Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Well a friend bought this off fleabay a few days ago, the picture of it looks great and it did state slight fus damage, however he bought it and after a good inspection decided it was severely damaged.

Fus is damaged and has been poorly repaired to get it back in the air, heres a pic of it when he got it and il take some in a short while of the plane without stickers so you can acutaly see what was being hidden underneath. secondly does anyone know what kit / arf this is. the chap my friend got it off said he bought it to do up some 6 years ago so it may be an old arf. anyway off to take photos

Incedently i swapped a brand new kit and engine for it as is so i have a great project for the poor british summer and winter, hopefully it will be ready for next year!!! so this is going to be one long drawn out thread

key details to help identify, Foam core wing with retracts,
72 inch wingspan
foam vaneer stab
solid block rudder and elevator. no retractable tail wheel though it will be geting one!
invasion stripes seem to be gelcoat, by the looks of it they where done in the laying up process which is weird. inside fus has a blue tint to it and sanding reveals blue gelcoat under the yellow and also the cowl.

iv searched and searched but cant find anything.</p>

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

well heres what was found after removing stickers and giving the fus a wash with thinners to remove patchs of paint that was sprayed on.

on the shots of inside the fus take note of the white spider lines, that indicates cracks and points of damaged.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Anyone got an idea of what size engine should be used with it.?? i was thinking 26-27cc

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Sure,, up to a 30cc if you can squeeze it in but you really done need the extra weight,, a 90 2c or a 120-150 4c would also work fine

I'm not sure what kit that is, maybe an early GSP (giant scale planes)

Also that blue tinted fiberglass most likely is Polyester resin, not Epoxy resin. If so, you'll want to use Poly to make repairs.
You can tell when you start sanding the Poly has a different distinctive smell than Epoxy

Good luck

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

thanks for the reply. bidding on a super tigre 3000s for the mustang that should sort it, had a chat to the bloke who is selling it and its undergone a full rebuild. Also the dimensions of it will make it fit inside the cowl with nothing pertruding or sticking out apart from the needle.

The gsp mustang is 68 inch wingspan, this one is 70.5 iv just measured it, its also got a airofoiled tailplane thats foam veneer.
As for the fiberglass part... i used to work at rs motohomes here in uk as fibeglasser, the resin is a creamy clear like we used but was blue and set creamy clear. the blue showing is the gelcoat, if i sand through the silver gelcoat it goes blue. either way it doesnt matter about colour as im thinking about skining it with flite metal after sanding the life out the fus haha.


as for an update to the rebuild, about to start and scrape all the body filler out and off it, going to replace it by painting resin in then gel coat and sand it flush, that way it has structual strength in it unlike body filler thats cracking when i press on it

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Its geting a super tigre 3000s 30cc. just won it. prop sizes? and has anyone had a 3000s?

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

well here you go, quick update.

Ground out all the filler and found out it was holding a good 3rd of the firewall inplace. So glad i went with my instincts to investigate this because it could have been a disaster waiting to happen. At the minute i think you will agree it looks like its been shot to hell by a german fighter. Allot of work to do is all i can say.

Orderd 3 meters of carbon fiber to reinforce the fus aswell as resin catalist fiberglass mating and a load of other materials. All in all its like i said long drawn out project to be finished for next spring not this one. If anyone reading has any advice or ideas for the stang please do comment, also any ideas for retaractable tail wheel and scale cockpit, 70 inch wingspan says 1/6th scale to me so if you know anywhere selling great stuff to kit this plane out with let me know....... Oh almost forgot to mention, iv orderd a 20 oz tank for the supertigre 3000s, hope its big enough?

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Just a thought: That last picture sure looks alot like a Brian Taylor 69" sold by Bob Holman Plans with the optional glass fuselage. The BT has the identical cowl configeration. Traplet.com in the UK has purchased the rights to all Brian Taylor plans.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Your right the cowls are exactly the same. but foam wings and tail dont seem to be brian taylors style. though they are coverd in balsa not vanere? which could be a tell tail that the have been made by the builder. also the wings have vac formed wheel wells....

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Well today i removed the front firewall as it wasnt seated correctly and it was hardly what yopu call glued in, ( photos of that later)( probably due to the crash) and it had become partly ungluedhttp://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f...unge_smile.gif. so decidedto removeit and going put a full size firewall in place which i will do at a later date. found even more delamination behind that which when pressed upon allowsa front portion of the fus tobend in due to stress. sogoing to reinforce the complete front end with carbon fiber and resin when itarrives.

Started removing access glue from inside the fus as theres buckets of it. also sanding it alldown inside sow when it comes to glassing inside it will go on smoothlyand will look neat.
Also planning on chopping thecowl so it can be glassed to the fus and blended in to make it more scale.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

anyone know if theres a retractable tailwheel on the market for 1/6th scale. cant seem to find one only custom made ones which are very highley priced.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Check the Robart ones!

http://www.quicktechhobby.com/Airpla...ies/robart.htm

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Those Robarts might also be available at TH if Quick Tech is out of 'em.

Bob

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

http://centuryjet.com/product_info.php/products_id/578

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

I've used 18 inch props......6...8....6/10....10 on varioust planes.....slow fliers, 6 and 8....others....use higher pitch. Don't overlean....remember prop unloads in the air.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Welll today has been a very very good day for me.

Break down of why!!

went flying this morning for the first time in 5 years. fueld the new cub up got the engine running. put it on the field hit the throttle and up she went with not a single issue. landing was crosswind and downhill at that as our flying site is at the bottom of a hill, and i got her bang in the center of the field which is somthing iv never been able to do in all the years of flying.

called my girlfriend amy to let her know it went up n down in one piece and she jumped in saying there where several parcels at home for me. so after flying and test flying my friends plane which also went well i got home to find the following.
Super tigre 3000 had come http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f...eeth_smile.gifhttp://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f...eeth_smile.gifand exactly as the chap described to me on the phone.
3sq meters of fiberglass cloth, acetone, my box of latex gloves for the glassing.

Only thing keeping me from glassing the fus is the catalyst still has to come and by the looks of the oerder it hasnt even been posted yet!!!!

Meanwhile i was looking for a video of a tiger 3000 and found this great video so i thought id share it with you, its amustang with 2 meter wingspan with a tiger 3250 in it so its reasured me iv made a good choice.

thanks to the replys about tail wheels, going to look into the robart one i think. and thanks for all the other tips


Enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI-rW...eature=related

</p>

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Well rethink needed, tank way too small according to a friend so going to try source out a 30-40 oz tank. anyway heres pics of the engine. Just waiting on the catalyst coming then i can make a start.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

CATALYST HAS ARRIVED !!!!!!! and about time. going to play with it later:D:D:D

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

well heres the materials minus the latex gloves as there in the cuboard..... too late tonight to start so going to tidy up tomorow and make a start then.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Just a quick update. iv just swapped rooms so i have a bigger room to work on the models in. In the process of making a stand to hold the mustangs fuselage whilst i glass it.....

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

well. no progress but thats because im wondering if the fus is worth saving, it dosnt seem to measure up but im not suprised after all the damage its had. the wingds and tail are perfect so im tempted to build a new fuse for it. il use the cowl from the origional fus and maybee cut the scoop off make a new mould of that and use a fiberglass scoop on the new one. At the minute im looking at an earl stahl plan for a rubber powered p51d, looking at the fus it seems like he has used the outlines of a 3view to design it, im tempted to take the fuselage design and play with it and beef it up somewhat and use that as a starting point. i dont want to put allot of work into the origional fus as the lamination of it is very poor and breaking at the slightest knock. if the earl stahl fus is true to scale then i could prep it and pull a mould from that and make a new fiberglass fus and id have all the internal former patterns then to fit inside the fiberglass fus. any one got an opinion on what i should do.... i wana see this project go forward and be completed unlike allot of my threads.

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Sounds like an expensive and exhaustive project.....You could probably buy a fuselage and save a lot of trouble...IMHO

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

the problem is, i cannot find out who makes this model. im tired of looking for the manufacturer and even then i wouldnt buy a fus off them seing the poor fiberglassing on this. anopther problem is there lots of 80 inch wingspan 51s and60 inch, but 70 inch size is a funny size to drop on a fuselage, and if i was to buy a fus it would be cheating haha

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

Fiberglass breaks in a crash just like a bult up model would,, That does look like it took a good hit, but also is very fixable.

I'd
1-Add a layer of 2lbs cloth and resin on the inside to reinforce behind those cracks, maybe double it around the firewall,
2-sand the gel coat on the outside down to see cloth where all the scracks are.
3-Add a light coat of resin over the crack areas
4-use a resin based filler/putty for gouges or holes etc.
and you'll be ready to prep for paint

RE: Giant p51 mustang Rebuild
 

I was about to post on the thread to say im giving the fus a second chance. iv painted it in white primer to reveal all the damage, all i can say is its better then what i thought, but i have to admit when its multi coloured it makes it look a mess when infact it isnt. so im going round now with a pencil and circeling areas that need attention n it makes cracks stand out very well. il be doing what you said about adding a layer inside the fus, thats what i bought the cloth and carbonm cloth for. i appreciate everyones views and advice.

also when i peeled the covering bk on the tail it left like a print on the plane, the only other arf manuf that uses covering like that is cmp as i recoverd a cmp stardaucher however its spelt. But i cant seem to find any info on a fiberglass mustang by them....