32" Pietenpol Air Camper restoration

[TooJung2Die]

When I got to the airfield the guys said, "We saved an airplane for you!". Someone was giving away a whole collection of RC airplanes and stuff. It was already picked over thoroughly but as they said this old balsa and tissue Pietenpol Air Camper was there. I don't want to disappoint them so it came home with me.

I started taking it apart then stopped for a photo. The fuselage is rough but that 32" wing looks beautiful. The wing struts are missing. Looking for ideas for new ones that'll be easily removable.

It had a brushed motor gearbox and an FM receiver. That'll get replaced with a brushless motor of course.

Outerzone has 11 sets of plans for the Pietenpol, none with a 32" wingspan. I don't know who built this but it looks like a pure scratch-built from plans airplane. This is my kind of airplane. Tissue paper or doculam ... decision time.

Jon

 

[Piotrsko]

Comments: doculam because tissue is so fragile, but I much prefer silk / fabric store dacron and 10,000 coats of butyrate. (Just kidding) Bbq skewers or 1/16 dowell, silicone fuel tube for attach points

Nice score even if it was a leftover. Some people don't appreciate one off stuff. Bet the full scale plans were this size because back in the day rolled plans were 24 x 36, cost $10 bucks out of the back pages of Sport Av, and everyone had access to a set.

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

Shoot, the hard part is done, (I dislike building wings, I have 3 planes sitting here waiting for me to start cutting ribs.)
I like the old Pietes though. Cool project.

 

[TooJung2Die]

Comments: doculam because tissue is so fragile, but I much prefer silk / fabric store dacron and 10,000 coats of butyrate. (Just kidding) Bbq skewers or 1/16 dowell, silicone fuel tube for attach points.

I'm not laughing because I'd enjoy being able to use dope again. I also really love covering with tissue. You can't beat tissue for looks unless it's silk. I recently covered the "Twin Cyclone" in tissue and it's holding up remarkably well. I flew it again today.

I get the bamboo or dowel for struts but how do you use tubing to attach the ends?

Shoot, the hard part is done, (I dislike building wings, I have 3 planes sitting here waiting for me to start cutting ribs.)
I like the old Pietes though. Cool project.

The fun part is done. I must be nuts but cutting ribs by hand and building the wing is my favorite part. I'm leaning towards Doculam covering. I don't want to get too involved with someone else's build.

I'm taking a break from stripping the old tissue to write this. Fuselage done and the wing is next.

Jon

 

[speedbirdted]

Found the plan, if you need to rebuild anything on it I attached the original pdf below. It does look like whoever built this took some liberties in the design, notably in the cabane mounting. Here at least the wing seems permanently attached. The cardstock parts also seem to be built from light balsa.

Flying my extremely overengineered Q-tee around has made me want one of these. Maybe I'll build one in quarter scale or something...

 

[TooJung2Die]

Found the plan, if you need to rebuild anything on it I attached the original pdf below.

Thank you. There are a lot of similarities in that plan. The same plan is on Outerzone. It is for a 28" rubber power. I downloaded it because it has a lot of detail for the Model A engine. This wing has a flat bottom airfoil. When I'm done with the wing it'll be about an inch longer. The wingtips on this wing are not scale (there are no "wingtips").

The tissue is stripped off the wing. It's not as pretty inside. There is a lot of excess glue to remove on the joints. The left side trailing edge had to be cut free and reattached flat because it was curled upwards.

I have to remember not to get too OCD about every little thing since this is going to be painted after it is covered. One detail I can't ignore is when gussets are cut wrong. These gussets have the wood grain in the wrong direction. They add only weight, not strength when glued in this way.

Looks like this is turning into a bit more than strip, cover, and update the electronics.

Jon

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

Hate to say it, but I think it might take less time to start clean from the plans. But I run into that as well and determination sets in. Loose Nut....

 

[speedbirdted]

Huh. Looks similar enough that I would be willing to bet money it might be scaled up from that exact plan. Didn't see a wingspan measurement on the one I found...

 

[TooJung2Die]

Hate to say it, but I think it might take less time to start clean from the plans. But I run into that as well and determination sets in. Loose Nut....

I have to listen to the lazy side of my brain and remind myself this is just an old second hand airplane. I'm not restoring a museum piece. I'm not going to add wingtips or put effort into making fiddly little improvements. Let's get it flying.

The flying surfaces are covered with 1.5 mil doculam. Now I can turn my attention to the fuselage and installing the motor and electronics.

Jon

 

[Joker 53150]

Hate to say it, but I think it might take less time to start clean from the plans. But I run into that as well and determination sets in. Loose Nut....

That's certainly a hidden trap in projects like that - you start adding more and more to the "to do" list, and eventually you're doing a complete restoration. Been there, done that.

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

I have to listen to the lazy side of my brain and remind myself this is just an old second hand airplane. I'm not restoring a museum piece. I'm not going to add wingtips or put effort into making fiddly little improvements. Let's get it flying.

The flying surfaces are covered with 1.5 mil doculam. Now I can turn my attention to the fuselage and installing the motor and electronics.

Jon

Good way to look at it. I like the Doculam covering, haven't tried it yet, but it shows off the "patina" of the wood.

 

[TooJung2Die]

The clear "bare-bones" look is great for some airplanes. This one will be painted. I made the motor mount and a hatch for the nose.

Jon

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

Looks good Jon. The mounting looks like a BL motor but the bell does not. What is it?

Ed

 

[TooJung2Die]

It's an AX 1806N 2100kv from Hobby King. I like it because it has similar specs to 1806 quad motors but the 3mm shaft and the mount is better for airplanes:
Hobby King 1806 2100kv

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

Ahh. I like the little quad motors but found the mounts were lacking. I didn't care for making them from plywood or the 3D printed ones. They have a tendency to loosen up the mounting screws.
I got with Small Parts CNC and came up with an Aluminum X mount that covers the small size motors. They liked it enough and saw the growing demand for this size plane so they decided to add them to their offerings. I took delivery of the first 15 and now getting ready to order more. Here's a pic on a variety I was testing.
They liked the picture so much they asked to use it on their listing.
And yes, the Suppo is the A1510

 

[TooJung2Die]

I got with Small Parts CNC and came up with an Aluminum X mount that covers the small size motors.

I like those. It's about time someone made a proper X mount for Quad motors. Like you, I made the mount from plywood or plastic. To keep the screws from backing out I use blue Loctite on the threads or a drop of CA on the screw head.

I looked for them on the http://smallpartscnc.com website. Are those the "universal" x mounts with slotted holes for the motor?

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

I like those. It's about time someone made a proper X mount for Quad motors. Like you, I made the mount from plywood or plastic. To keep the screws from backing out I use blue Loctite on the threads or a drop of CA on the screw head.

I looked for them on the http://smallpartscnc.com website. Are those the "universal" x mounts with slotted holes for the motor?

Yes, they are slotted from 12 to 16mm centers. They work great. Think the firewall pic on my Citabria build has a pic of the mount too.
If they aren't up yet, send them a note and tell them Ed Larsen sent you.

 

[Loose Nut on Stick]

Yes, they are slotted from 12 to 16mm centers. They work great. Think the firewall pic on my Citabria build has a pic of the mount too.
If they aren't up yet, send them a note and tell them Ed Larsen sent you.

Better pic of what you get. The screws you get were M2 x 4mm long and after testing we settled on 5mm

 

[TooJung2Die]

Yes, they are slotted from 12 to 16mm centers. They work great. Think the firewall pic on my Citabria build has a pic of the mount too.
If they aren't up yet, send them a note and tell them Ed Larsen sent you.

Good to know. They don't have them up yet for small motors. Larger sizes of the same design are listed.

This is for everyone that hates Doculam because it doesn't shrink like model airplane film. You are right, but it stretches too. There is a pretty good compound curve on the carved block under the nose. Leave a generous amount of film overhang. Tack it down the center with an iron then heat it up with a heat gun and pull. It stretches like rubber over compound curves.

Smooth.

Everything is covered and almost ready to paint.

Jon

 

[speedbirdted]

Impressive. I need to give Doculam another try. Problem is I haven't got any models to cover it in. I guess I ought to build more small stuff.

How does paint adhere to the stuff? Does it need primer?