funkworks

Hey guys! Just wanted to post some pics of the first flight. The Goshawk was scratchbuilt from my own plans. The span is about 57 inches and I have a TT Pro .46 in the nose.

funkworks

...more pics

mmattockx

Hey Rene,

Good to see you around here again. Is this one of the protoype laser cut kits? How did the weight end up on this one?


Mark

P.S. - Any news on the Panther?

funkworks

Hey Mark!

Yup. This is the first of the laser cut prototypes and it flew great! Way better than I expected but I didnt' really get too crazy with it. The weight was about 5.5lbs dry. The model took off well from pavement and I'm sure it will do fine from a grass strip. I made my own pilots by casting them from resin. I dressed up a Williams Bros. figure to make it look more military and used it as a master. So I just pour me some pilots if I need more . I posted more pics and a small summary on the website under the T-45 page.

The Panther is coming along slowly. I got most of the linkages figured out now. It started getting complicated b/c I am using mechanical retracts. I just need to finish sheeting the bottom and then start covering. I had to fix some alignment problems in the tail before continuing. I sprayed the tail with a water/ammonia mix and clamped in a jig for a weekend. It worked! I'll work on getting some more photos posted here and on my site for the Panther. I've got more room now at my new place so I've got two building tables going full bore now.

bob27s

My Feedback: (19)

Boy, that T-45 looks real sweet !! Nice job, and I am pleased to hear if flys great too !

Bob

funkworks

Thanks! It would prob fly even better with one of those Jett engines...haha!

bob27s

My Feedback: (19)

You have a good engine there.... I like the TT.46 - real good power plant.

If you want some fun, put a jett-stream muffler on it. Amazing how that engine responds to it.

funkworks

Im actually thinking about putting on a MAC muffler. I put on on the TT Pro .36 I mounted on my U-2 and it really made a difference. I'm not in too much of a hurry thought because the model flies fine as is and it balanced perfect without any lead anywhere. I'm running a 10x5 prop on the Goshawk now. The model had decent speed even at 3/4 throttle. I'm tempted to get an OS .50 for the next one.

Props4ever

Hi,

Woulden't resin Pilot weighted heavy for RC model, i like to use resin also but due to excessive weight of resin i just don't do it. Guess its possibe to use resin figures to compensate for the nose weight instead of using lead!....

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Funkworks- Great Goshawk! Does it have retracts or is that the other airframe? Either way a Jett-60LX seems like a natural fit there

Are you kitting that? Great photos and best of luck!

james

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Okay, I was on your site so I am a little better up to speed now...

The Mig-21 is a beatiful airframe! And EVERYONE loves the F9F

Keep us posted, and let us know when waiting lists are available---

funkworks

You are right Concordefan. Resin is heavier. I hollowed out the resin figures with a dremel tool. I got them to weight almost as much as a normal plastic figure. I'm in the process of looking for a less dense material to mould the pilots without sacrificing detail.

funkworks

Thanks Razor! Alot of folks have asked about retracts. I'm sure someone could fit them in. The problem is that there isn't much room in the nose. It would be possible to move the fuel tank a little. I'll have more news on a possible kit version. A company expressed some interest in the model so we will see what happens.

scratchonly

Could you please describe your method for casting pilots and where you purchased Materials?

funkworks

I used some stuff from a company called Smooth On (www.smooth-on.com). To make my mold I used something they call Dragon Skin. I got my master the way I wanted it and then coated it with their mold release agent spray. I placed the master sitting upright on a sheet of wax paper and surrounded the figure with a box (open top and bottom) that I also coated with the release agent. Here's a tip- Lego blocks work great for this. I poured the mixture slowly into the box from the top up to the top and then let sit over night. After the stuff cured I just removed the box and wax paper. With a sharp x-acto knife I carefully cut a slit behind the figure from about the back of the head down the center to the bottom of the figure. This helps to remove the master and each casting. The mold is very flexible so the master and casting just pop out. This means you only have to "clean up" one mold line from each casting. The website has a bunch of info on casting methods and info on the products. The resin is heavy so I hollowed out my figure with a Dremel tool. I thing I'm going to experiment with their foam to see if I can get the same amount of detail. Let me know if you have any questions.

P.S. If you mess up a mold, dont toss it! Save it and chop it up into little bits to use as filler material in other molds. I filled up my box with this filler along the walls on the inside of my box so I didnt have to mix up so much rubber.

Have fun!

funkworks

...forgot to add some more info. The pilot O2 mask hose is a black round shoe lace. I drilled a small hole between the pilots chin and lower lip. I CAed the lace in place and then used JB Weld to build up the area around the mouth to make the mask. I kept some alcohol (rubbing...) handy dipping my fingers in it to keep the stuff from sticking to my fingers.