Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I started breaking out ribs today on the sr. Telemaster , Much disappointed on quality of wood. Very soft and die cutting leaves much to desire.will have to replace about half. will use 3 or 4 1/8" ply ribs on inboard ends as I intend to build a two piece wing.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

Sorry to hear the kit is not up to par, I been flying one for about 6 years and just love it. It practicaly flys itself. Mine is a one piece wing and I only used what was in the kit, be careful not to add too much weight beefing it up and spoil the flight performance.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I built one last year and I too was disappointed in the kit quality however it turned out well. I added wheel pants and beefed it up in a few places but even with a Saito 82 up front it came in at almost exactly 9 pounds. With that wing loading and the Saito power plant, she lifts off in a few feet and is a real floater on landing. So much so that I'm going to add 1 to 1 1/2 pounds before next season.

Regards

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I'm getting ready to start my Senior Telemaster kit build too. I have only gotten as far as reading the manual, which also leaves something to be desired, and contemplating what mods I wish to incorporate. I probably won't get started with actual construction until I get back from holiday travels. I hope to begin over New years weekend. I agree that the wood quality and die cutting is not up to the standard of say a SIG Four Star kit, but I've surely suffered through worse. I think the worst I ever encountered was with a Jemco, fun-scale Mustang kit I built back in the 80s. The wood/die cutting was so poor that the grain of the balsa ribs was litterally crushed. Like their die was about as sharp as a butter knife. I did manage to make those crappy parts into a very nice flying airplane though. It is frustrating to spend over $100 for a kit and encounter sub-par materials when you open the box. I'm trying to decide if I am going to leave any dyhedral in the wing, or build it flat. I'm at least going to reduce it considerably and revise the wing to incorporate flaps and different ailerons, barn-door style ailerons about 3-3.5" wide and reduce the length by about 25-30% to allow for a good-sized flap setup.

I'm putting this little 18cc gas engine up front.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I got a few more hours into the Sr. Tele. Things are looking up. Only relpaced three wing ribs other than those were replaced with 1/8 ply in the area of the wing joiners. Sanded all the stringers. wood there is quite good quality and nice and straight. My work bench is really a mess right now, not enough room to start the wing or fuse, so I decided to build the stab. It went together real nice and easy. will get started again after clearing and repairing bench top.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

Good luck on your STM...

Mine is awaiting covering.

I found the fuselage to be a little to twisty for my taste. I could hold the fuse at each end, and twist, (like turrning a nut onto a bolt.)

I added diagonal bracing from the F3 back, which helped, but still not enough.

If I had to build again, I'd substitute in some stiffer wood for the center stringers on both the sides and top/bottom.

See:
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_82...tm.htm#8248351 (post 15)

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I too, am about to embark on another Sr. Telemaster kit. Trust me - build it stock and you'll have a blast, like the first one I ever built (powered nicely with an OS 91 two-stroke). Yeah, you have to replace some of the wood - I see the vertrical fin in my present kit is marshmellow. But I digress. I thought I could "improve" the plane - a few examples of my modifications: flattened & bolt-on wing w/flaps and reduced (the) wing incidence; tail enlarged 15% with pull-pull rudder, beefed-up landing gear plate, etc. The plane is so tail heavy it requires a huge Higley nose weight. And it flies like a Coke machine. I say if you want a high performance plane then choose a high performance design. But in my humble opinion, leave the original Telemaster Senior design alone and it will reward you greatly.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

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I have a couple Senior Telemaster kits (late Hobby Lobby editions). One of the things that I don't care for is how the model flies tail high. I'm thinking of building a new horizontal stabilizer with a flat sectioned airfoil. I know. I'm speaking blasphemy, but one out of three or four Senior Tele's that I have might be permissible, just for experimentation. I expect it will fly similar to a Goldberg Cub. Why? Because I'm going to use the same decalage as used in the Goldberg Cub (2 degrees positive incidence in the flat horizontal stab). I'm also planning on using a heavier engine to help offset the change in the balance point that will be required when not using the lifting stabilizer.

I might even invest in a Zenoah G20, or some other small gas engine for this model. Zenoah service is one thing that I do value a lot. Hmm, I just thought of another source for this engine in a lightened state with a better electronic ignition. Now, if I can just get him to answer his phone...<G>


Ed Cregger

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

Have you made any progress on the ST? I've been bogged down in the holiday season travels and like you, needed to spend a little time cleaning up the workbench. I accomplished the workbench cleaning over the past weekend and hope to begin construction over the New Years holiday. I'm trying to decide what engine to use now. Besides the little gasser I posted the picture of, I picked up a Magnum XL 120 Four Cycle glow engine which would bolt right into the mounting rails on the plans. It's more than necessary to fly the thing, but then so is the gasser. Right now, I'm leaning towards the Magnum because I think it is a cleaner, more attractive alternative. I have another project that the gasser would be perfect for which I hope to build next summer or fall.

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

Any progress to report, Jim? I've been building away on mine. You can check it out on the Clipped wing Senior Telemaster? thread on Kit Building. I've been posting pics etc. but not many have been looking it over.

Jack

RE: Starting SR. Tetemaster today
 

I have got every thing framed up And now trying to correct a problem i made for myself. I decided to make the wing two piece and purchased aluminum joiners from H.l. I wanted to maintain some dh so i cut the tube and angled the ends to the proper degree, And tacked glued them with Ca to hold in place and then made a jig to hold them for welding. It seems the Ca glue gives off a deadly vapor when hit with an electric welder. The welding shop was nice enough not to charge me when they handed back all the pieces which I have not been able to locate in my area. I have obtained some thin wall copper that i may use and build the wing straight. As I have not completed the joining area it won't be much rework. I have installed a nice working bomb drop just behind the cabin area and am working on a camera setup that will go in the same place. I really like this plane. my only complaint is the softness of most of the wood. I am keeping the plans in good shape and may someday build one with better wood. I will post some pictures before I put the fabric on. I am looking for carb. parts for my Saito 65 and may have to use A St.61 until I find them