Need some feedback on an upcoming build.

I've located a NIB, Midwest Super Stinker for a great price.
Browsing the posts here, I take it that this one like a lot of other Midwest designs, has been eliminated from their product line and is somewhat scarce.

What I'd like to know is this:

Would investing in a smaller gasoline engine, say a Brillelli or a Zenoah be a better choice than investing in a Saito, (or similar) 1.8, 4 banger?

Currently, I own a Saito 120 and a 150. Even though the plane is IMAC-legal, I don't fly competition, pattern or anything other than sport. I really am not interested in harrier or 3-D style flying, although a nice vertical would be nice.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
PM

PointMagu,

The Saito 180 is towards the low end for the recommended engines for this plane and probably give you marginal vertical performance. The plane would do much better with a Moki 1.80, 2.10 or one of the new light weight gas engines. I will let someone else can give you a recommendation for a gas engine since the only one I have is a 3w60 and I am not familiar with the Brillelli or other similar engines. Keep us posted with your decision.

And don't forget to buy some See Temp and make A nice template of every part. That was one of the better flying bipes and it's been long gone for A while. I know I would like to have one.

Been awhile since I last posted.

I made my engine decision going with a Zenoah G23. It's "used" but just barely and it bolted right up to my modified firewall, nicely.
Sweet kit...I CAN see why Midwest complained about how expen$ive it was to produce. You cannot believe the scrap lite ply and balsa left over after primary construction! I believe it was cutout in Italy, probably by Falcon Trading. Today, laser cutting could consolidate the amount of wood required for the die-punch process, I'm certain. As it is, it is-was state of that art, lol...

I still have a lot to do but thought I'd post some up-to-date photos as she is so far:

PM

Super Stinker….Revisited


Well, we maidened the Pitts this past weekend. Here’s the “proof”:

While there was light under the tires, it wasn’t much. The Zenoah 23 barely got her airborne and being tail heavy, it was a hand full getting her back down safely. Yeah, I “balanced” her 1st but things happen.

Back at the bench, the G23 was removed and essentially, I tore down the radio install and removed both tanks.

A US Engines 41cc is being used as an upgrade for power. Naturally, the carb is on the opposite side, necessitating a throttle rethink as well as a rerouting of fuel lines.

Being 16oz heavier than the Zenoah, my tail heavy mystery will be solved as well as the thrust to weight ratio challenge caused by the smaller engine.

The firewall required removal of the blind nuts and throttle cable. I disco’d the smoke lines and measured for the re-drill. I actually cut a “second” firewall from 3/8” birch and am laminating this behind the primary. A full ¾” now supports the heavier engine. I know this is overkill but I fly my planes hard and while concerned about weight, I do not fly IMAC or 3-D so unlimited verticals aren’t a worry.

This replacement engine uses differing bolt architecture so blind nuts won’t be used again. ¼-20 steel hex-head bolts will feed through the rear of the firewall and into the threaded rear housing of the engine. No nuts can be applied so lock washers and “red” Loc-Tite is the order of the day here. 30 min epoxy will be used to laminate the doubler to the firewall. All access holes will be sealed with thin CA.

Fortunately, removing the gas tank revealed pinched tubing and reinforced my decision to redo the fueling method.

Originally, I had installed 2-Bennett fuel fillers on the fuselage side. We filled the tank that 1st time and gas back siphoned out before I could thread the cap back onto the nipple. We ended up turning the fuselage on its side to fuel up. Not good.

I had already considered ripping this out and moving them to the fuselage top. The engine swap simply added this to the “to-do” list.

I fashioned a ¾” triangle piece with a 1/16” ply topper, drilled to accept both fuel fittings. I sanded to match the curvature of the fuselage and epoxied in place. I now have a flat mounting surface for both fueling and venting of the gas tank. However, I will also swap the smoke tank fuel dots for the Bennett fittings in this new configuration.

Here’s a rough diagram looking aft from the firewall. The red portion is the triangle stock and the blue area is the ply topper:


While not scale by any means, it IS functional for my purposes.

This will eliminate pinched fuel lines and make for shorter runs as well. A “win-win”.

The electronics as I originally installed them appears to be less then adequate now that we’ve run up an engine and actually flown the bird. The 2-JR Matchbox units have wiring challenges so a re-positioning of both, while keeping as close to the receiver as possible, is undertaken. In addition, the throttle servo is not in the correct position for the new engine installation. I am completely removing the servo from the compartment and relocating to the nose. Most likely, I will mount this inside the motorbox, giving a short and direct hookup to the Walbro carb.

The 16x8 prop I have is being “retired” along with the Zenoah, awaiting another airframe. I’ve ordered 2 replacements for the larger motor, an 18x10 and a 20x8 APC. I resisted the wood models for cost vs. breakage factor. I do have a Master Airscrew 20x8
in wood that I will use for break-in running but will rely on the APC’s for actual flight.

9-11-8

Last evening I enlarged the openings for the fuel dots on my modified fueling, “platform”. I removed these from the fuselage side and installed them, securing with thin CA. I then had to use washers and nylon rings to secure the Bennett fueling nipples back where the dots were removed. All that remains is to plumb the 4-fittings back to the two tanks and I can then move on to reinstalling the throttle servo and rearranging the electronics.

I did a trial fit of the cowling over the new engine and was pleased to discover that only a small amount of material will require cutting away to clear everything. However, the prop shaft is a full inch longer than the Zenoah. If I want a scale appearance, I’m going to have to add material to the rear of the cowling, repaint and it just isn’t worth all that. Once in the air, it’s not noticeable anyway.


09-16-08

This past weekend saw much revised on the Pitts and it has since flown.

To start, I plugged the original motor mount holes with dowels.

I re-measured the ÂĽ-20 bolt pattern onto the firewall and drilled those holes. I sealed these with thin CA, as with the revised throttle access.

I removed the Futaba S-3004 throttle servo from the wing saddle area and replaced it with a Hitec HS-125 thin aileron model in the forward compartment, (just behind the firewall). This reduces the length of the run and allows for a more positive response to stick input.

The Pitts-style muffler on the 41cc is not tapped for smoke so all lines to the pump were simply plugged until such time that taps can be made and nipples installed. ÂĽ-20 hex-head bolts were used to fasten the engine to the airframe, using thread-loc all around.

The bottom area of the cowling was enlarged to accommodate the increased size of the muffler and Walbro carb. The intake stack required an opening opposite from that of the Zenoah.

09-22-08

I received to two APC props ordered for the 41cc. I now have an 18x10 and a 20x8 plus my original wooden, 20-8 Master Airscrew. These are wicked looking composites and have razor edges. I will be very circumspect on starting the engine when running these props.

I have yet to reconfigure the Sullivan smoke pump, due to the reversing of the exhaust on the motor swap. Also, the Pitts muffler has no tap for smoke so I’ll be removing the taps from my busted Bennett,(off the Zenoah) and re-installing. I’m uncertain of the efficiency of doing this as the design of the muffler is somewhat unique.

09-23-8

The smoke pump was removed last evening along with all associated plumbing. I had forgotten that the bolt pattern was different on each end of the pump so I now must re-drill and remove the insert nuts epoxied in the motor box area.

I noticed a light gasoline residue on the muffler and realize that I probably have a slight exhaust leak. I had used blue gasket sealer on the manifold prior to engine installation but must not have gotten even coverage. I’m not willing to unbolt the whole affair at this point.

09-24-8

After re-drilling the mounting holes for the smoke pump, I bolted it back up in the correct orientation for this new engine. I then drilled two holes into the Pitts muffler and installed two smoke taps. Next, I routed the tubing for the smoke oil through a crap trap and check valve before connecting to the muffler. The smoke system is now complete, other than installing a 4.8vDC battery and connecting the harness to my receiver.

I had to trim the plastic cone of the spinner to fit the 18x10 APC prop. I then tapped the backplate for 6x32 threads and cut off 4 hex-heads to hold everything together. The prop was installed and the spinner secured. Unless I’ve missed something, I’m ready again for flight ops this weekend.

09-30

Due to windy conditions this past weekend, (and lots of shower activity), the Pitts was flown but one time.

The 41cc has increased the sink rate and is causing the ¼” aluminum landing gear to bend under the added stress. I’ll be adding a shock rein forcer to the gear once I’ve straightened the legs out.

I’ve determined that this is not the type of flying that I’m used to nor is it one that I wish to continue with. I’ve made my decision to sell the Super Stinker along with the engine. I’ll be keeping all my electronics and radio gear, selling just the airframe and engine. The smoke system will also be removed as I plan on installing this on my Sukhoi next season.

I feel that a fair asking price to be somewhere in the $600 to $800 range.

10-06-8

Ok, ok…so now I might keep it, lol.

I solo’d yesterday and the feeling was well, awesome. Flying heavy gas airplanes is way different and requires a totally different skill-set.

My 1st take-off and landing were exhilarating. I had to sit down awhile to stop shaking, lol.

My 2nd attempt started out much like the 1st. Flying around and getting used to the “weight” of the airframe on the control sticks. A few loops, hammerheads and rolls and then time to land….Here’s how that ended:



The photo makes it look much worse than it actually was…other than to the ego.

10-07-08

I’ve removed all the radio gear, cowling and landing gear. The engine got a face full of dirt and other than a slightly bent exhaust pipe, no damage up front.
The firewall and motor box were unscathed but the landing gear ripped the balsa filler block and fiberglass out. The nylon ÂĽ-20 bolts sheared off as they were designed to do. The mounting plate and blind nuts remain intact with no issues.

Believe it or not, the outer cabane struts snapped and saved both wings from fracture. The lower wing popped out and took the rear saddle bulkhead with it. This was the stock, laminated lite ply construction. I’ve recut a replacement from ¼”birch ply and laminated a doubler, also from ¼”. 30 min epoxy is now holding it all together. I had used thick CA during initial construction and combined with the lite ply; this probably saved the fuselage from a worse fate.

The removal of covering and the stringers behind the bulkhead will allow me to increase the pull-pull control arm for rudder authority as well as a re-route of the servo leads that were tangled with my beacon wiring. An added, “+”.

The inner aluminum cabanes took a twisted beating and will require straightening. Hopefully, I’ll be able to accomplish this without removing them from the fuselage.

Using a wide chisel blade on my X-Acto, I removed all the balsa filler and sanded out the landing gear mount area. Now, I’ll be able to replace the block, sand and re-fiberglass the section with ease. With the exception of the area immediately behind the saddle, no other covering will be needed.

I have notices a slight wrinkling of the covering at the fin and rudder top as well as an aileron that will need looked at closer. Any structural damage will be dealt with at that time.

A starboard aileron servo on the top wing shed 2 hold-down screws, allowing the servo to flex so these will be replaced.

I anticipate completion of all repairs by the evening of the 10th, allowing for flight ops to resume Saturday, the 11th.

10-08-08

Last evening revealed an oversight in my rebuild. By replacing the stock lite ply with ¼” birch, I moved everything forward to secure against the ply lower fuselage sides. This narrowed the saddle area making the wing chord too wide to fit back into the saddle area.

I had to cut the trailing edge away in order to reseat the wing. This entailed removing most of the solid material that allowed the hold down bolt to engage the threads in the mount plate attached to the rear bulkhead. I am now faced with reinforcing the lower wing in order to have enough surface area to hold the wing on during flight.

While functional, it will change the contour of the lower fuselage saddle area.

Here’s a nice composite, before the “incident”:



10-14-8

Repairs have been completed and all that remains is to re-install the radio gear. I plan on re-routing the antenna lead inside the fuselage or at the very least, along the bottom.

The cowling has been fixed and a repaint isn’t needed. I will however, touch it up some.

I did remove the wheel pants, making roll off and landing smoother.

10-21-8

Sunday saw a cloudless sky and warmer temps in the high 60’s. This was the first I’d had the Stinker out since the crack-up.

My buddy did not have his monster torque starter so I had to rely on “hand-power”.
We managed to get it started with the spring-start and a lot of priming of the Walbro. However, I was unable to get a consistent run so we shelved the attempt this day.
I had removed both tanks during the repair so evidently, something was not replaced correctly. I’ll be pulling the cowling and rechecking the fuel pickup and feed lines prior to this weekends flying.