WELCOME BACK to the RC Giants column. Winter is here, and we
Northerners are in the midst of another building season. Those living in
the warmer southern climates are fortunate to be able to fly all year.
However, that translates into less building and, consequently, inferior
Giant Scale models.
I’m only teasing about the inferior models, because I’m jealous of
not being able to fly year-round.
On the topic of winter, February means it’s time again for the
WRAM Show, which gets its name from the host club: the
Westchester Radio AeroModelers of White Plains, New York.
It’s one of the country’s largest hobby trade events, and it’s the
biggest on the East Coast. This
gathering has been held every
year since 1968.
The WRAM Show is held
each year at the Westchester
County Center. This year’s dates
are February 19-21. A large
number of manufacturers and
organizations will be represented,
and the static competition for all
types of RC models is a longtime
attendee favorite. Visit the club’s
Web site for more information.
This month I’ll feature four
AMA members’ Giant Scale
aircraft. The first one is easily
identifiable and has been a
favorite subject among modelers.
WRAM Show 2010
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Giants Sal Calvagna
Also included in this column:
• A de Havilland Tiger Moth by Larry Alles
• Chuck Backman’s Seversky P-35
• The Polish Lublin R-XIIID by Larry
Botsford
• John Fitzmaurice’s Aviatik 30.40
Larry Alles with his 40% D.H.82 that spans more than 140 inches,
weighs 42 pounds, and has a ZDZ 100 gas engine.
Above: Larry Botsford’s 1930s
Polish Lublin R-XIIID is 1/4 scale
and spans roughly 130 inches.
Joseph Scalet photo.
Left: The Lublin R-XIIID in
flight. A Saito FG-36 fills the
number-one cylinder position
among a three-dimensional
dummy radial engine. Scalet
photo.
Chuck Backman of Madison, Wisconsin, drew his own plans for this
Zenoah G-45-powered Seversky P-35. John Camien photo.
Notice the P-35’s unusual
gear configuration. The
gear did not retract fully
into the wing, leaving
just a streamline fairing
below. Camien photo.
The others are rarely seen at local fields or flying events.
Larry Alles of Chalfont, Pennsylvania, built a beautiful 40% de
Havilland Tiger Moth from Gary Allen plans, which were originally
sized at 30%. But Larry wanted something a bit larger for his ZDZ
100cc in-line twin gas engine. The model weighs 42 pounds, spans
more than 140 inches, and is covered with Solartex.
He is a member of the Buc-Le Aero Sportsmen of Bucks County,
Pennsylvania. Its field is located in Quakertown, where the club hosts
the ever-popular Warbirds Over Pennsylvania fly-in.
February 2010 103
02sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 12/21/09 9:43 AM Page 103
104 MODEL AVIATION
John Fitzmaurice with his nearly completed 30% Aviatik 30.40,
which has a 40cc Briggs & Stratton two-stroke gas engine.
The de Havilland D.H.82 Tiger Moth was a 1930s biplane that
Geoffrey de Havilland designed to be a primary trainer for the British
Royal Air Force. Before World War II, de Havilland Aircraft of Canada
manufactured the D.H.82, and licensed versions were made in Norway,
Portugal, and Sweden. At the outbreak of the war, the Tiger Moth was
built in Australia and New Zealand.
Of the 8,700 D.H.82s built, 4,200 went to the Royal Air Force, where
it was used to train thousands of pilots for wartime service. The aircraft
remained in service until 1952, at which time many entered civil
operation since they were inexpensive to operate.
Today, many of these biplanes are used for recreation and restored in
wartime colors and markings, in which they are seen at full-scale air
shows worldwide.
Chuck Backman constructed a great-looking and rarely modeled
Seversky P-35. Spanning 86 inches, it is 1/5 scale. The airplane weighs 23
pounds and is powered by a Zenoah G-45 gas engine.
Chuck built the model from Col. Art Johnson’s plans that he found in
the June 1992 Radio Control Modeler. Chuck made the molds for the
canopy and cowling, and he covered the P-35 with silkspan using nitrate
dope and fillers.
He applied the color using Brodak B-25 Silver dope. According to
Chuck, the silver dope has a high metal content that gives the impression
of a polished-aluminum finish. The scheme he used was from the 94th
Pursuit Squadron’s commander’s airplane that was based at Selfridge
Field in Michigan in 1937.
The full-scale P-35 left much to be desired as a fighter. It was
unstable, underarmed, and lacked armor protection for the pilot and selfsealing
fuel tanks. Some say that the airplane’s greatest claim to fame is
that it paved the way for the successful P-47 that Republic Aircraft built
on Long Island.
Although the P-35’s wartime performance was lackluster, it has some
interesting history. It was the first single-seat, all-metal pursuit aircraft
with retracting landing gear and enclosed cockpit to go into service with
the US Army Air Corps (USAAC).
Sweden ordered 120 export versions, but only 60 were sent; thenpresident
Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted an embargo at the outbreak of
hostilities leading up to WW II. The remaining 60 were designated the
“P-35A” and were sent to the USAAC in the Philippines.
Some of the aircraft bore Swedish markings when attacked by the
Japanese on December 7, 1941. The Japanese Navy ordered 20 two-seat
versions of the P-35 in 1938, and those became the only American-built
airplanes that Japan used operationally during the war.
Although he lives close to 70 miles from his club’s field, Chuck is a
member of the Fond du Lac Aeromodelers in Wisconsin. He claims that
the club has one of the best, if not the best, modeling fields in the
Midwest.
Chuck is a newly retired full-scale pilot with 30 years at American
Airlines, and he flew F-106s and A-10s while serving in the Air Force. He
says that he started in aviation flying models and now he’s back where he
started.
“I’m real happy with that!” he said.
Larry Botsford of Elizabeth City, North Carolina, modeled an unusual
Polish aircraft: the Lublin R-XIIID. At 1/4 scale, it spans more than 131
inches and weighs a paltry 26 pounds. Larry drew his plans from Polish
five-view drawings.
He wrote:
“The Lublin RXIIID was an obscure Polish observation airplane that
served the Polish Air Force from 1934 until the Germans invaded in 1939.
It was rather large for a short field airplane but it had a Wright 220hp built
under license by Skoda for power.
“The Lublin was flown by both the Polish Airforce and by the Navy,
the latter being on floats. The Lublin had a good reputation with its crews,
it was easy to fly and a reliable machine.
“The Lublin squadrons that flew during the two weeks that it took for
Germany to overrun Poland suffered a 70% loss rate, much of it from
friendly ground fire. No Lublin aircraft survived the invasion by the
Germans.
“I had built a .40-size Lublin RXIIID almost 20 years ago and it flew
really badly. I screwed up the airfoil on the little one and vowed to
someday do it right.
“I have never seen a Lublin modeled and yet it looks like it should fly
great, which after getting the correct airfoil, it does. I also wanted to build
the airplane to 1/4 scale giving it a span of 131.5; just under 11 feet.
“The dummy engine posed a problem, it is very visible from the
front and the rear, so the fake cylinders had to have fronts and back
sides. Williams Brothers came through with a perfect 1/4 scale replica.
And a Saito FG36 fills the #1 cylinder position; most people ask what
kind of a radial is that?
“The cabane struts, landing gear structure and the functional shock
struts are all made of #4130 1/4 x.035 chrome moly tubing that I welded
up. The landing gear was then covered with fabric just as the real plane,
and again Williams Brothers came through with the wheels.
“The wing may look simple but it is elliptical on the outer halves
and tapers both on the top and bottom to the tips with 2 degrees of
washout that I added. And then the ailerons are cut out at an odd angle
giving me one more challenge during wing construction.
“The fuselage and tail are straight forward ply and balsa
construction with the nose shape being achieved by balsa blocks and
lots of sanding. It’s covered in the old antique Super Coverite and
painted with Klass Kote epoxy that was custom mixed to achieve the
correct colors.
“The cockpit interior is all scratch-built right down to the seat belt
buckles. I was very lucky to get in contact with the chief of the Registry
& Research Dept of the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow Poland, a
Mr. Piotr Lopalewski, who provided me with the correct color mixes
and lots of other good documentation, a very helpful gentleman.
“It flies just as you would expect a 26 pound airplane with a million
square inches and a Clark-Y airfoil, really slow and gentle!”
You chose a great modeling subject and it’s nicely done, Larry! I
hope to see it in person one day.
John Fitzmaurice of Toms River, New Jersey, constructed a 30%
Aviatik 30.40. Talk about unusual; only one full-scale version was ever
built. It was manufactured and flown in the summer of 1918 and was
the lightest fighter that the Austro-Hungarian Empire ever built.
Weighing a mere 586 kilograms fully loaded, the Aviatik 30.40 was
powered by a 150-horsepower LeRhône rotary engine. This airplane
was fast for its time, but shortages late in World War I led to the
project’s being shelved.
John is building his Aviatik based on Dave Johnson drawings. The
model is covered with Solartex and painted with Behr exterior latex flat
paint. A Briggs & Stratton 40cc gas engine will provide the power.
John will have the aircraft ready to fly in the coming year. Keep up
the great work, John!
That’s all for now. I hope to see you at the WRAM Show! MA
Sources:
WRAM Show
www.wram.org
International Miniature Aircraft Association
www.fly-imaa.org
02sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 12/21/09 9:43 AM Page 104
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/02
Page Numbers: 103,104
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/02
Page Numbers: 103,104
WELCOME BACK to the RC Giants column. Winter is here, and we
Northerners are in the midst of another building season. Those living in
the warmer southern climates are fortunate to be able to fly all year.
However, that translates into less building and, consequently, inferior
Giant Scale models.
I’m only teasing about the inferior models, because I’m jealous of
not being able to fly year-round.
On the topic of winter, February means it’s time again for the
WRAM Show, which gets its name from the host club: the
Westchester Radio AeroModelers of White Plains, New York.
It’s one of the country’s largest hobby trade events, and it’s the
biggest on the East Coast. This
gathering has been held every
year since 1968.
The WRAM Show is held
each year at the Westchester
County Center. This year’s dates
are February 19-21. A large
number of manufacturers and
organizations will be represented,
and the static competition for all
types of RC models is a longtime
attendee favorite. Visit the club’s
Web site for more information.
This month I’ll feature four
AMA members’ Giant Scale
aircraft. The first one is easily
identifiable and has been a
favorite subject among modelers.
WRAM Show 2010
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Giants Sal Calvagna
Also included in this column:
• A de Havilland Tiger Moth by Larry Alles
• Chuck Backman’s Seversky P-35
• The Polish Lublin R-XIIID by Larry
Botsford
• John Fitzmaurice’s Aviatik 30.40
Larry Alles with his 40% D.H.82 that spans more than 140 inches,
weighs 42 pounds, and has a ZDZ 100 gas engine.
Above: Larry Botsford’s 1930s
Polish Lublin R-XIIID is 1/4 scale
and spans roughly 130 inches.
Joseph Scalet photo.
Left: The Lublin R-XIIID in
flight. A Saito FG-36 fills the
number-one cylinder position
among a three-dimensional
dummy radial engine. Scalet
photo.
Chuck Backman of Madison, Wisconsin, drew his own plans for this
Zenoah G-45-powered Seversky P-35. John Camien photo.
Notice the P-35’s unusual
gear configuration. The
gear did not retract fully
into the wing, leaving
just a streamline fairing
below. Camien photo.
The others are rarely seen at local fields or flying events.
Larry Alles of Chalfont, Pennsylvania, built a beautiful 40% de
Havilland Tiger Moth from Gary Allen plans, which were originally
sized at 30%. But Larry wanted something a bit larger for his ZDZ
100cc in-line twin gas engine. The model weighs 42 pounds, spans
more than 140 inches, and is covered with Solartex.
He is a member of the Buc-Le Aero Sportsmen of Bucks County,
Pennsylvania. Its field is located in Quakertown, where the club hosts
the ever-popular Warbirds Over Pennsylvania fly-in.
February 2010 103
02sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 12/21/09 9:43 AM Page 103
104 MODEL AVIATION
John Fitzmaurice with his nearly completed 30% Aviatik 30.40,
which has a 40cc Briggs & Stratton two-stroke gas engine.
The de Havilland D.H.82 Tiger Moth was a 1930s biplane that
Geoffrey de Havilland designed to be a primary trainer for the British
Royal Air Force. Before World War II, de Havilland Aircraft of Canada
manufactured the D.H.82, and licensed versions were made in Norway,
Portugal, and Sweden. At the outbreak of the war, the Tiger Moth was
built in Australia and New Zealand.
Of the 8,700 D.H.82s built, 4,200 went to the Royal Air Force, where
it was used to train thousands of pilots for wartime service. The aircraft
remained in service until 1952, at which time many entered civil
operation since they were inexpensive to operate.
Today, many of these biplanes are used for recreation and restored in
wartime colors and markings, in which they are seen at full-scale air
shows worldwide.
Chuck Backman constructed a great-looking and rarely modeled
Seversky P-35. Spanning 86 inches, it is 1/5 scale. The airplane weighs 23
pounds and is powered by a Zenoah G-45 gas engine.
Chuck built the model from Col. Art Johnson’s plans that he found in
the June 1992 Radio Control Modeler. Chuck made the molds for the
canopy and cowling, and he covered the P-35 with silkspan using nitrate
dope and fillers.
He applied the color using Brodak B-25 Silver dope. According to
Chuck, the silver dope has a high metal content that gives the impression
of a polished-aluminum finish. The scheme he used was from the 94th
Pursuit Squadron’s commander’s airplane that was based at Selfridge
Field in Michigan in 1937.
The full-scale P-35 left much to be desired as a fighter. It was
unstable, underarmed, and lacked armor protection for the pilot and selfsealing
fuel tanks. Some say that the airplane’s greatest claim to fame is
that it paved the way for the successful P-47 that Republic Aircraft built
on Long Island.
Although the P-35’s wartime performance was lackluster, it has some
interesting history. It was the first single-seat, all-metal pursuit aircraft
with retracting landing gear and enclosed cockpit to go into service with
the US Army Air Corps (USAAC).
Sweden ordered 120 export versions, but only 60 were sent; thenpresident
Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted an embargo at the outbreak of
hostilities leading up to WW II. The remaining 60 were designated the
“P-35A” and were sent to the USAAC in the Philippines.
Some of the aircraft bore Swedish markings when attacked by the
Japanese on December 7, 1941. The Japanese Navy ordered 20 two-seat
versions of the P-35 in 1938, and those became the only American-built
airplanes that Japan used operationally during the war.
Although he lives close to 70 miles from his club’s field, Chuck is a
member of the Fond du Lac Aeromodelers in Wisconsin. He claims that
the club has one of the best, if not the best, modeling fields in the
Midwest.
Chuck is a newly retired full-scale pilot with 30 years at American
Airlines, and he flew F-106s and A-10s while serving in the Air Force. He
says that he started in aviation flying models and now he’s back where he
started.
“I’m real happy with that!” he said.
Larry Botsford of Elizabeth City, North Carolina, modeled an unusual
Polish aircraft: the Lublin R-XIIID. At 1/4 scale, it spans more than 131
inches and weighs a paltry 26 pounds. Larry drew his plans from Polish
five-view drawings.
He wrote:
“The Lublin RXIIID was an obscure Polish observation airplane that
served the Polish Air Force from 1934 until the Germans invaded in 1939.
It was rather large for a short field airplane but it had a Wright 220hp built
under license by Skoda for power.
“The Lublin was flown by both the Polish Airforce and by the Navy,
the latter being on floats. The Lublin had a good reputation with its crews,
it was easy to fly and a reliable machine.
“The Lublin squadrons that flew during the two weeks that it took for
Germany to overrun Poland suffered a 70% loss rate, much of it from
friendly ground fire. No Lublin aircraft survived the invasion by the
Germans.
“I had built a .40-size Lublin RXIIID almost 20 years ago and it flew
really badly. I screwed up the airfoil on the little one and vowed to
someday do it right.
“I have never seen a Lublin modeled and yet it looks like it should fly
great, which after getting the correct airfoil, it does. I also wanted to build
the airplane to 1/4 scale giving it a span of 131.5; just under 11 feet.
“The dummy engine posed a problem, it is very visible from the
front and the rear, so the fake cylinders had to have fronts and back
sides. Williams Brothers came through with a perfect 1/4 scale replica.
And a Saito FG36 fills the #1 cylinder position; most people ask what
kind of a radial is that?
“The cabane struts, landing gear structure and the functional shock
struts are all made of #4130 1/4 x.035 chrome moly tubing that I welded
up. The landing gear was then covered with fabric just as the real plane,
and again Williams Brothers came through with the wheels.
“The wing may look simple but it is elliptical on the outer halves
and tapers both on the top and bottom to the tips with 2 degrees of
washout that I added. And then the ailerons are cut out at an odd angle
giving me one more challenge during wing construction.
“The fuselage and tail are straight forward ply and balsa
construction with the nose shape being achieved by balsa blocks and
lots of sanding. It’s covered in the old antique Super Coverite and
painted with Klass Kote epoxy that was custom mixed to achieve the
correct colors.
“The cockpit interior is all scratch-built right down to the seat belt
buckles. I was very lucky to get in contact with the chief of the Registry
& Research Dept of the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow Poland, a
Mr. Piotr Lopalewski, who provided me with the correct color mixes
and lots of other good documentation, a very helpful gentleman.
“It flies just as you would expect a 26 pound airplane with a million
square inches and a Clark-Y airfoil, really slow and gentle!”
You chose a great modeling subject and it’s nicely done, Larry! I
hope to see it in person one day.
John Fitzmaurice of Toms River, New Jersey, constructed a 30%
Aviatik 30.40. Talk about unusual; only one full-scale version was ever
built. It was manufactured and flown in the summer of 1918 and was
the lightest fighter that the Austro-Hungarian Empire ever built.
Weighing a mere 586 kilograms fully loaded, the Aviatik 30.40 was
powered by a 150-horsepower LeRhône rotary engine. This airplane
was fast for its time, but shortages late in World War I led to the
project’s being shelved.
John is building his Aviatik based on Dave Johnson drawings. The
model is covered with Solartex and painted with Behr exterior latex flat
paint. A Briggs & Stratton 40cc gas engine will provide the power.
John will have the aircraft ready to fly in the coming year. Keep up
the great work, John!
That’s all for now. I hope to see you at the WRAM Show! MA
Sources:
WRAM Show
www.wram.org
International Miniature Aircraft Association
www.fly-imaa.org
02sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 12/21/09 9:43 AM Page 104