G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
01-29-2011, 02:46 PM
#27
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
Wing, Stabilizer, Rudder, Fuselage.
The wing came out really nice and I joined it using my Miter saw to cut the dihedral. Takes knowing how to use a big saw like that so I would not recommend it unless you have a lot of experience with one.
I cut in an 18” x1/8 spar in the wing, just a #11 blade and a hot wire. Once the wing was glued together I glued the spar in. I glassed the center section with 5 oz. mesh and two coats of finishing epoxy. This was my first glass job and it came out pretty good, feathered down so you can’t even tell it is there after covering.
I decided to go ahead and glass the rudder being it will be painted with the graphic that is going to start on the fin, don’t want to paint over Mylar. The wing is all done and ready to be fitted to the fuselage, the stabilizer is done and ready but I won’t glue it on until I get the base coat of paint on the fuselage. I also will be covering the stabilizer first too.
I started to lay out the wing and stabilizer to check the incidence and all looks good, I want to mount the wing first, level the fuselage with the wing and then set the stabilizer. I have started to get the fuselage ready for the engine and servos.This kit is a very nice kit and I am having a blast building it.
Getting close!
TB
02-01-2011, 09:32 AM
#30
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
Mounting the wing, Fuselage, landing gear.
Now the fun really begins, all the hard work is paying off as I start to put the plane together. I started with mounting the wing. I want that set and then work out from there. I drilled two ¼ hole in the fuselage for the dowels. I wanted to get into some good meat being the wing is so fat but the area for the dowels on the fuse is marginal. So after drilling the holes I mounted the wing and centered it. Threw the hole in the fire wall I marked the location of the dowels on the wing, drilled them out and installed the dowels.
No adjustment was needed. I decided to go with ¼ steel rods for the dowels. I have seen a plane come apart in flight when the wing dowel failed, not going to happen on this plane. I know it is probably overkill but I will suffer the consequences of the additional 1-1/2 oz for the peace of mind. I drilled into the core of the wing 4” and will epoxy them in after covering the wing.
Next I drilled two small holes and threaded two screws in to hold the wing in place after checking and adjusting it. I figured this is a more sure fire way of keeping the wing in place while I drilled the ¼ bolt holes, it worked great. The wing sits nicely in the saddle and I will be doing some fairings to flush out the front and the back. With the wing mounted I went ahead and glued in the fire wall using epoxy and then glassing the inside with strips of 5 oz mesh for strength and reinforcement.
I finished the landing gear blocks and fitted them to see how they line up, perfectly they do so next I will drill and screw them in so I can fit the block covers.
Here are some pic of my home made jigs for checking alignment, level and incidence.
TB
02-03-2011, 11:12 AM
#31
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
Fuselage, stabilizer, engine mount, cowl.
I finished the fuselage, installed the wing bulkhead and servo tray rails. All that is left is to sand and prep the fuselage for paint. I glassed in a filet at the rear of the wing saddle. This will give the seamless look of the wing and fuselage; also it will help to lock in the wing. I also glassed in a filet on the front side of the wing. There is a little gap in the front of the saddle and I may fill that by doing the same as I did on the back with some bald and glass.
Overall the wing sits nice and snug. I installed two 1/4 blind nuts for the wing and glassed them in, don't want them popping out.
I mounted the engine and fitted the cowl, installed 6 1x1x 1/8 ply hard points for the cowl blind nuts. So far I am only using 4 of them and it is really solid, I may use the other two if it feels like they are needed. Some 3/8 scrap balsa worked perfectly to center the cowl over the engine. I had previously made a jig that I taped to the fire wall to assure that my engine location was correct before I drilled out the engine mounting bolts. I just need to drill the hole for the fuel line and flip the throttle arm so it wont conflict with the chock arm.
TB
02-03-2011, 11:47 AM
#32
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
I do not like to have my gear toed in so I find if you use a piece of piano wire the diameter of the axle you can get a perfect alignment, in this case it is 1/4 so that is pretty stiff and worked great. Just need to cut out the gear covers.
I started to mount the stabilizer. I glued in the fin post and made up the pull pull for the wheel and ruder. The torque rods for the ruder, and stabilizers are on and today I will cover the stabilizer and then glue it in. I need to glass in some filets before I paint the fuselage.
TB
I started to mount the stabilizer. I glued in the fin post and made up the pull pull for the wheel and ruder. The torque rods for the ruder, and stabilizers are on and today I will cover the stabilizer and then glue it in. I need to glass in some filets before I paint the fuselage.
TB
02-03-2011, 02:03 PM
#33
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RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Very nice! I like watching you build this big Chipmunk. Not only because I have a G&L kit but the Super Chipmunk has always been one of my favorite planes. I'm looking forward to building mine.
02-03-2011, 03:25 PM
#34
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RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
That is some TOP NOTCH building there Tony ! Greg's kits sure are fun to build imo. Ive got my eye on his Lazer kit and his Miss LA kit. keep up the great work!
02-05-2011, 03:01 PM
#35
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
I really like taking a kit like this that is very bear, an empty canvass. I like that you can create a plane that is very unique and one of a kind that represents your style and creativity. I got into RC because I like to build; this kit has reinforced that desire! It will be hard to build anything ells after this. Maybe my next project will come from a kit cutter. I have my eye on a P19 that I can put a Saito 150 in.
Progress
Fuselage
I covered the stabilizer so I can mount it. I think it will be easier that way. I sanded the fuselage and have it ready for primer. Once the stabilizer is glued in place I will glass the filets in and paint the fuselage. Hopefully it will warm up later next week so I can paint.
I glassed the ruder and it seems to be good, never glassed before so we will see. It is tempting to glass the stab and wing, but I do not have the experience yet to glass the wing. I can always glass it in a year or so if I want.
I will cover the wing in the meantime while I wait on weather.
Progress
Fuselage
I covered the stabilizer so I can mount it. I think it will be easier that way. I sanded the fuselage and have it ready for primer. Once the stabilizer is glued in place I will glass the filets in and paint the fuselage. Hopefully it will warm up later next week so I can paint.
I glassed the ruder and it seems to be good, never glassed before so we will see. It is tempting to glass the stab and wing, but I do not have the experience yet to glass the wing. I can always glass it in a year or so if I want.
I will cover the wing in the meantime while I wait on weather.
02-05-2011, 03:14 PM
#36
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
I pined the fin post in with some tooth picks. I figured that will help to keep it from pulling out on those extreme knife edges 
I also added a little bit to the ruder. I had given it a steeper angle because I did not want it to hit the elevator, but it was not even close so I added a little more for looks.
02-09-2011, 08:10 AM
#37
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
RTC Set up
RTC Set up
After doing some test set up I found that I needed to move the engine up a little to allow for clearance for the Pitts muffler and for throttle and chock linkage. The carb is right up agents the fire wall with the stand offs and the muffler was about 1/16 away from the fire wall so I glued in a ¾ block that will allow for good clearance for linkage and the muffler, and it may help a little with balancing.<o
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I also made some cooling ducts to move the air over the engine instead of just blowing by, not sure if this will make a difference but a guy at the filed did this to his 50cc and he said it made a big difference in cooling. I used a coffee cup with wax paper and rubber bands to form the glass, 5 oz mess was used.<o></o>
I finished the ruder and started to prime it, two priming’s and sanding has it ready for base paint. It really turned out great and I am very pleased with it.
TB
02-09-2011, 08:28 AM
#38
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
Set up and Stab
I covered the stabilizer with mylar and I just was not happy with the way it came out, from 3’ it looks great but up close you can see all the wrinkles and the bubbling of the mylar on mylar. I do not have much experience covering and I did a good job, passable and I normaly would be cool with it, but I am going for perfection as much as I can and after seeing how the ruder turned out I just could not let it be. The deciding factor was that the stabilizer will be glassed to the fuselage and I need to build up some filets, so it just made sense to glass the stabilizer. I will answer to the weight gods at balancing but I am willing to do that.
I revisited the servo set up and reconfigured the way my servos will be mounted. I made a small servo tray for the throttle and the chock. I placed this under the main tray. I will also make a small tray for batteries up front in this location. The upper tray is still removable and it will only host the elevator and ruder servos. I am thinking on using quick release ball links for them so if I need to get under I can do it easily.
TB
02-16-2011, 04:07 AM
#39
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RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
From the looks of it , You used water base poly on all surfaces. I have never done this and since i ordered up Greg's 28% extra 300 yesterday, I figured I would do the glassing of the wings and tail feathers. What weight cloth did u use and about how many coats of poly should i apply?
02-16-2011, 03:31 PM
#40
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
I used zpoxy and 3/4oz mesh. I did two coats, but some only do one. I like to do the first as light as I can and then hit it with the second coat. Evercoat is great for filling in the pot holes.
This is my first glass job so I am just learning!
TB
02-17-2011, 06:51 AM
#41
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Progress
Set up and fuselage prep
Funny how the RTC and ARF phase seems to take longer then the building phase!
I finished glassing the stabilizer and I am very pleased and glade I did glass it. I used Zpoxy and ¾ mesh, one coat to lay the glass down removing as much epoxy as I could then I brushed on a second coat after it dried. I did a little sanding between coats to clean the edges. After glassing the second coat I used Evercoat filler to fill the potholes.I primed and sanded the stab a few times with Rust-oleum Auto primer, it is ready for paint!
I abandoned the servo for chock and went with a manual pushrod to engage the chock. This will be accessed from the front of the cowl using a tool I made to pull and push the chock rod. I used a 2-52 threaded rod and sleeved it with nyron to insulate it. It is mounted to the engine mount to keep it in place.
I like to get the plane all set up with all linkages and control surfaces hooked up and working before a start to cover. If there is a problem I want to get to it now instead of at the ARF phase. I hooked up the pull pull for the rudder and the steering. I decked the stab saddle area to give a greater area for gluing and also to protect the steering and rudder pull pull assemblies, don’t want epoxy dripping down in. I used 3/32 balsa and glassed it to seal it. I will be pinning the stab when I glue it. At least that is the plan.
TB
02-17-2011, 07:00 AM
#42
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
I attached a ply block to the engine mount so I can have it mounted to a rotating jig on my painting table. This will allow me to rotate the fuse in any position, vertical also.
I want all holes drilled in the fus before I paint. There are holes for the vent, led engine kill, fuel dot, receiver battery and ignition battery. I will be using a pin and flag switch for theses. The fuel dot I found is by Mpi, this is much better then the hanger 9 version. It has a threaded plug so it won’t pop out in flight. I reconfigured the servo tray for the elevator; before I had the two servos mirrored and was going to put them on a mix. I could not get the two servos to move at the same rate of rotation so I abandoned that and flipped the servos so they move in the same direction with a simple HD Y harness. I set up the fuel tank with a two clunk system. The fuel tray houses the rec battery and the ignition battery.
TB
02-17-2011, 07:15 AM
#43
RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
The cowl is all cut out for the engine and pitts muffler. There is plenty of exit cooling and the amount of cut out is not to bad, I am pleased with the way the DLE fit in the cowl, the DLE55 would have cut way to much of the cowl for my taste.
All I need to do is glue the stab on and glass the fairings and she is ready to paint.
02-19-2011, 03:44 AM
#44
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RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
i sure would like to buy and build this kit but i dont think i could cut the dihedral on the wings . i just dont feel comfortable with doing it.
i wonder if greg can do it to the cores before he ships the kit.
i wonder if greg can do it to the cores before he ships the kit.
02-19-2011, 08:31 AM
#46
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RE: G&L Hobbies 1/5 Super Chipmunk Build (short kit)
Its very easy to sand the dihedral . use 180-220 grit to sand with and go slow. any corser grit and it grabs the foam beads that make up the foam and pulls them out. to make the dihedral cut you some plywood jigs. if you want 2 deg dihedral make the jigs 1 deg. as you sand , the foam comes off faster than you think.