First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Here is a pic of my progress on the fuse. Just about ready to mount the kicker!
Al

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Speaking of a new kicker! Here it is. Took it out in the cold and it ran like a dream! :sunsmiley

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I'm still deciding on my design, it will happen this weekend though.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Hoverit,

I just picked up an O.S FS-70 II Surpass. I like the looks of Al's Saito's twin rocker covers better. There's not going to be much balsa left by the time he gets his cowl "hollowed" out for that beast! And I beefed up the rudder and elevator control base areas on mine because I thought the .70 might be pushing it. HO HO, HE HE, HA HA!

I have a pile of "honey-do's" my wife has selected for me this weekend, so I am not hopeful of a lot of kit progress. Have the three main fuselage sub-assemblies ready to join.

I've drawn out a yellow, orange, red & black color scheme that's nothing at all like the box. Our field is on the top of a hill and I've been flying a mostly white wing w/red & white fuselage plane that vanishes at certain angles & haze conditions. I want something visable. Gave a good yank on an after-work hazy-day take-off last fall and my plane flat out Bermuda Triangle vanished at 50 ft! A featureless fog bank was just over us. Throttle down, left rudder, and pray. Sometimes a low sink rate is a good thing.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I can't decide. Well maybe I'll, um lets go try .......

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Was all thumbs for some reason last night. I was adding the sheeting on top of the fuselage, which I had thought would be pretty straight forward. Made a horrible mess! I think my fool CA must be stale. I would tack down the forward panel and bend it into shape, only to have the opposite end pop off the former. So I tried attaching the base and working towards the top. So the base pops off. By now I have half an ounce of CA on the fuselage, workboard and myself. Tried pinning it and then CA - no luck. Tried activator, nope.

Got out my trusty Aleene's (aliphatic) cement and some masking tape and both sides were done in 10 minutes (though I had to let it dry overnight). I ended up adding a matchstick sized piece of balsa on each side of the face of 2D to support the butt of the cockpit side sheet. It came out nice, eventually. Now I have to sand out a whole bunch of CA over run on the fuselage side.

Cowl tonight.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I used good old Elmer's for my sheeting. After reading the destructions I figured I would need some time to get everything aligned, I was right. I just got everything in place, put some weight on it and went to bed!

I'm working on the fuse now. I put a 500cc fuel tank in to accomodate the SAITO .91. Had to make some minor mods, but it seems to be going well. Then I had to wait till my Tower order showed up, I needed a flex cable to snake around the fuel tank. Installing that is my next project. I'll try and get a pic or two posted tonight.
AL

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

My pilot stopped by to see how the fuse was coming along and to see how much room was left for the cowl. He declared "Piece of Cake".
I got the fuel tank in and the flex throttle cable. It will be interesting to see how it balances, once I am finished.
:D
Al

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Here is another pic. The SAITO fits right in the stock mount. I don't think I'll have much balsa gouging to go through when I shape the cowl.
:thumbup:
Al

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Hey! I've caught up to you. I sat back last night after mounting the engine with the forward plywood cowl ring tacked to the base of the spinner and tacking the "scoop" block to the firewall and said to myself: "Self, how in h*ll am I going to affix the cheeks to the cowl? You have even less purchase on the sides of the firewall than I do! Well see if the balsa or the nerves give out first when forming the eggshell-thick cowl sides.

I have a "cheat" figured out for the cowl forming. I am going to glue 1/2" x 1/2" x 1" sub chocks on the ply spinner ring to support the sides first (so they only need minimal contact with the ring). Then, I will use scrap 1/2" pieces top and bottom to fill in around the ply ring. I figure I'll be well into the glue lines and sub balsa pieces by the time I get it shaped. Between shaping the cowl and the compound angles that need cutting to get it blocked-in it's definately the hardest feature of the kit. Thank God for balsa-colored filler putty.

After much internal debate I decided to use the supplied #8 x 1" self-tapping screws to hold the engine to the mount. Now that I've snugged those screws I have no doubt that they will hold better than blind nuts and lock washers, probably better than Ny-lock nuts and Locktite. Those suckers hold good in the Nylon mount! I'll just use a long shank allen wrench through the nose to remove the engine w/mount from the firewall when I need it out. The phillips heads won't take many ins and outs before buggering with the force required to move them.

Had to add 1/2 of an ounce of lead to a wing-tip to balance out the RTC wing. Must be wood density as I don't believe there could be that much difference in CA (and a tiny bit of epoxy on the tips) used.

Better give your pilot a phone book to sit on. That's some engine to try and see over. Looks pretty sharp, though.

I have yet to find a pilot. Rough-cut out the canopy to see if it fit and, by gum, it sets there with no big gaps around the skirt just as if it was made to! Must be I followed the plans close enough.

Starting to actually look like an aeroplane.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Glad to see you guys are making progress. Alstack thats a big mother of a motor, Glad you have a crazy noid to fly it hehe. And the picture in my mind of Charlie glueing himself all to hell makes me giggle. Well I'm getting ready for tomorrow mornings hover practice with my profile, c-ya.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Here is this weekend's progress. I think I am actually getting there! I was kind of going for the A6 Intruder look. I don't think I quite made it. Kind of a A2.35 Contender. :D

Hey hoverit, thanks for the compliment. Considering yours has looked alot better from the get go. Hovering practice! Get real, I still won't fly without my instructor . When the Contender gets in the air I may have to close my eyes. :sleeping:

Here's the pic of the cowl.
AL

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

And here is another one. "Hey!" I think it's beginning to look like an airplane. Needs the radio and stuff plus covering. (Gulp)
In the picture it is a little "Tail" heavy but I think I have a fix for that. lol
Al :)

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Just another angle, cause I'm having so much fun!
:p
AL

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I went for a much smaller scoop. It is only 2" wide, compared to the 2-1/2" spinner. It is reminiscent of some warbird, but I can't figure which one. I used a compass to scribe a circle with the center up nearer the spinner so it blends into the upper cowl. I also routed out a channel (only 3/8" x 1/2") to blow some air back to the rear carbureator. The fit is so tight that I have to squeeze the two-piece motor mount together to fit into the cowl upper opening and then open it up once inside.

I was surfing around and found a Martin Mauler Navy dive/torpedo bomber of the late 40's that has a bubble canopy, central apron flap, faired ridge down the fuselage and a lower scoop on the cowl. With a little kit bashing it could be semi-scale.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I hollowed out mine as well. With that big engine the less weight I have up there the better. I will put some screen over the inlet. With the updraft carb and tight quarters I thought a little extra air wouldn't hurt.
Al

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Hey I just learned a new trick, submerge your canopy in rit dye for 10 to 20 minutes or until you get the desired tint (any color).

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

We have a guy in our club that is an expert on canopys (did an article for one of the magazines). He says add vinegar and hold the temperature to 130º. BUT, he told me I should have left the canopy untrimmed (with all the excess flashing around it) to make sure it holds its shape. I had already trimmed mine up (of course) so he said 120º and check it after twenty minutes, leaving it in as long as it takes to get the desired shade. Then glue it on over the Monokote with "56" canopy cement.

I took my Contender to our club meeting tonight for show-and-tell and a friend took a few digital images. When he sends me the files I'll try posting them here.

Mine came out at exactly six pounds including all components and rigging but less covering and fuelproofing the cowl and tank section. That should put me at or slightly under the recommended 6.5 lbs weight once covered. It's pretty nose heavy, and I am hoping I can correct it with just battery and receiver placement.

Show-and-tell
 

Here's a few shots of my Contender.

Frontal quartering

Show-and-tell
 

Rear quartering - showing modified rudder (40% larger & more closely matching other empennage).

Show-and-tell
 

And another.

These are a real treat for me - I don't have a digital camera and these were taken by a flying friend at our club meeting.

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

Looking mighty fine Charlie!

I like the way your cowl turned out. I'm hoping to get the radio installed tonight and then I'll be almost caught up to you!

AL

Purple???
 

I'm an hour-and-a-half into tinting my canopy with Rit "Navy Blue" dye. Lord help me, it's the prissiest looking light purple and has stopped getting any darker. I have a pint of vinegar and a quarter cup of salt in a pail of 140º water that have been keeping warm. I was hoping for blue or dark gray, NOT PURPLE!

Just added six ounces more vinegar to the pail and 12 ounces of beer into myself. Hope it helps.

Aaargh!

Well, I gave up and pulled it out of the stew. A wonderfully even, lusterous, stinking purple canopy. I guess I'm glad I wasn't trying for a scale color-match of a full size plane. I am certain no plane ever flew with a canopy this color! A pimp's P.T. Cruiser maybe.

My wife, ever supportive, came to supervise the mandated cleaning up of the kitchen before bedtime "without so much as a drop of dye on the counters" and declared: "That's ugly, why did you do that?" And she usually LIKES purple as a color.

*sigh*

Maybe it will darken when it dries and cools?

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

ROLFL!
I couldn't help it. It is only funny when it isn't you! I was thinking about tinting mine but I wasn't sure on the technique even after reading everything I could find.

I've heard so many stories of people trying for red hair and ending up with green. I think I'll stay with a clear conopy and just paint the trim.

Maybe another color like black or something would darken it into more of a midnight purple? From what you are saying it might help and sure as heck won't hurt.

Good luck!
AL

(I'm laughing with you! I promise!);)

First Kit after Trainer ARF
 

I'll probably use black . Hey atleast it isn't PINK Charlie. HEHE, hey you can always spray the inside of yours lightly with black and it should look better. Post a pic of it.