loopnspin

Hi All,

Please allow me to indulge a little. I just posted a picture in Member Galleries of a Great Planes 60 size Super Aeromaster biplane. I have been working on this plane as sort of a long term project for almost 2 years. It was a very time consuming and challenging kit to build (for me anyway). I modified this plane slightly from the plans by enlarging the rudder by about 25 % and I also installed separate aileron servos instead of a single servo with bell cranks. For power I chose a Saito .91 four stroke.

This trim scheme took longer to do than the last ARF I put together. I will be taking this plane for her maiden flight this weekend, weather permitting. Plese wish me luck. Thanks.

Jeff

blvdbuzzard

Good luck and good looking plane. I am still try to finish mine. I think it has been about 5 or 6 years now.

Land with the wheels first.

Dru.

loopnspin

Thanks Dru,

After spending as much time as I did on this plane, I will definitely do my best land with the wheels first. Best of luck with yours.

Jeff

mscic-RCU

My Feedback: (6)

That is an outstanding looking aircraft. I just set mine up with a Saito .91, can't wait to fly her. I didn't build mine, bougt it right here on rcu. Good luck with maiden voyage, let us know how she flys.

rc-sport

My Feedback: (12)

I had a kit that I bought on Ebay then I sold it to a club member. STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!!

loopnspin

I will be sure to let all you guys know how she flies. From what I have read about how this plane flies, I think I will enjoy it a lot. Thanks for all the comments guys. Have a great one.

Jeff

jcflysrc

My Feedback: (50)

That IS a great looking plane! Hope all goes well with the maiden flight. I know you'll love it.

loopnspin

Thanks Aeronaut,

I haven't built that many planes from a kit in the seven years I have been in this great hobby. That's probably why it took me so long to finish this one. I wanted to do a trim scheme that was really different, so this is what I came up with.

I want to thank everyone again for all the positive comments. It makes all the effort I put into this plane all the more worthwhile.

Jeff

ramcharger

I built both the GP Aeromaster 60 and Lou Andrews Aeromaster 60. Both version 3 and both with ST 61 (ring and ABC). Neither has flown yet, and both have cg's about 1/2 inch forward. I just converted fuel tanks from round to square. Both turned and twisted the fuel/vent lines when engines were started. I didn't add the cowl on the GP Aeromaster. I blunted it off and used a 3' spinner. Not bad but not geed. I built the Lou Andrews as hown on plans. You plane looks very good....

loopnspin

Hi Ramcharger,

Thanks for the reply. I think I can help you a little with yours. I'm not sure if there is any difference between the Great Planes version or the Lou Andrews version.

Regarding the fuel tank and lines. I had to use a Sullivan 14 oz. fuel tank that is shaped flat on the sides and rounded on top and bottom and install it with the rounded sides up and down. I also glued a piece of pipe insulation that I had cut in half to the front of the tank so that when I installed the tank it would keep it about and inch or so from the back of the firewall. This kept my fuel and vent lines from getting kinked. There was then ample room to wedge 1/2" foam between the sides of the tank and the fuse. Then I simply used a piece of balsa tack glued to the sides of the fuse to prevent the tank from slipping back. I am sure my tank will not move at all.

Regarding the CG with configuration 3. The instructions stated 3/8" in front of the rear cabane for this configuration. I doubt a half inch will make much that much difference, but the elevator might be a bit more sensitive.

The cowl was a pain in the butt for sure. I built this one. But I had to cut my own stringers because the front and rear formers were slotted too large for the recommended square stock that the kit included. Then I just wet the balsa sheeting all the way around and taped it in place until it dried. Then I used auto bondo to smoothe it out and then sanded, primed, and painted. I then used automotive clearcoating for the plane and cowl to give it the shine it has and to keep the trim and seams from lifting.

Don't hesitate to ask me about anything else about this plane. I will be glad to offer any insight I can. Good luck

Jeff

ramcharger

loopnspin, thanks for the tips on the tank installatin. I plan on changing the tank installation on the Lou Andrews plane to something like you described. The Lou Andrews Aeromaster 60 is identical in design to the Great Planes except both wings and the landing gear are attached with rubber bands. I converted to screw attachments.

loopnspin

Wow is about all I can say about using rubber bands to hold on wings and landing gear. Even the trainer I had used screws to hold on the landing gear even though the wing was held on by rubber bands. I think the Lou Andrews design must have been around for a long time. And engines back then must have really lacked power to think that rubber bands would hold things together on a plane like this.

You did well to convert both to screw attachment. Well, tomorrow is the big day for my Aeromaster. It will be maiden flight time. Right now it is very windy here in northern California. I hope it calms down some so I can fly her. I plan to post a message here Monday to let everyone know how it went.

Good luck Ramcharger.


Jeff

loopnspin

Hello again everyone!

I have great news to report on the maiden flight of my Super Aeromaster. This past Saturday, the weather was absolutely perfect for flying. About the only trouble I actually had was keeping it tracking straight while powering up to take off. It kept wanting to torque left and then when I tried to correct with rudder, it would end up zigzagging and I'd have to taxi back and start over again. Finally after about the 4th try, I got it figured out and got her airborne. It was an absolute joy to fly. I found the Saito .91 to have ample power for this plane. It wasn't really fast, but it had very good vertical performance. The recommended control throws were, in my opinion, pretty conservative. By the 3rd flight I increased ailerons, rudder and elevator throws by about 40% and it made a very big difference. The plane effortlessly did knife edge, Cuban 8's, hammerheads and snap rolls. To maintain level inverted flight required just the slightest touch of down elevator. Stall speed was very slow which made landing incredibly easy. Once power was cut, the sink rate was pretty fast so long approaches are definitely not necessary with this plane. The I flew it a total of 6 flights and not one time did I bounce a landing. My flying skills are pretty good but not great and this was my first time flying a bipe. To bad Great Planes has discontinued this kit. All the work I put into it was worth it. I am going to try a few different props to see if I can improve performance any. I am using an APC 14X6 now. I have also ordered 4" wheels for mine. Flying off grass, I found the wheel pants were trying to plow a little to much which may have been causing some of my ground handling difficulties. A couple of more experienced flyers told me that this kind of ground handling is fairly normal with bipes like this and it just takes a little getting used to. By the last two flights, I was getting it up on the first try.

If anyone has any questions, thoughts, suggestions, whatever, lay them on me.


Jeff

blvdbuzzard

Once you get the amount of rudder you need for take off you are set. The landings are easy. I just left it at a high idle until I was over the end of the runway and it would slow down. As it started to loose altitude I would give more and more elevator until it touched down.. The landing speed is so slow the roll out is just a foot or two. The way this plane flys is just awesome. It does not have a hi flight speed as you said but it does go up at the same speed.

Glad you had a good first flight day. You did land with the wheels first.

Dru.

mscic-RCU

My Feedback: (6)

I'm glad your aeromaster flew well. Sure is a nice looking aircraft. I run a 13X8 prop on my Saito 91. I like it better than the 14X6. I fitted my Aeromaster with floats this past weekend. I'll post some pictures when it is done.

loopnspin

Thanks Dru and mscic ! I just ordered from Tower a 13x8, 13x9, and just for the heck of it, a 13x10 APC propellers. I'll probably try all of them out to see what works best for my flying style.

Dru, you are so right about the stall speed of this plane. I was just amazed at how slow I could land it. I also have a Hangar 9 Pizazz and I think the Aeromaster can land even slower than it.

Hey mscic, please do send some pictures of yours with floats on it. I would love to see it. Thanks again for the comments guys.


Jeff

gasoline

i've been building mine for almost a year.near to complete.my question is did you guys put the wing joiner.(top and bottom wing cabane)how did you guys do it if you have it...on the box there is two diffrent design....one is the red and white scheme and the other with yellow red and blue.i notice the one without wing cabane.is it ok without one?

loopnspin

Hi bensonmak,

It has been some time since I finished mine, but, as best as I recall, the instructions stated that the cabanes are purely cosmetic. If, however, you are going with a larger engine, they might not be a bad idea. But unless you first built the wings with with light ply anchoring points where you would screw the cabane brackets into the top of the bottom wing and the bottom of the top wing, you are going to have to do that first. And depending upon where you are in the construction stage, if you have the wing sheeting finished or not, it might be a bit of a pain. I constructed mine and installed them simply because I liked the looks of the plane better with them.

Good luck and please don't hesitate to ask any questions if you have any. I will be glad to help if I can.

Jeff

blvdbuzzard

Both of my wings are foam core\balsa sheeted and I used the interplane struts. I put a ply block in the foam and screwed the plastic "L" brackets into. I don't think it looks right without them. I also made mine look like a Pitts. It is solid and two screws attach it top and bottom.

Dru.

autopilot47

The Kadet Senior I have flown with no trouble,The super aeromaster is a little different,I taxi up and down the runway with it but don't have the guts to take off,I will one of these days'it has a .60 in it so it should be a little slow witch is good.

Red_Jeepster

Wow! Talk about resurrecting a dead thread! However, glad you did. I bought a Super Aeromaster kit at a swap meet 6 months ago and should be doing a build this winter. OS 91 FS for power.
My question for anyone who has this kit: What if anything needs to be altered?

HighPlains

My Feedback: (1)

Big thread on the Aeromaster in the Vintage section, more answers there than you have questions for.

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_1682151/tm.htm

Red_Jeepster

Thanks Highplains!

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

Ailerons on both the top and bottom wing would be my only mod if I was to ever build another one. I built this kit to replace the plans built Krier Kraft I lost. At first I hated the plane with the old .60 engine I used but then I replaced it with an SK .91 the plane came alive!! With the .91 I didn't really need the extra ailerons but I like a more responsive Bipe. I sent my plans to someone here on RCU, it's then that I noticed the plans were builders plans with the parts shown in profile so you can scratch build them too using the templates shown. I just never cared for the plane that much though but I could have used the templates and had them enlarged to build it as a giant scale. That was the AM I always wanted but the kit was gone when I came up with the money.

autopilot47

How much difference is it flying a bipe than a single wing?