26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/07
Page Numbers: 26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36
26 MODEL AVIATION
by Jim Beagle
This model has a presence
in the air, with its 92.3-inch
wingspan. Five brushed
motors and gearboxes
provide the classic bomber
rumble.
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
Rarely modeled
German giant
electrified
The ground crew poses for a photograph. This scene is
similar to that in an original picture that the author found.
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:39 AM Page 26
Right: Five brushed
GWS Speed 400s geared
3.0:1 provide the power.
The nose motor is
shown, installed within
the cowl framework.
Below: Upper and lower
horizontal stabilizers and
elevators are identical.
Pull-pull tubes are
installed through the
formers.
Jim designed the tail of the fuselage to incorporate a cross-stitch
pattern of braided line. Braided line is passed through small lasercut
holes in the corners of each former.
Laser-cut “combs” aid in aligning ribs over the plans. Laminated interplane struts are attached to laminated ribs using
Du-Bro straps. These provide a secure and easy method of
attachment.
Box construction is used for the front of the fuselage, with sides,
formers, and doublers keyed together.
Photos by the author
“R-PLANES” WERE THE German giants of the Great War.
The “R” stood for Riesenflugzeug, which translates to “giant
aeroplane.” These strategic bombers were a result of Ferdinand
Graf von Zeppelin’s ambitions and imagination.
He had realized how vulnerable his large dirigible airships
would be as soon as airplanes could get to them. Zeppelin took
advantage of the great space available in the airship sheds and
built most of these bombers at the Berlin suburb of Staaken.
Zeppelin-Staaken engines were housed in nacelles that were
big enough for the mechanics to make in-flight repairs by
literally working within each gondola. The massive 18-wheel
undercarriage had to bear enormous weights, with huge 1,000-
kilogram bombs. A ground staff of 42 was required just to get the
aircraft out of the hangar.
The Staaken was difficult to shoot down, with its size,
defensive guns, and security of its five engines in tandem push-
July 2010 27
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 10:41 AM Page 27
Three 1/32 plywood ribs are laminated together to capture the Du-
Bro straps. Spars are 1/8-inch-diameter carbon-fiber rods.
The top wing has two turrets built from 1/8 balsa and covered with
1/32 plywood.
Blue foam has been sanded to shape to form the engine nacelle. It is supported with light plywood and carbon-fiber rods.
28 MODEL AVIATION
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 1:59 PM Page 28
Each nacelle supports two motors: one as a tractor and one as a
pusher. The motors are mounted on a 10mm balsa stick.
This shows the externally mounted radiators; each of the five
motors has one. The mechanic is standing in the access opening
that made in-flight repairs possible on the full-scale aircraft.
The Staaken had an interesting defense method. Above each
nacelle, a hole through the upper wing allowed crew members to
climb up a small ladder and fire their guns at the enemy
approaching from above.
It takes a lot of wood to construct the Staaken; 47 sheets were required. Manzano Laser Works handled all of the laser cutting.
This five-color lozenge pattern is a modified version of one that
Jim found on the Internet. He printed it on tissue and then applied
it over Solite.
July 2010 29
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:02 PM Page 29
30 MODEL AVIATION
Above: The Staaken stands ready for its
first mission. The lozenge pattern helps it
blend in with its surroundings on the
ground or in the air.
Right: The five motors put out
approximately 64 watts per pound. The
amount of drag on this large bomber
requires that it be at full power
throughout the flight.
pull arrangements. Only two R-planes
were lost during raids, and that was
because of a failed landing in fog and a
mechanical failure.
The Ukrainian government chartered
one of the last of these biplanes that
Zeppelin-Staaken built, R70/18, to
transfer funds into the country from
Germany. R70 was confiscated by the
Romanians on September 19, 1919,
following a forced landing at Bessarabia,
in Eastern Europe.
I had wanted to build a large bomber
for sometime, and I was convinced that a
large World War I biplane was in my
future when I saw the movie Flyboys. This
would be my first attempt at designing a
model.
With the large quantity of ribs, this
project was perfect for laser cutting. I used
three-view drawings from Windsock
Datafile #123, Staaken at War, as a basis
for the scale outline, with specific details
drawn using AutoCAD 2000. The final
drawing includes all necessary views for
building and a layout of all 47 laser-cut
sheets.
Charlie Bice of Manzano Laser Works
provided expert advice, regarding wood
selection and laser kerf allowances, and
other design assistance. This company
was excellent, providing quick response
and delivery times. Hardly any stock balsa
is used in this design; nearly everything is
laser-cut to fit.
CONSTRUCTION
Fuselage: After many hours of AutoCAD
work, I was eager to get the CA flowing; I
started with the outboard rudders. The 1/8
balsa parts were assembled over the plans,
and I protected them with waxed paper.
Watch the
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV Flight Video!
Keith Shaw piloted this design’s
second flight, which took place at the
Mid-Am Electric Flies event in Northville
Township, Michigan. Go to the Model
Aviation Online Web site to see footage
showing how this behemoth handled the
less-than-ideal weather conditions. MA
—Jay Smith
Sources:
Model Aviation Online
(765) 287-1256
www.modelaircraft.org/mag
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:07 PM Page 30
July 2010 31
Zeppelin-Staaken
XIV “R” Bomber
A smiling Jim Beagle with his completed aircraft and its crew.
Thin CA was applied to the joints with a
microtip applicator.
The upper and lower horizontal
stabilizers and elevators are identical and
contain 1/8 balsa parts. For extra strength in
key areas, I used laminated 1/32 plywood
between two corresponding 1/16 balsa parts
and then sanded to a common thickness
with the mating balsa details.
The front of the fuselage is a typical box
construction. But it is more than 4 inches
wide, so each side consists of two laser-cut
1/8 balsa parts adhered at the saw-tooth joint.
Then the 1/8 light plywood fuselage doublers
are aligned and glued to the upper and lower
edge of the fuselage sides.
I made the fuselage formers from 1/8
light plywood and balsa. Dovetail joints are
used to assemble the four sides of each
former, with the wood grain running in the
direction that will maximize strength.
The bottom sheet is pinned to the
building board, and then the fuselage sides
are assembled. You can also construct the
rudder servo tray inside the fuselage at this
time. The rudder and elevator are pull-pull,
and the servo trays are designed for standard
units in the proper orientation.
The front elevator servo is installed on its
side and supported by using parts V2 and
both V3s. This method aligns the servo arm
with the elevator motion, providing a simple
pull-pull line attachment.
Staaken pilots had access to the top side
of the fuselage in two places forward of the
wings. The area between those openings was
a natural place for a battery hatch.
I attached the front cowl to the firewall
with 4-40 blind nuts and socket-head
capscrews. Two 1/8 balsa fuselage doublers
are installed near the upper edge and two
scrap pieces are glued to the fuselage floor,
to give the landing gear straps something to
screw into.
Type: RC semiscale
Skill level: Intermediate builder,
intermediate pilot
Scale: 1:18
Wingspan: 92.3 inches
Wing area: 1,724 square inches
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Wing loading: 20 ounces/square foot
Motors: Five Speed 400 with 3.0:1 gear
Propellers: APC 9 x 4.7
Watts: 480
Power: 64 watts per pound
Radio: Spektrum AR6200 receiver, Hitec
HS-81 aileron servo, Hitec HS-425 rudder
and elevator servos
Other: Castle Creations Griffin-55 ESC
(front motor and receiver), JOMAR analog
ESC (four nacelle motors), 3S2P-4340
mAh Li-Poly battery
07sig1x_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/25/10 2:09 PM Page 31
34 MODEL AVIATION
I wanted the Staaken to be powered by
five brushed motors and gearboxes, for that
classic bomber rumble. The GWS gearboxes
are designed for 10mm square hard balsa
sticks, which BP Hobbies sells in 12-inch
lengths.
The position of the gearbox was adjusted
to provide clearance between the cowl and the
1/8 light plywood spinner backplate. The
diameter of the 400 motor interferes slightly
with the top stringer of the cowl frame, which
must be sanded to fit.
After I verified the clearances, I epoxied
the motorstick in place. The model’s cowl
was created using four blue-foam blocks,
adhered in place into the cowl frame with
aliphatic glue.
I employed a belt sander, then a coarse-grit
sandpaper block, then a 220-grit sanding bar
to achieve the desired shape. The interior was
opened up with a drum sander on an electric
rotary tool.
The Staaken XIV employed two
undercarriage legs with fairings to support the
front axle. The front legs are two light
plywood struts laminated together. The front
axle is also supported from the rear with a 3/32-
inch-diameter wire, bent to shape over the
plans.
I sanded a groove into the underside of the
foam cowl in the area around the landing gear
attachment rod. The strut attachment is a 5/32-
inch-diameter brass rod inserted through the
cowl’s laminated stringers and epoxied in
place.
A 4-40 threaded rod then passes through
the brass bushing. The front landing gear
assembly was temporarily clamped in
position, to verify locations. I added two scrap
pieces of light plywood and glued them
between the fairings, for a bit more strength.
The area around the landing gear is filled
with spackle and sanded smooth. The 3/32 wire
axle, rear landing gear wire, and axle plate are
lashed together using braided musky fishing
line.
I fabricated the tail end of the fuselage
from four 1/8 basswood laser-cut stringers.
The basswood stringers are glued to the rear
fuselage side and then glued to the front
fuselage box. The formers are each assembled
into notches in the basswood stringers.
The tail assembly is built over the plans. I
soaked the 1/16 balsa parts with water, bent
them into a curve, and let them dry for a few
hours.
The tail of the fuselage was designed to
incorporate a cross-stitch pattern of braided
line. Starting on the bottom side of the box
end of the fuselage, I passed the braided line
through small laser-cut holes in the corners of
each former.
I stretched each string segment taut and
wicked thin CA into the hole to hold the string
in place. I applied a drop of thick CA after the
second string was passed through each hole,
and then I sprayed kicker while holding the
braided line tight.
The crisscross pattern of braided line
greatly improved the rigidity of the fuselage
while maintaining the lightweight structure.
Plastic tubes are threaded through the lasercut
holes in each former for pull-pull lines to
pass through.
Wings: A unique attachment method is used
on the wing struts. Metal landing gear straps
(Du-Bro item 158) are laminated between two
1/32 plywood ribs. A third plywood rib in the
middle is used to align and keep the strap in
place.
One end of the Du-Bro strap is drilled out
to 1/8 inch in diameter, for a carbon-fiber spar
to pass through. Then the interplane struts can
be attached to the straps with #2-56 blind nuts
and socket-head capscrews.
Starting with one side of the upper wing, I
constructed the spars from 1/8-inch-diameter
carbon-fiber rods cut to length. The rods slide
into 5/32 brass tubing, per the plans. Two short
sections of wire are bent over the plans to join
the two sections of brass.
The TE is pinned to the board over the
plans. The balsa ribs are “skewered” onto the
rear spar, like a shish kebab.
Four laser-cut rib-alignment combs are
utilized to help keep things straight during
assembly. I used thin CA to glue the ribs to
the TE and then adhered the ribs to the rear
spar with a drop of thick CA.
The laminated ribs are not glued until the
upper wing has been removed from the board.
The front carbon-fiber rod spar is inserted
through the ribs, and the process is completed
from root to tip.
The 1/4 balsa dowel LE is glued to each
rib. After all 1/16 balsa ribs are glued, I flipped
the wing over and aligned the Du-Bro straps
between each of the three 1/32 plywood ribs,
clamped them together, and wicked CA into
the edges. Then I glued the “doughnuts” onto
each side of the laminated ribs, for lateral
strength.
Aileron ribs are keyed into the hinge line.
The aileron tip is three pieces of 1/16 balsa,
laminated and sanded into a classic wingtip
profile. The ribs are not thick enough to fully
install the Hitec HS-81 servo and enclose it
with a hatch, but the servos are unobtrusive
with the wing undercamber.
The Du-Bro straps point up on the bottom
wing, so the three plywood ribs can be
assembled directly on the board. The ribs are
assembled using the same methods as on the
upper wing.
Although the lower wing does not have
ailerons, it does have other design and
building challenges. In addition to the sweptback
portion, it has 2° of dihedral.
The outer section of the wing is supported
on blocks at the appropriate angle, and the
joiner wires are bent per the plans. Strut ribs
in this section support the landing gear below
and the nacelle above, so there are five ribs
laminated together to set the correct angle for
the Du-Bro straps.
The Staaken had an interesting method of
defense. Above each nacelle was a hole
through the upper wing; the crew members
could climb up a small ladder and fire their
guns at the enemy approaching from above. I
wouldn’t think that would have been the
safest position with a Bristol Fighter coming
down on you!
The turret box is framed with scrap balsa;
the box protrudes above the ribs by 1/8 inch all
around. The turret fairings and cap are built
from custom-fit 1/32 plywood.
The 36-inch servo extensions are threaded
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:03 AM Page 34
through the rib holes in the upper wings, and
12-gauge motor wires are installed in the
lower wings. Scrap balsa is added to the area
where the wires will come out of the wing
covering.
I built the nacelle struts using four balsa
lengths that create a hollow center, through
which the motor wires pass. The center of
each interplane strut is 1/32 plywood and
captures the end of the Du-Bro strap. The
center-section is sandwiched between two
pieces of 1/8 light plywood, glued, and
clamped together.
Nacelles: These are similar in construction to
the cowl, with 1/8 light plywood forming the
skeleton of the structure. I cut the 10mm x
10mm balsa stick to length and installed it in
the center nacelle section but did not glue it,
allowing the GWS 400 motor gearbox to be
temporarily mounted.
I glued four 4-40 blind nuts into the
firewall and then attached the cowling
baseplate with 4-40 1/2-inch bolts. I dryassembled
the cowl front plate with stringers.
Then I centered the spinner backplate onto the
prop shaft and clamped it into position.
After checking that all parts are seated,
centered, and square, glue the assembly
together. You can flesh out the nacelles by
adhering four sections of blue foam in place
and then sanding to shape.
I glued a paper copy of the cross-sectional
view of the nacelles onto a piece of fan-fold
foam to use as a fixture spacer between the
lower wing and the nacelle, to ensure the
proper incidence. The lower strut attachment
points have a similar construction as the front
cowling, using the Du-Bro straps with 4-40
threaded rod.
Final Fit and Assembly: The center rudder is
of conventional design with CA hinges, but
the outboard rudders are “balanced.” I
inserted two short lengths of music wire into
each end of the rudder. These plug into short
lengths of brass tubing that are epoxied into
the upper and lower horizontal stabilizers,
thereby allowing the rudders to pivot.
The center wing struts attach to four
points on top of the fuselage. Du-Bro metal
landing gear straps are bent at a 30° angle
toward the center.
The carbon-fiber rod and straps are
assembled in place. Lower wing spars plug
into the brass tubes that span the fuselage.
Fuselage struts meet at the center of the top
wing and capture a Du-Bro strap on each
spar.
The carbon-fiber rods and doughnuts are
aligned and glued into the fuselage. Nacelles
are again assembled to the lower wing.
Nacelle struts going to the top wing are
made from 3/32-inch-diameter wire slid into
lengths of 4mm carbon-fiber tube. A short
length of brass tube is pinched at the top of
the struts, and 2-56 bolts are attached through
the Du-Bro strap.
Finishing: I fiberglassed the nacelles with 3/4-
ounce cloth and water-based polyurethane
mixed with baby powder to fill the weave.
Two more coats were needed to get a smooth
surface.
I added several panel lines using 1/16-inch
pin-striping. Struts and nacelles were painted
with Model Master Intermediate Blue. The
interplane struts were painted with Blue Angel
Blue.
Unable to find propeller spinners that were
the appropriate shape, I happened upon some
plastic Easter eggs in the grocery store that
would work. Each egg had a small package of
chocolates inside, so I had to buy a few extra.
Yum!
The backplate is 1/8 light plywood laser-cut
to 2 inches in diameter. Four 1/4 x 3/8-inch
balsa blocks are glued and sanded to fit the
interior egg profile. Then I used a rotary tool
to cut the eggs to the correct size.
My propeller shafts are threaded, so I used
four small button-head screws to attach the
spinner after mounting the propellers.
Covering: Some Zeppelin-Staaken bombers
had lozenge covering with large polygons of
irregular patterns that were hand-painted on
the airframe. The R70/18 model used the
conventional five-color, top-side lozenge
fabric that was preprinted and used on other
biplanes of the era.
However, at a scale of 1:18, the lozenge
fabric would be only 3 inches wide. To put
this into perspective, there are roughly 75
polygons in a 3 x 3-inch area; that
36 MODEL AVIATION
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 36
July 2010 37
Suddenly the R70 pitched up a bit, and
then all five motors cut out. An attempt to
rearm the ESC was made, but the altitude
was insufficient to save it. The bomber came
down at an angle and made an impact nose
first, with the front of the fuselage taking the
majority of the contact.
The nose gear and front of the fuselage
sustained minor damage. Coincidently,
according to the history books, front landing
gear problems were also experienced in
1918. So I guess I followed “scale” a bit too
closely.
After making the necessary repairs, we
performed additional ground range checks
and experienced some radio-frequency
interference problems. The five brushed
motors created more of an electrical noise
issue than I had anticipated. Long servo
wires for the ailerons might also have been
part of the noise.
I decided to purchase a Spektrum dX7
transmitter and Spektrum AR6200 receiver.
Installing the 2.4 GHz system resolved all
noise and servo interference. Keith and I
tested the motors at full throttle and cycled
the servos, with no glitches.
A few weeks later at the Mid-Am
Electric flies event in Northville Township,
Michigan, I attempted a second flight. The
field was in great shape, and Keith was at
the controls again.
He applied full throttle and the Staaken
rumbled straight down the runway. Liftoff
occurred with a slow climb and large
circuits around the field. full throttle was
required for most of the flight; there is
considerable drag on this airframe.
Keith made a few passes and a couple
clicks of trim adjustment. The slight breeze
greatly affects the bomber’s light wing
loading, and rudder input was required
throughout the flight.
After a few minutes, the aircraft came in
on the approach and settled in smoothly. An
hour later, under slightly less breezy
conditions, the second flight was longer and
Keith was able to back off a bit on the
throttle.
I thank Keith, Jim Young, C.J. Wysocki,
Bob foran, frank Jaerschky, Charlie Bice,
Rick Cornell, Rick Allen, and many others
who have supported me throughout this
project.
A special thank you to my wife, deb, and
daughters, Rachael and Jordynn, for their
support and tolerance of the many hours I
spent in the basement building the Zeppelin-
Staaken. MA
Jim Beagle
[email protected]
Sources:
Manzano Laser Works
(505) 286-2640
www.manzanolaser.com
du-Bro
(800) 848-9411
www.dubro.com
Hitec
(858) 748-6948
www.hitecrcd.com
Bp Hobbies
(732) 287-3933
www.bphobbies.com
GWS USA
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Spektrum
(800) 338-4639
www.spektrumrc.com
Mid-Am Electric flies
http://homepage.mac.com/kmyersefo
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
Electronic Model Systems/JOMAR
products
(800) 845-8978
www.emsjomar.com
406.260.4088
MODEL
GRAPHICS
SCALE
MARKINGS
& A LOT
www.wildmanngraphics.net MORE!
e: [email protected]
extrapolates to more than 36,000 polygons on
my design’s airframe!
The printed-tissue-over-Solite technique
was the only practical method to use to
achieve this excessive amount of lozenge
pattern at this scale. Solite is made in
England and weighs only .6 ounce per
square yard. I covered each part of the
airframe with this base layer of white
covering.
I found the five-color lozenge file on the
Internet in a pdf file and used publisher
software to customize the patterns. Standard
tissue at my hobby shop is 20 x 30 inches,
so I taped two sheets of copy paper to an 11
x 30-inch overall size.
I sprayed a coat of Krylon Easy-Tack
onto the carrier paper and then laid the
tissue on the paper to smooth all of the
wrinkles. I use an Hp-9650 printer, which
allows for direct-through printing of 11-
inch-wide paper. The printer settings are at
normal. I find that the best ink setting
applies too much ink and causes more
wrinkles.
A thin coat of nitrate dope is applied to
the Solite-covered surfaces and allowed to
dry. Then the printed tissue is positioned in
place. There is still some Easy-Tack on the
back side of the tissue, so it is simple to
reposition until you achieve the correct
location.
I brushed thinner onto the lozenge,
which soaked through the tissue and
combined with the nitrate dope for
permanent adhesion. I also applied two
more coatings of 50/50 dope and thinner for
a bit more shrinking. Last, I sprayed on a
water-proofer for additional protection
against the elements.
Ailerons are attached with a simple tape
hinge onto the Solite. Various pieces of
lozenge tissue are laid out to create the
patterns for the ailerons. The hinge line is
simulated with a thin black line over a wider
gray line, to give the illusion of depth to the
hinge.
I created the Balkenkreuze (a stylized
version of the Iron Cross) with my
publication software and then printed it
simultaneously with the lozenge pattern
onto the tissue.
Flying: The morning of the maiden flight
brought only a slight breeze from the
northeast. The ailerons were programmed
with one-third less down differential. The
three rudders had approximately 30° throw
and the two elevators had close to 20°.
The 16 wheels for the main landing gear
are only 21/2 inches in diameter, so the
rollout on rough grass was difficult. I placed
the Staaken on the smoothest part of the
field and made final checks.
I entrusted Keith Shaw with the sticks
for this maiden flight. The sound of five
propellers, five gearboxes, and five brushed
motors under full throttle was awesome.
Rollout continued for roughly 70 feet,
when the model’s wheels finally parted with
the ground. A full-power climbout was
continued under a slow turn to the left.
07sig2_00MSTRPG.QXD 5/26/10 9:05 AM Page 37