Biplane #5 (this one has ailerons!)

[JUSS10]

So I'm addicted to building biplanes I guess. This is my 5th design. It seems a lot of people commented on other planes about ailerons so I put them in from the start on this one. Like some of my others, I went with the more vintage look. Found pictures and plans of planes I liked and came up with this. Swept back top wing with no dihedral and standard bottom wing with ailerons and about 3 degrees dihedral on both sides. Large surfaces in the rear. Hope for this one to be a little more acrobatic. We'll see! As always I post pics when they are about 90% done. This uses a standard FT power pod and 3 9 gram servos.

Justin

 

[Tater76]

Beautiful bird! anxiously awaiting plans

 

[airhawk]

wow nice job i want to build it

 

[RCman50]

Wow. I've been following your other builds on this bird but this one is simply amazing. Any thought about using that laser cutter and selling sbk's after and the always dreaded if everything works out?

 

[abieex]

I would love to see that in kit form!

 

[Capt_Beavis]

that is a nice design but it looks off without some struts or supports out on the wing further.

 

[JUSS10]

Thanks for all the interest! I would love to make SBKs of my planes if there is any interest. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and a moderate to beginner pilot. That makes these things a bit difficult as I don't always know how they should fly. Wish I had some experienced beta testers near by to try my planes out.

Was hoping to get the electronics and linkages in tonight but I was busy at church longer than I planned. We finally got a break in the wind so I really want to get this in the air! Hopefully in the next few days.

As far as struts, I agree it would look nicer or at least more "scale". That said, I like the lack of struts so the plane is easier to tear down. I like the option of having two easily removable wings do the plane doesn't take a lot of space or can be packed nice and small on trips. It also means that in the event of a crash, the wings aren't tied together which can lessen the damage. I could easily add foam or plywood struts if I made a kit. It could then be up to the builder if they wish to use them.

Justin

 

[Michael9865]

Nice looking biplane. I hope that you do produce some plans.

 

[PeterGregory]

Struts add a ton of drag - I would leave off if not necessary. If strength is needed I would think about using Spectra fishing line to minimize drag - anchor in wings with a bit of plywood at spar(s), might have to add small metal tangs to connect to.

It might be interesting with just the low wing having aileron. I have caught a video here or there on the internet where they didn't kick up enough authority, but test on and let us know!

Looks great...

 

[JUSS10]

Well I finally got around to getting this plane in the air. It always feels good to see a plane fly for the first time. It flies pretty good. I think the top wing had some warp to it as it needed severe trimming of the ailerons to keep it from rolling. I may need to build a new top wing. I'm not much of a 4ch pilot yet so I mixed 50% rudder in to the ailerons to help me in cornering. This made it feel very much like a 3 ch bank and yank plane. It felt a little sluggish but I was also flying on low rates due to my lack of flying skills. I think with only one wing having the ailerons you need larger throws to really get it to bank and roll faster. All that said, its a solid plane. I think I may add a little height to the vertical stabilizer to help it track straighter as it felt a little "loose" just going straight. This could be due to having so much rudder mixed in to the ailerons which caused it to yaw while I was adjusting for roll in the breeze.

will make a few more changes and maybe muster up the courage to try high rates or at least little or no rudder mixing.

Justin

 

[SanderHG]

It looks beautiful! Congrats with the maiden.

 

[ftwingnut]

Beautiful design. If you decide to post plans, I might have to build one. What part of Michigan are you in? I am from the southwest corner, just outside of Benton Harbor.

 

[JUSS10]

Thanks! I will get plans posted. I want to make a few more changes and see if it flies better.

I'm in the Holland/Zeeland area. Not too far away. If you are interested in it (or any of my other planes for that reason) I can laser cut a SBK for you for a fair price if you are interested. Let me know!

Justin

 

[ftwingnut]

OOooohhhhh... you have a laser cutter? I'm so jealous. My kids attended a fab-lab where they had a couple cnc's and a laser, and we made use of that for some plane designs, but it would only fit 18x24, so we would have to get creative with the parts layout. Send me a private message letting me know what you would charge to cut me some kits, including your biplane. It might be worth a drive up to meet you and pick them up.