ZebraOne

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I have a NIB J Bridi Enterprises RCM Trainer kit[:-]It has his old address in Harbor City,CA
The rolled blue print copys are signed by joseph Bridi and inked by Dick Kidd.
WS=58 1/2" 672SQ ". Designed fpr a .40 to .61.
Bos shows water damage (slight) , But all the beautiful pre cut balsa parts are perfect
Can some one tell me when this thing was kitted? It still has the very old UPS shipping label and the recipiants address.
Thanks for the intrest.
M Zorger
AMA129570

aerowoof

late 70's early 80's

WORNBOOTS

My Feedback: (33)

aerowoof ???
Did you mean to write late 60's early 70's ??
Vrcs shows it as approved......... and I thought 72-74 was appropriate but I'm not sure about the 40 or 60 size editions.

ebeneezer3

I built a Bridi Basic Trainer in late 73-early 74.

Ted

ZebraOne

My Feedback: (8)

Wornboots
I don't want to build it. I'm into bi winged things now I'l trade it for any good 4 stroke engine. It's probably not the place to put this, but I know there are folk who like to build old timers E mail if you know anybody that would be interested.
Zee
AMA129570
ex- AMA AST #114
KE6OKM

WORNBOOTS

My Feedback: (33)

email sent........... But still trying to find the age / first produced

RFJ

The RCM Trainer by Joe Bridi and Don Dewey first appeared in the RCM publication "Basic Training Course" in 1972 and was kitted by Bridi Hobby Enterprises the same year. This is from the September 1972 issue.

Ray

ZebraOne

My Feedback: (8)

RFJ
By golly, you found it! Now tell me, did the land of the green have flying clubs then? Thank you very much!
ZeeAMA129570

gittarpikk

Hmmm.. I own one...that was built approx 1973-4 and was three channels. had an old 40 on it and an aluminum tatone I think motor mount. It had been through heck and the covering (green metalflake monokote(2 different manufactures) and white solarfilm) was pretty much shot. I had put strip ailerons on it at one point..Matter of fact, I had just gotten it down and hulled it out this week and decided I think I will restore it.

After stripping (well a LOT of adhesive stayed and had to be sanded off) I seen several repairs to the wing that were lousey and the center glass seam was getting rotten...so it was removed. At that point the wing nearly fell apart at the seam. This I found was because either someone did not put any kind of dihedral spar in or there simpl was none originally. (I would like to know) I fixed that with a few joiner spares and will replace the glass seam (that is pretty much all the strength wing had to keep from folding)

Filled in the usual dents and scrapes etc and fixes a separated elevator. The elev and rudder hinges are cloth tape and were removed. I have some of the same cloth tape...that was originally used but I think I will do a figure 8 thread hinge. I've been thinking why not just do a silkspan/dope or coverite/acrylic fuselage and a silk/dope wing. I have a pack of that old original silk (the higher shrink stuff circa early 70's)...but am really contemplating just coveriting the whole thing and acrylic airbrush it all. I have finally aquired an old RCM publication last year of the Rumplestadt Bipe (which used 2 Ranger 42 wings) and their reccommendation (early 70's) was to paint it with acrylic....so acrylic was very much in at that time. There were also articles on latex painting in MAN and using coverite.... The plane has too many inserted pieces and holes filled to look snazzy with the naked look of silk, so I would be forced to use a dark color or opaque dopes

What really has me going is that that plane was made to accept up to a 60.My experience with the wing center could simply not accept that large of an engine...so I think wing was built wrong to begin with ...or perhaps there was a joiner to be used if over a certain size engine.

I will use a 40 on this one as it did OK even with a real tired old OS (very worn out)

So anuther old "betsie" will take to the skies again.!

They were wonderful , durable and extremely forgiving trainers and command a huge share of what I would guess would be called the golden era of R/C flyers newbie memories....


This plane was King in the era of the Krafts, Orbits, World Engines Experts, Heathkits etc (and that red "Brick"...can't remember name)

ZebraOne

My Feedback: (8)

GuitarP
Good to know that there are some who fly the old trainers. My warm-up (1st flite of the season) is a copy of the RCM t. Only it's a later version. I have a ST 60 in mine, but I'm careful with the power I think most sunday flyers keep one of the old crocks around just in case a newbie shows up. T is for trainers! My old original RCM bit the dust a while back...I had a OS 40 fs in it. Lord, I don't want to think of the hours I had on it....I taught a couple of my neighbors girls how to fly with it! One weekend we were out and one of them said, Oh, Oh Zee! []The rubber bands had popped off and it kamakizied into the hard alkai flat....[:-] Broke the engine off just below the cylinder fins. The wings came down about a minute later...LOL now, but then I was sick...
There are just some things that never die and Bridi made them!
Thank for the nostalga.....
Zee
AMA129570

rainedave

My Feedback: (1)

Here's the plan from the Flight Training Course vol. II.

Right click on the attachment.txt and select "Save link as..." in the menu and rename it to rcm-trainer.pdf. Be sure to replace the txt with pdf.

David

w8ye

My Feedback: (16)

There are several variations of this plane around all designed by Joe Bridi with most people claiming the original shown in the plans above as being the best.

Some have a 62" wingspan and other variations

There were later ones with the rudder at the rear

Some had a semi symmetrical airfoil

The last kit that Joe Bridi made was the Krafty 60.

Great Planes had the Tower 60 and there were two different RCM plans

gittarpikk

Wow...Nothing but a glass band for the centersection...no span reenforcements, no spar joiner...nothing... But I have personally seen the trainers actually pull enough g's to pull 5 thick rubber bands per side off...and still not fold......hmmmm, must've been the d-spar sheeting and sheeted center.

BTW much thanks for the plan post...I can really use them.

gittarpikk

That has to be why the trainer could fly a 60...it was redesigned.

There's one plan I would love to find...but having trouble, is a plane that was about 25 size that was pretty much an exact copy of the RCM Expert .40. It was a snappy little bird and fun to fly....but I have only seen one and haven't had luck finding the plans. Seems like I searched the RCM database once (for RCM Mini Expert) and did not find it, but could have searched wrong ..or perhaps it was called something else. I would like to build one of those......lol..... working on 5-6 now (plus a special project that should innovate the R/C world) , got 5-6 more after that to do...If I get them all built, will have about 15 planes in the hanger.

Anybody know of this plane?....or maybe what it was called?

rainedave

My Feedback: (1)

Could it be the RCM Sportster you're looking for? It was designed by Bridi:

http://www.rcmmagazine.com/store/sto...aoFmh44nw8k1P5

David

RFJ

or.......might have been this from RCM, the New Era III, 45" span for .19-.25 engines. There were five different versions published between 1969 and 1996.

Ray

rainedave

My Feedback: (1)

Here's a thumbnail of the Sportster.

David

ZebraOne

My Feedback: (8)

Rainydave
That's the plans![:-] There have to be at least a sq yd or more of rolled plans!!! Thanks.. The first tip I got was from a guy in Ireland.He had the RCM mag with the plans and then the 1st offering of the RCM Trainer.
Zee
AMA129570

gittarpikk

Thanks for the link, but no, I know what a Sportster is and would have instantly recognized the turtledeck... but the New Era below is close and it could have been a version of it. I will post a pic of an Expert. I remember it was an exact copy of that.

gittarpikk

It might have been a "version" of the NE , I will try to post a pic of an Expert...which it was an exact copy of.

Y'all found better pics....and plans even...!...Here is only one I found

rainedave

My Feedback: (1)

The RCM X-Pert. From 5/69 RCM.

Right click attachment.txt and save as rcm-x-pert.pdf

David

RFJ

For comparison. This is the RCM X-pert. Published May 1969. Had one powered by Webra 40. Great little model.

Ray

RFJ

Oops......you are too quick for me David

Ray

gittarpikk

This is exactly what it looked like(RFJ's pics)..except it was .25 size....so either there were , or were not plans for that exact size ever published. I think it could have been that the guy just reduced the plans...and built a one-of a kind... at any rate.. Now that we have plans posted, I sure will get that one on my list to build real soon and post ratios and and a build for it..

Edit added..

I ran into this page today....an entire site devoted to images FREE PLANS and construction articles of Classic pattern planes and much more...by alphabetical linked pages


link is here
http://www.trentonrcflyers.com/patte...rn1.htm#Recent

here are just a small portion of the plans available there I highlighted a few

Aristocat, Astrohog, BarFli, 3 Bolero, Candy, Chief, Cobra, Compensator, Contender, Cutlass, Dragon Fli, Encore, 4 Eyeball, 2 Falcon56, 2 Interceptor I, 2 Interceptor V, 2 Joker, King Altair, Kwik Fli Mk I or II, 2 Kwik Fli II, 2 Kwik Fli III, 4 Orion, 2 Pegasus, 2 Phoenix I, Phoenix V, Pulsar Bipe, Pursuit, 3 Qualifier, Skylark Twin, Skylark Jr., 2 Sportmaster, Sr. Falcon, Sr. Falcon Low Wing, 2 Stinger, Styx, 3 Super Fli, Super Sicroly, Sweepette, Taurismo (low wing Tauri) 4 Taurus, 2 Tiger Tail, Torero, Tokyo Echo, 3 Viscount, Viscount Twin.




I have a set of plans for the Rumplestadt... that are not reproducable by RCM . They gave me a mag publication is all they had available (microfish was destroyed)... I will see if I can get a good copy of those printed up and post them as well. The Rumplesadt was a cool 25 sized bipe that originally used 2 Ranger 42 foam wings, however the same guy that built the Mini X-pert, also built a Rumplestad and used a scaled down version of the RCM trainer wing He installed barndoor ailerons on the lower wing and it was the best flying , most fun little Bipe I ever owned. Even beat the AllStar Bipe. You can see an avitar of it on your left.

rainedave

My Feedback: (1)

He might have scaled the fuselage down for the old Midwest foam wings, or something similar.

David