BMatthews

This thread replaces the previous sticky threads and puts all the information into one place. To keep it simple, quick to access and uncluttered it is locked against replying. If you have a question about any of the information please start a new discussion thread with your question.

If you find that a link is not working or find some new resource that is worthy of being included please PM the information to BMatthews or Da_Rock and we will follow up.



Books on model aerodynamics-
Parent thread; http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_72..._1/key_/tm.htm

R/C Model Airplane Design by Andy Lennon-
Lots of good basic stuff, some math and with some additional harder items

Model Aircraft Aerodynamics by Martin Simmons-
Basic theory and not much math

Theory of Wing Sections by Abbott and von Doenhoff-
Lots of math, very deep and advanced. Some written explanation of how it all adds up. Has a section on lower speed study that pertains to the upper end of the model spectrum.
much of this work is available online as a 21Mb PDF download from;
http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/ca...1993090976.pdf

Soartech 8 published by Herk Stokely. This is the first complete report of the initial wind tunnel work done by Michel Selig and David Fraser. Real model sized airfoils tested at model airspeeds. Mostly in connection with sailplanes but with some power model application as well.

Theory of Flight by Richard von Mises-

Elements of Airfoil and Airscrew Theory by H. Glauert-
"thinking it might have a bit more discussion on prop theory but ultimately reasoned von Mises had it covered and was cheaper"

Model Aeronautics Made Painless by R. J. Hoffman-
This is one of the Frank Zaic publications. It is early material aimed at understanding free flight and early RC aerodynamics and model design. Feedback from daRock "if you are on a limited budget, let me suggest that you do NOT include that little book "Model Aeronautics Made Painless". That little orange paperback really isn't much more than a historical curiosity. It's basically a scrapbook by the author. And a fair amount of it is poorly ordered, most is not explained, and some of the explanations are awful."

Circular Airflow by Frank Zaic- This is partly written by Zaic and partly a collection of other writer's works. It mostly examines flight at very low Reynolds numbers and pays some attention to why free flight power models need to be trimmed with rearward CG locations.

Fundamentals of Aerodynamics by John D. Anderson-
"GREAT BOOK and matches your math background and degree. With a EE degree, I have no problems with the book."

Understanding Flight, by David F. Anderson and Scott Eberhardt -
Observation and logic, many real world examples to back up theory, not much math. Emphasis on Newton.

Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators from ASA-ANA-
It looks like a xerox copy of 1960's Naval Aviators training manual on aerodynamics but if you want to understand aspect ratios, wing plan forms, how to land an RC jet, how a jet engine works, or why super sonic aircraft don't land well at slow speeds this is a fantastic book.

Principles of Helicopter Flight from ASA-
It explains how helicopters fly. It covers a number of points of transitional lift that make helicopter flight make a lot more sence. It reviews vortex ring state, autos, wind, landing, taking off, it is really helpful if you want to understand how helicopters are supposed to and occasionally don't fly.

Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, Chapters 3, 4 and 9 can be especially informative and can be applied to most model aircraft. Book is available online from;
http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/a...ilot_handbook/

Basic Aeronautics for Modellers 2nd Ed by Alasdair Sutherland BSc-
Published by Traplett Publications, UK. As of Jan 2013 this title is available through Amazon books in the US- bmatthews

Introduction to Aircraft Design (Cambridge Aerospace Series). by John P. Fielding. Available from Amazon books. Aimed towards full size airplane design but is reported to be largely applicable to model design as well.

Online calculators and simulators-

Foilsim 2-
a handy real time calculator that allows you to set up a wing then fly it at various speeds. Requires Java as a plugin app in your browser.
Online version- http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/foil2.html
Downloadable and installable version- http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/FoilSim/index.html

Servo torque calculators-
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/limeybob/Servotorque1.html
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/eflight/calcs_servo.htm

CG and Neutral Point calculators-
http://adamone.rchomepage.com/cg_calc.htm (will do multi-panel wings)
http://www.geistware.com/rcmodeling/cg_super_calc.htm
This one is especially tailored for Canards- http://adamone.rchomepage.com/cg_canard.htm

Wing Loading Calculator-
http://adamone.rchomepage.com/design.htm#calculate

Mean Aerodynamic Chord - http://pagesperso-orange.fr/scherrer...glish/mce.html
Calculates the Mean Aerodynamic Chord (MAC) of swept and/or multi taper wings as well as simple wings.
This one does not require downloading anything- http://www.nasascale.org/howtos/mac-calculator.htm
Much the same look but at a different site- http://www.geistware.com/rcmodeling/cg_calc.htm
Flying wing MAC and CG locator. Nice for numbers but the space where I assume the graphics should be is not working. http://fwcg.3dzone.dk/
A second source of the one directly above- http://www.utahflyers.org/index.php?...sk=view&id=104
A nice site with a diagram showing graphically what and where the MAC is located and how to find it graphically for those that prefer that way.
http://www.airfieldmodels.com/inform...amic_chord.htm

Links to articles and downloadable material-

How Big The Tail- http://www.eaa62.org/technotes/tail.htm
An online article discussing some of the factors in sizing the horizontal and vertical tails.

Panknin wing twist for swept flying wings- http://www.b2streamlines.com/Panknin.html
Includes a link to the Excel spreadsheet calculator version for us math challenged folk. If you do not have Microsoft Office then the spreadsheet can be opened and run using the freely downloadable Open Office product from http://www.office-suite.org

A page of links related to flying wings- http://www.b2streamlines.com/winglinks.html

Michael Selig's airfoil site- http://www.ae.illinois.edu/m-selig/a..._database.html
If you can't find your airfoil of choice here then it's likely not worth using

Martin Hepperle's website with lots of good model aeronautical related material-
http://www.mh-aerotools.de/airfoils/index.htm

Model Aircraft Design Step-by-Step-
http://airfieldmodels.com/informatio...aft_design.htm

Link to a list of which aerofoils are used on full size aircraft.
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~akmit...foil_usage.htm

Covert deflection angle to inches or inches to angle- http://www.aeroperfect.com/degree.html
Downloadable spreadsheet utility file.

Page of downloadable spreadsheets for calculating a lot of aspects. While these are said to be glider specific they should work fine for power models too. Included are two flying wing specific items. http://www.tailwindgliders.com/Files.html#Articles

Airfoil analysis and plotting software-

XFLR5 is an analysis tool for airfoils, wings and planes operating at low Reynolds Numbers. This package includes the original X-Foil. http://xflr5.sourceforge.net/xflr5.htm

Profili 2- airfoil plotter which includes X-foil. Accessing the X-foil plugin requires paying for the unlocking code. Basic plotting functions are free. http://www.profili2.com/eng/default.htm

Compufoil- One of the favourites and with excellent foam cutting template support; http://www.compufoil.com/index.shtml

Winfoil- http://www.winfoil.com/default.htm

Some NACA airfoil generators. Also Plotfoil. -
http://www.jrdaly.rchomepage.com/software.html

Aeroplot- A free to download airfoil plotting program that uses .DAT files
http://www.adaptivecnc.com/AeroPlot/Aero%20Plot.htm