounce of lead to make the plane balance.
It did about 120 mph out of a dive and maintained 115 mph doing level laps. I was pretty surprised by how fast it is.
It weighs 20 ozs on the nose with just over 200 sq inches.
The ASP.12 powered plane weighs 19.3 ozs with way more wing area.
Even though this plane isn't as fast as the SWRs, it has that classic "GLH groove" in the air. The control throws really need to be dialed down for precise control.
Even though the battery was moved above the fuel compartment, it took about an ounce of lead to make the plane balance.
It did about 120 mph out of a dive and maintained 115 mph doing level laps. I was pretty surprised by how fast it is.
It weighs 20 ozs on the nose with just over 200 sq inches.
The ASP.12 powered plane weighs 19.3 ozs with way more wing area.
Even though this plane isn't as fast as the SWRs, it has that classic "GLH groove" in the air. The control throws really need to be dialed down for precise control.
02-19-2012, 04:33 PM
#13
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RE: Recycled GLH Racer
Man, you really pulled off that battery area renovation and kept it looking great! I'm gonna have to try your bondo technique sometime...I can almost smell it now..... Todd
02-19-2012, 05:02 PM
#14
RE: Recycled GLH Racer
If the carpentry is halfway decent it doesn't take that much Bondo. Those FG cowls that I make by laying cloth over the foam plugs [instead of going through the long drawn out process of making a proper mold] look pretty rough until they get a skim coat of Bondo.
Buy the new formula that is easy to sand.
The bulk of the weight in this plane is from a fully sheeted foam wing and a fuselage that has more fiberglass and resin than it does wood, plus layers of 2 part automotive primer and paint.
Figure that the Cyclon weighs 2.5 ozs and there is an oz of lead hanging off of it..!
The plane still has a decent glide and landing speed.
Buy the new formula that is easy to sand.
The bulk of the weight in this plane is from a fully sheeted foam wing and a fuselage that has more fiberglass and resin than it does wood, plus layers of 2 part automotive primer and paint.
Figure that the Cyclon weighs 2.5 ozs and there is an oz of lead hanging off of it..!
The plane still has a decent glide and landing speed.
