I have the Funky 40;the fuselage & tail feathers are complete. The engineering & fits are very good,but it sure would have helped to have the height of the engine mounting indicated. Also,a long beam mount is required. Took hours and hours to mount the engine,using the cowl as a reference.

Now that I have the wing just under way,it appears there is a shortage of wood.

Only one 10 x 20 mm leading Edge included; the 6 x 6 mm pieces seem to be O.K. for total lenght,but only if some are spliced. I don't really care for spliced spars,ecept in the center where it is necessary.
Also,I have two pieces of tri stock that I have no idea where they go.
No capstrips either,but they can be cut from scrap material.

I would be interested in hearing of any others who might have a wood shortage problem. Should I run into more shortages I will post them in a few days.

Regards,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Dave Smith

Solved it by cutting my own spars. It's impossible to find metric wood!

Sorry, but I got a bit lost. I just got the kit, and want to know what the problem was? Also, how does it fly? What engine/radio did you use?
Thanks,
Robert.

Robert: Now that I have the Funky built,I think it is a very good kit in most respects,but there are some quirks,and terrible instructions.
Regarding the spars: as the wing is flat,no dihedral, I just centered all the spars in the middle of the wing,thus requiring splices a few inches from the tips. Therefore no problem re strength. BUT<do not waste any wood of any size. It may not seem like it,but there was enough wood for the spars and the rest if planned properly.

The wing is built upside down,and it took awhile to be certain of that.Also the piece in the center of the wing that holds the dowels was a bit confusing re which side up. Had to go to their instructions on their website and check their pictures for that and a couple other things.

I also have a sheet of [1/32nd?] left over,and a small piece of maybe quarter inch sheet,that I have no inkling of what they are for.
I did not appear to have the pieces that run under the canopy between the two formers.

1/4 sq.stock is very near 6mm. Hope this helps. Dave

I'll give a look in my kit to see if I have those pieces. Thanks for the advise on that. Look up 'Marcelo Colombo' here on RCU, and e-mail him about your missing pieces, and I am sure he will be glad to help. Did you get to fly yours yet? What bits are you putting in?
Thanks,
Robert.

Robert: It is built and nearly all moneycoted. Overall I am very satisfied with the result.

It will not fly until Spring,March if I am lucky. Our American friends just sent about 10 inches of snow my way today.

I am using an O.S. 50SX. If mounting per instructions,you will need a muffler extension to stand the muffler off the engine. The O.S.ext is about 7/16th " and you will need to channel the bottom of the firewall a bit with this. I think Dubro has one that is 1/16th" longer.
This assuming of course that you use O.S. or similar.

Am using a Futaba 8 channel,with just standard ball bearing servos.

Have fun,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Dave

Being that wood over 36" is hard to find and expensive as well almost all kit makers require splicing of wood pieces over 36". It's my own personal preference but I'd never do the splicing in the center of both spars. I splice them at the ends but on different sides. Most wing failures happen in the middle so I want solid pieces of wood across it. Here is an example:

/ = splice
|| = center of wing

Top spar:

-----------------------||----------/-------------

Bottom spar:

-----------/-----------||-----------------------

I have a Rossi 45 w/tuned pipe,and decided to wrap a Funky 40 aroung it. I don't fly 3D, but I use good pilots to wring out my projects..Do you think the Rossi will compliment the Fky 40, and what props should I use......gpjames

GPJ: With a tuned pipe on that .45 I think you may be overdoing it. I would fly it just on a muffler. Also,if you were to sling the pipe under the fuse,attachment & ground clearance might be a problem.
Remember this is not a high speed demon. It is meant for 3D which is generally a slower type of flying.
In any event,be careful at high speed with those big control surfaces,you would not want to bring on a dose of flutter.

Good luck,,,,,,,,,,Dave

I admit it. I am a slooooow builder. I bought this last year at Joe Nall and have worked off an on (more off than on) since May of last year on it. In my defense, I have completed several other projects in that span. I think this will be a sweet plane when I get her finished. I still have to set up the carbon control rods and install the remaining linkages. All up weight is 4lbs 15ozs ! Power is an OS .50sx with an Ultrathrust muffler. Took a little work to build the tunnel for the Ultrathrust, but I think it will be worth it. Kit was really well enginered. Instructions were a little sparse...Nothing that couldn't be figured out. Thanks to those of you who helped with thrustline placement. Hope to have her in the air by the end of the month. I'll let you know how she performs.

Very nice job!
Can't wait to here the flight report!

Contempo: Sharp looking plane. I did mine the same except used Trans red. minus decals. After seeing yours,I wish I had used some decals!

I am curious as to your antenna routing. What did you attach it to at the rear end?

I will be installing the receiver in a day or two,and maybe will fly it in the next ten days,if weather permits.

Thanks,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Dave

I'm gonna start mine again. I have to do the tail surfaces, and the wing. i think I'll have standards all round, 9001 on rudder, and an irvine 53 suckin an APC 13x4W. Should be an awsome combo. If anyone has any tips or problems with the wing, please tell me as it is my first built up wing.
By the way, the only table I have at the momoent, is an old garden platic table. Id looks dead flat, but do you think it'll do?

Check the table with a straight edge.
Doing this should give you a good idea if it is useable or not.

Check the classifieds in your local paper for old drawing boards, you can get some real monsters that are dead flat. (easy to pin to as well)

Now that Autocad and alike have become popular the old drawing boards are no longer neccessary for many companies.

dfs,

While building, I installed a nyrod that runs through the turtle deck and curves down to where the Sulivan tail wheel is mounted. It then exits through an extra hole in the tailwheel bracket.

Finished my Funky 40 & flew it a few days ago. Altho barely within the balance specs,it was definitely tail heavy. This with a 600MAH nicad pack in the front bay of the wing saddle and the receiver in the next bay back,plus 1 oz of nose weight.
Have now moved the receiver to the battery bay,and added another oz of nose weight.
The bad news is the total weight is 5.5 pounds. Can't see where I added any extra weight of more than an ounce or two at most.

It is also the messiest airplane I have ever flown. With the exhaust exiting right under the fuselage,everything gets loaded with oil. Think I will have to seal the servos with silicone,otherwise the plane may collect lots of oil in the tail section.

Another oddity I never thought of: Because of the full span ailerons I can't carry the plane & Tx to the flight line together. It needs a handle!

Cheers,,,,,,,Dave

how does it fly?

This thing looks like a laser 3d and the Madness! Is there any difference between the Laser 3d, the Funkey, or the Madness?!?

Thnx,
Matt

Robert: I didn't do much with it,other than mighty small inside & outside loops.
Just running in a new engine,and the plane being tail heavy it climbed when inverted,and down elevator required to land. Kept all throws on low rate.
Think I have the balance thing O.K.now but weather will preclude any flying for a few days.
It will stop,then climb straight up at about 3/4 throttle.

Dave

dfs,

I still haven't flown my Funky yet. I did finish the pushrod installation and program the radio. My final weight was 5lbs on the dot. I was concerned that I would be tail heavy (with 3 servos in the tail). I actually had to put the battery pack on the trailing edge of the wing to get the cg to 15 centimeters from the leading edge!

What engine, servo, etc. are you using? Got pictures?

Contempo" OS .50 SX with OS Muffler and OS extension.

Servos are Futaba 148 in the tail end,an old 9101 on throttle and
3001 (?) on ailerons. All servos are ball bearing,and the 148's were fitted with dual ball bearings. Covering is moneycoat.

The wood in mine was very hard (heavy) and I was concerned about this,but when one buys a kit,no point in total substitution. Especially when the sizes are metric.

It has rained for days and probably will for several more,so no flying.

I do have pics but don't know how to put one here.

Dave