104 MODEL AVIATION
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
IT’S CHRISTMASTIME AGAIN! It’s
time to really think about the new radio, kit,
plans, books, tools, or other items you just
can’t do without. It’s the time of year to leave
the catalogs out with items marked that you
want for Christmas. Our spouses usually want
to keep us happy and can find the time to
make a trip to the local hobby shop or use the
plastic and an 800 number to order the items
we want or need.
For the younger crowd, mom and dad
might help your quest for Radio Control (RC)
gear and Scale-model stuff. Are you just
starting in Scale modeling? Pick out a simple
subject such as a J-3 Cub or a PT-19, and get
your mom and dad to put that under the
Christmas tree. Let me see the results of your
building project and I’ll put the photos in the
column!
If you’re unsure about documentation or a
simple color scheme, write to me and we’ll
help you with that aspect of building the
model. Also a good source of documentation
is the National Association of Scale
Aeromodelers Web page at www.scaleaero.
com/NASA.htm. This site has articles and
other information about documentation and
Scale modeling. This is just one of the many
Scale sites that are linked to AMA’s and other
Scale pages.
Baby Ace: I’ve finally been able to work on
my Corben Baby Ace some more, and the
fuselage is coming along nicely. Using the
materials recommended on the plans wasn’t
a problem, although I did change some of
the formers slightly to fit my preference.
The fuselage longerons are 1⁄4 square
hardwood, as are some of the crossmembers.
The author has made progress on his Corben Baby Ace’s fuselage assembly.
Don Smith’s Ki-27 is finished in a pre-WW II color scheme. Don Smith is offering plans for the Nakajima Ki-27.
I used balsa behind the cockpit.
This model is of a parasol-wing type
home-built aircraft, so you don’t have to deal
with the wing saddle. However, you do have
wires bent down into the bottom of the
fuselage, mounted to hardwood gear blocks.
These steel wires supply the attachment
points for the center-section of the wing, to
which the outside wing panels are attached.
Building the fuselage and getting it
straight at the end of basic assembly is one of
the critical steps of building the model and
getting everything square and balanced. If
you don’t get it straight here, you could have
a terrible-flying model when it’s finished.
I’ve checked the basic dimensions of the
Ace’s nose, adding the Du-Bro soft-mount
engine mount and the cowl to the firewall for
a test fit. This gives me a good idea of how it
will finish up later.
Now I want to secure the rear of the model
so that the structure won’t warp after I’ve
added the vertical and horizontal stabilizers.
Rudder and elevators will be added later. All
of the crossmembers have been installed,
along with the wooden diagonal braces. The
next step is to add the braces to the 1⁄4-inch
sticks in the rear and the turtledeck.
New Plans: Don Smith Plans has long been
an excellent source for many top Scale
modelers. His latest offering is a Japanese
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:20 am Page 104
fighter from the 1930s that was used in the
war with China and World War II: the
Nakajima Ki-27, which the US code-named
“Nate.”
The Ki-27 could be compared to the US’s
P-26 Peashooter or other fighters of that era.
The Peashooter had fixed gear and an open
cockpit, whereas this version of the Nate had
an enclosed canopy. Don has a few other
Japanese fighters on his list of plans,
including the Ki-84 and the Ki-61.
The Ki-27 is designed in 1⁄4 scale with a
wingspan of 111 inches and a wing area of
1,798 square inches. It’s 69 inches long, and
its expected weight is 39 pounds. Engines
used are 2.1-3.8 cubic inches, which is a fairly
large range. Don uses a Fuji .64 in his model.
Available accessories include a fiberglass
cowl, a fiberglass tail cone, fiberglass wheel
pants and legs, a canopy, the main landing
gear and tail wheel, and scale 7-inch-diameter
wheels.
The plans come on four sheets, with quite
a few details added for the modeler. Some of
these include hinging positions (Robart Hinge
Points are recommended), cockpit details, an
instrument panel, and some of the panel lines
for the fuselage and wing.
With competition in mind, Don sells the
three-view scale drawings the Ki-27 was
drawn from. I highly suggest that you obtain
these if you decide to build the model. Photo
documentation came from the book Famous
Airplanes of the World, number 29.
Documentation for this model is available
in the book Military Aviation Library:
Japanese and Italian Aircraft by Bill
Gunston. It has several pages about the Ki-27,
drawings, and five color side views. I’m
listing these sources since this is an off-thebeaten-
path full-scale subject.
Don has a catalog of large Scale models
ranging from the 66-inch-span Curtiss R3C-2
racer to the 202-inch-span Tupolev Tu-95
Bear. Some of the other designs include the
Howard DGA-15, the Boeing B-17G, the
Douglas A-26, the de Havilland Mosquito, the
B-24 Liberator, the Grumman F7F Tigercat,
the Dornier Do 335 Arrow, and the Cessna T-
50 Bobcat, also known as the Bamboo
Bomber.
Wood kits for most of these models are
available from several kit-cutting companies.
The catalog is $3. Don Smith Plans does not
accept credit cards. The address 620 Hastings
St., Boca Raton FL 33487; Tel.: (561) 989-
9113; E-mail: [email protected]; Web
site: www.donsmithplans.com.
New Products: Glenn Torrance Models is
offering five-color World War I lozenge
fabric in light and dark schemes for 1⁄4-scale
models. It is printed per the original World
War I cloth. It’s 100% linen, dyed and roller
printed. Panels of the fabric are sold for $18
each and are 16 x 60 inches.
To add the lozenges to your model, you
can use several glues for fabric such as
Balsarite or Sig Stix-It. After you glue the
cloth to the model’s framework, add two coats
of nitrate dope and five coats of butyrate dope.
The fabric works well on any World War I
German airplane that used the five-color
scheme. Be sure that you don’t have an
aircraft with the seven-color scheme. (I hope
to see that fabric soon!) Glenn has two
museum-quality 1⁄4-scale World War I kits—
the Fokker D.VIII and the Dr.I—and parts for
various types of that era. Contact Glenn
Torrance Models at 1263 Kylemore Ln.,
Snellville GA 30078; Tel.: (770) 695-1032;
Web site: www.gtmodels.com.
What’s Being Built: Bob Tabler sent a photo
of his 88-inch-span PT-19 built from the
Dynaflite kit. He obtained documentation
from an old photo taken just after World War
II. Bob bought a PT-19 for only $500 just
after the war and kept it for roughly two years,
until he joined the Air Force. I wish you could
find a PT-19 that flew for $500 now.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
January 2004 107
Glenn Torrance Models’ five-lozenge fabric is realistic for
modelers who build aircraft of the World War I era.
Bob Tabler built his 88-inch-span PT-19 from the Dynaflite kit. It
features a YS 120FS engine and Robart struts.
® 3-in-1 Lathe/Mill/Drill
OWN A MACHINE SHOP!
GUARANTEED
to pay for itself!
CALL TOLL FREE
1-800-345-6342
Visit us at www.Smithy.com
• Easy to use – No experience
required, call us Toll-Free
for machining help.
• Versatile – Fix or make almost
anything made of metal,
wood, or plastic.
• Affordable – 6 models
to choose, starting
as low as just $995.
• CNC Compatible
FREE!
Info
Kit
Write: Smithy Co., P.O. Box 1517 Dept MA, Ann Arbor, MI 48106
SMITHY OWNERS SAY:
“I can fix ‘most anything.
I don’t know how I lived
without my Smithy. It
paid for itself in no time.” DIVERSIFIED SOLUTIONS
5932 Chicago Ave. South, Minneapolis, MN 55417
Ph: 1-612-243-1234 Fax: 1-612-243-8950
Email: [email protected] • Web: www.klasskote.com
For Color Chart and Information, Send SASE
Don’t Delay – Order Yours Today!
You Built the Best Model, So Use The Best Paint!
“Superior
Quality”
Epoxy Paint
System
Available in
Colors, Clear
& Primer.
38 Years of Extensive Field
Performance Provides
Outstanding Adhesion & Protection Against Many RC Model Fuels
522
zes
les
ors
ign
ing
QUES
TOO
AMA
vices
vent.
and
ell as
wide
lors.
ITY
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:20 am Page 107
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 104,107
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 104,107
104 MODEL AVIATION
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
IT’S CHRISTMASTIME AGAIN! It’s
time to really think about the new radio, kit,
plans, books, tools, or other items you just
can’t do without. It’s the time of year to leave
the catalogs out with items marked that you
want for Christmas. Our spouses usually want
to keep us happy and can find the time to
make a trip to the local hobby shop or use the
plastic and an 800 number to order the items
we want or need.
For the younger crowd, mom and dad
might help your quest for Radio Control (RC)
gear and Scale-model stuff. Are you just
starting in Scale modeling? Pick out a simple
subject such as a J-3 Cub or a PT-19, and get
your mom and dad to put that under the
Christmas tree. Let me see the results of your
building project and I’ll put the photos in the
column!
If you’re unsure about documentation or a
simple color scheme, write to me and we’ll
help you with that aspect of building the
model. Also a good source of documentation
is the National Association of Scale
Aeromodelers Web page at www.scaleaero.
com/NASA.htm. This site has articles and
other information about documentation and
Scale modeling. This is just one of the many
Scale sites that are linked to AMA’s and other
Scale pages.
Baby Ace: I’ve finally been able to work on
my Corben Baby Ace some more, and the
fuselage is coming along nicely. Using the
materials recommended on the plans wasn’t
a problem, although I did change some of
the formers slightly to fit my preference.
The fuselage longerons are 1⁄4 square
hardwood, as are some of the crossmembers.
The author has made progress on his Corben Baby Ace’s fuselage assembly.
Don Smith’s Ki-27 is finished in a pre-WW II color scheme. Don Smith is offering plans for the Nakajima Ki-27.
I used balsa behind the cockpit.
This model is of a parasol-wing type
home-built aircraft, so you don’t have to deal
with the wing saddle. However, you do have
wires bent down into the bottom of the
fuselage, mounted to hardwood gear blocks.
These steel wires supply the attachment
points for the center-section of the wing, to
which the outside wing panels are attached.
Building the fuselage and getting it
straight at the end of basic assembly is one of
the critical steps of building the model and
getting everything square and balanced. If
you don’t get it straight here, you could have
a terrible-flying model when it’s finished.
I’ve checked the basic dimensions of the
Ace’s nose, adding the Du-Bro soft-mount
engine mount and the cowl to the firewall for
a test fit. This gives me a good idea of how it
will finish up later.
Now I want to secure the rear of the model
so that the structure won’t warp after I’ve
added the vertical and horizontal stabilizers.
Rudder and elevators will be added later. All
of the crossmembers have been installed,
along with the wooden diagonal braces. The
next step is to add the braces to the 1⁄4-inch
sticks in the rear and the turtledeck.
New Plans: Don Smith Plans has long been
an excellent source for many top Scale
modelers. His latest offering is a Japanese
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:20 am Page 104
fighter from the 1930s that was used in the
war with China and World War II: the
Nakajima Ki-27, which the US code-named
“Nate.”
The Ki-27 could be compared to the US’s
P-26 Peashooter or other fighters of that era.
The Peashooter had fixed gear and an open
cockpit, whereas this version of the Nate had
an enclosed canopy. Don has a few other
Japanese fighters on his list of plans,
including the Ki-84 and the Ki-61.
The Ki-27 is designed in 1⁄4 scale with a
wingspan of 111 inches and a wing area of
1,798 square inches. It’s 69 inches long, and
its expected weight is 39 pounds. Engines
used are 2.1-3.8 cubic inches, which is a fairly
large range. Don uses a Fuji .64 in his model.
Available accessories include a fiberglass
cowl, a fiberglass tail cone, fiberglass wheel
pants and legs, a canopy, the main landing
gear and tail wheel, and scale 7-inch-diameter
wheels.
The plans come on four sheets, with quite
a few details added for the modeler. Some of
these include hinging positions (Robart Hinge
Points are recommended), cockpit details, an
instrument panel, and some of the panel lines
for the fuselage and wing.
With competition in mind, Don sells the
three-view scale drawings the Ki-27 was
drawn from. I highly suggest that you obtain
these if you decide to build the model. Photo
documentation came from the book Famous
Airplanes of the World, number 29.
Documentation for this model is available
in the book Military Aviation Library:
Japanese and Italian Aircraft by Bill
Gunston. It has several pages about the Ki-27,
drawings, and five color side views. I’m
listing these sources since this is an off-thebeaten-
path full-scale subject.
Don has a catalog of large Scale models
ranging from the 66-inch-span Curtiss R3C-2
racer to the 202-inch-span Tupolev Tu-95
Bear. Some of the other designs include the
Howard DGA-15, the Boeing B-17G, the
Douglas A-26, the de Havilland Mosquito, the
B-24 Liberator, the Grumman F7F Tigercat,
the Dornier Do 335 Arrow, and the Cessna T-
50 Bobcat, also known as the Bamboo
Bomber.
Wood kits for most of these models are
available from several kit-cutting companies.
The catalog is $3. Don Smith Plans does not
accept credit cards. The address 620 Hastings
St., Boca Raton FL 33487; Tel.: (561) 989-
9113; E-mail: [email protected]; Web
site: www.donsmithplans.com.
New Products: Glenn Torrance Models is
offering five-color World War I lozenge
fabric in light and dark schemes for 1⁄4-scale
models. It is printed per the original World
War I cloth. It’s 100% linen, dyed and roller
printed. Panels of the fabric are sold for $18
each and are 16 x 60 inches.
To add the lozenges to your model, you
can use several glues for fabric such as
Balsarite or Sig Stix-It. After you glue the
cloth to the model’s framework, add two coats
of nitrate dope and five coats of butyrate dope.
The fabric works well on any World War I
German airplane that used the five-color
scheme. Be sure that you don’t have an
aircraft with the seven-color scheme. (I hope
to see that fabric soon!) Glenn has two
museum-quality 1⁄4-scale World War I kits—
the Fokker D.VIII and the Dr.I—and parts for
various types of that era. Contact Glenn
Torrance Models at 1263 Kylemore Ln.,
Snellville GA 30078; Tel.: (770) 695-1032;
Web site: www.gtmodels.com.
What’s Being Built: Bob Tabler sent a photo
of his 88-inch-span PT-19 built from the
Dynaflite kit. He obtained documentation
from an old photo taken just after World War
II. Bob bought a PT-19 for only $500 just
after the war and kept it for roughly two years,
until he joined the Air Force. I wish you could
find a PT-19 that flew for $500 now.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
January 2004 107
Glenn Torrance Models’ five-lozenge fabric is realistic for
modelers who build aircraft of the World War I era.
Bob Tabler built his 88-inch-span PT-19 from the Dynaflite kit. It
features a YS 120FS engine and Robart struts.
® 3-in-1 Lathe/Mill/Drill
OWN A MACHINE SHOP!
GUARANTEED
to pay for itself!
CALL TOLL FREE
1-800-345-6342
Visit us at www.Smithy.com
• Easy to use – No experience
required, call us Toll-Free
for machining help.
• Versatile – Fix or make almost
anything made of metal,
wood, or plastic.
• Affordable – 6 models
to choose, starting
as low as just $995.
• CNC Compatible
FREE!
Info
Kit
Write: Smithy Co., P.O. Box 1517 Dept MA, Ann Arbor, MI 48106
SMITHY OWNERS SAY:
“I can fix ‘most anything.
I don’t know how I lived
without my Smithy. It
paid for itself in no time.” DIVERSIFIED SOLUTIONS
5932 Chicago Ave. South, Minneapolis, MN 55417
Ph: 1-612-243-1234 Fax: 1-612-243-8950
Email: [email protected] • Web: www.klasskote.com
For Color Chart and Information, Send SASE
Don’t Delay – Order Yours Today!
You Built the Best Model, So Use The Best Paint!
“Superior
Quality”
Epoxy Paint
System
Available in
Colors, Clear
& Primer.
38 Years of Extensive Field
Performance Provides
Outstanding Adhesion & Protection Against Many RC Model Fuels
522
zes
les
ors
ign
ing
QUES
TOO
AMA
vices
vent.
and
ell as
wide
lors.
ITY
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:20 am Page 107