sierratango

Looking great. I can really see the shape.

jofunk

I framed out the top view of the canopy area. once i had something to bring the sheeting up to I started laying down strip planking on the top of the nose. The ridges got knocked down and then the low spots got some lite filler. I had a 48" piece of harder balsa so it fit well on the lower full length section of the fuse. It is very flat on the sides so it can take some relatively large pieces of sheeting. The challenge is getting glue on all the stringers and getting the sheeting on in time.

sierratango

Awesome!

jofunk

Thanks ST……………I did more planking over the nose. The process is slow on the nose because I need to split the difference when I lay down a plank to keep the correct shape. That leaves a lot of tapered pieces to fit in. I think the point on the front is a little high ( F-1was not perfectly perpendicular when set) so I am slowly putting a little filler on the top so I can keep that slight continuing curve to the tip.

sierratango

It could be the photo angle, but the nose dowel might be off to the starboard side.

i got this laser for a Christmas gift years ago and I think they are in expensive, but a most valuable tool.

Your project is looking great.

jofunk

I did throw a laser on it and the tip looks ok side to side. My camera does not take good pictures in low light. With the laser over the top #6 bulkhead looked 1/16" out of whack. I can live with that. I cut bulkhead 9 out solid. The intake area will eventually get knocked out so I made that area out of balsa. 8 will get built the same way.

jofunk

Hey ST,

Vladimir wanted me to ask what kind of laser you have. Here is the one I have. It casts three types of beams. Is yours similar?

sierratango

it is a Bushnell.

sierratango

This is when I started using the laser. While the RV10 fuselage was propped up in the air, I dropped a plum line down from the center of the firewall and did the same with the tail. I then connected the two with a laser line. From there I used geometry to meassure and equal distance from that center line and made another line which bisected the main wheels and ultimately the front and rear of the wheel pants.

I had to use a level to ensure the fuselage was level and then had to do the same with the wheel pants, using a piece of ply wood propped up off the basement floor and using wooden wedges. The concrete floor was not level either.

All in the name of aerodynamics and less drag, less fuel, and more speed.

This is what I love about building, mental exercises in seeing problems and then thinking through them.

jofunk

Vladimir thanks you ST……..I am itching to start an RV 12. It seem every time I am ready to pull the trigger on the tail kit something pops up. It will happen eventually.

sierratango

It will be easy for you, just time consuming. It may not be enough original creativity for you so I suspect that you will do a lot of custom work on it.

Keep posting on the A5. Looking forward to the posts.

jofunk

I put more sheeting on the side of the nose. A 4" wide piece went on nicely since it is almost flat. What is on there now will get sanded smooth and will get some glass on it to stiffen everything. It can then be cut off the table and I will finish the bottom. I am not sheeting the hump until I can get it next to the center section. I want to get a nice flow on the sheeting over the top. I also have to remember when Vladimir made the mating plates they are over sized slightly in height. I also started laying out the 1" tubes that will go into the hoz. stabs. They will be set 8" deep. I abraded the sections of tube that will be in the stabs and then glued them to some very hard balsa. I glued them at the same time this will by default make the balsa plates parallel once i cut the wood down the center to separate the tubes. I also opened all the main fuse bulkheads to the same width to accept a nice rectangular fuel tank floor.

xgbcgxcf

Give me a call if you need some extra hands. Or I can watch and drink your beer.LOL

jofunk

Is this the same person that wants to come over and drink my beer from page one?……………The Vigilante had spoilers in the top of the wing. They look like they are just in from of the flaps with no ailerons from what I can tell. Does anyone have any experience flying around with just spoilers, good, bad or indifferent?

jofunk

This is what I found…………….The aircraft achieved good low-speed landing performance through the use of large flaps. The ailerons were eliminated to make room for the flaps, with roll control provided by differential movement of the tailplanes and an innovative scheme of spoilers. There were three spoilers on each wing, just forward of the rear flight control surfaces. There were actually spoilers on each surface of the wing, with a spoiler on one surface hinged at the front matched to a spoiler on the other hinged at the rear; when a spoiler was deployed, it formed a "vent" of sorts through the wing. The two topside inboard spoilers were hinged at the front, while the topside outboard spoiler was hinged at the rear. A "boundary layer control (BLC)" scheme was incorporated, in which air bled from the engines was automatically blown over the flaps when they were extended, in order to lower landing speed…………………Any thoughts?

thunderceptor

I suggest you to make things easy, don't try to copy the real one, at least on first flight.. Real one have spoiler/deflector system, fairly complicate to reproduce in small size.

Here is a video, go to minute 4:04:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwYdz-U75fk I would try wings with flaps, no ailerons, and differential tail movement as ailerons.

jofunk

Thanks alberto for the video advice………….. I cut the two pipes apart and trimmed off the excess wood down to 1 1/4" I backfilled the rest of the area with urethane glue and more balsa. The urethane glue did an excellent job of filling the voids. I always think I don't have enough urethane glue on things and then the stuff is pumping out all over. I put the glue in a cup, add a few drops of water, mix it well and the stuff quickly starts foaming up. The cup with the acid brush in it was empty with only residue when I left it. The balsa box with the pipe in it will get glued into the stab.

jofunk

I cut away the sheeting and foam to insert the box and pipe. Again I used urethane glue to fill any voids. I set a couple of legs in place, with some T pins into the box. I also tacked a few blocks from the top sheeting to the bulkheads so it couldn't push away.

jofunk

I set the other stab. The fit was much closer. I guess once you've done it, the second time is easier. It went quicker also. Once everything was set I measured from the center line to the trailing edge tips. both distances were both 13 1/4". My first thought was what did I do wrong. At any rate, the horizontal stabs look nice and horizontal. The span of the tail is about 5 feet. It still needs tips and fuse sheeting. Now if the vertical goes on with no issues I will be happy.

jofunk

I cut the vertical open to take the rudder post. I also abraded the post for the glue to stick and glued on same hard balsa for the foam to attach to. I set the rudder with urethane glue with out backfilling the sides of the post. I was easier to set the fin while seeing the pipe. I will back fill it once everything cures. I also glued the sheeting to the bulkheads so it wouldn't push up.

jofunk

Vladimir made a few inserts to link the elevators to the servos. I took my handy dandy close shave tool and trimmed down the excess wood on the rudder. I also mixed up some urethane glue and backfilled the sides of the post. The excess glue and wood got ground off the elevators and I skinned on a thin layer of filler. It will get sanded and maybe skinned again.

sierratango

Jofunk....just thinking out loud.

I am just wondering a few things from my observations and perhaps there is more planned than meets my eye, but my mind is seeing a possible issue.

Those flying stabs are huge and will create a tremendous amount or torque at the fulcrum point. Because the leading edge and the trailing edge are so far away from the axis of rotation, there is a huge moment arm being placed on those connectors. I do not know mathmatically what that force will be based on the incident angle vs the relative wind over the wing multiplied by surface area and speed, but even a little change in angle of attack will generate a lot of force.

I'm questioning the stability of the tube glued into the box which is then glued into and against the inner foam core of the stab. If there were aluminum or carbon ribs inside that stab that had tabs which locked into a groove or channel in the metal tube that would more adequately distribute the load into the tube and vice versa.

Also, as the DIAMETER of the interfaces get smaller and smaller in the area of all these tubes and rods, even Vladimir's steel inserts with their mechanical cross hatching may not provide enough surface area to withstand the torque created by the moment arm of the leading and trailing edge, especially at jet speeds. Vladimir's rods could have more surface area by increasing their length at the expense of weight, but by nature of the design in needing to glue them into a dowel which is then glued into a tube, their diameter is just so narrow, not providing much surface area. I am not worried about them breaking, just concerned that over a short period of time, the interface between the foam core and the box will develop slop and the same is true potentially with the machined parts glued into the dowels.

Those square boxes you glued the tubes into might create round channels in your stabs.

Just food for thought, not trying to piss anyone off.

It it is a forum after all.

With that said, I am very impressed with the build. Thanks for sharing and keep plugging way and posting.

John

sysiek

My Feedback: (176)

The push rots will be install in front of the stab like the old Byron F-15 this will be the strongest ,I might do the to my big f-18 to prevent flutter and make it stronger than the original complicate mechanism .

sysiek

My Feedback: (176)

This is Philip Avons stab the Byron go in about 50% forward and go up and down.

vholis

Hallo ST My dowel 1/2 '' will be glued to foam about 8'' front of fulcrum point horizontaly to the elevator and parallel with main tube. push link will go verticaly to the servo it will be mounted on side of fuselage about 3 '' below elevator , servo with long arm will move elevator ap and down Vladimir;