Like most designers, I make my own decisions on the elements in my planes. Still, I would love to hear from those of you who know, what airfoils you are using on your newest Pattern and 3D designs. (I've chosen the Eppler 168 for the primary surfaces on my latest aerobatic design.)

Thank you! Mike James - www.nextcraft.com

You might try fronting this question to some of the experts on the dicussion list for the NSRCA.
There is a discussion list (pattern only) one can join in on if you go to the NSRCA site: www.nsrca.org I don't see what would be so secret about sharing this info, maybe some of the pattern kit makers will see your post there and will help out.
I saw your work on your site and it is really good!

Mike I visited your web site and I have to tell you it's really awesome. I found your tutorial on fiberglass to be educational. I can't really advise you on Pattern design. I fly a 2 meter Finesse designed by Dave Patrick. I think your pattern plane has beautiful lines. Are you selling your planes or is it just for fun? Thanks Mike

Hi Mup, and thanks!

Because of the size of the J-45, it would only be competitive in the lower classes of Pattern. It's about 68 inches "square". I designed it for a .91 four-stroke, although you could put a 1.20 in it. (Pipes are optional...Pipe tunnel is built in to accomodate up to 24-inch long systems, for those of you who use them.)

I'm working on the fuselage plug now, (photo attached) and will have it flying this spring. The main attribute of this plane is that the design allows for several different wing planforms to be used, via the plug-in wings. It can use a "Pattern" wing, "IMAC" wing, and a "Sport/STOL" wing. I simply moved the position of the wing socket in each wing set, to allow for the different AC positions, keeping the CG at the same position. (right around the wing tube)

It's not a commercial venture, but I'm making molds and foam wing cores, so if any of you are interested, after it's been test-flown, I could make some kits.

Thanks for visiting my site!

I was at your site looking at the plane, looks good. One thing I noticed you said in the specs that you are planning 800 in^2 per wing panel? Is this right? That would be 1600 in^2 total flying surface of the wing. Most of the "modern" 2 meter pattern ships are running with only 900-1000ish in^2 of flying wing. That is just something that caught my eye, other than that it looks sharp, keep us informed.

Hi Chad,

Thank you for taking a look at my site!

That's 800 inches per wing SET, not per wing. The plane is about 68 inches "square", a little smaller than a 2 meter design. Mine will be powered by a YS .91 4-stroke, although a 1.20 could fit, and I've designed it to accomodate big exhaust systems for those who want to use them. (up to 24 inches)

Mike, the plane looks great!!!!! I too am designing my own pattern plane. I will start flying pattern next year so I have plenty of time to test and practice. Any advise you can give me? Are you making plans for us scratch builders? Keep up the good work and designs.

Hi Joel,

Thank you!

I don't consider myself an expert pattern plane designer. Instead, I did a lot of research, including collecting and comparing data on all the pattern planes I could. Pattern design is actually pretty simple, because the parameters are so well known. Building a precision model, trimming it and flying it at a competitive level is another matter, of course.

In my design, I added two details:
First, I designed it to accommodate several different wing sets, as you can see on my web site. I hope this will let me have the equivalent of several different planes in one.

Second, I enlarged all the control surfaces from the traditional ratios, with the idea of "artistic aerobatics" (some 3D mixed with Pattern) flying. Finally, I kept it at a size that I felt would allow for smooth flying, yet not so large as to require an engine bigger than a .91

I'll have it ready for next season. The King Air project (also on my web site) has all my attention right now, so the "J-45" is on hold for a few months.