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This is the modified Rudder per CorsairJock's instructions. I'm about to place the Carbon fiber strip and ply. The 1/64 lite ply covering the hing gap is 1/2in wide and extends 1/8 in. Thanks for the tip. Pete
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OK, FINALLY, the wing tips. The Top Flite Corsairs have many inaccuracies, but by far the biggest is the wing tips. I would hesitate to say that these mods are the most important ones however, because we view aircraft from the side more often than from directly above or below. Nontheless, this is a very noticeable deviation from scale, and should be corrected if possible. For those of you out there who haven’t built the tip area yet, it relatively easy to make them right. If your’s is built and finished already, this will be more difficult but not impossible.
But before I go to far, a big thank you goes out to RocketMan for posting pics of his rudder, which he modified according to suggestions from this forum. Fantastic job, Pete. Very scale looking AND sturdy enough to survive those occasional tip overs. I noticed that you also added some 1/64” ply to the fin to cover the hinge area. Again, VERY well done. Also thanks to Juice, for adding pics of full scale exhausts. I noticed that the bevel appears to be more than 45 deg, maybe more like 60 deg. Oh well, I don’t think too many will notice if you go 45 deg, but if you really want to be true to scale, you could always sand them down some more.
There are actually 2 separate wing tip mods in these next few posts: the first concerns the airfoil in the wing tip area, and the second concerns the wingtip outline. It is not necessary to do one in order to do the other. And in fact, if your aircraft is already completed, it would be very difficult to do the first mod, but the second one could still be made without too much trouble.
I’ll start out with this drawing of the tips as viewed from the front. What should become evident is that the outline of the top of the outer wing panels are absolutely straight from the root (of the outer panel/ wing fold line), until it rounds downward at the very end (tip) to meet the underside. This is true not only at the spar, but all the way across. In other words, you should be able to lay a straight edge on the spar, or the trailing edge, or the rear spar area (where flaps and ailerons meet the wing), and see no gap until the very end of the tip. Of the 2 Top Flite versions, the ‘red box’ is the worst, but both of them have the top drooping beginning several inches from the tips. To correct the Gold Edition, wing ribs T-7 need to be modified (before assembly) by trimming about 1/8” all the way across the bottom, 1/32” from the upper spar notch, and 1/16” from the rear alignment tab. This should get you pretty close, you can check by assembling and using a straight edge to see if the tops of all ribs line up, all the way across. Some sanding (with a hobby/ straight sander) will be required to make T-7 be properly aligned with the other ribs. Making this correction will also add a slight washout effect, making tip stalls less likely. It is not necessary to bring the tips to a point as shown on the scale view. Doing so makes the mod more difficult, and will result in a tip that is more easily damaged. The option is yours. However, I do encourage you to at least make the top straight, and make yours closer to scale.
You should also add a piece of balsa about ¾” x ¾” x 1 1/2” long to the rear of the leading edge stock, into the ‘corner’, butting up against T-7 (if you have not yet sheeted the wing). Sand to match the airfoil, as you will be sheeting over this. This is needed because of the additional rounding of the leading edge profile which is needed for the next mod. Without it, the sheeting can be sanded too thin when the correct profile is done.
< Message edited by CorsairJock -- Aug 22 2003 3:58PM >
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Next is the profile from above/ below, and this is where the inaccuracy really shows. This is a scale drawing of the upper left wing tip. Print it out (see printing directions below) and lay it over your plans, and see how far off it is. Especially noticeable is the lack of rounding on the leading edge. This is why you need to add the balsa behind the leading edge near T-7, as stated in the previous post.
< Message edited by CorsairJock -- Aug 21 2003 12:13AM >
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This last drawing is of a template I have made, which can be used to make wing tips which will be substituted for the ones that came with your kit. The original leading edge stock should extend beyond T-7 if you have not yet installed it, and the part made from this template should butt up against that leading edge. If you HAVE assembled your wing, and leading edge has been cut off even with T-7 (as per Top Flite plans), just make the tip piece bigger to include the leading edge area marked on the template. It may be possible to use your original tips and just reshape them according to this template. Notice that I have also marked the navigation light location.
A final note on these wing tip mods: I go to the Toledo show every year, and over the past few years I have seen a few Top Flite Corsairs entered in the staic display contests. These Corsairs for the most part had very good detail and displayed excellent craftmanship. One even had the wing rib stitching very well done. BUT, how I recognized these as Top Flite Corsairs, is because depite all the attention to details, the builders failed to notice that the Top Flite wing tip shape was incorrect, and thus failed to correct it. I felt it was really a shame to put so much effort into a scale model, and fail to notice something like that, which would have been easy enough to correct.
This drawing, like the others, is 1/8 scale/ actual scale size for Top Flight (and Royal) .60 size Corsairs. In order to print it correct size, you may need to download it first, then open it in a program such as Adobe Photo Deluxe, and print it from there. It may require cropping and/ or rotating in order to fit on a 8 1/2" x 11" page.
< Message edited by CorsairJock -- Aug 23 2003 1:22AM >
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Can the TF Corsair be glassed and painted? If so what approx weight do you end up with and what power plant would be reccomended.How thick of fabric should be used and where can construction be lightend?
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you can glass and paint anything you want that isn't a closed structure(OOPS, I MEANT OPEN STRUCTURE), mine's at about 7 pounds without engine, so she'll end up with about 10lbs all up. i'm going to use the RCS 1.40. carving out the inside holes in the formers in the aft part of the fuz will lighten her up a bit, and keep the tail light so you don't need nose weight you should be fine. I've heard they fly ok up to 13 lbs.
< Message edited by shupack -- Aug 26 2003 6:09PM >
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Very interesting Thread, lots of good info.
I have a Top Flight 1/8 scale Corsair with an Enya 80 2-cycle, retracts, & flaps.
I was wondering if the plane flys with or without much rudder input when built straight out of the box.
I have two test flights on my plane and it has been very slow and difficult to turn. My last flight wound up busting up the wing, so I have a couple of months to think about what I did wrong.
I've been flying for over three years and have test flown allot of aircraft I have built, but this is my first warbird.
I'm thinking my turns were not coordinated with enough rudder and I therefore had problems getting the plane to bank and turn.
I had High & Low rates set to the manual, I needed High rates just to keep the plane from flyiung into the next county.
Anythoughts? I'm listening.
I love the plane too much to give up, but I am too upset to fix it right now.
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KevinKRC, sorry to hear about your accident and I sincerely hope that you find the time to repair her and the desire to try flying her again. In answer to your question regarding use of rudder, YES, I use the rudder all the time now, and it has become natural. One MUST use it for takeoffs, and anytime the power is brought up while the aircraft is slowed down, and even during climb-outs if you want to maintain straight ahead heading. Many times, I actually use a little opposite rudder when turning left (right rudder) to keep it from diving while turning, and use right rudder while turning right. This Top Flite Corsair is my second Top Flite one (first one was crashed after 3 years, due to abusive/ non scale maneuvers) and my third Corsair. My first Corsair is a DynaFlite FunScale 40 one, very similar to the Great Planes FunScale Corsair (kit version, NOT the ARF). I still have and fly this first one (7 years old, over 1,000 flights), it was easy to build (compared to the Top Flite), lighter (5 1/2 lbs), and easier to fly. Altho easier to fly, it taught me the need for using rudder and becoming a rudder pilot. Previous to this Corsair, I tended to use rudder for takeoffs and certain acrobatics. But by flying this Corsair, I learned to use it all the time. I now recommend that anyone desiring to get into warbirds should get a FunScale warbird first, such as the old DynaFlite FunScale ones, Midwest, or Great Planes ones. I recommend that you try one, Great Planes makes a fine FunScale Corsair (again, NOT the ARF) which you could learn a lot about warbird flying with, and then you could return to your Top Flite Corsair a little wiser. The Top Flite Corsair, like most warbirds, has a heavier wing loading than most sport planes, and therefor needs more room to manuever, something else to keep in mind before you fly your's again. The picture is of my Saito .50 powered Dynalite FunScale Corsair, parked in front of a P&W R2800 powered FG-1D.
< Message edited by CorsairJock -- 9/15/2003 2:37:46 PM >
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Here is another item which can be added to an already completed Corsair: the antenna aft of the cockpit. You 'red box' Corsair owner/ builders already have this, as a plywood mast is included with your kit and shown on the plans. This was omitted from the Gold Edition versions. Nearly all full scale Corsairs have an antenna mast in the location shown on the picture below, however, the shape varies somewhat. Many also have an additional mast ahead of the cockpit, you will need to check drawings and/ or pictures of the specific Corsair you are modeling your's after to determine if yours need the forward mast. I chose this picture because it also shows an antenna wire exiting the fuselage, aft of the canopy and to the right side of the fuselage. Altho I have better scale drawings available, nearly all of them show the left side of the fuselage, and therefor do not show this where this wire exits the fuselage. This wire is also typical of most full scale Corsairs. The reason I mention this wire is because I have my receiver antenna wire exiting at the same location, thereby adding some authenticity to it. This drawing is NOT to scale, I don't know what scale it is, but it should give you a pretty good idea of the proper locations. The drawing is of an F4U-1D. Many of the earlier Corsairs had more of a 'whip' antenna instead of the mast, but in the same location. Such an antenna could be made from music wire, or a small plastic tube like the ones used with aerosol cans.
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