Author: Sal Calvagna
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/05
Page Numbers: 103,104,106
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Radio Control Giants - 2006/05

Sal Calvagna [[email protected]]

Sal works feverishly on his 1/4-scale Balsa USA Fokker D.VII

What have you been working on this winter?

After a vigorous campaign by my wife to move my building room from the cold garage to the not-so-cold basement, I finally capitulated. Working in the garage was fine during the spring, summer and fall, but it was uncomfortable during the coldest months of the year—the building season.

I wonder if she was really concerned about my comfort, or did she just want the garage back for her automobile?

I'm now in the basement, working feverishly to complete a 1/4-scale Balsa USA Fokker D.VII—one of the finest fighter aircraft of World War I.

I have much of the model framed. The unfinished areas include the landing gear, joining the wing panels, cabanes, struts, the engine cowling, and a few odds and ends before covering.

The D.VII is a relatively new kit being offered by Balsa USA of Marinette, Wisconsin. This rendition fits nicely into the company's World War I aircraft theme. The kit is constructed using the tried-and-true stick-built method.

Balsa USA provides full-size building plans, so all the structures are built directly over the plans. The company also provides a comprehensive instruction manual with many photos, step-by-step explanations, and a history of the full-scale aircraft. It's certainly not the kit of yesteryear, where a dozen typed pages with an equal amount of photos were all you got. The assembly manual includes more than 150 photos.

Model specifications:

  • Wingspan: 88 inches
  • Length: 68.875 inches
  • Estimated finished weight: roughly 18–20 pounds
  • Wing area: 2,225 square inches
  • Recommended power: 1.50 four-stroke or 25-35 cc gas engine
  • My chosen powerplant: Zenoah G-38 two-stroke gas engine

Other than the great flying qualities that all D.VIIs possess, I chose this model because it has no flying or landing wires that are typically found on World War I biplane aircraft. This translates to less work and less hassle with assembly at the flying field.

Another tick in the plus column is that there are many different color schemes to choose from. There is a plethora of information available to modelers about the Fokker D.VII. In an accompanying photo I show three books that are full of historical data and many color plates from which to choose a favorite scheme. Two of these books are published by Osprey Publishing and the third is from Squadron/Signal Publications. A quick search on the Internet for these books will find them readily available.

Although famous or infamous, depending on what side the combatant was on, the Fokker D.VII was an aircraft that almost wasn't. Anthony Fokker, the Dutch aircraft manufacturer, along with design engineer Reinhold Platz, were working on a prototype—Experimental Aircraft No. 11 (V.11)—for the first competition for D-class machines at the end of January 1918. Many types were entered in the competition and the winner would produce sorely needed fighters for front-line operations.

Fokker's new aircraft had an in-line engine and cantilever wings just like the famous triplane which required no external bracing wires. Anthony Fokker test flew the new aircraft before the competition started and it performed poorly.

In a last-ditch effort, Fokker and his staff worked through the weekend, lengthening the fuselage and enlarging the vertical fin. The result was a remarkable-flying aircraft that won the competition.

The V.11 was designated the D.VII and Fokker was awarded a large contract; however, he was unable to produce the large number of aircraft needed, so his rivals Albatros and OAW had to manufacture the D.VII under contract. The exact number of D.VIIs produced by the end of the war is uncertain, but it is estimated that approximately 2,000 airplanes were completed by the three manufacturers combined.

The Fokker D.VII became so feared and respected by Allied pilots that at war's end the Treaty of Versailles specifically instructed the Germans to surrender all D.VIIs. While most were given up, Fokker was able to appropriate enough parts for roughly 120 D.VIIs by train to Holland. The aircraft became the mainstay of the Dutch Air Force after the war.

The Fokker D.VII was popular with German pilots. It was fast, strong, easy to fly, superb at high altitudes, and arguably the best fighter of World War I. It has been said that it made mediocre pilots good and good pilots great.

My flying buddies are hoping that my 1/4-scale rendition of this famous aircraft can make a bad model pilot mediocre! Gee, thanks guys!

New plans: 26%-scale Aeronca Champion by Wendell Hostetler

Model-aircraft designer Wendell Hostetler of Orrville, Ohio, recently released his latest design: a 26%-scale Aeronca Champion. The Champion was designed to be powered by a gas or glow engine or by an electric motor.

Model specifications:

  • Ready-to-fly weight: less than 15 pounds
  • Wingspan: 109 inches
  • Length: 67 inches
  • Wing area: 1,622 square inches
  • Recommended power: 1.20–2.00 cubic inches for gas or glow; 100–1,400 watts for electric

The plans include two 42 x 96-inch sheets, three-views, and 20 construction photos. Wendell says that all the accessories are available from other sources.

Aeronca Champion background:

  • The Champion was a popular light aircraft; more than 10,000 were built after World War II.
  • It was based on the Model K Scout, which had tandem vs. side-by-side seating.
  • The first production Champion was designated the 7AC; later military versions were designated L-16s.
  • Aeronca sold the production rights to the Champion Aircraft Corporation in 1951; the aircraft was dropped from production that year.
  • In 1970 Bellanca acquired the assets of the Champion Aircraft Company and returned the Champion to production as the 7ACA, but only a small number were built.

To order plans:

Art Chester Jeep: Silas Seandel

Silas Seandel of Manhattan, New York, submitted a photo of his well-flown 1/4-scale Art Chester Jeep. The plans were designed by Henry Haffke. The full-scale aircraft was built strictly for racing and once held the world speed record of 237 mph.

Model details:

  • Wingspan: slightly more than 50 inches
  • Weight: roughly 6 pounds
  • Full-scale wingspan: 16 feet, 4 inches
  • Powerplant: Saito .72 four-stroke glow engine

Construction notes:

  • Silas used Randolph dope, which he mixed to get the correct color.
  • The canopy frame is made from thin plate and the louvers are made from card stock that was shaped first then wicked with thin cyanoacrylate glue to make a hardened, strong louver.

Silas is a member of the Hackensack Valley Flyers of New Jersey, which flies from a small field near Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

Closing / Call for submissions

That's all I have room for in this month's issue. Look for more about the Fokker D.VII building project in next month's column.

Now that I have shown you what I have been working on this winter, how about sharing your latest project with the readers? Send me a few photos with a brief write-up and I will do my best to include them in a future column.

It's time to get ready for another great flying season! I'll be back next month.

—Sal Calvagna

Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.