ORIGINAL: Sport_Pilot
ORIGINAL: Rotaryphile
The basic handling problem with the DR-1 is excess aileron yaw caused by insufficient vertical tail area, along with its use of only two ailerons. The same problem afflicts many WW1 designs; the Tripe more than most. An enlarged rudder of the same shape would not be all that noticeable, and should give a big boost to handling. I have fixed several evil-handling model bipes by simply enlarging their fins and rudders, but haven't as yet tried this trick on a triplane.
His already has the enlarged rudder, it is much larger than true scale. The DR 1 actually rolled quite well. And this model should as wll. Not rolling at the top of a loop is from lack of airspeed, just need more power.
My DR1 roll is sloppy, but if I use my rudder in the roll and power out- my roll becomes improved, but not enough for those who are accustomed to a Extra, Yak, Cap, Ultimate or Edge roll preformance. It would be like comparing apples to oranges if we were to do that IMHO. My Immelman Turns I struggle with and need help with the rudder and throttle, and still I'm a little sloppy! But that might be more due to lack of hours on the tripe than actual handling. I have somewhere some documents on the Dr1's handling, but until I find them, please check
http://www.fokkerdr1.com/ for more information. The webmaster is very knowledgable and will be eager to assist anyone with any Fokker Dr1 questions.
I read that the original Fokker Dr1 and Fokker DVII had a terrible roll rate compared to the Camel, Pup, SE5a and Spad with the Oberursel engine. The Fokker Dr1 advantage was its maneuverability and climb rate, but it was slow and not pilot friendly. Some pilots used different engines, such as Jacobs, which increased the HP output of the engine, maneuverability and power. The Fokker DVII was faster, but not as maneuverable to the Fokker Dr1 (the old adage - speed = less maneuverability, and vice-versa). But it was a perfect match-up to the SE5a and Spad. When the Fokker DVIIF came out, the Allies had nothing to throw up at it that could match its speed and maneuverability (but there were rumors they were working on something). That's one of the reasons why the Fokker DVIIF was outlawed in the Treaty of Versailles agreement.
The enlarged rudder does help, but that's for the average RC pilot's advantage to be able to fly this RC aircraft. True scale RC Dr1s are extremely difficult, and sometimes when we take an airplane down to a scale that fits in our living room and doesn't tick off the wife by knocking over her Hummel figurines, some of the scale gets, well, out of scale - accuracy in modeling of the ARF or kit is sacrificed for the average RC pilots, so we are able to fly the planes we dreamed of flying as little boys or girls.
Pete