ACE All Star Biplane
- Thread starter rockyboy
- Start date
Very little progress over the weekend, but I did decide that instead of using epoxy and making a hard connection between the landing gear wire and the bulkhead, I would use a flexible adhesive - Shoe Goo!
Also put in a couple rails for battery mounting plates and such, and started gluing together the cabanes over the plans.
Also put in a couple rails for battery mounting plates and such, and started gluing together the cabanes over the plans.
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I was hoping to get away without needing them - my Dreamer is just fine without them and they are just extra fiddly bits to get lost or out of alignment. Maybe maiden day happens without the cabanes and we see if she has any wing deflection problems
Yeah, I think (hope) it's a unique feature of rubber band mounted wings on bipes. Don't think that level of movement would be survivable on bolt-in balsa wings!
The pinstripe tape arrived! Check this out!
And then I squirted some paint on the soda bottle canopy (from the inside)
Added a couple magnets for the battery hatch with epoxy - once these dry I'll do the matching ones in the hatch.
Final balanced flying weight - 27 ounces - way under the 34 ounce target I saw other builders getting with wet fuel builds, and on the good side of the manufacturer suggested 26-36 ounce range.
Doing the power analysis, 27 ounces = 1.69 pounds.
The Hacker A-20L motor with 10x4.7 prop on 3s is supposed to do 180 watts.
Works out to a ratio just over 100 watts per pound - ideal for general sport flying and basic / intermediate acrobatics https://www.rc-airplane-world.com/watts-per-pound.html - right on target!
If I remember the wing dimensions correctly, she's got 390 square inches of wing area for a wing cube loading of 6.1 which is firmly in the Trainer / Park Flyer / 3D range http://www.flyrc.com/wing-load-calculator/
So as long as I get the balance right and built things square and true, she should fly great!
And then I squirted some paint on the soda bottle canopy (from the inside)
Added a couple magnets for the battery hatch with epoxy - once these dry I'll do the matching ones in the hatch.
Final balanced flying weight - 27 ounces - way under the 34 ounce target I saw other builders getting with wet fuel builds, and on the good side of the manufacturer suggested 26-36 ounce range.
Doing the power analysis, 27 ounces = 1.69 pounds.
The Hacker A-20L motor with 10x4.7 prop on 3s is supposed to do 180 watts.
Works out to a ratio just over 100 watts per pound - ideal for general sport flying and basic / intermediate acrobatics https://www.rc-airplane-world.com/watts-per-pound.html - right on target!
If I remember the wing dimensions correctly, she's got 390 square inches of wing area for a wing cube loading of 6.1 which is firmly in the Trainer / Park Flyer / 3D range http://www.flyrc.com/wing-load-calculator/
So as long as I get the balance right and built things square and true, she should fly great!
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Mr. Gandalf
Elite member
Beautiful work!
TooJung2Die
Master member
It's amazing how adding a little stripe gives the color scheme such a big boost.
Thanks guys!
I really need to get a field video setup figured out. Had another maiden with no video.
So I took the All Star to the field two weekends ago and on the first rolling take off she started wobbling around in the sky. I figured tail heavy and brought her around and back on the ground right away. Added a 1/4oz weight up in the nose and on the second flight she was great! Just as maneuverable as I expect a 3 channel to be - that is I wish I could roll the wings level but she gets around the sky just fine. Loops are no problem, and I didn't have the guts to try for a rudder or snap roll as the morning was sort of windy. After getting her back on the ground, the field started to fill up with all the guys there for the fun fly so I put the All Star away for another day.
I did place an order a couple weeks back for an ACE constant chord wing kit from Steven's Aero so I can make an aileron bottom wing, but it hasn't shown up yet. So I cleaned the shop a bit and started another build - a Willy Nilie's Barnstormer 250 - while I wait for the extra wing kit to arrive. Thread and pictures starting on that one shortly....
I really need to get a field video setup figured out. Had another maiden with no video.
So I took the All Star to the field two weekends ago and on the first rolling take off she started wobbling around in the sky. I figured tail heavy and brought her around and back on the ground right away. Added a 1/4oz weight up in the nose and on the second flight she was great! Just as maneuverable as I expect a 3 channel to be - that is I wish I could roll the wings level but she gets around the sky just fine. Loops are no problem, and I didn't have the guts to try for a rudder or snap roll as the morning was sort of windy. After getting her back on the ground, the field started to fill up with all the guys there for the fun fly so I put the All Star away for another day.
I did place an order a couple weeks back for an ACE constant chord wing kit from Steven's Aero so I can make an aileron bottom wing, but it hasn't shown up yet. So I cleaned the shop a bit and started another build - a Willy Nilie's Barnstormer 250 - while I wait for the extra wing kit to arrive. Thread and pictures starting on that one shortly....
So this morning I had an email from Steven's (BalsaBuilder actually, but same company/people) apologizing for the delay in shipping and telling me the kit had been cut and was going in the mail today - and they refunded the shipping costs too which was very nice of them!
That's mostly because the last time I was at the flying field was when I maidened this plane!
I'm almost done with the Barnstormer, and then I'll get back to putting the aileron wing together on this one. Had no idea or expectation what an ACE Bipe would fly like (this plane was designed before I was born) so it's all a learning experience!
I'm almost done with the Barnstormer, and then I'll get back to putting the aileron wing together on this one. Had no idea or expectation what an ACE Bipe would fly like (this plane was designed before I was born) so it's all a learning experience!
So here's the guts of a BalsaBuilder.com ACE Wing Kit. The extra graph paper part of the plans is for drawing your own wing extensions, trailing edge shapes, etc. to customize the wing. Pretty neat idea! Also comes with the Steven's Aeromodel excellent quality step by step instruction book.
The kit doesn't come with the "strip stock" - if you see anything sold as a "short kit" that's what it means. Get yourself a handy little balsa stripper like this (or 3D print one) for best results.
And the gluing starts...
Hey - how often do you actually get to use those cut off pieces from other kits! Another great reason to buy short kits!
And now some ribs and shear webbing going in over the plans... it's a jigsaw puzzle but all the pieces do fit nicely!
The kit doesn't come with the "strip stock" - if you see anything sold as a "short kit" that's what it means. Get yourself a handy little balsa stripper like this (or 3D print one) for best results.
And the gluing starts...
Hey - how often do you actually get to use those cut off pieces from other kits!
Another great reason to buy short kits!
And now some ribs and shear webbing going in over the plans... it's a jigsaw puzzle but all the pieces do fit nicely!
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