Sir Crashalot

With fewer kits being made, plans are the only thing left for the builders. They are cheaper than trying to buy a vintage kit, and they don’t take up as much room. So for me, they have quickly become the gold standard. So, starting from my recent return to R/C, I’ve been collecting what I can as I come across them. Some have been sent by old flying buddies when they heard that I wanted to return to flying again. Others, I have gotten at yard sales. A few from RCM, MAN, and Flying Models. The rest, old kit plans, but still good enough to build from.

So I thought that it would be fun to hear from you guys, and see what you have in your “Paper Hanger”!

As for me:

1. Jensen Ugly Stik
2. RCM Heinkel 100
3. MAN Nieuport 27
4. Midwest Bipe Stik
5. Super Hots
6. MAN AT-6 Texan
7. MAN S.E. 5A
8. Flying Models S.E. 5A


That’s it so far, but hoping to add more when I get some extra $$$$! (Which is hard to do these days)

Thanks

Bob J.

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

I think you are wrong on one account, that of the overall quantity of models being produced. I think right now we need more flyers to handle the quantity being produced.

But I copy plans, old mostly. Have more than 80 on the hard drive right now as they really do not take up all that much space. Being an advocate of Berkeley Models, I have sixteen of them, and my friend Bob like DMECO on DeBolt and we got only about 20 of them on the hard drive. When we told Hal, he could not remember them, nor the variants, but he sure drafted them up.


Wm.

WacoNut

I have well over 100 giant scale plans, probably another 100 peanut to 120 size. All are on CD and hard drive
My current build a Pepino Waco I did not have the plans so I purchased them back in January, all the plans I have and found myself buying another
Anthony

TFF

Here are the ones I am itching to build RCM Kwik Fli 1and 2( with kraft radios and hardware), RCM Fokker D7 1/6 size, Cleveland Albatross D5 1/6, and Sopwith Camel made from a cross of Mick Reeves and Replicraft drawings( I wish I could get them all). I also need to build the first plan I ever bought RCM 1/2a cosmic wind, I need to reproduce my old Jr Falcon,...

My girlfriend came into the model room and said" You would have more room if you got rid of some stuff. How about getting rid of that paper stuff and tubes over there." AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

salat

My Feedback: (4)

Hello!
I have Sterling P-61 Black Widow scan. (mistake was here as I not got B-17 yet in fact)
Berkeley T-33 Shooting Star, F11F-1 Tiger, F-8A Crusader, Douglas F4D Skyray, T-33A Shooting Star. - plans/instructions only. Still looking for parts/templates because not all shown on plans.
Some Royal/Marutaka plans.
Would be interested in exchanging with others, prefer multi-motor and jets.

Wm, I'm sorry, I was unable to read your email, seems it got corrupt by yahoo mailer on the way to my google mail. Please resend it in smaller chunks.

Thank you,
Kostya

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Kostya...

Have you gone through the big list of plans noted at top?

The one place with "Corsair" in title, and the Polish site have nice sized downloads I do not know when they update their information, but is rather random. You get a lot of junk with each download too, so take a few not just one or two.

Then you should be able to do as per your other posting here.

Jets?
Have you gone to the Jetex web site? They are mainly interested in such aircraft. I think they were based in Australia.


Wm.

Sir Crashalot

I envy you guys! Some nice plans there. Wm and WacoNut. How are you guys digitizing your plans, then printing them out when needed? Do you have your own equipment? (Scanner– plotter–printer) It would be nice to have everything on disk until needed. No rips, folds, or wrinkles!!! Definitely CoooooL!!!!

Thanks

Bob J.

WacoNut

I have acces to a very large scanner and laser plotter where I work, I can make as amny copies as needed for building. All the plans I buy get scanned then replotted for building so I do not ruin the originals.
Anthony

Sir Crashalot

Anthony

Excellent!!!! Any job openings where you work? I want to move to Blanchester!!!

salat

My Feedback: (4)

Can anybody tell me how much it cost digitize a plan at Kinko please?
Kostya

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Crash....

I don't really keep a set of any of my plans handy here. Not even to talk on telephone about. There are too many and they create too much clutter. If an error pops up, I change the Acad drawing file within minutes of hanging up, then next time I need a plot, it is revised already. As an example, I do not read or critically examine my own work, but one fellow in the U.K. found a spelling error in the instructions to one of my quickie drawings about three years ago, after it had been distributed for five already. The very next copy off the plotter was corrected then. Overall, I think that I underestimated the plans sitting on the hard drive. For actually I got two real computers going, then one tied into a digitizer, plus a laptop. I obtain computers like many here, get them free from the neighbor or whoever.
I counted 171 different names to projects, 80 on just one hard drive. That is a bit misleading for like on a Piper Tri-pacer, I have one to Sterling size of 59 inch W/S, two to Berkeley of 44 inches each, and a 1/4 scale one. But I count that as one airplane. I did about eight plans for Don of House of Balsa a few years ago, and then he wanted the linework to match in to some new plotter just bought. Got dual uses there too.

Back about ten years ago, I bought a Calcomp 9148 digitizer tablet, a Calcomp 965 plotter and a 24340 small tablet for about $750. That is a high dollar figure today. Up to that time I had been using equipment at work, from home I would write off latest information on to a floppy disk, pocket it and load onto work computer once I got in. Then about lunchtime do a plot on their H-P 650c. Roll up the new plotted sheet, take home, make adjustments on the home computer and then write a new floppy disk again. This got tedious, and so at home hooked up the plotter and was going there. BUT, it had a limitation as to size. The office computer would accept 36 by 500 inch drawings. The home one was up to 60 inches long. Thus I had to do multiple pages at home, and one button plotting at work. One plot took 35 minutes jsut to print out. I later on got a Calcomp DrawingMaster and can now do those big long plots at home in about 20 minutes. Calcomp is that much faster at everything.

The 9148 digitizer is a different story. I use it about twice every third month. Problem being is that I have to unplug the small tablet, plug in the big one and then configure it to the Acad parameters. (there is a picture of a big tablet at my web site noted below) You get visually critical in using one of these, for rapidly find out what lines to give a single button push (or beep) to so that the result may look a skeletin but near all those lines will be gone by end of the day. Per Acad, you use the high points only and then rapidly lay in the exterior made up of straight lines and arcs.

With the small tablet, I can call up a preset load of line types, line widths, text types, layers, etc. I also learned LISP programming five years ago and it goes in each time the computer is fired off. They hold my shortcuts as to line work. Instead of carefully digitizing (or graphically laying on one line at a time to some Image) all of those vertical fuselage uprights, just use the Array command and get 4,6,8 or so to one quick measurement. Much-much more accurate than off any Raster image.

I don't do plans the way explained here, for it is to tedious for Acad users. They have numerous options loaded up as standard since the 1990's and we tend only to use a dozen of them. I think the cheapcads brought on those features about ten years later on.



Wm.

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Kostya...

I don't use Kinkos any more for they are too expensive. They tend to charge you $10 for this, and $10 for that and....

Instead go to a local blueprint shop that has an OCE' machine (made in Holland) and I hand them one CD-ROM disk, and they write scans to it for $3 to $5 each depending upon size.

If you are thinking of going the R to V route, then go to the WinTopo web site and forum (at Yahoo groups) and download their latest version. I think this is a U.K. based firm, and their software was not designed for may uses, but works very good.



Wm.

BMatthews

I've got 3 drawers full of a big full sized 4 drawer file cabinet full of plans. In addtion there's a big plastic storage tote worth and about eight 4 inch tubes with 10 to 12 rolled plans in each. I feel like I'm sitting on Fort Knox....

Oddly enough many of them are scale plans and drawings. The "oddly" because I've only built a small handful of scale models in all my days. But a guy has to be ready for when the mood strikes, right?

Sir Crashalot

Wm.

Sounds like an A+ setup you have there. I wouldn’t mind a couple of hours access to that system!!!



Bruce

Looks like Fort Knox to me too! (Hope you post an armed guard!) TFF mentioned it in his post above. It is amazing how much value we place on our plans. Even if we never build from ‘em. My wife thinks I’m crazy, because I treat mine like GOLD!!!

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Bruce....

Odd? Tell you what is odd. I got plans for A/C siting behind plotter(s), doors, in closet, etc. for aircraft that I think are ugly. I'd never build one of them, but I got the plans to 'em.

Wm.

Sir Crashalot

Wm.

LOL!! That is funny! But I must agree,.... even ugly plans are valuable!

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Crash....

But, a few of the Ugly ones are simply a box with wing up top.

Big name and no imagination.

Kind of like an early day ARF.


Wm.

BMatthews

I long ago gave up the idea that my plans library is merely an extension of my model building hobby. It long ago evolved into a psychotic obsession all it's own......




PS: I hit the Submit button and it hit me that I've likely got 3 or 4 gigs of software format plans on the computer from various downloads or my own CAD doodling as well.

Oh man.... there's no salvation for me. I'm in so deep that I can't even see the opening at the top of the well.....

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

Bruce...

A few years ago, I had onna net a plan or two free for download in Autocad format. Then about two years ago I visited the plans web sites noted on front page here. One eastern European site had a copy of one plan and they translated all of the text too. Tried to get it off, but they do not understand English.

Flattery?



Wm.

dolanosa

All my paper plans got destroyed in a fire. They were from the kits I bought.
- Ultrasport 40 and 60
- Ugly Stick 40 and 60.
- Eagle 63
- Four Star 40 and 60
- A bunch of other ones I have forgotten, even some classic pattern planes.

Hopefully, I can go to some swaps later on and rebuild the list.