hannes83

RichardGee

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VERY nice work on the manifolds... Silver Solder??

n8622t

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looking good Hannes! Which P-47 is stored above the GB?

n8622t

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going to EZbalancer.com to look at the device, it looks of great quality, i'm surprised the GB doesn't balance inverted, looks like you have it spot on Richard!

hannes83

@ Richard: Yes, it´s made with silver solder.


@ n8622t: It´s the P47 from my dad. 2,1m wingspan with Zenoah ZG62. It´s not scale, only to fly low and fast :-)

n8622t

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dont care if its scale, its a warbird and its beautiful! these are a few of mine with one having special ACRObatic abilities!

hannes83

WOW, I like the color of the "Tarheel HAL"

RichardGee

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Gee Bee gents,

Those reading this blog and contemplating whether to build this aircraft should consider the following -
From page 89 in Delmar Benjamin's book Gee Bee:

"Due to its unique aerodynamic characteristics, the R2 has divergent stability which means it must be flown at all times. Jimmy Doolittle stated that if the controls were released the Gee Bee would attempt to destroy itself. Benjamin concurs with this analysis."

This is not intended to discourage, nor will it discourage those obsessed with this fascinating airplane. This is merely meant to remind us all of the demands imposed by this plane, not just in take off and landing, but in flight.

n8622t

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Well stated! A good strong quality servo sounds like a must, Hitec HS 7955 have served me well beginning with the earlier 5955. You cant beat a Hitec. Jimmy Doolittle would have loved to have had a good servo to help take the pressure off the stick.

0257

Hello Gee Bee gents,

greetings from Czech Republic.
I follow this thread with a huge enthusiasm and curiosity. Thank you all you collect your experiences with this beast and keep sharing with others.
I have had so far 3 little gee bees (my own Gee Bee R2 6.5cc, Great Planes Gee Bee R2 26cc and Seagull Gee Bee Z 40cc) and I have flown them only for few times.
I know it is not a good choice to fly the GeeBee but it is like a love or a disease which cannot be cured. I just cannot say to me to stop it :-) I know sooner or later I will have to try the CArf Gee Bee :-)

I have got two questions.
1) have anybody of you verified already your hypothesis of better fly control without the front dummy radial. Hannes, did you try to fly your Gee Bee without it?
2) What do you thing about C-Arf Gee Bee with DLE-170? http://www.dlenginesaustralia.com/dl...&productId=386

Thank you for your advices,

Marian
BTW I have never met anybody in Czech Republic trying to fly any of the Gee Bees. I feel like a pioneer in m country :-)

RichardGee

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Marian,
Welcome to the Society of Hopelessly Addicted GeeBee fans
Some of us have flown the plane with 100 to 150cc engines and both are fully capable of pulling the airplane around at a good pace.
The DLE 170 should be a perfect engine for the plane PROVIDING it is RELIABLE.
The weight and HP are about equal to the DA150 and DA170, so it works on the spec sheet.
As long as the engine idles, throttles, and runs perfectly reliable, it will be ideal for this aircraft.

RichardGee

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Marian,
May I also suggest an engine made in your country, the ZDZ 160.
I have NO EXPERIENCE with these engines, but TBM is selling this engine for a great price.
It certainly looks great on paper!
http://www.troybuiltmodels.com/items/ZDZ160ENGINE.html

hannes83

I flow a ZDZ in my EXTRA 300. Its a very cheap and a light engine. It runs very good, but the engine is not made for the continuous operation. After 6 month of flying it begann to leak oil. And the engine ist very difficult with the temperature. When it gets hotit don´t accept the engine speed.

I think the DA 150 is the perfekt engine for the CARF Gee Bee!!

hannes83

In germany it´s winter now. I was not able to test it without the dummy, sorry!

0257

I checked the prices of ZDZ160, talked with the producer and I would get a price (counted in to US) 1578 USD.
I can buy a DLE 170 in my country for 1158 USD so it is the winner now for me.
I could also use a DLE 111 which would be even cheaper but I would like to avoid the big dead load in front.

0257

I am thinking about the flying characteristic of the GeeBee. It was described by you pilots and I found it on www.carf-models.com too: "Be aware that banking the Gee Bee to the left generally results in a nose-high attitude (at knife edge) due to the right engine thrust and right fin/rudder. Conversely, banking the Gee Bee right will result in a nose-down attitude."
Does it mean you have to input a left rudder every time you turn left or right? And knife edge on left side - nearly no right rudder, knife edge on right side - a lot of left rudder.
Is that correct?
When I flew the little GP GeeBee I didn't find this flying characteristics. It just flew like any other plane, except the landing.
Thanks.

RichardGee

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The CARF-Models Gee Bee does have right fin molded in - JUST like the full size.
This works great when going fast and turning left, but is not a welcome feature in almost all other flight modes.

It can be mixed out by coupling rudder to throttle OR you can simply get used to it.
Either way, as Delmar Benjamin exclaimed, "compromises must be made!"

IF you want sport plane handling, you must either mutilate the Gee Bee with airframe modifications OR purchase a sport plane...

hannes83

If you want asport plane, DON´T BUILT A GEE BEE!!!

RichardGee

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Or as Delmar Benjamin exclaimed when he was climbing into the Gee Bee for his very first flight, "IF I was careful, I never would have built a Gee Bee..."

IMHO, if you want to fly the absolute coolest aircraft in the history of mankind, you must be willing to accept the good with the bad...

Swinny

Fellow GeeBee nuts,

RichardGee

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Between a 30x12 and 32x10, I MUCH preferred the 30x12. However, props do vary alot and the 32x10 I used was a large, wide blade wood prop that I felt loaded the engine too much and resulted in too much torque reaction and an overall slower reacting aircraft.

I do find the Gee Bee simply flies better with some speed and the 30x12 certainly gives some extra speed.

You will have to experiment.... I don't think a 32x10 is a bad prop, but probably not the optimum for performance on this aircraft.

btw: THANKS for the manual kudos.

hannes83

I will take a 30x14

RichardGee

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SHOW OFF!!

Swinny

Thanks Guys,

I think I'll be flying with a wood prop to start with anyway until I get the hang of landing, or at least get a couple of "arrivals" under my belt

I'm about to start with the flying wires, and I notice that on my kit the recess for the flying wire attach points on the wings has already been made. I can't get a straight line for the flying wires out of the depths of this recess through to the attach point on the fuse former due to the required angle of the brass.

Is this different to other peoples kits? I notice in Richards instructions that there are steps to make the cutouts for the scale hatches, or drill the holes for the surface mounts. I don't need to do either of these steps. I don't want the scale hatches, as I think it will be too much of a mission everytime I go flying to setup the GeeBee. So I was going with surface mount, should I be glueing some hardwood into these recesses to raise the actual attach point up to the surface? Either that, or cutting a larger recess into the wing to decrease the exit angle of the brass fittings would be required.

Any comments or assistance would be welcome.

Cheers

nexusdc5

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Hey Guys! FINALLY! My First piece of the puzzle came today! Woo Hoo! Just Sharing the Good News!!!!