AMA Plans Service Showcase
Electric CL Skyraider
CL MODELS HAVE taken full advantage
of lightweight electric power systems in
the last few years. Dick Sarpolus created
his foam profile with the goal of a
“Stuntable” electric-powered design, to be
flown from 35-foot lines. Other goals
included good flight and aerobatic
performance, with no noise and no mess.
Depron construction makes the airframe
simple to build. The wing spar and front of
the fuselage are reinforced with 1/4 spruce.
Full Stunt
performance
in a sheetfoam
profile
design
May 2010 109
mount can be modified to
accommodate an outrunner.
This completed model had
a wingspan of 31 inches and
225 square inches of wing
area, with a flying weight of
10.5 ounces.
Dick noted that this
Skyraider was fun to fly and
satisfied his design goals; it
was clean, quiet, and capable
of most Stunt (CL Precision
Aerobatics) maneuvers. It
even handled a light breeze
and stayed out on the lines
during entire flights.
The Electric CL Skyraider
was featured in a construction
article in the September 2005
MA. It’s AMA Plans Service
listing 980B and is available
for $10 plus shipping and
handling. See page 167 or go
to www.modelaircraft.org/
plans.aspx for ordering
information. MA
Carbon-fiber tubing could also be used in
the wing for strength.
Dick used five-minute epoxy
throughout construction. He omitted the
landing gear, because this Skyraider
would be flown from grass.
The power system was a Feigao motor
mated to a GWS gearbox. This setup
provided 88 watts of power on a threecell,
1250 mAh Li-Poly battery, pulling
8 amps. However, pilots are not limited
to that combination; this design’s motor
05sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 3/24/10 2:05 PM Page 109
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/05
Page Numbers: 109
