42" Mitsubishi A6M Zero Swappable - Build Thread

[localfiend]

So, yeah.... Guy at my local RC club wanted a Zero like my Mighty Mini only bigger.

Scaled this up to the same size as the spitfire. Swappable with the normal FT power pods. I'm assuming it should fly great on a C power pack with something like a 2200mah battery.

Kept the same hatch arrangement as the Mighty Mini so that you have the option to easily access batteries inside the power pod.






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Flight videos:

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Latest Plans:

42" Mitsubishi A6M Zero Swappable Beta Plans v.2 - Full

42" Mitsubishi A6M Zero Swappable Beta Plans v.2 - Tiled

 

[Jaxx]

Nice work. What software are you using to draw your plans? Do you have the non-tiled (full-sized) version of these plans?

 

[localfiend]

Nice work. What software are you using to draw your plans? Do you have the non-tiled (full-sized) version of these plans?

Thanks. I'm using DoubleCad XT cause it's free and pretty simple to use. There are just enough features to draw up plans and not a lot of extra headache.

Here's a full non tiled version:

42" Mitsubishi A6M Zero Beta v.1 Full

If you decide to build one of these let me know how it goes or if you have questions. I think you can follow the build thread for the Mighty Mini version pretty closely, not much changes other than power pod setup. Dunno when I'll get around to building one of my own, this was requested so I put it together.

 

[airhawk]

thanks local fiend for introducing me to double cad i love any way i love the zero and will subscribe to this one

 

[Jaxx]

Thanks. I'm using DoubleCad XT cause it's free and pretty simple to use. There are just enough features to draw up plans and not a lot of extra headache.

Here's a full non tiled version:

42" Mitsubishi A6M Zero Beta v.1 Full

If you decide to build one of these let me know how it goes or if you have questions. I think you can follow the build thread for the Mighty Mini version pretty closely, not much changes other than power pod setup. Dunno when I'll get around to building one of my own, this was requested so I put it together.

It's definitely going on my build list. Thanks for taking the time to design and share this.

 

[m00ndancer]

Subscribed. Really interesting.

 

[localfiend]

thanks local fiend for introducing me to double cad i love any way i love the zero and will subscribe to this one

No problem. The easier we can make designing and building the more planes we'll have to destroy.



I wasn't going to start building this yet... But the plans were just sitting there....




There's a few small things I found on the beta plans I need to tweak, and I decided to add a bit more under camber area to the wingtip while build it. So far so good.

 

[localfiend]

Almost done. Cowl is going to need some tweaking. Got a few ideas.

Also discovered a few issues with the plans - primarily that the spars are all wrong, and the hatch and formers are slightly too wide. Should be pretty easy fixes. Also, the fuse with the downthrust plate attached is too long to fit on a single sheet of foamboard. No biggie, it can be separated.



Some weight calculation:







If I add a bit more weight finishing off the build I imagine it'll come in around 625 grams, maybe a bit less. Plan on using a Tiger 2216-9 1100kv motor, 30a ESC, maybe an 11x6 carbon prop that's in the picture - need to check motor specs again, and 2200mah battery. Good news is that all of that balances out just fine before adding landing gear - tail heaviness shouldn't be a problem with this bigger model.

Did a bit of wing loading calculations out of curiosity. Wanted to see how it stacked up against an equivalent warbird.

42" Zero

Total Wing Area 268.72
Assuming weight of 625grams
Wing Loading - 11.81 ozs/sq.ft.
Wing Cube Loading - 8.6

42.5" FT Spitfire

Total Wing Area - 308.6
Assuming weight of 660 grams (Several reported to come in at this weight, though they varied from 650-700g)
Wing Loading - 10.86 oz./sq.ft.
Wing Cube Loading - 7.4

Not bad at all. I'm still using close to scale wings, so that loading is pretty darn good. Won't be quite as floaty as the Spitfire (David put some fat wings on that thing), but WCL of 8.6 is very good for a warbird. Should be a very smooth flier.

 

[airhawk]

looking good im building one of these once i get the sportster done can this run a c pack

 

[localfiend]

looking good im building one of these once i get the sportster done can this run a c pack

C power pack should be perfect for this plane, that's what I was aiming for when I sized it up. The motor I'm using is only slightly different than the C power pack design.


Got the plane finished and balanced.

This wasn't staged. Turns out I made a good guess. Final flying weight is 625 grams.



Here's the 2200mAh location:



Here it is all ready to fly, if only it wasn't snowing. I think I have some minwax like substances somewhere. Maybe I need to try them out.



The cowl is going to stay as is for the moment. I want to make sure the plane flies well before I go and start making cosmetic changes that may have to move if I shift something. I may be able to move the power pod further back into the plane, which would look a little better. It all depends on how CG and flight testing goes.

I'm starting out without any right motor angle, and just a bit of down thrust. We'll see how it does. Anyone know how to calculate right thrust angle? Or is it more of a trial and error thing?

Looks like I'll be fine with the 11x6CF prop. It'l be putting out quite a bit of thrust at full throttle. Should be a fun setup.

 

[localfiend]

The snow is obnoxious. Can't stand waiting to try out a plane so I'm going all out on the waterproofing. Did the hotglue edging trick on everything and applied a coat of Minwax Polycrlic about an hour ago. This is my first time trying out minwax.



After the minwax dries a bit more I'm gonna try some rattlecan work. I'm thinking something simple like this:



Prototypes make for good test beds for more than just flight.

 

[airhawk]

you made a exact guess wow anyway looking forward t seeing it painted up have you considered the green Zero scheme you have a white zero already so why not

 

[airhawk]

never mind didnt see your latest post

 

[localfiend]

you made a exact guess wow anyway looking forward t seeing it painted up have you considered the green Zero scheme you have a white zero already so why not

Heh. Great minds think alike.





The painting went pretty well. If I do this again I'm going to have to put on two coats of minwax to insure even coverage. Think I left a few spots thin, which then soak up the paint making things look uneven. Used Minwax Polycrylic which dries in a couple hours, and Kryon Fusion which dries to the touch in 15 minutes and handling in an hour.

The part that was a pain was coating all the edges in hot glue and then wiping them off. Took forever. It also seems that minwax, paint, and sealing the edges have some substantial weight penalties. I added 31 grams to the model. Oh well, I'm water proof now, and the plane is still very light for a warbird.



If the weather is at all decent I plan to maiden this tomorrow. If the ground is really slushy though I may attach landing gear. Installed paint stick hardpoints during the build, so it's ready to go in that department.

 

[BeezerFish]

Fantastic looking build! Did you peel the paper off before you applied the minwax?

 

[localfiend]

Fantastic looking build! Did you peel the paper off before you applied the minwax?

Kept the paper on. I think I'd lose too much strength without it.

 

[localfiend]

So, with all the snow we've been having....

Skis!







If my WWII history is right, and it usually is, the Japanese had to adopt this method of landing gear at Guadalcanal after we used the Halliburton weather machine against them.

 

[airhawk]

actually you can pretend they are floats then it would be a even more historically accurate

 

[airhawk]

did you fly it today

 

[localfiend]

did you fly it today

I did get to fly it today. Video of the maiden and second flight are being worked on now. It flew incredibly well, it's like a trainer. Goes exactly where you point it and stays there. It will fly incredibly slow as well, and the stall is pretty much nothing. If you stall it, all that happens is you lose altitude. It stays level and you keep aileron control while falling. Pretty crazy, I've never flown a plane like it.