Have a ? about a Joe Bridi old timer kit. Two of us at the field bought a old timer 1/4 scale kit.

We both are going to use gas engines. He brought his down this weekend & it flew very docile. My ? is this. His plane weighed in at almost 14 lbs. Was wondering if anyone knows this kit & how can I get the weight down. I started to build the tail feathers but don't want to go to far till I can get the weight off

Well I don't know about the old timer kit but I can tell you about the Bridi XLT that I'm building. After being about half way through building my XLT I found out from a bunch of folks that Bridi kits have very heavy balsa in them and most should be replaced. [:@]
So my only advise would be to look at replacing much of the kit balsa with newer stuff.
Good Luck
[8D]

You are right. The whole fusalage is light ply which makes it heavy. I am going to use the front for the wing saddle & the rear for my servos. The center will be all stix. He has (3) 1/4 in. firewalls also. plus the landing gear plate and bottom are plywood. Will replace all that with other material. Am trying to get it down to 10 to 11 lbs. with engine

The Old Timer and the Bridi Stick are the same except for the name on the box and the lower right corner of the plans. I have both. I have one with a Homelight 30 on it. I wouldn't scallop the trailing edges if I were you? I did and low speed control is lacking. You will need to brace the vertical stabilizer to the horizontal one. The vertical is not anchored into the plane that well.

The fuselage is is huge, it could be narrowed up some and maybe not so deep? Cover it with Monocoat. You could cut holes in the plywood sides to lighten the plane? Hollow the ribs outboard of the center section? Use light weight wheels.

Mine has all standard servos but there are two on the elevators.

Enjoy,

Jim

I am planning on using williams 5 in. wheels plus thinner landing gear. I have altered the rudder to extend it 4 in. without adding more weight. Have drilled out the airlons also. Will lighten the fusalage by building a frame using 1/4 square, & just use the light ply for the saddle & rear ply for the tail feathers. Am using a homie 33cc chainsaw engine with a #28 carb. I noticed that yout engine is mounted head up. I have allways inverted mine. Any advantage to your way?

They seem to run the same either way. I just thought my spark plug may last a little longer if it was on top. I have the Homelite 30 with the 28 carb and it was a lot of power for this plane. It is not under powered even with the extra weight and the 21st Century fabric on it. The engine will turn a Dyna Thrust 18-8 at 7600 and idle at 1800.

Leave the landing gear with the 1/4" rod. You will need it. But use light weight wheels.

I've got to go but will be back later today.

Enjoy,

Jim

If you look at the picture of the plane taking off, it has a inverted G23 with a cowl like on the plans. It also had Dave Brown 5" wheels then. These wheels are cheap and light weight. But the foam has a memory and the tires get flat spots on them after the plane sets on them a couple hours and it will take 3 months for the tire ti even out again. If you look closely at the picture of the plane taking off, you will see a big flat spot on the back of the tire closest to the camera. I changed to Dubro Cub wheels and like them.

My plane with the Homelite 30 can jump off the ground in just a few feet but you will not have any control. You best keep it level until the speed builds up. Let it rise off the ground slowly.

The plane doesn't land like a .40 size plane. There's no ground effect when landing. With the engine idling at 1800 the prop acts like a brake. Keep a little power on until you get it level just over the ground. Then chop the throttle and let it settle on the ground. You can land the plane just on the mains with the tail high or you can 3pt land it.

Enjoy,

Jim

The williams wheels get flat spots also. I have been using stroller wheels. They are light & made of plastic. Will send pics as I progress. I also cut down on the landing gear ply.

You will not have to worry about Williams Brothers anymore unless someone picks them up. They went out of business around the first of the year.

Enjoy,

Jim

I know. I get emails from balsausa & they told me that. The wheels off a stroller are perfect. Light, rubber & plastic plus can be painted. Was talking to a fellow at the field & he sugested using a allum. tube for the dihedral brace instead of the 1/8 x 2 x 10 in. ones. Just drill holles in the center of the ribs. That will lighten it, also, to cut the landing wheel plates shorter.

Hi jadec241,
I found one of these kits for $80 is this a good price? I would like to use it for my first large gas plane. Is this a good choice?

Steve

Steve, I just got the email from rcu,I wasn't trying to ignore you. That is a good price. Bridi retired awhile back & sold all his old kits to a dealer that is getting alot of $$$ for them. Read the threads about the plane above. Any other ???? email me at [email protected].
Jack

My first Big Bee, bought pre 1998, had lite ply wing ribs and fuselage sides. It was very, very heavy. I then decided to use the lite ply pieces as templates for generating new parts from balsa.

Bridi kits now available from BlueJay Kits:

http://www.bridiairplanes.com/

Their prices don't seem that bad to me...


Mark

Thanks everyone for the info. I got one of the remaining Joe Bridi kits off ebay. It should be a good plane. The guy said he has about 30 of these left.

Jack I might bug you for some help with this build if that's ok. I plan on using a gas engine for it. What size should I look for?

Thanks,
Steve

I convert my own Homelites. I use 25cc from a weedwacker or a 33cc from a 16 in. chainsaw. U can get all the parts from Carr Precision engineering. He has everything you need. If you go into cummins tool. com you can get a 25cc homie weedwacker from them for $49. Or you can get one from Harbor Freight for $79. Another sight is B & B Specialties.

I know this thread is a little old, but I'm building on of these. With a realistic weight would a ST2300 fly one of these nice or would it be a stuggle buggy. Thanks.

I still have my first Big Bee with a g62 on the front...
Is heavy and flyes great, but don't even try to land it on a short paved runway..it keeps on going and going right off the end..

BB1