Toucan RC rebuilt

balogh Sun May 12, 2019 12:34 am

This is the 3rd I have built since I returned to the hobby in 2010 and remains one of the best electric to glow conversion projects I have ever completed for my TD049 powerplants. 860mm in span and 400 grams in all up weight, it maneuvers with only 3 channels (elevator, rudder and throttle) at near 80km/h ( measured by an on board GPS telemetry device).

I - like always unless balsa sheeted wings are built- replaced the stock balsa leading edge and main spars with a 6mm round hollow carbon rod and 3mm square hollow carbon rods respectively to withstand the vibrations from an IC engine drive - and admittedly not ruling out rough landings either. Also doubled the plywood firewall for the sunk wood nuts to hold well.

I maidened it yesterday with a COX TD050 RC in its nose but the engine proven best for the Toucan is a naked TD049 or 051 with exhaust throttle.
It took about 5 late afternoons to build with the fitting of the canopy to the wing and fuselage the most troublesome step. A 60 ccm balloon tank carries enough fuel for a10-11 minutes of full throttle flight. 1000mAh AAA size rechargeable battery pack allows at least 6-8 uninterrupted and maneuvre packed flights before voltage drops too low. An exhaust deflector scissored from a beer can and tucked between the firewall and engine mount protects the transparent white Oracover from the burning heat. This time I found polyurethane enamel spray on an online shop to fuel proof the balsa fuselage.
I use my all- time favourite COX 5x4 black nylon prop that unloads way over 21k in the air..people walking their dogs in the field I fly do not seem to like me and my noisy Toucan.. RC Plane

akjgardner Sun May 12, 2019 6:47 am

good Job on Your Airplane, Do You Think a Babe Bee Would Fly It ok ?

balogh Sun May 12, 2019 7:03 am

Thank you. Yes I flew Toucans with reedies like the postage stamp backplate production engine too. It flies the Toucan decently but for speed and authority I orefer TeeDees

1/2A Nut Tue May 14, 2019 9:12 pm

Very nice well done on your efforts! Thumbs Up

You may also like this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sterling-Lil-Roughneck-Builders-Kit-With-Very-Good-Condition-Cox-020-Engine/113747053726?hash=item1a7bda4c9e:g:MWcAAOSwv0xc2Mle

balogh Wed May 15, 2019 12:25 am

Thanks a lot Brad..also for the link on the Lil Roughneck. I built a few and still have one with a Killer Bee clone in its nose...flies very fast and I was thinking of rebuildinf one. This one on ebay ships only to the lower 48 states.

1/2A Nut Wed May 15, 2019 4:31 am

Ahh bummer did not see that if you still have your plans you could replicate one with fresh wood.
Those old kits have hit or miss wood in them some if not stored well can be very dried out.

Small Cox Logo

getback Wed May 15, 2019 10:34 am

That airplane would bee a lot of fun to fly from the looks of it , low wing usually means Fast ! Very Happy

balogh Wed May 15, 2019 11:25 am

Yes Eric the Lil Roughneck is a fast rascal here is my video on mine:

I power mine with a home built 049 Killer Bee clone instead of an 020 engine.

The Toucan - of which an earlier built one is also sitting in the trunk of my car in the video - is also a quickie but less than the Roughneck

balogh Sat May 25, 2019 4:51 am

The early summer heat brought me and my Toucan to the field again to shoot a vid with a key-chain camera affixed to the right wing, and some good Hungarian Forint coins balancing the plane on the tip of the left wing.

Beautiful weather, an idyllic green lush meadow with colorful spring flowers made my flight a really enjoyable one. Too bad some castor goo hit the right side of the camera lens making the film a bit blurred, but we are not in Hollywood, anyway... Very Happy

Get your paper sanitation bags ready, a dizzying flight video comes below:

Kim Sat May 25, 2019 5:35 am

Great Flight Andras !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1/2A Nut Sat May 25, 2019 6:25 am

Good engine running video Old Bugger

Here is a screen shot of the pilot and his engine. Thumbs Up

balogh Sat May 25, 2019 7:51 am

Thank you Kim and Brad! The resolution of this small cam is not high enough to show the grin on my face! Very Happy

MauricioB Sat May 25, 2019 9:23 am

beautiful the video Andras, I also like the place where you fly !! ... very wide !.
I see the camera that you have on your model, you have a link on ebay exactly from that camera??, I'm interested maybe buy one. Thanks friend!

balogh Sat May 25, 2019 11:03 am

Thank you Mauricio! Yes the field where I fly has been fenced off from car access and only some people walking their dogs and I are there nowadays..even other modelers who used to come around are not seen there anymore...beautiful meadows in springs and summers. And probably the largest COX graveyard in Eastern Europe (with at least 4 or so of my RC planes eternally lost in the past 9 years in the thick bushes around)

The key-chain camera is available in a wide range on ebay, the one I have is with the wide-spectre D lens:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-DVR-808-Car-Key-Chain-Micro-Camera-18-Real-HD-1080P-30fps-Pocket-Camcorder/113339445155?hash=item1a638eafa3:g:ingAAOSwQwRb1~-C

This connects to your computer with a USB cable and downloads its videos and photos from a micro SD card inside to your HDD on your computer, and you can also upload vids to youtube for instance.

It weighs around 23 grams so even your 010 Piyurin will carry it with a proud smile..just place it off the exhaust gas track on the tip of your wing and make sure to balance it well with eg coins fixed to the other wing.

MauricioB Sun Jun 02, 2019 12:12 am

Friend, thank you very much for leaving me that information.
I will surely be in search of an equal camera for a future video.
I see your flight, in your video, I sincerely feel a lot of nostalgia, I understand that it would be much more pleasant to share these experiences with more Cox fans, your video is beautiful and I thank you for sharing it here. You will never be alone, like many of us, when you link to this beautiful COX forum!

MauricioB Sun Jun 02, 2019 12:23 am

You comment on "Cox cemetery" ... I could make a description of those experiences and losses ... I'm interested to know what happened and in what time (years) it happened ... Sad

MauricioB Sun Jun 02, 2019 12:24 am

Andras, what fuel do you use in your videos for Cox engines?

balogh Sun Jun 02, 2019 1:38 am

Hi Mauricio thank you for your notes. Yes I think having a small camera making video on board is a fantastic opportunity to make the flight seen from the plane's perspective..I wish Leroy COX could see in heaven what great toys and amusement he left us with for a more versatile use in the era of advanced electronics.

The COX graveyard is developing in my area thanks mainly to my own stupidity...flying over tall trees when you are near the treeline and will predictably lose sight of the plane and not be able to maneuvre it back to safe grounds, or, RX battery poorly connected to the system, were the main reasons of my losing COX powered planes. All that could have been prevented with more foresight, and these losses are even more so painful then crashing a plane in e.g. strong winds.

Compared to the number of planes I have built I crashed relatively few though, and then the engines were always recovered.

The fuel I am using is my home blend of 60/20/20 with full castor and no synthetic oil.

getback Sun Jun 02, 2019 8:12 am

Andres , that's a pretty good little camera for the $$$ Sure has good sound!! I had to turn her down a bit , nice flight and nothing wrong with beeing out there almost alone Cool

Ever think about getting one of those tracking devices for those fly offs ? Huh...

balogh Sun Jun 02, 2019 8:33 am

Thanks Eric...my last plane lost had a telemetry capable receiver that sends back signals to the radio..I saw when I was far or nearer to the plane when searching the bush but it was so dense that I finally could not find it before the on board battery died and stopped sending signals anymore...a pretty sad feeling that your baby is nearby but you cannot help..

There is another type that buzzes loud if at least one of the servos remain idle for 1minute or so and this could have helped me find the plane but the only one I currently have was not on board and is also not functioning well.

Anyway I will make it a rule to avoid flying over budhes and trees as much as possible

Sponsored content

Toucan RC rebuilt

Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Toucan on-board flight video!!

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt

Re: Toucan RC rebuilt