The Aerodromerc News Enthusiasts

A unique selection of World War I and By and For Golden Age laser cut Electric Flight short kits and plans The AerodromeRC News Enthusiasts VOL 1 - NO 4 April 2005 www.AerodromeRC.com E�� N�� 17 By Kurt Bengtson By Kurt Bengtson In the scale modeling business, it is necessary to balance the desires for a designer’s subjects versus the market for these models. Often the designer comes up with esoteric designs modeling interesting yet little known aircraft. These models usually don’t sell as well as the better known ones. I attribute the phenomenon to the fact that many beginning flyer’s have a need to fly these well known subjects as a rite of passage and that the more interesting lesser known models are reserved for aficionados and experienced pilots. Certainly WWI models are becoming more and more desired in recent years. I hear quite often that there are not enough WWI and Golden Age kits available today from the major manufacturers. Our companies offerings are an attempt to satisfy the demand for well designed, easy to build, The Nieuport series fighters became a serious factor in aerial laser cut kits. So far we seem to have hit on something, combat with the introduction of Gustave Delage’s Nieuport as our growth rate last year was 1300 %. Now that cannot 11. The small lightweight aircraft countered the Fokker continue indefinitely but it is telling me that we are on Eindecker’s forward firing fuselage-mounted machine gun the brink of a major revival of WWI modeler interest. The with superior agility. In an attempt to increase speed, the designer, me in this example, must airframe was fitted with a larger 110 be open to following the market’s I�� I�� HP Le Rhone replacing the old 80 HP desires. I have listened so far and Le Rhone. The new configuration was the new 1/8th scale N17 and soon 1 • E�� designated the Nieuport 16. The N16 the 1/6th scale Fokker DVIII are 1 • N�� 17 did not fair well as the airframe was examples of this trend. Recently, 2 • B�� T�� not up to the demands of the larger I posted a poll on RCGroups 4 • B�� T��: C�� C�� power plant. Delage went back to the asking what size WWI model 6 • B�� R��: G��’� L�� drawing board and increased the people prefer. I listed 1/8th scale, K�� A�� wingspan and wing area as well as 1/9thscale, 1/6th scale and finally 6 • F�� K��: A�� DII adding other improvements. The new ¼ scale. The results were that most design was designated the Nieuport prefer the lower two sizes and then 17 and it was a smashing success. the 1/6th scale followed by the quarter scale subjects. My The type was made in large numbers by several French aim was to better deliver model sizes to the desires of manufacturers and was licensed to Italian and Russian the marketplace. I have no quarter scale models yet there manufacturers. It was in service with the French, British, is a fraction of modelers who are building them. In fact, Belgian and Russian air forces. most of the WWI kits available from the competition are One of the distinguishing characteristics of the Nieuport in 1/4 scale. So I am resolved to design two-quarter scale 17 that is not often modeled is the tapered fuselage from top models this year and a few more in succeeding years. to bottom. Most models have simple vertical sides. I found Considering the market, I think that a Bristol Scout and out why they do this in my design process. It is a complex an Albatros DIII are the best candidates for this class. There is too much investment here to consider lesser- known models. These two designs have been among our best sellers over that time we have been offering kits. The Bristol Scout is already in design and will be a redo from the three view, not a scale up of Peter Rake’s model we already sell. The Albatros will be scaled up but have some changes in airfoil as well as enhancements in wing design. Under cambered airfoils will be featured. Models this large will not hide non-scale details in flight as the The AerodromeRC News VOL 1 - NO 4 Page 2 www.AerodromeRC.com matter to get that taper and it took me many hours before I opposite side. By laminating the three together with epoxy, was satisfied with the fuselage. over the bend end of the music wire, voila’ we have a bell Another unusual feature is that the fuselage is not crank. It is then a matter of connecting the cranks to music symmetrical. The side fairings bulge out more on the left wire pushrods to individual servos mounted on the internal side of the aircraft. This was due to an ammo canister. lite ply riser inside the fuselage. Again, this feature is not often modeled. I however, took the Fuselage construction is a mix of formers and box style extra step and it is in my design. and the turtle deck behind the cockpit features 1/32” balsa In my zeal for scale accuracy, I attempted to add scale sheeting and a soft balsa headrest. The forward fuselage is bell crank driven ailerons and with my traditional design built around formers hung on internal plywood risers and techniques, I failed. Undaunted, I realized that 1/8” carbon is to be sheeted with 1/16th balsa. An unusual feature is rods could be subbed for spars and placed in the scale that the top longerons are carried all the way to the cowl, positions. There was now sufficient clearance for a bell bending to determine the shape of the fuselage. The cowl is a standard built-up laminated 1/4” balsa wood and 1/32” plywood similar to many of our other radial engine style WWI models. The model is designed to be powered by the Long Can S400 or the S480 geared 3.4:1 with an MP Jet type gearbox. Naturally, these days this recommendation is only a starting point as many builders choose to use their own favorite power system from the many choices currently available. My covering recommendation is Polyspan although many use LiteSpan. Polyspan covers fast and gives that linen look so important for scale realism. It resists tears and adds considerable strength yet only weights as much as Silkspan. I employed 1/32” plywood trailing edges placed top and bottom of the ribs for ease of covering and for added strength. The plywood trailing edges are featured on many of my later designs and have been a great success. They are also included in the short kit. crank to work. My next challenge was how to design one that wouldn’t be so hard to fabricate that folks would give up on the model. I also needed to think of a design that would be build-able. It is often possible to arrange things in a final way but the structure cannot be built. Professor Jone’s (Sean Connery) comments in the movie “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”, “ I find that if I sit down and wait, a solution will present itself”. This situation is often true for me and it was for the aileron linkage. I should mention first that the wing is built around the pre bent music wire torque rod and the crank is added after covering. I came up with a design based on three birch plywood bell crank shaped pieces that are to be laminated on a 1/16” music wire torque rod in the top wing. The two outer ones are fabricated from 1/32” plywood and the center one is 1/16” plywood. The center one has a gap facing up that allows the crank to fit over the carbon tube spar. The other two have gaps in the D�� The low wing metal covered monoplane fighter made it’s debut in WWI not WWII. Junkers developed nine prototypes beginning with the J1 called the Tin Donkey and continued on the J9 or as the German Army designated, the DI. Forty one DI’s were delivered to the Front before the Armistice in November 1918. The fighter featured a cantilever wing but was underpowered with a160 HP Mercedes engine. However, it paved the way for the fighters of the future. The AerodromeRC News VOL 1 - NO 4 Page 3 www.AerodromeRC.com forces. If you get adventurous, you could use small sand B�� T�� bags to do this scientifically. It is really neat to see a model By Kurt Bengtson equipped with this system landing with a small rocking Make strong lightweight warp resistant balsa plywood. motion and seeing those wheels moving to take the shock. Useful in areas where plywood adds too much weight. Your gear will last longer and your model will have a more Use three laminations, alternating the grain. Aliphatic glues accurate representation of original design. I should note (Titebond or Elmer’s construction glue) work very well for that several of our models have this feature built in to the this application. Use a thin layer of glue spread evenly. design. Specifically, The SPAD VII, Hanriot HD-1, Albatros Cover with wax paper, weigh the wood down with heavy CIII, Pfalz DIIIa and upcoming Nieuport 17 all feature this books or clamp between lumber and allow glue to set. The style LG. balsa ply will be light, straight and strong.

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