fliir

Bob:

I love your idea, but I think that you are looking at WAY too much weight with a pair of .70 four strokes and floats.

The TF only has about 750 squares of wing. I imagine you will be at thirteen pounds or more, which is well over 30 oz. / sq. ft. wing loading. With that sharply tapered wing, I think you are looking at "challenging" flight charateristics.

The designer says that a pair of two stroke .25s fly the plane nicely:

http://www.top-flite.com/reviews/topa0500-rcr.html

David

Mustang Fever

My Feedback: (2)

Yeah. Maybe a pair of .40 LA two strokes would be a better way to go.

Michel

Greetings

Well I ve thought about it a lot and this is what I ve come out with : If I put in Saito 56s , its overkill , if I put in OS 46ax s , its overkill . Ive thought about the OS LA-40s , but theses engines are bushings and I don t want less than better in a $2000 plane , so this is what I ve decided I will be putting in OS 32sx s . This makes more sence than any , and its a very reliable engine . What I would of loved is to put in Saito 30s , but they are no longer available

I won t be starting the build for another year or two , but I do have the kit and the retracts and lots of time to change my mind

Happy flying

Mike [8D]

Mustang Fever

My Feedback: (2)

Choosing the right power is always such a process, but I think I've made a start on developing a formula that works. It goes like this: Always overpower. Always. But prop for a realistic speed.

Examples:

I have a 4 Star 60 on floats. I'm running a Magnum 91 two stroke, but with a 15x6 prop, so top speed is only about 60mph, and there is all kinds of thrust available for playing games.

I have a Great Planes DR-1 arf that calls for a maximum 75 four stroke, and I have a Magnum 91 four stroke. With a 14x6 prop, top end is around 55 mph, but the thrust is incredible.

It's almost a truism that most planes build tail heavy. Putting in a heavier engine means less lead in the nose. The real bonus, tho, is when you get in trouble. Power can get you out.

fliir

Mike and Bob:

I think you two are BOTH on the right track. Those engines are about the same weight and power (32SX, 40LA) and I think that they will serve you well.

I know the .40LA is just a bushed motor, but I have had 2 of them and they are easy-tuning, good-running engines, especially for the money. They will also turn good diameter props giving good thrust for water takeoffs.

david

jaimefernando

Hi guys,

a question for you related to the construction of the T/F DC-3. I am on page 28 of the Instructions Manual, but I'm stuck on Point 3. It is asking me to build the Bottom Corner Filler from blasa. The problem is that there is no reference to this part in the drawing.

Any suggestions?.

Thanks...Jaime

jaka

Hi!
OS FP .40 are exellent engines in a twin,anything bigger is going to make the DC-3 fly like pattern plane or racer! But even the OS FP or LA .40 are way too powerful in a DC-3 of this size.

I have two OS FS .26 four strokes in my Marutaka DC-3 (span 211cm, weight 3,6kg)and it flies best on under half throttle and do so very realisticly. Take of is so easy and swift that I can't imagine what would happen if you used more powerful engines. It would just leap into the air and fly like a pattern plane which is certainly not what I would like to see my DC-3 doing.

My recommendation to all pilots that have a desire for the Marutaka or the Top Flite DC-3, is to use either the .20-.25 OS FP/LA engines swinging 10c4-10x5 APC props or using OS or any other .30 four stroke engine, swinging 10x5 or 10x6 APC props.

br549

My Feedback: (6)

Will (2) OS48 FS Surpass engines be too much for this plane? This is what I have. What about CG and prop clearance issues? I do have access to (2) OS .25 FSR two strokes. They seem a bit light in power for such a big plane.

Thanks,

BR549

Mustang Fever

My Feedback: (2)

Page 3 in the Instruction Manual, "Engine Selection", is very specific on this point. If you want it to handle well in an engine out situation, use the largest engines recommended. It also specifically states that if you use the largest engines recommended, you'll have to throttle back some for realistic flight.

jaka

Hi!
It all depends how light you build the model! Mine weights 3,6kg. 4kg is no problem for a pair of OS .26 four strokes turning good propellers

If you just put a model together,following the manual ...it will most of the time be heavy and this requires larger engines,l arger tanks and larger engine mounts....see the negative spiral.
If you on the other hand don't accept the manufactuers metods all the time and instead carv away balsa and plywood where it's not needed you get a ligthly built model that flies real good and scale like and not behaves like a pattern plane. But to always do this takes experience.

As I said before...anything bigger than OS .26 four strokes will be to much power and will make the model fly real bad! That's a fact!! Sorry! But that's my 32 years flying experince from flying pylon racing (still do)and buiding and constructing all kinds of R/C airplane models.
The opinion that one should be able to fly a twin on one engine in case of an emergence is is just not relevant !
You don't fly a scale twin on one engine! You land immediately if one engine fails!!!
Of course I can fly my DC-3 on one engine ...there is power to spare using those OS .26 engines (fuel 15% Motul Micro all syntetic oil and 5% nitro). But why risk it ??

Robby

My Feedback: (18)

If any of you know someone who might be interested I have one about 70% built
that I am not going to finish as I have other interest now.

(Please excuse the colored arrows on wing pic..
I was showing someone wing mounting [8D]

thisoldman

My Feedback: (29)

starting to build one mysef. Have the retracts and saito fa45 engines. Building to scale as much as can be done with the top flight.. Also have ziroli DC3 retracts if anyone interested in them. Have been watching the builds on the dc3. Won't be long and fall will be here.. Time to start building again..

n6iap

Is this thread still active? I'm starting the TF Kit to build it as a C47 tow aircraft.

Thank you for any comments.

cstevenpeterson

My Feedback: (21)

I guess it is now. I have one in the box and probably will not get to it anytime soon, but I like to follow what others are doing. Unfortunately, I cannot answer any specific questions for you, but I think if you start posting progress, you will probably get responses from those that have already built one. I did order fiberglass cowls, nose and tail pieces along with the Robart retracts for my kit...

Steve

n6iap

Almost 10 years after the thread was started I am going to list my progress and ask for help while I build this C-47 Dakota. I have unpacked the mass of wood and materials, as well as inventoried the content. This thing is huge! When you open the plans and book to find yellowing of the pages, it is a reminder of how long this kit has been around.

I am building the Dakota as a tribute to the WWII Airborne. Another local club member is building the WACO glider and we hope to demonstrate the TOW capability of the Dakota as well. Here is the stabilizer framed.

Please feel free to leave comments and ask questions. I know this is a build time for the rest of the world but it is fly time here in Florida so progress may be slow at first.

jimm

cstevenpeterson

My Feedback: (21)

I'm tuned in....

TBonez

I plan on building one this coming fall. I know it's a long time away, but my Chipmunk needs to be finished first.

TEBerg

My Feedback: (1)

I'm building this kit as a C-53. I have a write up going on the other scale site...

I'll be watching your progress here. I've been on hold for a couple months, so you may catch up to me soon. It will be cool to follow your ideas.

Blue Skies...

somatom22

How about the union of the wings are very fragil and it has to be reforced with another strong wood at the unions ?
im going to start this proyect as soon as I get mi kit here in Mexico ,I'm so exited to start build this baby . And if you guys could give some experiences tips all you can give me to have a good construction .
regards
Jesse

PeterF

I have had no problems with the wing joined. Remember all the weight of engines, retracts and fuel is on the centre section of the wing and the outer panels only carry their own weight. Therefore the joint between centre and outer panels does not carry much load.

brockettman

Jesse,
PeterF is right, All of the wing weight is in the center section of the wing. The wing union should be strong enough if you build according to plans. One tip for you as you build your plane... Try to build the tail section as light as possible so you don't have to add too much weight to the nose for balance. Good luck with your build.

Zoomer02

I just acquired one of these and since Horizon has acquired Top Flite I no longer have internet access to the construction manual. I need to know the CG position and the recommend control surface throws. If anyone could help it would be appreciated. I look through several threads but did not see the information anywhere. Thanks again.

PeterF

The Wayback Machine on the Internet Archive is your friend, just amazed how few people know about this. It keeps records of huge amounts of web pages even after they have been taken down. Once on the recorded site you can navigate around as though it was the real site, the recorded point was from late 2017. I have downloaded the manual for you anyways as well.

DC-3 page https://web.archive.org/web/20171112.../topa0500.html

Manuals page https://web.archive.org/web/20171012...als/index.html

Zoomer02

Thanks a lot! This is a big help hopefully I can get this plane up in the air in the next week or so.