Drake II
The original puddle jumper
There have been many prolific and original model airplane designers in our hobby, but none more productive and revered than Ken Willard. His model designs were not only aesthetically pleasing, but they also flew well and were reasonably easy to build.
Ken's Drake II was a result of the success of his earlier 1/2A free-flight version of the nifty flying boat.
For the larger Drake II, which is an RC design, Ken opted to use an O.S. Max .15 glow engine. The 48-inch-span model proved to be a winner on and above the water.
The Drake II is a fairly simple project, but it is a step up in building challenges from the models we have been presenting in this feature each month since its inception. We figure that your building skills are improving as you construct the designs we highlight here.
The Drake II features:
- a sheet-balsa fuselage
- a constant-chord wing with a high-lift airfoil
- a built-up tail assembly
- an engine pod that mounts atop the wing, making electric conversion easy
Ken Willard's Drake II is plans set 314, which is available for $14 from the AMA Plans Service. See page 199 or go to www.modelaircraft.org/plans.aspx for ordering information.
Stretch your building horizons and get your feet wet flying off of water!
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
