bull51

asphalt,

Do you have those gear doors on yet? Any pics.

I just finished building the fin and rudder. All is going well so far. Hope my luck continues.

asphalt252

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bull51,
Still working on it will post when done.

PaStang

excellent , thanks for the tips , I looked at the pics about a month ago, and forgot all about putting those servos in the wing , thanks for the advice , I am sure you saved more than a couple of us ....I'm glad I posted the pic ....lol

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

Pstang,
No problem at all it's the whole idea of this forum. Just passing my knowledge on to hopefully save someone the heartache of loosing a prized plane you worked so hard on. If anyone has a question on the Top Flight P-51 please ask away.
You can leave that outer push-rod plastic tube glued in the ribs it will make it stronger. Cut out that ply that the bell crank mounts to in the rib bay. Now make new aileron servo doors just like the ones for the flap servos the same size. You should put some paper tubes in the dime size holes in the ribs from the aileron servo bay to the flap servo bay for easy wire routing to the wing center. You can feed all wires and retracts air tubes out through the old aileron servo location so don't close that up. Then you can work the aileron servo wire from the flap servo bay over to the exiting center hole even after wing sheeting is applied.






TOP FLIGHT P-51 FORUM

THIS IS A LONG THREAD WITH GREAT INFORMATION SO READ IT ALL BEFORE YOU BUILD ONE!

bull51

asphalt,

What servos did you use for the flaps and ailerons? I was thinking of going with high torque/mg micro's for both.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

A good high torque ball bearing servo of no less than 75oz torque would be great for the ailerons as well as the rudder and elevator. You don't need metal gear or micro servos they just cost more. In large fast planes like war birds the plastic bushing in most standard servos will fail in time causing some slop under load this slop will skip the teeth in the gear mesh. And of course break the teeth off causing servo failure and ultimately crashing your plane. I've found that in most planes of this size good ball bearing servos work just fine without the worry of this added risk and expense. As for the flaps you can use the standard servos with the plastic bushing in those, I do in mine. You don't use flaps all that much and when you do the speeds are slow so the loads are less and the chance of failure there is drastically minimized.
For the record I put Hitec servos in all my planes they are great! I recommend the HS-545BB or the new HS-635HB for this plane. See link below for specs.

http://www.hitecrcd.com/homepage/product_fs.htm



Your worst day flying is still better than your best day working!

bull51

asphalt,

Are you using 6v or 4.8v for you receiver power?

Thanks again for all the info.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

Bull51,
I use 4.8 volt pack with no less that an 1800mah. The larger mah packs like the 2300 are better but cost a few dollars more. The higher the mah the longer it will run your equipment. The link below is the best place for all your RC batterie needs.


http://www.batteriesamerica.com/newpage8.htm

Go see this too.
http://cgi.ebay.com/HITEC-HS-635HB-K...QQcmdZViewItem

bull51

I started building one of the wings tonight. I discovered that the spar "punch-out' in W-2 is oddly shaped and oversized. I assume this is normal. Anyone know why this is?

bull51

What a flappin' nightmare.

It must have taken me 30 minutes to figure out how to glue the flap T/E to the wing ribs. It's not an easy task with only two hands. And having to center it, making sure it extends straight back by eyeballing it[sm=spinnyeyes.gif]. Well its on anyway. I think I might wait till I sheet the wings before I install the flap on the other wing. LOL.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

bull51,
I hope you found out your problem with the W-2 rib. This step (not to rub it in) was a while back for me so I had to look at my build book and notes. And I just don't recall anything odd shaped about that spar cut out at all. Perhaps it had a chip out of it or something. Or you may be referring to the fact that the cut out in W2-W7 is larger because the spar is thicker from the root to the tip. Anyway you must of figured it out keep up the good work and don't rush it you'll do just fine. PS take notes on a note pad about your build this way if you need to build another one or make repairs (HOPE NOT) you can remember how you did it. This also comes in handy when building the other wing half if you've made a few modifications from the plans and instructions on the first half (and you will).


Your worst day flying is still better than your best day working!

bull51

asphalt252,

Thanks for the reply. I have not found out why the cut out in the W-2 is larger ( forward and aft ) of the spar. But, it does appear from the plans that sheer web might go in there. I just glued it where it's supposed to be and all is working out fine so far. The note pad sounds like a very good idea. that way I dont put two 3/16 inch spars in the aft spar location again ( supposed to be one 3/16 inch and one 1/8 inch piece ). It took a lot of sanding to get the 1/16 th inch gap, I needed for the flaps, after that mistake. Ill try to post pics tomorrow.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

bull51,
Ok I got it now the over size cut out in W2 is for the 1/8" dihedral braces ( forward and aft ) see page 18 & 19 in the book. You see the photo on page 18 top left you will need to cut those slots a tiny bit wider and deeper so the breces go in easy on both sides of the spar.
As for the other goof trial fit the parts first then only glue when it looks right. This way you will not need to pull stuff apart or sand your life away. If it makes you feel any better I did the same thing on my first panel but I did not glue it in, so I just pulled it out. The book is not to clear on that step is it? Keep at it bull and don't glue your fingers together! Oh almost forgot go to Menards and get a steel 36" ruler and set it up on the spar on its edge from time to time. Then look under it for any gaps this is the best way to see how straight the wing is as you build it, make sure it is steel not wood. If you have some gaps or a smile under the ruler put shims under the wing before you start to sheet it. It's the sheeting that locks the wings shape in place so make sure it is very flat and straight before you glue the sheeting down to it. Warped wings don't fly they go up roll over and crash and then the plane is conveniently re-kited for you! LOL Sorry so graphic, but now that I got your attention don't let it happen to you keep checking it you wont be sorry.

bull51

LOL, thanks for the advice. Yes, the book does state to use the 1/8 x 1/8 piece for the flap L/E. but I did not catch it until an hour after I glued it. It should work fine though, I hope. One things for sure, I will NOT do that again.

bull51

All right, here are those pics I mentioned.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

Very nice work you're doing just fine. Lots of sanding to do on that fin don't do it now wait till fuse is done so you can match it up with the tail.

OK now for the gear doors. Firstly let me just say I hate gear doors. Most manufactures don't even tell you how to do it. It's very hard to make them work scale on such a small plane as this. Most never try to put the inner doors on at all. Just much to difficult and complex to actuate the doors and sequence them properly. So most opt for a much simpler design using just the outer doors and they do come in the kit. The idea here is to just simply mount them to the Robo strut so they go up and down with the strut. I'm just making some balsa blocks and sanding a groove in the blocks the same size as the strut. Then you can JB Weld it to the strut or you can do as I'm doing. The problem I have with my Stang is that the wheels don't go all the way up into the wing they hang out just a little bit. It hits the under side of the top so it goes as far as it can without bursting out of the top of my wing. This is due to the fat 1"x 3.25" large scale robart wheels I'm using so now we need to compromise a little. Nice looking scale wheels or nice flush fitting gear doors when closed. The only time you see the poor gear door fit is when the plane is 1000 feet in the air good luck with that. So why worry about it? Now a few things to consider here 1. Is the distance from the wheel to the door it's close mine is about 3/16 just enough for the strut shock to function without hitting the door (see photo 6 below). 2. How smooth is your runway? And will your doors handle a rough turf field? I doubt it sometimes they come off in flight not hard to make new ones but a bit of a pain. Thus I intend to put small powerful Rear Earth magnets see link below into those blocks see circle in photo 4 so I can simply remove them before the flight and put them back on after I land. With this idea you could make the inner doors too. As the inner doors hang down when a P-51 is parked. Because the hydraulic system that powers them runs off the engine and fluid flows out of the cylinder when the engine is not running. I'll send some pics when I'm all done with them they will look much better then. Now after your flight put them back on in the pits and you to will look cool! I won't tell anyone they are for show, if you don't.
http://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/detail.aspx?ID=70

bull51

Thanks.

The book said to wait on the sanding, so I did. It makes sense. I havent got to the ailerons servos yet, actually, that's where I stopped yesterday. It is next on my list. Thanks for the tip on where to place the mounts. Your gear doors a looking great. I agree, who's going to see the fit while in flight??? Nobody. Can't wait to see the finished product.

bull

bull51

Hey asphalt,

In reference to the straight edge: I dont have one that long and didn't feel like going out to get one, LOL (lazy). So i tried a 4' level, to big and bulky. So I went back to my construction roots and used good old fashioned string. Pinned between two points, string never lies and will always give you a straight line when done properly. Just food for thought.

RCMustang

Asphalt, I struggled with doors on mine for two months trying different configurations. The CJM retracts have the same problems you are describing with the Robarts. There is just not quite enough room to get the gear to fully retract and make the doors look right.

I'll say this: I like your approach. It is basic, elegant and should look great in flight. Good luck. I can't wait to see more.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

bull51,
String should work fine just keep checking it though keep up the good work.



RCMustang,
Glad to see someone reads this thread besides bull. Anyway happy to hear you like my gear door approach. But I think the whole idea is just not to have them on for flight at all make them removable. You can put them back on for display in the pits. Save the complex operational gear and door details for the larger Ziroli or Yellow Aircraft Mustang kits. I sure don't plan to enter my 1/7 scale Top Flight kit in any Top Gun contest soon, of course we all know it's stand off scale at best right. Not to bash Top Flight's kit it's a great kit but could be better with regard to the retract instalation and a few other scale details. But again that's what model building is all about, if you don't like it change it make it better. I guess that's why we go to some war bird Fun Flys and see so many Top Flight kits in various levels of cosmetic detail and ability. It's all up to you the builder,so go for it and have some fun!




Me asphalt252

jamie_duff

HI guys,

I haven't posted in a while, or indeed worked on the Mustang due to a few problems that were more pressing!

Glad to see the thread still going strong, and glad you're making good progress Bull51

Hopefully I'll get back to work on the Stang soon!

Regards,

Jamie

bull51

Thanks Jamie, nice to hear from you again. And, as always, I look forward to all the advice, tips, techniques and, of course pictures that you, asphalt and everyone else have provided on this thread.

bull

RCMustang

Asphalt:

I couldn't agree more with your point of view on the Top Flite kit. Overall, the joy of this kit is in the building. I honestly have not not heard that these kits have a long lifespan. Just like the real P-51, they have quirks. Those quirks are unforgiving. I would love to hear comments on how long these kits survive for most.

I have held back on doing the build a second time for a few reasons:

1. I really don't have the time to commit to it right now. That's actually insane because this is by far the best time of year to do it, but I'm just not super motivated to do it.
2. I have a bunch of planes that need maintenance that I'd rather get right. Most of my modelling time is spent fixing them.
3. As far as flying goes, I'd actually considering buying an 80" World Models P-51 ARF if I just wanted something that flew nice. I have heard very nice reviews of this plane and they look very nice.
4. I agree that the TF kit is not a really heavy scale bird. The Ziroli, Yellow, and Pica are the choices here. We have some big warbirds in my club and they are spectacular.

Despite all that, I will build this kit and do enjoy this thread. I learned so much from this kit and tried things I had never done before. I'm sure I'll do the same when I get to it. If I could get access to a decent scanner I'll scan pics of my deceased model along with a few pics of the full scale "Big Beautiful Doll" that is flying today. I took them at the Andrews Air Force Base show back in 1995.

jeffk464

Hey, your mustang is coming along nicely. I just got one myself, figured I should buy one why Tower is offering $25 off. Anyways, I was looking around for a spinner and was wondering what your are doing for a spinner.

asphalt252

My Feedback: (5)

jeffk464,
Mine is a Tru-Turn mustang spinner they coast a bit more but worth every penny. See link below.

http://www.truturn.com/cgi-bin/store...inners&maxp=30


By the way does anybody have a small 5"x5" scrap piece of black Ultracoat you could put a stamp on and send me. Covering my gear doors and need a small bit of black hate to buy a full role for $18.00 for such a small piece. Thanks in advance.