RCU Forums - Eaa biplane

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Does anyone have any information on their build of the BalsaUSA Eaa bipe? I am in the fuselage stage; planning on a G26 on the nose.... would like to take advantage of other people's experience.

Thanks.

A G-26 !!!!! We flew ours on a 60! It is not a big airplane...

hmmmm...might be fun though!!

That is a good looking Eaa bipe..... my friend flew it with a 1.20 so I did some measuring and the firewall size was custom made for the G26; I needed an airframe for a smaller gas project so I made the jump; the numbers all come out ok if I move equipment aft..... we will see. I strenghtened and pinned the firewall. Moving along slowly but alittle every week.....

jim

I ordered my EAA Bipe for building this fall, so thanks for starting this thread Jim! I work slow too; will probably take me a year to finish.

Has anyone considered or used the cowls from Fiberglass Specialties or Stan's Fiber Tech? If so, any opinions? FS claims theirs is "more scale".

I'm going to try to duplicate the one in the EAA museum; unless, of course, I see another I like better at Oshkosh this year. :)

Good luck, Gary

Great to hear another Eaa bipe will be started; I have made a few modifications already...... I am using a G26 so I had to shorten the nose alittle and strengthen the firewall. Now I have to setup the throttle linkage. I will try to download pics if anyone is interested..... I have also seen the Eaa bipe at the eaa museum. I will probably do mine in Black/red/white scheme; i got this pic from a flyer in England....

What engine do you plan to use?

For some reason, the pics are not downloading......

As for the fiberglass cowl, I will be using one from Stans but want to use a cowl with wider cheeks.... I am still working on which one to use; there may be a way to modify the original abit.

I guess they did download; the gentleman on the right is a big electric flyer; he flys larger scale planes with big electric setups. I put this pic in because it was done in the Eaa scheme.

Yes, I'd certainly appreciate any build pictures you may have. I haven't decided which engine to go with, and probably won't until I absolutely need to. All of my engines are in use right now - so that gives me the excuse I need to buy a new one. :) The RCV engines have caught my attention - maybe this is will be the plane I try one on, especially if the cowl is narrow as you've mentioned. If not an RCV, then a Saito 100 or 120 would probably be the next choice for my easy-go style of flying.

Gary

Gary,
I went with a Gas option for the lower cost of fuel and I have been flying glow for 14 yrs and am ready for a change..... the one at our field flew with a 1.20 and was a very nice flyer. No bad habits; I miss it however because the owner got alittle too low and slow in a turn and aerodynamics took over. I saw enough to make me want to get one.

Navy18,

Don't shorten the nose a little, shorten it a lot! I cut 3" off mine when I converted it to gas (22cc conversion). I could have cut off more.

Have fun!

Bedford

My build got side tr5acked with an 85 hour week.... more to follow from this workshop ahead. Fuselage is about complete; upper or lower wing this week; hopfully.

jim

Any updates on how the BUSA EAA kit is going? I am needing a "large scale" for IMAA events (60" bipe minimum wingspan) and I figure a FS-1.20 4-stroke with a 16X6 prop in the EAA will give me what I need. I have done some searching in past posts and there seems to be an opinion that the EAA Bipe is under-aileroned. That may be folks who are used to flying on the propellor and not old duffs like myself who don't mind airplanes that fly like the real ones.

If a bipe can do WWI style aerobatics and two-second slow but axial rolls I am happy as a little pig in . . . mud.

Comments from EAA Bipe modelers please.

I did find one full-size EAA Bipe that has added uppers and simple rod linkage. Love the Stearman color scheme, too. :D

http://www.razorbackeaa.org/wefly/im...rence-bipe.jpg

Charlie,
My Eaa bipe is coming along slowly but with no complaints.... it is an older kit with older techniques but it is an honest build; no tricky steps. I am learning how to solder....I will use the Zenoah G26 and keep the original aileron setup.... I liked the way this plane cruises around the sky; a joy to fly and watch. It does roll but not with the authority that most people count on today. It has plenty of wing so it is well behaved. I will post my progress as I move into the next phase.

Charlie,

When I shortened the nose on my Bipe, I added ailerons to the top wing. In fact I did it without removing the covering. I hate covering! The flight characteristics are quite different, obviously roll rate is much improved. The full scale Bipe was not necessarily supposed to be an aerobatic demon and the kit version is representative to the original design. I just wanted more roll response. I found that the rudder could over come the single set of ailerons in certain situations. Very strange maneuvers resulted.

Good aircraft. You will love it.

Bedford

I just purchased a used 60 size eaa bipe today at the Ocala fly in. I'm installing servos and radio now. It has a super tiger 75 with a pitts muffler. I'm not in love with the color scheme, but the price was too good. I'm going to fly it tomorrow if the wind isn't too bad. Bud

Good luck with the flight ... let us know how she flies.

Hi. Well the flight went very well. Takeoff took most of the runway, so maybe could use a little more power. Flight was smooth and stable only a couple of clicks to trim. Landing was easy. Only had one flight befor rain started. Our resident expert said he though my plane was one designed and kited by Walt Moucha in the early 90's called the Charger 2. I'm going to do some more research.

Check out the EAA bipe thread on torqueroll.com for discussion and pix.

I just ordered mine, looking forward to building it. I am interested in hearing about covering
material and finishing techniques for this plane from others that have built it.

Thanks.

I started my EAA Bipe in november of last year, but I got interrupted by the flying season and my desire to finish some other other airplanes first. I'm committed to finishing it this year, with plans to fly it in the spring. After a few recent evenings in the shop, I have now finished everything but hinging the control surfaces and applying the covering. I'm going to be covering the plane in white Solartex and likely painting the trim with rustoleum. I'll be clearcoating the whole thing with water-based polyurethane to protect the fabric.

Here are couple of thoughts I have from the build. This was my first attempt at structural soldering, which is needed for the landing gear, the cabanes, and the interplane strutes. It took me a while to figure out how to do it right, but with some practice I succeeded. I used a small butane torch to heat up the metal. I tried two or three different soldering irons and could not get sufficient heat to allow the solder to flow. The EAA bipe instructions suggest thin CA to hold the metal parts together while you wrap them. Balsa USA says that when the metal heats up, the CA evaporates, leaving a strong joint. I did this and it worked pretty well.

The instructions show the interplane struts installed with wood screws into a thin piece of plywood glued to the balsa ribs. With the stresses of flight and the constant installation and removal associated with setting up the airplane at the field, I figured blind nuts would be better for this purpose. I used 4-40 blind nuts. This meant leaving off part of the wing sheeting for a few extra steps, but I think it will result in a sturdy installation.

I also used 2-56 blind nuts for the aileron horns. The ailerons are built up with sheeting on the bottom and only the ribs and covering to form the top surface, so there's structure that would accept a backing plate like on the typical model. There really isn't anything suitable for wood screws either. Blind nuts make for a nice clean and sturdy installation.

One thing I did not like about the planned construction sequence was the fact that they have you close the airplane up almost entirely before installing the fuel tank and the radio. I think it's much easier to do this before the plane is closed in.

Before installing formers and sheeting the top half of the fuselage, I made a removable tray to install the fuel tank (a la the method harry higley shows in his book BIPES). Without this, you're dealing with installing the fuel tank in a cavernous space that is essentially inaccessible. I figured it would be almost impossble to getting the fuel tank secured at the proper height after closing in the fuse.

Also, before I closed in the rear half of the fuse, I mount the servo tray and the aileron and elevator pushrods.

Anyway, I'm interested in what others might have to say about this plane. And please post pictures!

bought one used,old model,very heavy,put an os 91 with pump,was not enough motor,then put a saito 180,that did it,hot but easy landings .The modeler who built it put ailerons on the top wing also,I had to move the elevetor and rudder servo to the tail,also made a hutch for the battery under the tail to balance it,(to long nose).it was build like a tank,(over built).like biplanes.

I just love this little bipe. Had a chance to fly the full scale a few years ago, I am partial to open cocpit byplanes. The EAA museum houses two copies built by local homebuilders, one of which is deceased. Someday maybe I might try the model, or maybe the full scale. Keep us informed as to the build and conversion for the G-26. I have a G-26 I plan on breaking in on a BUSA 1/4 scale DR-1 this spring!!!

JEB:D

This fall was a disaster for building... I have the wings done and the fuse all but forward top cover for the fuel tank.... the solering is next and I appreciate the info on that topic... I will need it. Hopefully more to come over the winter.

I am finally closing in on the completion of my EAA Bipe. Did the painting over the weekend. Covering is white solartex from balsa usa with red lustrekote and then clear lustrekote over the whole thing. It's a rough approximation of the paint scheme the full-scale photos above. See workshop photos below. Sorry for the poor quality - I took them with my cellphone.

Does anybody have any suggestions on cool 1/4-scale pilots that might be appropriate for this plane?

Sorry I have had to stop my correspondence but now have a halfway completed EAA bipe up for sale with a new in box G26 if anyone is interested; probably go on the classified section soon. Need the workshpp for a much larger project that needs to get going..... don't want to store this plane and watch it get crunched.