Flite Fest 2022 Community Challenge – WWI “Dawn Patrol”

Matagami Designs

Master member
Hey everyone. Since I decided I will be attending FF22 this year I wanted to try and knock out a build for the dawn patrol. So yeah a last second build and I'm not sure I will be able to get it done but here goes. I took plans for a Nieuport 28 into CAD and have made some progress and will hopefully get it onto the needle cutter early next week then begin the actual build. Before that though I have a few questions. What's the recommended power setup for a bird like this? I've never made anything quite this big so I don't want to underpower it yet don't want to make a rocket ship either. I have also never made a Biplane so I am concerned about the structure of the upper wing. What do you do to make sure these cabanes actually hold the upper wing to the rest of the plane under the High G maneuvers which I will undoubtedly attempt, assuming this actually ever takes to the skies? I'm guessing foam spars isn't enough so I will add some basswood doublers to reinforce the wings. The plans don't have anything for wing incidence so right now everything is planned for 0° is this going to be a problem? Any other pointers or things I should consider? Here is a screenshot to give an idea of what I am planning so far. 1/6th scale so 53" wingspan with a master series style construction. Still a lot to figure out with the cabanes, wing spar structure, landing gear and I think I will try to put a hatch on the bottom between the gear for battery access but just maybe I will get something put together.

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willsonman

Builder Extraordinare
Mentor
Hey everyone. Since I decided I will be attending FF22 this year I wanted to try and knock out a build for the dawn patrol. So yeah a last second build and I'm not sure I will be able to get it done but here goes. I took plans for a Nieuport 28 into CAD and have made some progress and will hopefully get it onto the needle cutter early next week then begin the actual build. Before that though I have a few questions. What's the recommended power setup for a bird like this? I've never made anything quite this big so I don't want to underpower it yet don't want to make a rocket ship either. I have also never made a Biplane so I am concerned about the structure of the upper wing. What do you do to make sure these cabanes actually hold the upper wing to the rest of the plane under the High G maneuvers which I will undoubtedly attempt, assuming this actually ever takes to the skies? I'm guessing foam spars isn't enough so I will add some basswood doublers to reinforce the wings. The plans don't have anything for wing incidence so right now everything is planned for 0° is this going to be a problem? Any other pointers or things I should consider? Here is a screenshot to give an idea of what I am planning so far. 1/6th scale so 53" wingspan with a master series style construction. Still a lot to figure out with the cabanes, wing spar structure, landing gear and I think I will try to put a hatch on the bottom between the gear for battery access but just maybe I will get something put together.

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Welcome? LOL Glad to see you making the plunge this year. Best recommendation for a quick build at the last minute is just to go all-around 0 degrees of incidence. There's theory, practice, and what matters at our scale. While maybe not refined, it will be sufficient for the purposes here.

For struts, I just used BBQ skewers inside of FB but there have been other clever ideas on builds for this event. Have a look at those and see if something fits your style or supply drawer.

Some sort of structure will be good for the wing spars. My Tummelisa, while tight and agile, has some wing bending going on, partly from humidity, and partly from only having foam as a spar. Walmart CF arrow shafts are great for a situation like this... even at $7 a pop.

I think for power system folks have been generally going with something overpowered just to haver insurance as these kinds of designs do lend themselves to some sticky situations. I think a target of 125W/pound is a safe margin and I believe that is about in the power pack C range. This may be another point to note while referencing other builds.
 

willsonman

Builder Extraordinare
Mentor
ANNOUNCEMENT

To better facilitate the fun of this event I've been doing some support work in the back part of my workshop. I recently procured a n mSLA printer where the prints produced are extremely detailed and even impress my wife. That's hard to do. I understand that some folks do not have access to a 3D printer but would like to add a little something extra to their builds. There are companies out there like iflytailies, among others, that produce finely detailed parts. These are typically VERY cost-prohibitive for a lot of folks so I'm have taken the liberty to provide some of my work for others to purchase. I have 10 EACH of 1/6 scale Vickers and Spandau MG08 guns that I will have in the tent area. Again this is Thursday and Friday (6/23 & 6/24) from 7:00 - 10:00 PM.

I am selling these for $10 each. This hobby is not free for me either but what you get for your $10 is a highly detailed part that I printed from Thingiverse models provided by Ian Dawson and scaled for our size. The parts have been printed on an Elegoo Saturn, washed and cured, assembled with medium CA glue, and painted in a satin black enamel. I've been around the detail crowd for a few years now. These would do well on a Top Gun level build. I will not hold any of these in reserve so they will be offered first-come first-served. I'm NOT a retail seller, I'm just a hobbyist trying to offer something to those who may not have access to this sort of thing. As a reference, iflytailies offers the 1/6 Vickers gun ready-made for $80. Not incentivizing here, just being transparent.

Vickers:
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Spandau MG08
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For those just now coming to the party and those who may have missed this, I will be selling these highly detailed 1/6 scale guns at FF Thursday and Friday nights at the STEM tent where we will congregate from 7-10 PM. I'm REALLY excited to see everyone's projects and I'm just as excited to see how they fly.
 

The Fopster

Master member
I managed a maiden attempt of the Sopwith Pup in time for the big day - but a few thousand miles away. It was not a great success - but the plane is in one piece. Need to get the wings aligned properly and I’ll paint it before I go again - but I think it’ll fly. In the meantime here’s the first brief attempt. Second wasn’t caught on video but didn’t last much longer. Hope everyone got on OK at the big event!
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SP0NZ

FT CAD Gremlin
Staff member
Admin
Moderator
Mentor
In case you are not on Facebook, or you missed this...

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This makes my soul smile!

Thank you to everyone, especially everyone who made the Dawn Patrol FF '22 such a great event. We are already talking about another (different) event like this for next year. Stay tuned...
 

The Fopster

Master member
Summer seems a while ago now, but the Sopwith Pup I was inspired to build by this thread is flying really nicely and I’ve got comfortable with it. I can even land it now - in this video dead stick!
Big thanks to everyone for the inspiration - it’s been a really rewarding thing to do, and it felt great today getting three perfect flights!

And yes - the hatch with the pilot in it does need stronger magnets. It’s on the to-do list, along with the rigging…