Originally Posted by
bobsrc
Sig bought the rights for this airplane when he bought Berkeley from Duke Fox in the early 60's. I am using the original Berkeley plans with an updated instruction sheet to cover the updated construction. The fuselage has been beefed up with doublers, maple motor mounts, basswood caps and by eliminating that big hole for the wing to pass through with just a hole for the spar to pass through. It also uses the fuselage and the tip ribs to make a jig for building a straight wing. It actually builds a lot faster than I expected an I beam wing could be done.
Your correct in not having a hole for the wing to go through. No I beam that I've ever built did that and of course the tips are drawn on a square piece of wood to allow you to build the wing true. If my memory is correct both Duke and Glen Sig bought parts of Berkley Models. Duke Fox found out quickly that he did not want to be in the kit business. Glen Sig kitted a few of the smaller models for years especially the free flight and 1 inch scale models. The carved fuselage models and old stuff disappeared immediately
I beams do build fast as you only have to keep stripping ribs from a sheet with the pattern you have made. You can do it while watching your favorite show on the tube. Zilches are in my opinion only, highly over rated and my Super Duper Zilch kit is lamenting in kit the pile for years. They have to fly fast to do anything and really they are butt ugly to boot. Again my opinion only.
Incidentally you can use 1/16 ply for doublers and not much in the way of motor mounts for the
electric, your not fighting a thumping 2 cycle engine.
Don't want to hack the thread but here is a picture of a kit by Walt Umland. It is Jack Sheeks La Donna. Another example of an I beam model