Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Thought I'd share the Guillows' Zero RC conversion I've been working on since late this summer. I bought the kit at RC Country Hobbies in Sacramento, CA while doing some consulting work in Sacto this summer. Had lots of evening time to kill and after building a DNU in record time decided I wanted something "more challenging" to get into. I did a lot of searching and reading from the existing Guillows RC conversions on RCUniverse first, and many thanks to all of you who have shared your Guillows experiences in this forum - you've helped me avoid doing some patently stupid things (kit building-wise at least). I decided to build it with a detachable wing, and to make it aileron, elevator and throttle. Picked up a Norvel .061 Big Mig and will use a 1oz round tank with a 270mah Hitec battery, JR 600 receiver, and GWS naro servos. Hoping to keep it at 12 - 13 oz RTF which will give me a wing loading between 14 - 15 oz/sf.
First half of the fuse has been assembled. Added 1/32" ply to the longerons for strength, and have used 1/16" spruce instead of the supplied 1/16" mush that came with the kit. The box in the center of the wing saddle was my first attempt at dealing with the aileron servo. More on that later. eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
This must be some kind of a record for consecutive GUILLOWS build threads! Just think, in the time it takes to build one of these, a guy could build a fleet of racers or combat planes, [maybe both?]!
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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I didn't have my camera when building the wing, so all I can show you is the finished product. I decided to made the wing semi-symmetrical to improve flight performance. I made photocopies of the wing rib plans, trimmed off the top portion of each rib and cut out a matching piece from balsa, then glued the piece to the bottom of each rib. I ran torque rods through the ribs and out to the ailerons, then sheeted the wing with 1/32" balsa. Small cutout for the aileron servo and the main wing work is done! The wing is light and VERY strong.
eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Absolutely! Now all we need is someone to do an F4u or Hellcat and we'll have a set of dueling WWII fighters for each theater!
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Just think, in the time it takes to build one of these, a guy could build a fleet of racers or combat planes, [maybe both?]! (to look at anyway, might not fly so great). |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Lotsa work done over the past few months, but not many photos. [:o] [:@] Fuselage is done, as are the fin and stab. I'm still thinking that I need the lower longeron in the wing saddle for overall fuselage strength, and so I've built a wood box that keeps the longeron largely intact and lets the aileron servo sit in the middle of the wing for lateral balance.
Although I did some initial layouts for the electronics and tank before I started to build, my theory and my reality seem to differ. Everything fits, but not very well and it won't be easy to secure. The good news is that my weight so far is just above 11.5 oz. I'm going to sheet the body to the end of the wing saddle, and use silkspan and dope for the final finish. eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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I'm on Christmas break and building time is picking up! I've decided that the "aileron box" is a dumb idea and is causing a lot of unnecessary building and layout gymnastics, so out it comes - Look at all of that room! I do a basic CG check and am surprised to find out that I'm incredibly tail heavy. In retrospect, I realize that the Zero's wing is pretty far forward, meaning that I have a small forward moment arm relative to the CG. Son of beech, Sheet.
So the question is: How much of the gear can I "shove" into the nose? The answer, as it turns out, is "A LOT!" The servos may need to move forward as well, but I'm going to hold off on moving those unless absolutely necessary! eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Eroc144,
The Cholula Hot sauce is the best. Your Zero looks like a "10". Great job. chad |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Time to finish up the sheeting! I need to fuel-proof the area around the firewall, but given all of the stringers and formers it's not going to be easy. I've decided to apply the sheeting using epoxy resin. I'm thinking that if I brush a thin coat on the inside of the sheeting that it'll serve as both glue and fuel-proofing. I put resin on the firewall, longerons and stringers first, and after wetting the outside of the 1/32" sheeting so it's flexible, I attach it using rubber bands and pins. The Zero's fuselage is largely circular and there aren't many compound curves so the sheeting goes on easily!
eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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HI guy`s you got me thinking now .It was suggested to me, not to waste my time, on R/Cing, anything from Guillows.[:o]I really like the scale looks of these kits.They are a pain,in the southern exposure, to build.BUT they can, be finished up pretty nice.I built the S.E.5A kit for my nephews ,this summer in a free flight version all sheeted in 1/32".The biggest problem with it, was a brand new
LOUSY running engine.IT just wouldn`t pull the plane it ran so bad..That sheeting makes for 1, tough/strong plane.....I was given some Guillows kits, with 3/4 of the balsa missing in them. So I want to scratch build from the plans,,All the plastic,and canopies, is in the boxes still.I want to do up the MUSTANG ,but 1/2 the Drawing is missing..Anybody able to help me out ,with that?? Please p.m me,if you can.. a couple pics |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Chad - Cholula definitely rules, although I keep several varieties of Tabasco and Habanero sauces around (we don't fly one stinkin' plane, why should we have only one hot sauce? And besides, a little habanero in the fuel tank can be better than nitro!)
DBronk - There's no snow in your pictures so I'm guessing that was in July? :D Kidding aside, the SE5 looks great. Would love to hear that you got it airborne and it rocked! One last post today then I'm off for NYE stuff. Now that all of the internals have been figured out and the plane is sheeted, it's time for a final sanding before silkspan & dope. Total weight so far is just over 12.25 oz, so I'm still on-target. eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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New Year's day turned out to be pretty low-key at my house and I was able to finish covering the Zero. I use Sig's lightweight silkspan and apply it wet using dope as the adhesive. (Just love the smell of dope!) I covered it from the tail forward so that the seams were facing rearwards, and did the fuselage / stab / fin with 9 pieces. I do a dry fitting of the silkspan first, mark the dimensions in pencil, and then cut the piece. Using exact-sized pieces means you have to be careful when applying the wet silkspan - a certain amount of tugging and sliding and rubbing is required - but I've found that I get a better overall fit and a tighter finish as a result. A few areas had "stubborn wrinkles" that had to be rewet and then "encouraged" using a blow dryer, but overall I'm very happy with the results. After each piece dries I put on a thin coat of dope so I'm ready for the next piece of wet silkspan. Once it's all covered I put on another coat of dope, then do a very light sanding so I'm ready to paint.
I bought a Paasche airbrush this summer but never got around to buying a compressor so my Brother has been playing around with it all summer. I found a compressor on sale at Lowes just before Christmas and now I'm dying to try it out. I'm going to use the A6M5 green & white finish with the yellow leading edge. Always thought that was the "coolest" Zero finish. Hope to get the white paint on today, but the green paint is on order so that'll have to wait until next weekend. eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
ORIGINAL: eroc14 DBronk - There's no snow in your pictures so I'm guessing that was in July? :D Kidding aside, the SE5 looks great. Would love to hear that you got it airborne and it rocked! eroc EROC There`s More than enough snow, around here now,The plane was Airbourne, but still have yet, to get a good flight out of HER.[:@]The engine is Running PREMO now ,but I have to repair the plane first, and try again.So yes, it got ROCKED alright..The 2nd vid, shows just how Rocked (concrete),it got..[X(]:D I`ll get that plane to fly if it KILLs me. http://www.media.putfile.com/the-best-video-0001 http://www.media.putfile.com/ohOH |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Green paint arrived this week so I'm back in business. The aerogloss Cessna Green didn't quite match the A6M5 scheme, so I have to do a custom mix - the final color turned out at 4 parts light olive drab, 2 parts cessna green, 1 part corsair blue. The color matches several WWII pics I've got so I'm ready to shoot.
Since I'm doing a multi-color pattern and using a paint sprayer I have to do some taping. Personally, this is my least favorite part of the project so far, but the results will be worth it! This would have been MUCH easier if I had painted before assembling, but since I ran out of patience waiting for the paint to arrive I'm paying for it now. Notice the tape I had to wrap around the hinges. Dumb dumb and dumber... Couple of shots of the plane taped for the white underside paint. Took me 10 minutes to figure out how to get the paint gun to work nicely, but man does it lay on the paint! Not sure I'll ever be able to use a brush again. Gave the white paint 24 hours to dry then taped up for the green coat. Here are a couple of shots of the painted plane ready for final coats of dope. Might have this thing ready for decals by the end of the day!! eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
EROK, nice job on the color matching! You're building a plane that should be a recruiting tool for scratch building where ever you take it!
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Nice[8D]
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sweet plane, love the paint job so far, very even
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Thanks guys! Just finished making and painting the cowl and am putting on clear dope this afternoon. Pictures to follow!
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
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Well folks, I'm pretty much done except for the flying.
Spent the day yesterday making the cowling. I used the 'ole bottom of a plastic coke bottle trick ([link=http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=408653]Cool Cowl Trick[/link] middle of the page) and it turned out pretty nice. The hard part was finding a jar the right diameter, and the folks at the grocery store probably thought I was nuts "fondling" all of those jars. They're probably right. Cut holes for the needlevalve and the glowplug, then one for the exhaust. Might need to put a small silicon tube on the exhaust output to route it out of the cowling if it starts getting too messy in there. Really liking the looks of this! Put several coats of dope on this morning using the airbrush. The airbrush is so easy and painless that I may have to toss my brushes. Wonder what else around the house needs painting... Aftewards I glued on the ailerons and the canopy, then applied the decals. I used the stock Guillows decals but I'm not sure I'm going to keep them - they're pretty underwhelming against the green paint. Then again, painting a red circle won't be easy either. The fuselage decals are WAAAAY too big - the tops and bottoms on each side almost touch each other - so I guess I'll need to paint a red circle after all. Here are a couple of shots. I still need to put on the yellow leading edge stripe and then wait for a warm, low-wind day. Unlike CP, I like to wait for perfect flying conditions when taking out a new plane, and around Philly that might mean I'll be waiting until March. I'll keep you posted! eroc |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
ssswwweeeetttt job, im with you on waiting for "the" day with such a lovely model
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Yeah, man, patience for the good weather! There's plenty to keep you busy until the weather turns nice.
That is looking good. I can't imagine that it wouldn't fly pretty good, too. Perhaps, like a warbird--not terribly aerobatic--but it will look awesome in the air. |
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Last touches are done - Cowl bolts, leading edge strip, and insignia painted, spinner attached, antenna pulled through the fuse. Yee ha!
RTF! |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Well now you've done it, it looks too good to fly! Better wait until there is several feet of puffy snow on the ground. On the other hand today is almost hot and no wind here in Boston, so down there may be perfect!
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RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Guillows Zero Conversion - The final chapter.
After waiting all winter and most of the spring for the "perfect" day I finally got one this morning, and decided to take the Zero out for its maiden flight. My Brother brought along his new Herr AT-6 so we got two maidens for the price of one! We both did some warm-ups on our "easy" planes - Jeff on his Q-Tee and me on my .049 powered HOB 2x4 glider - and after a couple of flights we were both ready, although our legs were shaking even before our "easy" planes had landed. Jeff went first and his T6 went off like an arrow. It flew straight and true, and was very stable. After trimming it out he did a few loops and even tossed in a roll or two. The landing was a thing of beauty and he dropped it a dozen feet from the pit. The T6 is solidly constructed, which Jeff proved a few landings later by flying into the outer limbs of a small Maple tree. The plane spun off the branches and dropped softly onto the ground with no damage. All in all a great plane and a great maiden flight! The Zero was next and bolstered by Jeff's great performance I fueled it up, checked the throws and had Jeff give it the ole heave ho! After a reading a lot of posts in this forum about the Guillows conversions being dogs, bricks, et al, let me just say one thing - Wow! The Zero took off in a straight line and gained altitude and speed quickly. The .061 Norvel was screaming and the Zero quickly followed suit, and I cranked her down to 1/2 throttle so I wouldn't have to turn her around every 4 seconds! I barely needed any trim - just a little down and a little left aileron - and she was flying hands-off within a few seconds. She flew like she was on rails and was stable and responsive at the controls. The camo paint made following her a bit of a chore but when I buzzed the field a few times it was spot on realistic. (Maybe I'll add some flashing LEDs where the guns should be to make it even more realistic!) After a few circuits around the field I decided to try a loop, but in the excitement of the whole event I started making mistakes. I forgot to add more throttle and also forgot to get some additional altitude (major DUHs on both points), and she tip stalled, dropped a wing and spun out about 1/3 of the way into the loop. After some frantic work with the controls the Zero finally gave it up and dropped into the tall grass next to the field. Luckily there was only minor damage to the silkspan and to the wing connectors, and I've already finished the bulk of the repairs. It promises to be a fun summer flying this thing around, and Jeff and I will likely have a lot of fun dog-fighting with our WWII birds. So for those of you who enjoy taking a kit where it wasn't really intended to go, I give my thumbs up on the Guillows conversions. The conversion really isn't that hard if you know your way around the building table, and the Zero flies very well and looks spectacular flying around the field. EG |
RE: Guillows' Zero RC Conversion
Great news! I'm glad to hear that she really performs.
I've stalled on my Spitfire in the middle of fuselage construction. At a tricky point for getting things hooked up and then doing all the stringers, there always seems to be an excuse to leave it for later. Hearing this just may be the kick in the pants that I need to get to it again. Phil |
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