tomclark

Building a 78" Fun Flier

I was getting ready to retire one of my favorite fliers; a 12 years old stick that had so many flights on it that the engine was worn out. This old stick was one of my first planes that had a fuselage as long as the wing, instead of the age old formula that the fuselage should be 75% as long as the wingspan.

Modern super smooth flying pattern planes use a much longer fuselage for smoother maneuvers. This stick has a 67” wingspan, 65” fuselage, 7 lbs, and a 90 2c engine gives it more than enough power. The bomb bay is good for added fun. It flies not exactly like a full- house pattern plane, but far smoother than any old stick ever did: “Like it’s on rails” is an over-used term that comes to mind.

After starting to strip the hardware from the old stick, it became apparent that the it was in better shape than I thought, other than the color which had always been an embarasment. Hint: Don’t ever uses see-through colors on a solid fuselage- it looks terrible!

I recovered the old timer, ordered a new engine, and then decided to build a new, larger, lighter, version anyway.

Your questions and comments are always welcome.