ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
05-27-2009, 03:38 PM
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ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
1
After quite three years ofwork enough intense, finally, the ALBATROS CIII is finished!
After having made the maiden flight with positive result, I can finally relax!
If someone will show interested, I will try to describe what I have made.
I must premise that it is a bit difficult for me (from Italy) to write all that in English; so I apologize for the errors of grammar, syntax and so on....
Some pictures of the maiden flight:
05-27-2009, 04:52 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
2
All began as a fast realization of a not too big model (1:6) and without excessive pretensions; for this I got David's Hurell project which was published on Radio Control Scale Arircraft in April/May 1995 issue.
Instead I finished up to redraw completely the model with Autocad and to enrich it with a whole series of particularsthe more possible true to the select scale.
The "mistake" I have done is: only a 1/6 scale and not a bigger one; details are smaller and a lot more difficult to make.
As documentation I have used the excellentWindsock Datafile no 13and the drawings of monsieur J. Lagorgette shown in the 1917 book “1917 Avions Allemand-L’Aerophile”; together with the drawings, the book reports an extended and meticulous description of the airplane that has turned out truly precious.
All that results very interesting as a reserarch on as the Albatros was built in 1916, but in general as an historical research.
This is the side I like too of our hobby
Reflection: Who knows why when I try to explain all that to the friends that purchases onlythe ARF models, they look me as if they were speaking with a Mars inhabitant?
Some Lagorgette’s drawings:
05-28-2009, 01:24 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
3
The choice of the subject
I liked colour profile I found in an Enciclopedia of an Albatros CIII spotting a fuselage with a beautiful monogram “MB” of the initials of the pilot and observer (?) but I was unable to find a picture of it.
So I diverted to the well known “C1388/16” (Fabricnummer 2717) that operated on the western front; delivered to the Kampfstaffel 34b of the Kampfgeschwader 6b June 10 th 1916 it was captured intact from the French troops in the area of Verdun August 6 th 1916; subsequently it was made object of numerous tests and measurements from the Section Technique de L’ Aeronautique (StAe).
Some pictures of the subject:
05-28-2009, 10:46 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
4
I am sorry not to have made photos during the various stages of the construction.
Some photos of the various parts are already been published in other RCU threads but I think are useful however even if not very defined.
Wings
The airfoil is the same of the airplane directly scaled down from the measurement taken in the 1916!
The same are the angle of incidence of both wings so as the evolution of this angle along the wings span.
All ribs are 3 mm balsa laser cut by a friend; two scale positioned spruce spars + an additional 3 mm. dia. carbon rod spar; shaped balsa leading edge and .8 mm. dia. music wire for trailing edge.
The root ribs are of 3 mm. birch ply.
Wing tips are laminated hard balsa+half round birch dowel; wet(ammonia) curved on proper jigs.
The ailerons are glued on a (two) proper jigs too; but the trailing edge in this case is of music wire rods 1,5+ 1 mm. dia. soft soldered together to simulate the oval shaped metal tube used in 1916.
Each upper wing aileron is driven by 10 lbs. fishing trace that runs from a bell-crank in the bottom wing; two pulleys allows the change of direction and two small turnbuckles are for the proper tension.
The bottom wings are positioned to the fuselage each by two 3 mm. dia. music wire rods; these enters into corresponding brass tubes.
Each upper wing has two2 mm ball links fixed to the spar roots; a steel rod of 2 mm. dia.
inserted through lugs silver soldered to the cabane.
All rigging wires are .8 mm. dia. music wire except the flying wires that are 1 mm. dia.; each rigging wire has a proper turnbuckle (#2 Proctor).
The covering is with KOVERALL running all the way from leading edge –bottom wing -trailing edge-upper wing to leading edge again; Koverall was fixed with Stix-it.
A lot of cyano drops were used to secure the Koverall to the bottom undercambered wing surfaces.
With the Koverall shrinkage (careful) I got the scalloped trailing edge with slight rib protrusion.
Non shrinking dope for the Koverall was made with a my own "stuff" : 1% of castor oil added to the conventional nitro clear dope as we in Italy do not find “banana oil”; satisfactory result.
Pictures of the wings
Pictures of the wings
05-28-2009, 11:14 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
Sorry...the pictures are here:
Have encountered some difficulties in the process of attaching the images; Iwill try again.....
Have encountered some difficulties in the process of attaching the images; Iwill try again.....
05-28-2009, 11:28 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
ORIGINAL: GianFrancesco
Sorry...the pictures are here:
Have encountered some difficulties in the process of attaching the images; Iwill try again.....
Sorry...the pictures are here:
Have encountered some difficulties in the process of attaching the images; Iwill try again.....
Now the system is working...............
05-28-2009, 12:30 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
Thanks!
The engine is an old LASER 90.
The weight is 6,1 Kg. due a 0,6 Kg. of damned lead asballast
to put the CG at the 20% (prudential) of the average chord .
The engine is an old LASER 90.
The weight is 6,1 Kg. due a 0,6 Kg. of damned lead asballast
to put the CG at the 20% (prudential) of the average chord .
05-28-2009, 05:19 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
Beautiful plane, thank you for showing it to us, and for describing it in your excellent English. I really like the thin wings with scale airfoil, incidence and wire trailing edge. It is a rare subject for RC modeling. I especially love the second photo of the plane from below.
I suspect you can move the CG back progressively if you can remove nose weight a bit at a time, checking response to releasing the stick after a shallow dive. It probably recovers very fast now.
Jim
05-29-2009, 11:44 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
When I was working to the model and to the finishing I have often thought to the wiev frombeneath (correct?); as I liked to get the effect of the translucent wings and tail of the real one.
The nose weght is composed of some peices and layers of lead so I hope to can progressively reduce the amount of it.
The nose weght is composed of some peices and layers of lead so I hope to can progressively reduce the amount of it.
05-29-2009, 12:05 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
My next "task" is to complete an over ten years building: Sopwith 1/2 Strutter 1/4 scale...........;butI am thinking already to a 1/3 scale subject for a Zenoha 38 with reduction gear.
This time the plane must be Italian: a Macchi-Nieuport N11 or an Ansaldo SVA 5 or....???
This time the plane must be Italian: a Macchi-Nieuport N11 or an Ansaldo SVA 5 or....???
05-29-2009, 04:20 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
I vote for the Ansaldo. Iwould like to build an SVA 5 one day. The wood fuselage is beautiful. In the mean time, Ihave a Balsa USA Nieuport 17 Iam thinking of doing in Baraca's scheme.
dave semeraro
05-29-2009, 04:44 PM
#21
RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
ORIGINAL: GianFrancesco
When I was working to the model and to the finishing I have often thought to the wiev frombeneath (correct?); as I liked to get the effect of the translucent wings and tail of the real one.
When I was working to the model and to the finishing I have often thought to the wiev frombeneath (correct?); as I liked to get the effect of the translucent wings and tail of the real one.
05-29-2009, 05:19 PM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
A lot of trials and errorswere made to reproduce the translucent original german linen fabric......; the first ones withdifferentmix proportions of clear dope+alchool stain (cherry-walnut); but not satisfactory; the following withdifferent mix percentages ofclear dope+thinned beige nitro color dope; again not satisfactory; at least a couple of very thinned layers of beige nitro color dope was (for my personal opinion) the solution: enough translucent if looked from far but not transparent if looked from nearby.
05-29-2009, 06:13 PM
#23
RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
Oh! So many questions, so many questions!!! I have dozens of questions on that wing alone! Is the ailerons cable system functional? How did you do the stitching? How did you do the strut end fittings? Did you use actual turn-buckles. What kind of TE does the wing have?
When I think about starting on my CI, it's almost overwhelming.
When I think about starting on my CI, it's almost overwhelming.
05-30-2009, 04:30 AM
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RE: ALBATROS CIII 1/6 scale
Hi Abufletcher
in the post 8 of this trade I have tried to describe how the wing are made.
Ailerons are " scale driven" via cables, pulleys and a bellcrank in each bottom wing;turnbuckles are functional; the friction in the whole linkage is a bit too high; so I had to increase the power of the two separate servos (in the fuse) to getthe mid point (zero point?).
Strut end fittings are produced by my lathein brass; are split in two halves that position the lugs for the rigging wire. A bit triky but it works!
If You interested, I could post to your private address the drawings of what above (in dwg or pdf files format)I made for myself with Autocad.
in the post 8 of this trade I have tried to describe how the wing are made.
Ailerons are " scale driven" via cables, pulleys and a bellcrank in each bottom wing;turnbuckles are functional; the friction in the whole linkage is a bit too high; so I had to increase the power of the two separate servos (in the fuse) to getthe mid point (zero point?).
Strut end fittings are produced by my lathein brass; are split in two halves that position the lugs for the rigging wire. A bit triky but it works!
If You interested, I could post to your private address the drawings of what above (in dwg or pdf files format)I made for myself with Autocad.