gotime242

Hey all. I have built many planes and such in my time, even though im young. And i have this one really cool glider sitting around that i want to do something with. I cant really get over to the club to use the winch every sat morning, and i was something with power so i can fly whenever i want. But i also want a float plane

So, i dont feel like building another plane, and i also want to get creative!! Heres what i want to do:

Take my nice glider that i built a while back for the heck of it. (Used old wings, scratch built the fuse) Mount an engine over top, over the wings..you know how its done. And mount some floats with a water rudder underneith. It would look interesting!!!

My only question is...this thing is gona be big. 130" wingspan..56 inches long to be exact... what kind of floats, and what type of engine am i gona need to get this beast out of the water. I want to go with a good old Os. La anyway. I love those engine, may not be as powerful, but they are cheap and reliable...

So what do you guys think. Would a Os La .25 engine be able to pull this thing out of the water?? And keep it going in the air with the floats? I mean, it IS a glider, so it shouldnt need that much power.

Heres a pic:

http://www.rcuniverse.com/gallery/s...rt=1&thecat=500

Oh, will v-tail be a problem? Shouldnt be with water rudder right?

Anyway, my main question is what engine do you think? Will .25 do it? And i think i want floats from www.foamfloats.com which set do you think i should get? THe same one for a 55/56 inch fuse? ANd for those floats, on the bigger sets, the "load" is soo much more when it has bass wood spars. What is the diff exactly? What is the spar part?

Thanks! let me know!

-Dylan Shine

Wayne22

My Feedback: (2)

There is only one way to find out - give it a try!!

With those long wings you might have problems keeping the tips out of the water in any kind of wind. The floats may have to be widely spaced to give it stability anyways, (wind, waves - even gentle ones are going to rock it)

Why not dump the floats and make it into a flying boat with tip floats??

I dont think the 25 will do much for it, maybe a gentle excursion along the water....there is a lot of water resistance to overcome.

Good luck and keep us posted.

gotime242

Hmm...flying boat huh. Thats not a bad idea... I suppose i would need to...really build up that fuse, or surround it with foam or something. I liked the floats idea b/c i could always turn it back to a glider. I do see what your saying. I would be able to space them well due to not having a prop to worry about...

What engine would you recommend? Really no to a .25, it is a glider, it had tons of lift...just have to get it on step and outa the water..? I though it might be able to do it....

BMatthews

I vote for a flying boat too. But if the model is anything like most gliders you'll want to build a fairly deep float onto the fuselage belly. Something about 3 or perhaps 4 inches deep I would think. This would let you put a nice "boat" shape on the nose of the float and use a fair amount of angle between the forward and rear portion so the tail wont dig in but you can pivot the model for lift off just fine.

I believe the 25 will be fine. It's got all the wing area in the world and the takeoff speed will be low and assisstance lift will be strong at anything much above a walking pace to help it unstick. But be sure to build in lots of upthrust to compensate for all the pull up on the pylon. I'd say even 8 or 9 degrees wouldn't be out of the question after seeing the angles on some of the full sized boats with high thrust lines. This isn't just an 049 power assisst any more. The upthrust will also help counter the drag down low from the water. Just be sure to make it so you can adjust this angle quite easily and over a + or - 4 to 5 degree range with a center of perhaps + 6 to start.

gotime242

Well, i have decided that i am definetly going to do a .25 size engine. Just because i might want to throw it on a Ace SS bipe later on in case this doesnt work out.

I would like to hear more opinions and suggestions though!

-Dylan

zapper

There have been several times that I have wished that my sailplane had floats. Our primary slope site here in Nashville was the dam impounding Percy Priest Lake. That site has been closed for "security" reasons since 9/11 (the public road on the dam is still open) but few flyers have escaped going in the water. Please keep us up to date on your efforts....I think that you're going to need a good .40 or at least a .32SX...but that is pure guess work...