ultimate2

[8D]Tx for that nice shots, Pete, now I keep the idea about the stab braces and I just installed it on mine like you did, now its need some paint. Also I sanded a little more to scale the tail skid and added some details on it, and also the sewing of the fuse on the bottom. Also added some strips to the fuse covering like you did to highlight the inner structure....Litle by litle....
Tx very much for your idea about ordering the H9 landing gear on Ebay, I ordered and shippings were also more rasonable. I have it at home ready to installing... did you added some block inside the fuse or reinforced somewhat the are where the landing must be fitted or just openned a little the slots and drilled were neccesary...?
Best regards.
Manolo.

Oberst

I checked out the R/C Spanish website you have your build on and you are doing a fantastic job on your Fokker DR1, I really like what you did to your tail skid! [8D] Of course I had to put what you wrote in a translator to know what you wrote.

You will have to rebend the wire a little to make it fit and widen the groves a little so you have a good fit. I did have to drill the holes so I could put the landing gear wire in it. No, you don't have to put a wood block or re-enforce the landing gear. The way it is designed and strapped into place, the stress will push into the fuselage evenly.

What you will need to do is- you have to take your GP Fokker DR1 landing gear wing and you will need to get a very long drill bit, and groove out the middle from the side of the wing so your rod will be able to move up and down freely. Also you will need to get some small hair ties without the metal crimp and put a few on each side of the landing gear and over the rod so it will act as a bungee and will give the plane a scale shock absorber.

By looking at what you are doing on this plane, I think you will figure it out. It's good to see another "ARF Basher" in the forums. [8D]

The trick is I based the setup just like the Hanger 9 Fokker DVII. I think you can download the manual for that plane still? Anyway, you might have to remove the covering on the landing gear wing and fill and sand the stock groove where the original stock landing gear rod was strapped to (the bottom of the wing)- then recover with Mono and add the trim tape etc. (I think I have pictures on it on the first or second page on my build thread?)


Well Manolo, my Highly Modified Discontinued GreatPlanes Fokker Dr1 is very famous and made the AMA's Model Aviation Magazine here in the United States. It made page 82 on the top left corner along side my 1/5 scale Hanger 9 Fokker DVII. Because they made the magazine, I was pressured by just about everyone in the hobby into making the Fokker Dr1 and Hanger 9 Fokker DVII "Hanger Queens."

Personally I can't help being superstitious after the latest peer preasure. [&:]

The Hanger 9 Fokker DVII I will still fly on special occasions because the parts are still available, however the 60 GP Fokker Dr1 in the United States- the parts are impossible to come by. So my Fokker Dr1 will stay on my ceiling in the bedroom, and it will only come down when I need to clean and iron it.

Besides, I'm already doing another build in R/C Groups on the Seagull Gee Bee Z and hope to have that ready by June. Some modifications are being done on that and I only plan to do a full "Bash" on it at a later date once I crash it or when that becomes discontinued.

Take care, and I hope to see your maiden on video soon.


Pete

Azzir325

Pete, you may already know that I am looking for original wheels for my DR1. Having just read your post where you stated that you were ordering replacements, I figured I may as well ask if you have the original wheels and would you be willing to part with them?
Rick R
Wallkill NY

Jacobs Jasta 7

Hello Rick,

No, I'm sorry I no longer have them. I'm one of those who believes having foam tires on a scale aircraft is a form of sacrilege. The original builder of my Fokker Dr1 glued the two hubs of the original wheels together, and I couldn't remove the foam tires from the hub resulting in breaking the plastic, so I threw them away.


Here are my latest flights of my Dr1 taken at The Onieda Lake Flyers Club in Contantia, NY. We have about 30 members and growing!


[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrHfmJk5sVI&feature=plcp[/youtube]

Video of 3rd flight with no background music. I was having a little fun with my wife in the beginning.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMC-neHOqaA&feature=plcp[/youtube]



Pete

ultimate2

[8D]ÂĄÂĄÂĄÂĄÂĄÂĄ Awesome flights and videos , Pete....ÂĄÂĄÂĄÂĄÂĄ YouÂīre the top,buddy. Tx a lot for sharing and your inestimable support.
Manolo.

Jacobs Jasta 7

You are very, very welcome my friend, I had fun doing it and I tried not to over do it. All of you have been very supportive and encouraged me in one form or another. Your Dr1 looks fantastic, kind of wished I could have fit that William Brothers LeRhone engine modified to look like a Clerget in my plane, but that's OK. I don't want to have cooling problems if I did manage to get that engine in there. Since you have your DR1 electric, you shouldn't have any problems I can think of.

I've been checking out your build thread in Spain and it stopped, not sure if you had completed it or not. Have you flown yours yet? Once you get used to it's quirks, it's very fun to fly!


Pete

Azzir325

Well done!

I know I love flying mine. It is easier then my Sopwith Camel and as easy as my D VII.

Got a pair of Dubro 5.6 inch wheels on the way. I'm sure they will work fine even tho the pair will add 3 ounces to the airplane.
Rick

Jacobs Jasta 7

Hey Rick!

You will do fine! My Dr1 became 5.lbs over after all the things I did to it. All I did was keep a larger engine in it to make up for it. If anything, the weight makes it fly a little more realistic in my opinion. 3 ounces over stock weight, I doubt you would even hardly notice any difference in the flight preformance.


Pete

F4U Corsair

My Feedback: (22)

Oberst,

Did you ever find the plastic dummy engine that comes witht he GP DR-1? I have one from mine that I didn't use. If you want it, just pay for whatever it cost to ship it (can't be much). If you know of anyone looking for a GP DR-1, I'm thinking about selling mine, but it would have to be local pu as I'm not going to take the chance on shippiing. I'm making the move away from glow and going gas. Dale

Jacobs Jasta 7

Yes Dale, I sent you a email. I'd like to have it and see if I could make a few molds off of it before I used it for my plane. Got a ton of blue foam, so I look forward to playing around with it for a while.

I did a little more work on my Dr1 a few nights ago after I did some work on my Discontinued Hanger 9 Fokker DVII. I'm not building anything right now and I had a wheel hub crack on me on my Discontinued Hanger 9 Fokker DVII a few weeks ago. I fixed the damage and repainted the hub and touched up the tires. Then I looked at my show prop hub I bought from Proctors many years ago and decided to get more scale with it.

Abu from the scale forum many years ago showed me tricks on how to make fake prop hubs for static display. I incorporated it on my Fokker Dr1 a little, so why not my DVII and do the back hub for the DR1? I went by the pictures in the Osprey book " Fokker DVII Aces" and back hub for the DR1 off the internet. The Dr1 hub I based on the Clerget Engine with Camel prop that Jacobs used for all his 3 Fokker DR1 aircraft.

I think it came out good. I designed it to come off the static prop, I plan on getting the Axial from BUSA eventually and will put this hub on that. In the meantime I'm just using a Zinger modified to look a little like a Axial for the DVII.

The hubs are made from breath mint tins, (epoxied together) control horn screws and nuts, washers, a old fat pen (that died on me a long time ago) and a old crank guard off a old Evolution engine I had laying around.

My Dr1 I used the same methods and same material except I bought K&S Aluminum Sheets .016x4x10 stock #255 and made the hubs out of that. (Makes it easier to work with than tin, plus I use less bandaids- the edges of tin can be very sharp!) Also with the Dr1 hubs, I epoxied them to the modified Xoar Scimitar, the Hanger 9 DVII I have the hubs removable if need be because they are just threaded on rather than glued.

Pete

Jacobs Jasta 7

This morning, I got the stock engine that originally came with the Greatplanes 60 Fokker Dr1 ARF in my mailbox.

Just last week Dale wrote he had the original stock engine for my plane that was in new condition and asked me if I wanted it. As you all know now, I jumped on it and was willing to pay for it. He wrote back and mentioned that it was for free and he'd ship it out this week on his own expense. (I will convert it to look like a Clerget) I asked him why he did that, and that I couldn't thank him enough. Dale wrote back that he watched my build thread in RCU from the beginning and was very impressed. Dale did this even though other people offered him money for it!

So if you see F4U Corsair in the RC threads or posts, he's one of the nicest people I've ever met. At the same time, ( inserting a plug) he's selling his GP Fokker DR1 for $250 without engine on RCU Market Place, it has no stock dummy engine because he wanted to make sure I got a chance to have it first.

Thank you very much Dale, you are the greatest since the invention of French Toast! [8D]

So now, it's back to work on the plane for a while, now I have to start painting and modifying it to fit. I'll start most likely tomorrow on it.

Stay tuned! [8D]


Pete

Jacobs Jasta 7

This morning I tried to make the stock dummy engine fit, kind of butchered the stock dummy engine so it would fit, but again it's hitting the pitts muffler. So I had to carve the back side of the cylinders to clear it from the back side. Looking at the side and rear profile, to me it didn't look good or didn't look right, (meaning it took away the looks of the model) so I decided to leave the dummy engine out.

The problem is I have a large O.S.91FX in it with a .90 Pitts Muffler. Also, the crankshaft is short and the way I have it side mounted, there is no way to safely put a plastic dummy engine in the cowl and have it look scale, besides- if I were to be able to squeeze the dummy engine in there, I risk having the heat off the muffler melt the ABS plastic making a big mess as a result.

So Dale, again I thank you for the engine. I'm sorry that it didn't work and that I had butchered the dummy engine trying to make it work. Still you are the greatest since the invention of French Toast.

So folks, I'll loose about 6 points at a beginner scale static event, but I can make up the points by flying it scale at the show. Next time I build a DR1 I'll make sure I put in a 4-stroke and will make sure I have a long crankshaft with the prop base plate extended far enough forward that I can put in a dummy engine- or like I dream of doing, put in a spinning dummy engine on a bearing.

I tried, now I know with this plane there's no way I can make it work. But that's OK, at least I have a very good looking scale aircraft even without the dummy engine. [8D] Besides, of all the events I've gone to, only a few that I've seen had a DR1 with a dummy engine in it.

Pete

Azzir325

Don't feel bad, Pete. I managed to get my dummy engine mounted, but like you I had to carve the back side like crazy, and that for a simple 2 stroke. Then when I went to mount it I found the glue surface to be tiny. I did the best I could, glued it and screwed it to the cowl, but I don't have much hope for it to last long. The plastic has already showed a crack which I repaired with CA, but I think it will vibrate off pretty soon, and if it ever noses over, the dummy engine is the first thing that hits the ground. Bad engineering of this part on Great Planes' part, I think.
Rick

Jacobs Jasta 7

Yes Rick, I guess I am better off without it. I put everything back together and cleaned up the mess I made. No gain, no loss at my attempt. I just feel bad that I destroyed a rare and hard to find part trying to make it fit.

I hope when and if they come back with the DR1 they modify the landing gear and beef up the lower wing. Or atleast enlarge the inverted box in the fire wall so we can fit larger engines and have more room to still install a dummy engine.

But even if GP doesn't do those things, still this is a fantastic aircraft and it is a ball to fly on very calm days. Like I said before, I don't see many GP Fokker Dr1s at RC shows having dummy engines in them. Matter in fact the main picture of the DR1- front page on the instructions doesn't have a engine in it either. I just noticed that... funny!

Oh by the way, I requested they produce the Dr1 again including a nice long letter why they should continue to make parts for their discontinued planes. I hope others are doing the same for Greatplanes and Hanger 9 for their discontinued Fokker DVII and Camel. "Squeeky wheels get the grease!"


Pete

Azzir325

Well, they certainly should continue to make/stock parts for their planes a LOT longer then they do. These planes can be around for a long time and on occasion parts are needed. We shouldn't be required to build our own parts just because the seller decided to discontinue a model.

So I will keep the dummy engine in my plane until I no longer can. I'm kind of surprised it didn't go when I had to land her with no wheels, but it is still in there. So when I got the Dubro wheels, I noticed I had a can of Lustrekote in "missile red," which is pretty damn close to the "True red" monocote GP used on the DR1. I masked the tire and let it rip, and in about 3 coats had a really nice finish on the outside of the wheels! In fact, it looked so good I decided to do the inside of the wheels and the cowl. Here's where it got interesting (and frustrating!). The inner wheels took a whole lot more coats to get a good finish on. It would look good wet, but dry with whiteish areas. The cowl is/was even worse. I finally got a good finish on the wheels. The cowl was a little more stubborn, but I think I am finally getting it. The only possible explanation I can come up with is that when I did the very first painting the weather was very low humidity, and when I tried the inner wheels and the cowl, the humidity was high. Today was drier, and I am working on it indoors and trying to hit only the areas that seem whiter then the others. You ever have a humidity related problem with painting?
Rick

Jacobs Jasta 7

Yes Rick, the humidity is still way high even tough we finally got a break from this hot weather. When I work with gloss paint I usually let it cure for a couple of days, then I wet sand it with 1000-2000 grit sandpaper, and do it enough not to sand through the paint, then I use a plastic polish or a light rubbing compound on it to remove the " Orange Peel" affect.

No tires??? What happened? Did you do a "Magnificent men and their flying machines" and lost your wheels on takeoff? I don't think it's possible to hand launch it without the wheels ( I wouldn't even try, the plane is way to valuable in my opinion) but I'm sure we'd have some "Yahoo Jackpot" out there that would try. (And it be on youtube the next day) Not that I'm calling you one, I suspect I'll run into you one day and I don't want you to beat me up.

If you screw up the cowl there are two things you can do, send it to me and I'll do it professionally for you, I can meet you half way in the car, and do it again when the cowl is done or you could mail it to me, and I'll pay for the shipping back. Or you can order another cowl from Fiberglass Specialties for $65. Mine is from Fiberglass Specialties, and it's thicker and a lot tougher than the stock cowl.

PM me if you need a hand, I'd be happy to help you out and wouldn't charge you a dime.

In the video of my #2 flight (with the music and picturama) you can hear my wife yelling, "Something's rattling Peter!"I thought it was just coming from the engine because it was very hot and humid that day, and I had the engine too lean- but noticed that I didn't lack power and my flight didn't seem affected. So I continued to fly and told my wife it was nothing to be alarmed about.

Well, I found out what it really was. I'm glad I tried to put a dummy engine in it because I would have missed it if I didn't. The plastic straps that held the bracing on my landing gear broke on both sides. ( Those were the brass braces that I had going from the landing gear wing to the landing gear legs) They broke in a way that the break was from the inside, and still looked like they were properly attached. My hand accidently brushed up against the bracing and it moved along with the strap. When I attempted to adjust the strap on the leg, I noticed it was ripped where I screwed it to the brass support. I checked the other side and found that the other side of the gear had done the same thing! [&:] So when I was flying the wind hit the plastic making it a vibrating reed effect giving it that high pitched rattle sound. [X(]

So, I'll have to remake the straps again for the landing gear legs and tighten it backup. Hey, it lasted 2 years. Just have to use a tougher material that isn't thick. I'm afraid the straps made out of a aluminum soda can would be too thin, and would eventually tear like the soft plastic did. Easy fix!

Rick, go back in the Hanger 9 Fokker DVII Thread, you will see when I posted that my wheel hubs cracked? I repaired and painted them with Rustolium Gloss Carnival Red, you can't even tell they were painted. [8D]


Pete

Azzir325

Where have you been, Pete? All the hoopla about discontinued ARF's we started began over GP's inability to provide replacement wheels for my DR1. It was at Warbirds over Delaware, the second or third time I had flown it, when one dropped off over the woods way out, and then the second one dropped off on final. I was only able to recover one of the 2, and the rest is history. My triplane sustained no real damage- the gear got tweaked a bit- just had to push it back into place- thanks no doubt to my superb flying skills. LOL! But the wheel was lost.

So I have heard this phrase "orange peel" before, but never quite knew what it was. Humidity caused discoloration of glossy paint, huh? Well, that could explain it, and come to think of it, sometimes I thought the bad spots DID look a little "orangey." Good to know that I'm not going crackers.

Thank you very much for your kind offer of a free paint job, but I think I am finally getting a grip on it, the "peel" effect is getting smaller and less noticeable and soon I will be reinstalling the cowl and wheels and be flying again. As far as us ever meeting, I expect someday that will happen. I was considering the STARS event the week before the Rhinebeck Jamboree, but my kids who live in Syracuse are going to the NYS Fair that Saturday. If they had been available and interested in going with me, I was going to make the 4 hour drive. I AM considering the Chenango Bridge Warbirds event (2 hours for me) this weekend, and definitely will attend the Johnstown, NY, IMAA fun fly the weekend after. Then of course the Jamboree is the weekend of Sept 7-8-9. I am the flight line boss for that event. I know you have a hard time pulling that trip together, but keep it in mind.

Your landing gear have straps and things mine don't (and never will!) have. Funny story- at WOD a fellow came up to me to admire my DR1. He asked me how I kept the landing gear wing from rotating, as his flops around and makes his flights interesting, so to speak. We took a look at the gear, and it turns out he had installed the nylon straps on the BOTTOM of the wing! Silly, huh?
Rick

Jacobs Jasta 7

Duh, that's right. Well what do you expect, I didn't have my coffee yet when I wrote that! [&:] No, seriously I forgot. It was a senior moment I guess. Well it looks good so far, your cowl and wheels. Orange peeling happens when you spray more than one coat, and don't wet sand in-between coats. It has the same texture as a orange peel skin so to speak. To eliminate that, I wet sand after each coat is dry, then wet sand the final coat then apply a few coats of clear- wet sand that a little and then polish the heck out of it. It will look real good. I did it to one of the wheel pants that cracked on me on my Seagull 260. Guys at the field kept pointing out the one I didn't work on at the field when I asked them which wheel pant I redid. Unfortunately I killed that plane long ago when I knifed edged it right into a corn field.

The farmer said he opened one of the husks and found a engine in it. I'm full of it aren't I?

Anyway, is that a boo-boo on top of the cowl?

I'll see what I can do about going to those events if you can't make it to S.T.A.R.S. I try not to let my planes sit out in the sun too long on the flight line which I'm afraid would happen if I went to the Jamboree. Seen pictures of the event and they're a ton of planes all waiting to fly baking in the sun. You know what the sun does to Ultra? It does havic on my DVII, that's why I want to recover it in Solartex.

My black Solartex holds up very well in the hot baking sun. Matter in fact it made the glue backing stronger I think. But the black cowl gets real hot, laid my hand on the cowl and it burned my hand almost. So now I put a cloth over the cowl if it gets too hot and keep it shaded.

My wife and son are going to that fair, but I'm one of those guys that don't care for it. I'm not a big fan in enormous crowds if you know what I mean. I once flew in a 1938 Taylorcraft back in the 1980s at Rhinebeck. Only 5 people were there and we all hung out under the wing and we had a small cookout with other pilots there. The guy that owned the Taylorcraft was the President of RedLobster back in the 80's. I was good friends with him when I was in my rebel teen years. That was a long time ago...


Pete

HelloScott

I'm going to read this carefully. Glad to have found it!

I picked up a slightly used Fokker DR1 at the Toledo RC Show this past weekend. It has an O.S. 70 four stroke on it. That seems a little on the wimpy side? I would assume a 90 would be better. And, the previous owner added quite a bit of lead to the inside of the cowl. Fiberglassed it in. That additional 90 weight would allow a more scale propeller and added weight, yes?

dgliderguy

I fly my GP Fokker Dr1 with an OS FS-70 Surpass, and it is the perfect powerplant for that airframe. You can use a 91 four-stroker if that's all you've got, but the airplane doesn't need it. Mine jumps off the ground with the FS-70. You will love this plane, btw. Eminently fun to fly, and quite forgiving on the ground and in the air (so don't listen to those who do not know better).

BTW, mine required no lead in the nose to balance.... hit it spot-on with no effort. Dunno why that other guy loaded his cowl up with lead.

Azzir325

I wouldn't change a thing, Scott. I bought mine second hand. The plane was built with a 60 2 cycle, and some lead in the cowl attached to the motor mount and no shortage of power. I have seen some squirrely Triplanes, but the GP (at least mine!) flies like a trainer. Easy to take off and easy to land.
Rick

ultimate2

Hi friends, after a very loooong time without posting on this awesome thread I just came back to tell you that still didnīt finished my e-conversion; by family, work and other hobbies stuff affairs didnīt enough time to finish...anyway I continued with the mods, adding detailing as much as I could, servos are installed and working and plane is finished in a 98 percent I think... maybe a month or so....A tip is that I used separate servos for ailerons to get some programable mix with rudder and aileron differencial. I changed the 3001 standard servos for anothers mini size HD 1711 MGīs.....
Just some questions to friend Oberst... how you see the aileron differencial and a mix of ailerons-rudder at 30 percent. Also if the CG by instructions is OK for maiden....
With my best regards.
Manolo.

HelloScott

You guys are making me feel MUCH better!

It balances as is with the O.S. 70. So, I'm happy to know that is good.

I have one of the older ENYA 80's, so I could use that. But, its NIB and I've been keeping it thinking its a bit of a collector's item at this point. I'd like to keep it NIB.

ultimate2

Hi friends, sorry for not posting too much on this awesome DR1 thread, and now just want to sharing the maiden flight of my DR1..., love this plane and plan to go on September to the regional and spanish f4C or H; ( sports scale ) competition in Granada..., a little tricky on landings but anyway flies beautifully... my A.U.W. is four kilos... not bad I think... Let me give the thanks to friend Oberts for be my fountain of inspiration and all his support on this project.
With my best regards.
Manolo.
https://vimeo.com/129374044

vertical grimmace

My Feedback: (1)

I know this is a really old thread, but what is the width (diameter) of the cowling? I have a friend trying to source one for a new design,, and am hoping this fiberglass specialties cowl might work.