billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Thom,

At this point I am not quite finished with the fuselage painting, but before any finish work was started the fuse weight was 37.5 ozs. I just put the glassed and painted fuse on the scale and it came to 43.4 ozs. However, that included some servosthat were not in the original bare weigh in. When I am finished with the paint work, I'll strip the fuse and weigh it again and get a more accurate number for you.

Bill

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

My bad, I forgot to strip the fuselage and weigh it again. However, after assembling it with an OS 120 AX with a Mac muffler, Tru-Turn spinner, 14x8 Master Airscrew three blade prop, steerable nose gear, Futaba R617FS Rx, three 3152 servos, two 5 cell 6 volt 2000 Mah batteries, and a Miracle dual switch, the all up weight of the completed fuselagecame to 8.2 lbs.

At this point the wings unfinished, but with all hardware installed come to 1.825 lbs for the left one and 1.760 lbs for the right one. That comes to 11.785 lbs before I glass and paint the wings. An educated guess on the final weight will be about 12.5 lbs. That is considerably heavier than I wanted but from what Thom has said about the 120 AX power plant I should not have much trouble with flying my Simla. Cutting 30% of this weight should be quite a challenge for Simla number 2. A smaller power plant,one less battery pack,lighter construction techniques, and lighter finishing techniques should help quite a bit. Only time will tell.

Bill

PS- For what it's worth I could have reduced the weight on this first Simla, but I basically quit worrying aboutthe weight in an effort to finish it more qiuckly.

Bye now

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

We used 5/32" wire for both the main and nose wheel on the prototypes. Partially because of the longer than usual L.G. length because of the mid-fuselage location of the wing, it was decided the 5/32" was too "wobbly", and was too flexible, (ie bent back while rolling), even on hard surfaces, so Jeff was going to change the main gear to 3/16". Did he make that change in the production kits? We didn't discuss the nose wheel at the time...it wasn't as obvious a problem.

Glad to hear the 3/16" gear works well.

Duane

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

The black stripe should fall just below the wing leading edge, (maybe 1/2" or so). It looks to me that you need to raise the black stripe...this will also reduce the size of the white stripe. The top red->black stripe just tucks under the stab. I had to add to mine to accomplish that after the fact...it is tricky during the masking process.

thom25

Duane,
The kit comes with 3/16" mains and 5/32" nose gear. The 3/16"mains are fine. The 5/32" nose gear was too flexible, it would tuck under on take offs and landings. The 3/16" nose gear I made works great and I would suggest that 3/16" gear all around be the standard configuration.
Thom

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

I'llbe repainting tomorrow. I am giving up on the black bottom stripe configuration at the tail feathers and making the stripe fit the wing as nearly as possible. This situation makes me believe that the fuselage has too much depth from top to bottom. I will be making some adjustments on my second Simla giving it a sleaker, slimmer fuselage.

Bill

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

It's interesting because we felt the PROTOTYPES had too much depth top to bottom, and made changes to the production kit in an effort to remedy that. Keep in mind that I sanded the prototype as much as possible leaving very little extra wood, (especially on top), so the slope of the top matched the spinner curve.

A little change here and there can make a big difference in how the model looks. You can see the difference between the original paint, (left picture) and the final paint...coming down a little further on top so the red to black strip tucks slightly BELOW the stab L.E. has an effect on the "dash". The bottom black stripe was based primarily on the position of the wing...it should tuck below the wing L.E., but I raised it slightly to make the white stripe less broad...and the "dash" was fit between them. If everything is just right, the top of the wing should partly cover the "dash".

You can see that although the final paint is BETTER, the fuse was still too "high" top to bottom.

I still feel the paint scheme is the best measure of the accuracy of the kit to the original in the photo...remember we have to compare photos to determine accuracy...there were no plans to go by.

Can wait to see the final paint completed and your maiden flight. Like you, I preferred to have a better pilot make the maiden flight while I manned the camera.

Duane

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Duane,

In order to get the black bottom stripe to line up properly to the wing I had to raise it to a point that was beyond the fin. What I wound up doing was ending the bottom stripe where the stripe on the bottom of the stab ends. Photos to follow this evening as I am at work and do not have my camera with me.

Bil

PS- My dash does run into the wing at the very top of the wing and then continues toward the TE.l

As promised

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

HMMMM. Where the stripe ends on the bottom of the fuselage doesn't seem to be as important (to me), as where it falls in relationship to the wing L.E., (about 1/2 to 3/4" below), the "dash", and the relative widths of the three stripes. The black bottom stripe intersected the fuselage bottom on mine. I just ended mine wherever it fell while concentrating on the front end. I did the best compromise I could to make the overall scheme look as much like Ed's as I could. Yours SHOULD be closer to Ed's than mine because the fuselage shape was altered some to make it less "tall".

Good luck[8D]

Duane

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Bill;

I was just taking another look at your paint scheme and "where the lines fall", and it looks prett darn good to me. My black stripe on the bottom isn't all that different from yours. I think the stripe should end past the stab, so it basically isn't all that visible anyway.

SIMLA UPDATE:

I just returned from Greensboro, NC attending a VR/CS "Glory Days" event Friday night and Saturday. I took the original Simla prototype, which hasn't even been flown since last year. Because it was my "article project plane", and original prototype, and since it was painted and I have no paint left for repairs etc etc, I was a little nervous flying it at my skill level. Simla has only about 10 flights total on it, and had mostly been flown by Kevin Clark and the editor of Model Aviation. I didn't need to be concerned. I got in 4 nice flights there in Greensboro, and now feel much more comfortable with it.

A few additional flight observations: Sealing the ailerons is a MUST..it made a huge difference in roll rate and responsiveness. The OS .91 FX was very adequate as a powerplant; it "perked along" at a good clip and had good vertical performance with that engine. I still haven't tried Simla with the original .60 in the nose, but I believe that a "hot" .60 will fly it adequately but with limited vertical performance. I can imagine that those of you flying with a 120 will have a super-performer on your hands with unlimited vertical [X(]...yet it slows down to a "walk" and is very forgiving and predictable. "Flies like a Taurus anly better..." is something I've heard more than once. At 102" wingspan, it's such a huge plane that it was a real attention-getter...lots of comments during the meet about how beautiful and graceful it looked, (even when I flew it).

In the hands of a good pilot the Simla really shines and is literally a JOY to watch perform. An expert, was doing Rolling Circles with it. With full rudder, Simla would not quite hold Knife Edge...we either need a little more rudder throw, or mor speed, (which that 120 would certainly provide).

Because it has such a high-aspect wing ratio, (long wing), it behaves a lot like a glider, (just as UStik predicted it would back in the Ed Kazmirski's Taurus threadway to go Burkhard). There was an incident that proved that point...a dead-stick landing, and a long approach. The expert pilot happened to be flying it at the time, and told us he thought it would land short of the 50X50 foot hard surface landing pad that everyone wanted to touch down on, but he kept slowly raising the nose to extend the glide, and in the end, Simla was still a few inches above the deck as it passed the pad edge, and landed in a beautiful nose-high touch-down on the mains amid applause from onlookers. It was very slow and graceful as it touched down like an airliner on full flaps, (there are no flaps on Simla...doesn't need them). Those of you who have purchased a kit and are building the plane....YOU WILL LOVE IT, and be the "envy of the flight line".

I've included a few pictures from the event. (BTW...Cees might be interested to learn that it won the VR/CS "Concours Award" for the plane closest to the original). [8D]

Let's get some reports and photos!! Do we have two more in the air now besides the prototypes?

Duane

billberry189

My Feedback: (1)

Duane,

Since my last post, I have been involved in so many other projects that i have gottened very little done on my Simla. When I redid the the paint scheme to more accurately represent Ed's Simla I managed to drop the fuselage off my painting stand immediately after I finished putting the last coat of clear on her. Of course there was some damage done as well as marks caused by handling wet clear coat, but I have managed to repair all thedamage with no apparent ill effects. The only other thing that I have accomplished is to bend several 3/16 " nose gear and drill out the mount and steering arm to accomodate this new larger nose gear. At this point I am committing myself to glassing the wings this next week and painting them thefollowing week. Wish me luck.

Now, what about you other guys out there building Simlas. This build has been silent far too long. You guys need to jump in here and let all of us know how it's going and what building ideas and techniques you have come up with.

And, Duane, thanks for your post. Your Simla is looking good as always.

Bill

PS- I did manage to talk to Don Lowe about the Simla. He has agreed to maiden it for me, and although I was only able to show him pictures of the Simla at the time of our discussion he said it looked familiar and referenced a time that would have been accurate to the time Ed was flying it.

Bye for now

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Don likely would have been familiar with the original Simla...I know they were both at the Detroit Invitational meet in 1965. There were two planes Ed was flying at the time, (tha I'm sure of), the Simla and the Taurus II. He had the Taurus II with him at that contest. It would have been "cool" to have seen the Simla, but then I never would have seen the Taurus II, so what can I say? I like them both, and the T-2 has survived to this day, and has flown once more.

Lucky dog to have Don Lowe as your test pilot...I think Don can handle it OK. What is your Simla's final weight...tell me when you know?

Duane

thom25

Hi Duane,
I just got back from flying the Simla again. That makes over 25 flights so far. On my Simla I sealed all control surface hinge lines with clear Monokote. Today we had 20-25mph winds. No problem for the Simla. It penetrates well and floats on landings. Knife edge is no problem at half throttle with the 120AX. By the way I am using a 15X10 APC two blade prop. Congratulations on the VR/CS "Concours Award"! It is well deserved for all the work you have put into bringing the Simla to life.
Thom

Ryan Smith

My Feedback: (25)

Off topic Duane, but what field is that? I recently moved to Champaign after living most of my life (18+ years) in Greensboro and do not recognize that field.

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

OKYou got me...it wasn't Greensboro exactly. The airport was located near a little "blip in the road" in the middle of nowhere called "Julian", and the airport was near the "Old Julian Airport". The actual site was a private field owned by an R/C enthusiast who is into PYLON RACING. He bought a good deal of property in the area...and lives there...what a set-up!! You didn't even have to use a muffler...I don't know if I will ever see that again in my lifetime, but it used to be the norm.

We had a couple of demonstration pylon flights during the fly-in...I had never seen a pylon racer before...very impressive...YIKES!!! Those .40 size engines put out near 30,000 RPM, and it SOUNDS LIKE IT. Very interesting. I'm told the field is the only LEGAL AMA-APPROVED pylon racing field in the state, (I believe).

Greensboro was in the general area though.

Duane

patternflyer76

Congratulation on your award Duane. You deserve it. You put your heart into this project. Ed would have been proud.

Kevin

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Thanks Kevin, and thanks for actually LISTENING to me as "lead cheerleader" for the project. [8D] Talk about the term "team effort"...if anything can be called a team effort, this certainly was. Each member of the Simla Development Team not only contributed, but was CRITICAL to the success of the project...and you, Jeff and I still managed to stay friends over that 1-1/2 year time period...right...er, uh...right?? Included are pictures of Burkhard, Evan, and Ray...without them it would have been slow-going, or impossible.

The Simla project was one of the most interesting, fun things I've ever been involved with, and everything came together almost perfectly in order to make it happen. We had just enough in the way of clues, and we had the right people, (worldwide) in the right places, with the proper abilities. As I think I said before, I wanted to do this a couple years earlier, but we simply didn't have the information, (photos) or the talent to make it happen then. These kinds of projects don't come down the road every day, so let's enjoy the end results.

Thom...I've been meaning to ask you...what kind of comments are you getting at the field about the Simla?

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Duane,

Many congratulations on a most well-deserved award and many thanks for all the updates and pictures. With any luck, they will inspire me to get back to work on my Simla. I'm afraid I haven't done anything since going to Ohio for my father-in-law's funeral two weeks ago. A fine man and very much missed.

A major holdup for me is the complexity introduced by the hidden elevator linkage. Basically, it looks like the linkage will have to be fit and mounted before the bottom sheeting and top blocks are glued in. This then means that the horizontal stab and elevator have to be glued on before painting them and before glassing the fuse.

I looked at the idea of cutting a hatch on the side at the tail, but the fuse is too narrow to allow it to be made removable/replaceable.

Anyway, being a perfectionist, the unfamiliar mechanics have brought me to a standstill. I probably just need to do *something* and get off dead center if I hope to fly this before winter returns.

Still looking for a small (and not expensive) compressor so I can paint with something other than rattle cans.

Cheers,
Richard

thom25

Richard,
Re-consider using the side hatch. After you are done painting it can be covered with a small piece Monokote... no one will see it when it's flying. As far as the stab/elevator, Glue in the stab with the elevator control horn loose. Fit the top blocks and vertical fin then glue them in place. Then glass and paint the fuse, stab and fin all at once. After you glass and paint you can then hinge and attach the elevators which will hold the elevator control horn in place and Bob's your uncle.
Thom

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

Thom

What kind of comments are you getting at the field when you show up with the Simla? Nothing bad I hope.

Duane

thom25

Duane,
I get many compliments. A few people have asked if it is a Taurus. I keep a xerox copy of your article to show to people. Since I am close to Calumet City, IL there are a few old timers around that remember Ed Kazmirski and seeing him fly. A few have asked if it is a glider. All are impressed with the looks and size of the Simla and how nice it looks in flight. Thanks again for all your work to bring this wonderful plane back to life
Thom

kingaltair

My Feedback: (4)

That is pretty much what I hear, particularly the "looks like a Taurus" comment. That is an opening and I tell them a "refined Taurus", and really a "research plane" with adjustable wing position, (high, mid, and low wing position), adjustable dihedral, and stab. Then I'll tell them that Ed would fly the Taurus II, then the Simla...then turn to the crowd and say "they fly Sim-la". There are a lot of comments about it being a "pretty plane". I knew the interest was there back in 2007 when I included a small version of this picture as part of an article that discussed "researching your plane...finding out about its history". I received more comments about that small picture of the Simla than the rest of the article combined. Late 2007 was when I first wanted to re-create the Simla. After giving up a few months later due to lack of evidence and expertise, the idea faded some until after Ed's passing when those small 3X3" black & white photos arrived from Chuck Noble, the person who handled the auction of Ed's estate. What a great day that was..this large envelope with 7 little unassuming pictures at the bottom. The number of known photos of Simla about doubled that day.

The day of the first flights Kevin was the "test pilot". He basically said, "...it flies like a large Taurus, only better...". Looks like an airliner when coming in for a slow landing, doesn't it?

Duane

jjpetro

Nice job Duane. Great to hear the positive comments and photos guys.

Richard, I have some ribs for you, I just need to pick them up.

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Jeff,

Many thanks!

Cheers,
Richard

rg1911

My Feedback: (1)

Thom,

Shall work with your idea. Might be a case of cutting the hatch, getting the parts installed and the linkage hooked-up, and then replacing the hatch before glassing.

It sounds as though you used bearings and secured the elevator joiner with control horn to the stab. In my case, the elevator control horn is silver-soldered to the elevator joiner which is firmly glued into the elevator halves. This may have been a mistake, although I couldn't say why it might be (other than possibly making this step more awkward). I'm also using Robart hinges. Therefore, it appears that the elevator will need to be permanently attached to the stab before the stab is glued to the fuse.

Cheers,
Richard