The 'Cuda (by Laine's Planes) Build Thread

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
The pins are from Hobby Express, the place I got the Telemaster from. The pins are fantastic! Very thin and sharp, and the big head make them super easy to push in and pull out. Highly recommended! The thin design means fewer split pieces of balsa and much smaller holes.
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
Build looks awesome! LOVE the covering scheme. In addition, excellent build thread and information.

Laine

Welcome to the Flite Test forum, Laine! I'm not just saying this to make you feel good about yourself, but BRAVO on a first rate kit! If the maiden flight is half as easy as the construction I'll be happy!

Just so you don't get a big ego, I'll point out the only "issue" I had... The laser cutting for the rib notches on the wing sheeting were slightly undercut. A few seconds with a #11 blade trimming off about 1/64" got the sheet to fit over the ribs nicely. That's a pretty insignificant issue, and it's nothing compared to some kits on the market.

Throws will be very low as recommended. CoG shows at the LE of the wing right at the fuselage. How tolerant is the plane to changes in the CoG, and should I start with it set slightly forward of that point for a heavier nose?
 

Lmopar69

New member
Thank you. Joel Dirnberger did the CAD work on the Cuda and the instructions. The guy is a genius! Kristy has been doing 95% of the cutting for the last few months. She has gotten exceptionally good at it.

I will look over the notches again. I'll be building another 26" soon also.

Yes, I suggest 1/8" to 1/4" forward on the CG for the maiden. Just put some up trim in. Easy to tame a climbing plane, very hard to save a diving one on launch.

Thanks again for the compliments. You should build a Gia-Norman next. You'd fall in love with that kit.

Laine
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
I'm guessing Laine has some kind of deep interest with the Cuda, based on his user name "Lmopar69". Or it may be a coincidence.
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
After I had finished the covering in the WWII aircraft style, Laine said something that rang true - now the plane needs the teeth. This only took a few minutes and isn't the prettiest, but now the 'cuda has some bite! I used layers of vinyl covering, the same stuff I used for the letters and stars. It's thicker than I'd prefer, but I could free-hand the simple design.

I may or may not have been drinking while I did this... :)

IMG_2684.JPG

IMG_2685.JPG
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
The speed at which you complete airplanes is really starting to piss me off.

Just to irritate you further, the plan for the weekend is to maiden the 'cuda, tweak the Pietenpol a bit (adding some nose weight inside the cowl), and then I'm hoping to start working on the Astro Hog I got at FTFF. At the very least it needs to be re-covered and converted to electric. I'm hoping the structure inside is sound and no repairs are needed, which would put it in the air much sooner.
 

Lmopar69

New member
In reference to the 'Cudas name, and my screen name, yes, I'm a bit of a Mopar guy. I have 3 Mopar related tattoos, I currently own 16 Dodge/Plymouth vehicles. I have owned well over 100 in my past. My dog, a boxer, is named Hemi. My son named his cat Fury. Our last dog was named Duster. My prototype 128" sailplane I designed (and am currently modifying to get it ready for production) is the Prowler.

So yeah, maybe I'm a bit of a fan.

Laine
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
No love on the maiden attempt. It was a bit too nose heavy and didn't make it too far. In hindsight it was all my setup, so I'll tweak it and give it another shot in a a few days, it was way too nose heavy. Minor damage to the nose, should take about an hour to fix. It took all the damage in the teeth!
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
Taking a very short break from the Astro-Hog, I want to get the 'Cuda back on it's feet so it's ready for the upcoming weekend, and a re-maiden. As mentioned, the damage is minimal considering it took a nose dive. The damage was limited to the balsa at the very tip of the nose and about 1/4" of the top and bottom sheet. The worst damage was to my ego. :) So the covering was peeled back and the broken pieces removed. The plywood former F2 had a small split so I glued that up first, and after it dries I'll get in and replace the remaining balsa. Even working part time while I continue work on other planes it'll easily be ready to go by the weekend, weather permitting.

IMG_2713.JPG
 

Lmopar69

New member
Looks like it took the hit pretty well. I've had some rough ones in the past. Usually ends up being fixed pretty easy.

Hope the next attempt works out better!
 

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
All things considered, the nose held up great! Only the balsa parts were damaged, and the ply sides held up great. Now that I got the crashing out of my system it should fly great! :)
 

pgerts

Old age member
Mentor
Waiting for some flying pictures and video :)
I made some similar wings and had some problem to get the cog right as it seems critical to get the planes to fly well.