stevegauth30

The DA 50 is a perfect fit inside the cowl. The only holes will be on the bottom for the exhaust pipes. Even the plug cap fits inside. That makes me happy. As for the balance, well I haven't tried yet, but it's got to be a little better. I took almost two inches off. It now looks a lot better compared to the 3 view. Especially seeing how easy it was, I'm really happy I did it. I'll report back on the balance soon.

flyingagin

I think mine will just wop me upside the head with a 10" iron skillet. Mmmmm maybe being sewed inside a bed sheet would be better.

Ken

stevegauth30

Just checked the balance and it's still way nose heavy. I really can't go any farther back with the firewall. I guess my next option would be to figure out a way to mount the batteries as far back I to the tail as possible. I'm not sure where I went wrong, or if it's in the design. I really don't want to have to add dead weight to the tail. But, I may have to. We'll see.

stevegauth30

Right now it sits at 17 lbs. that's without wheels, wheel pants, covering, paint, batteries, and whatever weight is needed to balance. I'm assuming that will all add up to somewhere around 21 or 22 lbs. I hope she flies ok.

stevegauth30

At 21 lbs it will have a wing load of 34 oz/sq.ft. That should be well within the acceptable range.

for a scale flier anyway.

TomCrump

Most of the covering and paint will be aft of the CG. All is not lost. LOL

Move stuff rearward as is feasable, but I wouldn't add ballast until the model is near completion.

You could build in provisions for it, however. A hatch in the fuselage could be built in now, and would make it easier to add any needed weight at a later date.

stevegauth30

My thoughts exactly.

flyingagin

So how far did the cg shift aft?

stevegauth30

Not sure actually. I didn't figure out exactly where it was before the surgery. It had to help though.

ovationdave

My Feedback: (16)

Hi Guys, just joined this thread. I have been staring at my Mulligan kit for a couple years now, and have yet to take the plunge. So I am watching every step! Looks good so far, keep up the good work, I will be following close! I haven't been on the site in a while (I have way to many hobbies, so my wife tells me) since I have been busy doing other stuff, glad to see a Mulligan in the works!

Dave

stevegauth30

Howdy Dave. Glad to have you along. It's coming slowly. Seems every thing I do is twice, at least. But that's the name of the game I suppose. I could have always chose to build a great planes kit. But I'd rather have this. Any day.

TomCrump

Where's the fun in that ??? Anybody can pour CA in a box and have an airplane fall out. Building kits like the Mulligan challenge us and make us better modelers.

flyingagin

I am better at pouring ca on my hand and having an airplane just become an extension of my hand. Great for making the neighbors roll around on the floor with laughter.

Ken

jeffo

My Feedback: (68)

I know I'm off topic,but Tom C is absolutely correct.The best training I ever had was building old free flight models out of the 30's RC assist.These planes were all stick built with undercamber airfoils.The biggest one I built was a Cumulus,100 plus inches wing span.You had to build these planes straight or they wouldn't fly right.You flew them like a glider,the motor was your tow.My longest flight was on my record breaker,1 hour 20 min.jeffo

stevegauth30

It's amazing how far RC has come since then. I wish I was around and building back then. I did have a little control line P40 when I was a kid, but didn't have to build it. I only have a few years of building experience compared to some of you guys that have been building longer than I've been alive.

stevegauth30

I have an off topic question that someone may be able to help with. Say you had a fully sheeted wing that got wet. We all know what the balsa sheeting does when it gets wet. Is there any way to fix it other than re sheeting it? Maybe with an iron and a little mist of water? Or am I destined to rip the sheeting off?

TomCrump

Years ago, I was assembling an ARF. To create shop space, I placed my bare wood, fully sheeted Ziroli Stuka outside. It was dark .

As punishment for owning the ARF, Mothe Nature decided that a fine mist was an appropriate retaliation. The mist made no noise, so I didn't notice the moisture for some time.

Once discovered, I immediately brought the Stuka inside. After letting it dry out, I found that the horizontal area had warped, creating a washboard effect. I sanded the wings and stab with an automotive sanding file. After glassing, the low areas were filled with a thin layer of light weight automotive putty. It took some work, but in the end, I didn't need to remove the sheeting.

stevegauth30

I suppose it would be worth the effort to try. What's the worst that could happen? Right? I may replace the two worst sheets, but I can see that working on the rest where it's not as bad. I have a plane that's just about ready to cover, but sat on a shelf for a few years now since it got wet. I want to either get it in the air, or accept that it will never fly and get rid of it. I'd rather fly it. Thanks Tom. BTW, stay away from them ARF's. You have some nice planes there. I'd hate to see...........( I won't even say it.) lol

stevegauth30

See Tom, I wish I always just jumped right in and did things. Im on day three now, I think, of just sitting here and staring at it trying to figure out what I need to do. I know I need to some how gain access to the tail end to be able to mount the batteries for balance. I just don't know how I should go about it. From underneath through a hatch, or from inside the cabin, and have a rail system which allows me to slide the battery tray to where I need it and secure it. Either way, I'm thinking of a rail system of sorts. Especially seeing that I'll need to remove the batteries to charge, and final balance won't be achieved until the very end. Hmm. I hate this part.

TomCrump

A hatch, underneath, seems the easiest. All the sliding stuff sounds complicated.

stevegauth30

Not really. Either way, there will have to be a hatch. When I say a slide able battery tray I'm just talking about two hard balsa sticks with an 1/8 dato cut out, maybe 12 inches long, with an 1/8 ply battery tray. Nothing too complicated. This way, I can easily slide the tray which ever way needed to balance. It will go from the rear of the cabin back. I just put all the pieces I have for this plane on it and checked the balance again. About 8 OZ. In the tail. I also realized why all the rearward weight is needed. Because of the 1/4 landing gear. Well, at least I know the gear is solid. Lol. Man, I wish there would have been more info out there when I was ordering the gear. I could have easily got away with 3/16. Live and learn. I'll bet if I haven't shortened the nose, I'd probably need over a pound to balance.

Truckracer

My Feedback: (19)

I relive some painful building experiences when I read your posts! I mean that in a respectful, pleasant, retrospective way by the way. I have at least two heavy landing gears sitting on the shelf that I ordered with too thick of material when much thinner material would have been more than adequate. So as a result, I've had the pleasure of paying for them twice as I had to reorder new ones with thinner stock. As you say, we live and learn but dang, I sure seem to have a hard head at times and have to repeat the same mistake more than once to learn my lesson. Oh well ..... and that's just one thing I have screwed up in the past. Anybody want to buy some really heavy LG?

Regarding your balance issues, I'm not so sure your Mulligan will be as nose heavy as you think it is when the project is complete. There is a lot of surface area in the back part of that airplane that has to be covered and painted. Don't forget control linkages, etc.also. That weight will add up quickly and my bet is your balance will be closer than you might expect at this point during construction. Stick built airplanes always seem to come out more tail heavy than I expect during construction. Good idea building in a weight compartment though. I'll go back to lurking now ....... keep up the good work.

stevegauth30

Thanks truckracer. Input is always appreciated and welcome. I also seem to have to waste money to learn lessons, as you can see. I'm still cutting a hatch in the back for batteries, and if it does balance more in favor of the nose I can always move them forward.as for still having to add stuff behind the CG, there's just covering and paint left. All linkages are already there and complete. Hopefully your right though. It would make me happy to not have to add any dead weight. Thanks for the input.

FlyerInOKC

My Feedback: (6)

If at first you don't succeed you probably built the darn thing!

stevegauth30

The rear hatch is done. The way it sits, it's just a tad nose heavy. Maybe an oz or two. So if it works out the way you guys say, and gains a little weight in the tail during finishing, it should be an easy balance. Right now I have last years batteries back there and need to buy more for the mulligan anyway, so I'll wait until final balancing and order accordingly. Now, there's a 2100 Mah LIFE, and a 3200 Mah LIFE. I can go with bigger or smaller if needed. Again, I feel pretty good about the modification. Maybe now I can get back to moving forward again. Hopefully.