I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across a post here on RcUniverse giving the URL to a WebPages showing the tips I wrote back in 1999.

Here is the URL : http://www.ultranet.com/~llfc/se_tips.html

I have built several SEs since then and have done many modifications and tried many different engine combos.

My current (and best) SE is powered by a piped and ported OS .61. Needless to say it has unlimited vertical.

The landing gear is off a GP extra 300 - 40 and gives me the additional prop clearance needed to run a 12X7 prop. I Lost the tail wheel long ago and now just use a big balsa skid in it's place.

For fast flying I use an APC 12X7 prop as indicated above. For 3D flying and hovering I use a 12.25X3.75 APC. This big fan really makes hovering easier.

On this version I partially enclosed the engine and use a 2 1/2 inch spinner.

The throttle servo is a tiny HiTec HS-55 mounted inside the fuselage directly behind the firewall.

I partially removed the fuse former that is behind the stock tank location and also removed the fuel tank wooden floor. This allowed me to install a 14 ounce tank and have room for the throttle servo. The top of the fuse front is now a hatch so I could massage the large tank into place.

The elevator and rudder servos are mounted in front of the stab and I use Pull-Pull on the elevator. The servos are Hobbico CS-35s. They are very fast on 6 volts (0.11 sec) strong (65.8 0z-in) small and light (27 grams - .95 0z.) best of all they only cost $22.95 each.

I added 2 inches and a counter-balance to the rudder and added 1 inch and counter-balances to the elevator. These counter-balances virtual eliminate flutter while adding much needed surface area to the tail feathers. In addition I drilled several holes in the stab and elevator to reduce the weight.

In order for the SE to really perform it needs massive control surface deflection. I got tired of sanding all the bevels on the ailerons, rudder and elevator halves etc so now instead of sanding I simply glue on small triangle strips. This is SO easy and gives you all the clearance needed for full surface deflection. For extreme deflection you can even use these strips on both the fixed and moving surface.

Be sure to seal all the surfaces with either covering material or clear strapping tape. This helps control response and reduces the chance of flutter. If you use clear tape bend the control surface so the sticky side of the tape is exposed and sprinkle baking soda or talcum powder down the full length. This stops the tape from sticking to itself and also stops it from making horrible clicking noises.

I pin all the CA hinges with tooth picks. They WILL NOT come out.

With the larger rudder and the increased power from the .61 knife edge loops are possible but only at fairly high speeds.

The balance point is now just under 6 inches back. Almost too much but it makes hovering much easier.

The best part is what I did to the ailerons. After seeing an Ultimate Stick I decided I needed to have separate flaps and ailerons so I split the ailerons exactly in half. I use 4 HiTec HS-81 servos in the wing. I now have full crow capabilities and it is simply amazing. With full crow deployed it will fly straight down at about 5 miles per hour.

The wings are bolted directly to the fuse because after over 200 flights the wing tube began to wear and loosen causing some slop and a terrible vibrating noise.

All in all the SE is one of my favs. It can go very fast without fluttering yet it will do harriers and real slow 3D tricks.

Presently me and a fellow I met on the net are scratch building 75 inch wingspan SEs. We had all the standard plans enlarged at Pip printing. Mine will be powered by a piped 2.10 Moki. Ought to be a lot of fun.

Note: Check the aileron linkages in the enclosed picture. I threaded brass welding rod to 440 size. Heavy, but cheap and very rigid. This was before I added flaps and went to smaller servos. I still use this type of linkage on all 4 wing control surfaces as it does not allow any flutter and high speeds.