Miniature Four Star
08-21-2003, 11:19 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Glendale, AZ
Posts: 101
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Miniature Four Star
All,
I have a Four Star 40 that I love dearly, and I want an electric to fly at my local park. What would be a practical size to scale it down to? I would like it to be under 36", probably with a brushless motor. I want nice performance, and I also want it to be light. If I made it 1/2 scale, it would have a 30" wingspan, which is in the area I want. What would be a good weight for an aerobatic monoplane? I want it to be as light as possible, but also to be strong enough to handle any flight loads I could throw at it. Would I need to redesign the structure to keep weight low? I think a stick-style construction, like a Kadet, almost. I think a Mini AC would work nicely.
Any help would be greatly appriciated.
Jake
I have a Four Star 40 that I love dearly, and I want an electric to fly at my local park. What would be a practical size to scale it down to? I would like it to be under 36", probably with a brushless motor. I want nice performance, and I also want it to be light. If I made it 1/2 scale, it would have a 30" wingspan, which is in the area I want. What would be a good weight for an aerobatic monoplane? I want it to be as light as possible, but also to be strong enough to handle any flight loads I could throw at it. Would I need to redesign the structure to keep weight low? I think a stick-style construction, like a Kadet, almost. I think a Mini AC would work nicely.
Any help would be greatly appriciated.
Jake
08-22-2003, 01:56 PM
#2
Senior Member
My Feedback: (4)
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Lyman, WY
Posts: 620
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Miniature Four Star
A good weight for a 30" plane would be around 10-20oz.
It all depends on how you want the plane to handle. You could fly it at 30oz but the wing loading would be fairly high. There is a wide selection of brushless motors available for planes 10-30oz, including Astro, MP Jet, Hacker, Razor, Hi Max, PJS, Nippy, Mega, and a few others.
You may be ahead to build the plane first, then pick the power system you need. Keep in mind that electric planes don't need to be as heavily built as glow/gas since you don't have to cope with the vibrations of the engine.
Keeping it light is the key. On a 30" plane you could use 3/32 ribs, 1/8 x 1/4 basswood or balsa strips for the spar, 1/8" stringers, 1/32 sheeting, and 1/8 balsa bulkheads for the fuse.
That's just an idea of what you may need. Don't forget to use lite ply bulkheads for the fire wall, and motor mount.
Jason
It all depends on how you want the plane to handle. You could fly it at 30oz but the wing loading would be fairly high. There is a wide selection of brushless motors available for planes 10-30oz, including Astro, MP Jet, Hacker, Razor, Hi Max, PJS, Nippy, Mega, and a few others.
You may be ahead to build the plane first, then pick the power system you need. Keep in mind that electric planes don't need to be as heavily built as glow/gas since you don't have to cope with the vibrations of the engine.
Keeping it light is the key. On a 30" plane you could use 3/32 ribs, 1/8 x 1/4 basswood or balsa strips for the spar, 1/8" stringers, 1/32 sheeting, and 1/8 balsa bulkheads for the fuse.
That's just an idea of what you may need. Don't forget to use lite ply bulkheads for the fire wall, and motor mount.
Jason
