Tench745
Master member
I don't know about kits, but everyone's favorite resource Outerzone has plans for all kinds of Gee Bee models.
Great Planes Gee Bee R1
- Thread starter willsonman
- Start date
I don't know about kits, but everyone's favorite resource Outerzone has plans for all kinds of Gee Bee models.
Born2bwire
Member
Manzano Lazer Works has a few Gee Bees, including a 1/4 scale. I'd love one myself, and certainly a scale one, but I'm worried that it would be a difficult flyer. Alien Aircraft has a Gee Bee too, but it doesn't look as scale to me, maybe modified to be easier to fly.
Thanks! This will send me digging around in their catalog again... I blame you for the next kit order!
Yes, the Rocketeer featured the Z model, my personal favorite and predecessor to the R1. I know there are Hostettler plans too but again... big. The issue with the smaller ones is that the landing gear will not hold up. I LOVE my larger McKeller Z model but it HAS to have a paved runway. Any other landing results ins a repair. It does fly exceptionally well to, despite what everyone says about them.
Again, the McKellar one is a great flying model. Mine is a bit larger than this one. Mine was an experimental run on 4" wide planks so the print files were simply enlarged to fit... some things did not fit together well but it is still a GREAT flying model.
Working on the Dummy today and I've got a first for this project that I'll reveal in a subsequent video.
Piotrsko
Master member
Considering they were controllable fairings for a huge radial, they fly as expected. Delmar found out that the aileron reverses in high alpha flight which explains the crashes. If you repair it after grass landings, then you've gone way too scale.
Wait what? How does ailerons reversing in high alpha even work?
Tench745
Master member
The wing wasn't stiff enough in torsion, so when the aileron went down it acted like a servo-tab and twisted the aft end of the wingtip up, rolling the plane the wrong direction.Wait what? How does ailerons reversing in high alpha even work?
This is something we rarely encounter in modeling. We all tend to over-build everything. Anything intended to be flown with an IC engine is built quite stout since the vibrations alone would rattle most electric apart. Not a concern on this model at all.
That really is a work of art - it looks incredible! Nicely done buddy!
Thanks! though, I probably should not take too much credit since all the finish work was done at the factory. I just put the parts together correctly.
Well it looks way better than if I had done it...
Tench745
Master member
Congrats on the maiden! She looks like a beautiful flyer. I know the R1 on Picasim is a peach of an airplane and this one looks like it flies about the same. I was not expecting the amount of noise that giant fiberglass fuselage transmits in flight and especially on the ground.
I have found that using larger props on lower cell counts gives a good sound on models in general. A nice low rumble with less of the typical "model" sound. Of note is the flight time. On this same motor and 18x12 prop configuration on my giant Curtiss P6E Hawk, I was getting around 5-6 minutes of flight time. I stuck to that number for these first two flights, cutting them a bit short to be safe in the event of the need for another approach (first flight). I put the first packs (X2 5800mAh 3S) on the charger and only put about 800mAh back into both packs. I thought my charger was having an issue. Then I did a quick check of the second set (X2 6000mAh 3S) and found those discharged to 75%. Not a fluke or charger issue! This clearly shows that a lighter air frame, with less drag too, is drawing significantly less current. With these numbers, I'm estimating that I could safely get 8 minutes of flying time on these packs and probably upwards of 10 minutes. I also have a 7000mAh 6S pack that could extend flight time further still! I'm VERY pleased with these numbers as it gives me more opportunity to enjoy this model.
TooJung2Die
Master member
Congratulations on a successful maiden flight. The Gee Bee looks great in the air. Were you ever full throttle during either of the flights?
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