Tips for a 20+ yr old Giles G-202 build

[Philip02]

Hey guys, new to the forums here. I am in the process of building a Great Planes Giles G-202 that sat in its box for over 20 years in the shop. This is my first balsa build, which was a little scary at first, but everything seems to be going well so far, even with the warped boards. The whole goal of this build was to do an electric conversion on it while keeping full 3D performance. Any tips? I'm looking ahead in the instructions and wondering if there is anything that will help with the conversion internally, such as moving the tank tray around for the battery. I've seen many videos of turning a built gasser into electric, but not ones of building a gasser to be electric. I guess I am just looking for any advise on potential mods with the original designs, or any other build tips. Thanks!

 

[bracesport]

If it was me I would look at the plan and design the electric gear into the nose - have you already got your electric gear in mind?

 

[Bricks]

Normally when converting gas to glow you will need to build a motor box to move the electric farther forward to fit the constricts of the cowling. Normally try and keep as much weight forward as usually electrics are lighter then Nitro Gas.. I would venture to say you are going to use at least a 6S 5000mah battery look at the fuselage to make sure you build in room for the battery if not enough there already.

 

[TooJung2Die]

Welcome! You came to the right place. It seems converting gas to electric or the other way around is something of an obsession around here. We can't leave anything the way it was originally intended. Nothing I have is as big as G-202 but the other guys with the big airplanes will chime in I'm sure.

 

[Philip02]

If it was me I would look at the plan and design the electric gear into the nose - have you already got your electric gear in mind?

I was thinking about using a power 90 eflite motor (maybe that is overkill?) along with two 3200 mAh 3s batteries ran in series. Then I would use the right esc for that motor, and use a spektrum receiver with safe mode and AS3X.

 

[Piotrsko]

Probably you'll need to inventory the parts to see if they have warped. The fiber glass used back then had such tendencies and I have had plastic stuff do it also. For the wood, a steam clothes iron is useful.

 

[Bricks]

What is the wingspan and weight of your Giles going to be that 90 is equivalent to a 90 size glow my Giles G202 has more then enough power with an OS Max 55 glow.

You may want to check if you will have the ground clearance for the prop that motor takes roughly an 18X8 on 6s and make sure you get an HV ( high voltage) ESC as she will draw some juice.

 

[Philip02]

What is the wingspan and weight of your Giles going to be that 90 is equivalent to a 90 size glow my Giles G202 has more then enough power with an OS Max 55 glow.

You may want to check if you will have the ground clearance for the prop that motor takes roughly an 18X8 on 6s and make sure you get an HV ( high voltage) ESC as she will draw some juice.

It is a 1.5m wingspan and about 9 pounds

 

[Philip02]

Update: the build is going very well, but I have ran into an issue. The manual calls for a 3" spinner, so I got the hangar 9 P-51 style aluminum spinner. I also got the power 60 470kv motor from eflite, but I cannot seem to find the prop adapter I need. The one that came with the motor isn't long enough for my master airscrew nylon prop and doesn't have threads for the spinner. I looked all over horizon hobby and can't find what I need, and when talking with them directly they can't find anything either. Any help?