billberry189

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Richard,

It looks like you are fairly close to where you need to be. Judging from the photos, I would open the stab seat atthe rear toaccomodate what ever accuator system you are going to use. And as far as the fin, you can either sandthe bottom of the fin to bring it down to meet the fuselage, or you can simply fill the gap with a small pieceof scrap balsa. Personally, I would just fill it with the scrap balsa since it would probably be the easiest solution. Otherwise you are lookin' good.

Bill

rg1911

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Bill,

In that case, I'll forge ahead. Many thanks.

Cheers,
Richard

billberry189

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Richard,

By all means forge away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bill

rg1911

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Well, what with Turkey Day preparations and cooking, and a number of chores, I did not accomplish as much on the plane as I had hoped. I do have the engine fitted and the nose ring roughed in.

Looking at that huge area behind the firewall, I'm thinking about building a shelf for the fuel tank to get it up closer to the level of the carb and mounting it back, closer to the CG. That would leave room for separate throttle and nose gear servos right behind the firewall. I'll need to make sure I don't cleverly block access to the bolts that hold on the wings.

Bill: A question about the elevator connection. Did you inlet the bearing and wire into the TE of the stab, or into the LE of the elevator? I'm leaning toward inletting it into the TE of the stab.

Cheers,
Richard

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Richard,

I have always recessed the control horn into the elevator. The bearing portion of the control horn I attach to the elevator with epoxy and a small strip of glass cloth. This technique helps to avoid weakening the stab TE since all the drilling and grooving take place on the LE of the elevators.

Bill

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Richard;

You can raise the level of the tank to the right height by using foam padding or some other means to raise or lower...that's what I did on the prototype. I sometimes use a hard form product I had left over from packing material, and sometimes use regular foam padding for models...the tank needs to be packed in foam anyway to reduce frothing of the fuel.

For what it's worth, for a number of reasons I'll mention, but mostly balancing purposes, I'd advise against mounting servos that far toward the front. Servos up front will add to the weight of the fuel (early in the flight), plus the extra weight of the larger engine, and might actually make your balancing problem worse. There would also be more of a chance to damage the servos in case "accidental-you-know-what" happens, (the front end usually gets the worst of it).

Just a thought. BTW...my plane balances well with the servos located where they are in the prototype, and I am only using an OS .91 2-stroke.

Duane

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Bill,

Thank you. And it just occurred to me that the wire also would take the place of the joiner for the two halves of the elevator.

Cheers,
Richard

rg1911

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Duane,

Good points. Since the tank needs to be raised at least three inches, I think I'll still build the shelf and use the foam. Or I could replace the 16-oz tank with a 20. That's a LOT of room there. But I'll see how long flights last before changing to a larger tank.

Thank you,
Richard

billberry189

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Yep!!!!!

Bill

billberry189

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Hey Guys,

I just did a lateral balance on my Simla, 1/4 ounce needed on the left wing. I was really excited about the results since I will be able to achieve that weight with an extra coat of paint on the left wing.

Bill

rg1911

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Bill,

That is remarkably careful and precise building! Nice going!

Richard

kingaltair

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CONGRATS!!

I'm looking forward to seeing your plane completed. Just a thought, your airplane is the 4th to be completed, so you might want to place a #4 designation on it somewhere.

One nice thing about where you live, weather should not be an issue so you can proceed to flight testing right away.[8D] We need to have some Simlas completed this winter in order to have our first "Fly-in" next year. Keep 'em coming.

Duane

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Well, I was getting ready to glass the horizontal stab when I realized there was a wide, slight dip in the skin. So, these past few days it's been fill, sand, repeat repeat repeat.

That's okay, because I'm having the devil of a time trying to get a large curve out of the piece for the LE of the elevator. Soak, bend, repeat.

More learning experiences.

On the bright side, it does keep me out of bars and off street corners. (Of course, so does advancing age.)

And I have written to Jeff to put me on the list for another kit. Maybe I'll build the short-wing version.

Cheers,
Richard

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Hey Richard,

I too am on the list for a second run Simla with the idea of building an all contest balsa, clipped winged, 65 to 75 powered version. And if everything goes well I am hoping for something in the 7 to 8 pound range. It's nice to know that we are on the same page for a future Simla build.

As far as my first Simla, I have finished moving homes so hopefully I will be able to get back to painting this weekend. The fuselage and tail feathers are still ready for paint and the wings are ready for glassing. I guess I had better get on the ball if I am still going to have the 4th Simla built.

Bill

rg1911

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Question: I've never glassed an entire plane before; only a wing. Do I glass the horizontal and vertical stabs before or after they're permanently fixed to the fuse and each other?

Also, do you glass the leading and trailing edges where the control surfaces attach to the stabs and wings?

Thanks,
Richard

rg1911

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You may remember that near the beginning of the build I was experimenting with carbon veil as a glassing material. Fortunately, I only tested it on the rudder. Even the thinnest veil does not drape well, and I had a number of bubbles and rough spots. It might work better using vacuum bagging, or spraying it with a thin mist of 3M adhesive so it sticks down better.

Almost all the veil is being sanded off and, at least for this project, I'll finish everything else with regular glass cloth.

Cheers,
Richard

stuntflyr

Hi Richard,
No, the cf veil doesn't drape well. I only use it as flat as possible and end up tearing off strips and bits to cover all surfaces. I only apply it with dope. The dope builds up fast when used certain ways; Two coats of unthinned clear and two coats of barely thinned clear with as much talc or zinc sterate filler as it will hold. Not sanded between coats. This fills the weave (which is sometimes weird and uneven). Once sanded the weave is completely filled and smooth. I have only used this technique because it was explained by a top C/L Stunt builder that consistently gets full 20 point finishes on his ships and I figured why mess with success. I like the hard shell it produces over contest balsa, it's not like you can abuse it and it not dent but it's a lot harder than tissue.
You'll probably like a traditional glass and resin job on the Simla just fine. I consider the CF veil just another way to do it, though it's probably lighter.

Chris...

billberry189

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Richard,

I glassed my tail feathers after they were permanently glued to the fuselage. I personally prefer to do it this way because it adds to the strength of the joints as well as helps to make fillets where the surfaces are joined.

BTW I was able to get my first stick time in 36 years this past weekend. It was every bit as much fun as it was way back when. My flights were on the buddy box and were cut short due to the engine cutting off 2 out of 3 flights creating dead stick landings which happened to be down wind on a short runway right into a barbed fence. Missed the fence posts the first time just shredding some monokote on the wing of a Hobbico Nexstar that I purchased for the practice. The second dead stick wasn't so fortunate as we hit the fence post and damaged the wing. I will be ordering another wing as soon as Tower hobbies has them in stock. I will stay with the Nexstar until I am able to take off, fly, and land consistently and then move on to some of the planes I have been building in the last year. I plan on waiting on the Simla maiden until I am proficient enough to feel comfortable doing so. I may however have one of the more accomplished pattern flyers from the club give it a whirl just to check the trim, the power, and the control systems. I must say that those who have actually seen her(even in unfinished state) are quite impressed with it's over all appearence and relative low weight to size. I too am anxious to get her finished but I am opting to take the time I need to make it as nice as I possibly can.

Bill

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Bill,

That's what I was thinking, too. So it's attach, glass, and paint. (You didn't say if you glassed the edges into which the hinges are inserted.)

36 years!? With all the planes you've been building, I thought you were flying every good day.

Gotta love dead sticks and posts/fences. I was flying an Ultra Stik when the engine up and died. I did everything right for a dead stick; keep the nose down and the speed up. Everything was perfect. Then from behind me, Larry yelled "Remember there's a fence out there!" Followed within microseconds by a loud crunch. I turned around and asked "You mean that one?" (The fence is in a dip and very difficult to see from the flight line.) There just wasn't enough left of the Stik to bother trying to repair.

I, too, am trying to get the Simla as right as I can, rather than hurrying. Patience is not really my strong suit. Fortunately, it's too darn cold and windy around here to want to be at the field.

Cheers,
Richard

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Richard,

One of the really nice things that Central Florida has to offer is great flying weather 12 months out of the year. When it is hot we fly early and late in the day. When it is cold, the afternoons are generally warm enough to get in a few flights.(I have lived here 20 years and have not seen a snow flake fall. And when it rains we build!

At last tally, I have sold three planes, have four built and flyable, four being built, and two being repaired from landing mishaps. All this in the last two years has not given me a whole lot of time to fly. However, now that I have hooked up with a couple of local clubs and one good instructor, I will be trying to get flying time in every weekend from now on!!!! Ultimately my number one priorty is the Simla, but I must spend time with my other projects so they don't get lost in the shuffle.

When I think back to the statement I made about building planes like the Simla in two to four weeks, I realize that was a time when all I had was time on my hands. So much has changed since then that limits my building time. A new job, new friends, new projects, and a major move have certaintly put a huge dent in my free time. Thankfully, except for the major move, it has all been good and makes me look forward to the time when Jeff, Duane,you and I, and others get together to share in the Simla experience.

Until then, Happy building and flying
Bill

PS- Three of the flyables

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Bill:

Are you saying that the Simla project was the inspiration to start flying again, or would you have gone back to flying anyway?

Just a questionisn't "glassing" a plane a pretty heavy way to do it? Most of my planes have been Monokoted, but if you paint, isn't a fabric covering lighter...I'm no expert here...just learning?

As for a future Simla coming in at 7-8 pounds, good luck, that's a lot of plane. I used contest balsa on the wing, and it was pretty light until I finished mine. The final weight was 10.5 pounds even though I used contest balsa.

Duane

billberry189

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Duane,

I would have to say that the Simla has added a great deal to my desire to fly again. Before we all began this project I was building every day without much consideration for when or how I was going to fly again, but knowing that I would like to actually fly the Simla has thrown fuel on the fire of desire so to speak. Now that I have actually started flying again I am anxiously awaiting the time when I can competently solo again. After all, the Simla is such a beautiful and graceful aircraft that it would be a sacriledge not to fly her.

As far as glassing is concerned, I am experimenting with techniques to get the process as light as I possibly can. I have even finished one of my Taurus' without any material covering at all; just balsa sheeting and urethane basecoat/clearcoat finish. It turned out nicely and the gentleman I sold it to says it is one of the ruggedest planes he has ever owned. Oh yes, and light too.

Bringing the Simla in at 7.5 to 8 pounds will be quite a challenge. But that is what is most compelling about the whole idea. It's in the challenge! After all it's only 48 ounces.

Bill

neilmac52

The Red Airvraft inthe middle . What is it please ?

doxilia

My Feedback: (3)

Bill,

I was curious about the first one with the low wing. Is that a Bridi Warlord or something like that?

David

hrrcflyer

Bill,

While you're at it, what's that last one too?...............................Just kidding LOL

David