atron

Hi everybody:

I am from Mexico City, please excuse my English.

Friend of mine still has a Mighty Barnstormer, intact and flying for more than 30 years!!! See photos, has an Webra speed .61 on the nose and is covered on silk & dope.

I always liked that plane, the idea is to make it around an OS 91 Surpass, so it got to be light.

I am starting to build (copy) the "large" version (72" wingspan) of the famous Dave Boddingtons Barnstormer.

atron

By the way, the guy in the photo is Max Betancourt, owner of the plane.

Now some progress on the building....

Build will be OLD SCHOOL, so there will be no laser cutting.

Wing pattern is made in alumminum, its original one used by y friend.

bogbeagle

I have the Bi-Stormer 72 inch... pretty much the same as the BarnStormer, except with 2 wings!

Anyway, mine has an OS .91 four-stroke and this provides plenty of power for the model. My model is covered with nylon and dope, then painted; so, it's not particularly light in weight. I think that your Barnstormer will be just fine with the OS engine.

They do fly very well; very predictable. I've logged 9.3 hours on it, since last January and I love it to bits.

I bought mine, secondhand, from a swapmeet. It had a fixed tailwheel. Now, it has a steerable tailwheel, which is a great improvement. Still, the model and all the servos for £20 was a good deal.

kenh3497

Don't fret (worry) about your English. From what I can read, your English is better than some whose first language is English

atron

BOGBEAGLE:

Your Bi-stormer looks fantastic.

I plan to have an steerable tailwheel and cover on SIG Koverall.

Thanks.

FlyerInOKC

My Feedback: (6)

I agree with kenh3497 your English is just fine. I enjoy building the "Old School" way myself I believe it is a sign of craftsmanship. Not too long ago I cut out two sets of wingribs for a 1/5 scale Ryan SC-W if you look at the pictures you can see the tapper on the wing. At the root the rib is 17.75 inches long and at the wingtip 4.75 inches long and ther are 12 or 13 ribs per wing. I used paper wingrib templetes and rough cut them out in pairs with a rasor saw and a Xacto Knife with a # 11 blade and then sanded them to the lines of the template. I used rubber cement to hold the templates to the top layer of wood so they peeled right off and a little rubbing removed any remaining glue. The design calls for the ribs to interlock into a plywood main spar with a liteply rear spar extending 2/3 of the way into the wing. The wing has alerons but it has an airbrake mounted between the main gear instead of flaps. On the full scale airplane the fuselage was constructed of a metal skin over formers and the wing has a metal skin from the leading edge to the mainspar and the the remaining part is fabric covered as are all control surfaces.

nevster

Hello Atron,
I have had barnstormers for the last 26 years (all 72" wingspan versions). They are a fantastic flying model. My last one was powered by a saito 65
fourstroke which was more than enough power - this model was covered in solartex and painted so it was no liteweight. I used to also carry around
quite a heavy digital camera on top of the wings - it flew fine !

If you look under my models on my profile page you will see a photo of my latest barnstormer. Unfortunately I have had to strip off the covering
and rebuid the front of the fuselage as it's so old and fuel soaked from a lot of flying. The only thing I would recommend is to enlarge the ailerons by
one rib bay - this helps with the roll rate and makes it feel more solid on windy days

Good luck with the build

Regards
Nev

kdc

There is a Barnstormer 63 build blog on this site http://www.modelflying.co.uk/forums/...s.asp?th=63537

The plans for the Barnstormer 63 & 72 and Mighty Barnstormer are available from DB Sport & Scale in England. They also sell the wing rib sets at good prices also u/c parts. This was the late David Boddington's company which is still going but has been run by someone else for many years..
see
http://www.dbsportandscale.com/Plans-List.htm
http://www.dbsportandscale.com/Mighty-Barnstormer.htm

The Mighty Barnstormer plan is also avail in USA from RCM Plans
see

http://www.rcmplans.com/index.php?ma...oducts_id=1315

atron

Folks:

Guess what, i just find that i am builing the 89" wingspan and not the 72"!!!!

Please excuse my mistake.

So the question still exsist...... Is the OS 91 four stroke (older Surpass version) somehow equivalent to a two stroke 60 enough for this plane?

AT

Please take in consideration that Mexico City is a very high altitude, flying field is at 2500 meters or 7,500feet.

RCM PLAN # 490
MIGHTY BARNSTORMER
89" span, 1200 sq. in., .60-.80, 4 ch., built-up balsa and plywood, one sheet 41-1/2" x 76" $15.00

bogbeagle

Well, their website says .50 to .70 sized engines ... http://www.dbsportandscale.com/Mighty-Barnstormer.htm


BUT, given the altitude at which you intend to fly, I'm thinking that you'll need a lot bigger engine. Experience will be your best guide. That is, how do comparable models perform at that altitude?

I'm confident that the model will perform poorly on a .90 four-stroke.

I could predict, using rule-of-thumb, that your model will climb at a little less than one half of its sea-level rate. I'd guess that a 1.20 four-stroke would be the minimum acceptable power, unless you want to fly very sedately.

CanDo

How about the DLE 20 (20cc) gas engine? It swings a 17x6 prop and is much cheaper to operate than a 120 glow engine. I believe Tower Hobbies' price is less than a OS .91 4-stroke engine. I agree, at 7500 ft, you may need more power than a .91 4-stroke. What is the ready to fly weight?

atron

If you go back to post #1 you¨ll see the model i am after. It has a Webra 61 speed from the 80´s and it fly VERY well at Mexico City altitude. No is not a 3D, nor i dont want such a plane!!

The plane is similar to a Telemaster or a Kadet Senior, but somehow different.... has an semisimetric airfoil an is little hevier.

The DLE 20 seems too big for this.

bogbeagle

In that case, atron, just build it as you first intended ... that is, with the OS .91. It will certainly fly and you can assess the power for yourself. It won't be too difficult to slip a larger engine between the bearers, if you should need to.

I must confess that I wouldn't want a modern petrol engine on the front, either. I'm a bit stuck in my ways, I suppose.

CanDo

If you think a .91 4 stroke can fly your 89" span plane at 7500 ft easily, then that is the way to go. As Bogbeagle said, it wouldn't be difficult to upgrade if you need to. 4 stroke engines do sound great, it's the price of glow fuel that has changed my mind about them.

green river rc

My Feedback: (2)

Cool airplane, love the parasol wing!

atron

I did order the much needed balsa wood to "The Balsa Store" but shipment is on hold because of some Paypal problem with the founds.

Meanwhile, i began working on the cowling. My friend found the original plug made in hard wood that was used to make the fiberglass mold. Just imagine, all that work to make one pice.

I will be extending it to fit any 120 four cycle engine.

atron

Hi everybody:

I have not posted in a loooong time, but i been working on the plane.

Here are some photos of the fiberglass cowling, i needed to add an inch to the base, took 3 moulds to have a good one.

atron

Now the woodwork.

Its very straightforward.

Only very few deviations from plan, the radio access will be from the bottom.

atron

More photos.....

atron

and some more on he planking and rudder/stab.

Cabanes are removables.

atron

some on the stab hinging....

kenh3497

Looking mighty fine. [sm=thumbup.gif][sm=thumbup.gif]

Ken

soarrich

My Feedback: (98)

Great looking plane!
The ARFers don't know what they are missing.

atron

Soarrich:

Yeap, i really enjoy building.

I am taking my time to do it right (means my way).

atron

The Barnstormer is finished and after many engines i ended with a GMS 1.20. That particular engine is as powerful as any 0.90 but heavier, anyway, weight was needed upfront. The plane fly as expected with no bad habits.