AMA Plans Service Showcase - 2010/09

THE FULL-SCALE Neptune was used for
maritime patrol; its primary mission was
antisubmarine duty. However, it saw service in
various applications until 1982.
Gary Fuller designed his RC version of the
aircraft to be easy to construct, using a box-type
fuselage. The wing inboard section is fully
sheeted, and the outboard section uses typical Dtube
construction. The wing is mounted to the
fuselage with a joiner tube, so that the model can
be easily disassembled for transport.
The P2V can easily be configured for fixed or
retractable landing gear, and mechanical retracts
were used in this build. Recommended power is
.25-size glow engines or the equivalent motors.
Gary ultimately decided to go electric, using
a pair of MaxCim MaxN32-13Y brushless
motors and 11.1-volt Li-Poly batteries. The
completed model has a wingspan of 80 inches
and 622 square inches of wing area, with a flying
weight of 10 pounds.
According to Gary in the construction article
published in the June 2005 MA, his design
exhibited realistic flight characteristics. He
recommended keeping the airspeed up on
approach, to preclude the chance of a stall on
landing.
The Lockheed P2V Neptune is AMA Plans
Service listing 977, available for $30 plus
shipping and handling. See page 155 or go to
www.modelaircraft.org/plans.aspx for ordering
information. MA