It started w/a 3-view..

firstwordisee wrote:Cant wait to see this unfold.

Hey.. thanks! I took an insane amount of photos.. and have a 3-ring binder for hard-copies of drawings, build-notes.. alternate-scale decals.. (more insanity..)

Ive read a lot of your post here, you are Class A, building something that flies from pictures takes some special stuff. Very interested in you build just to see your ingenuity.

Yeah, but it hasn’t flown yet….

Couldn’t help myself Roddie, please forgive me. Maybe this is the year? Hand launch it.

As you know roddie, your Bearcat is one of my all time favorite models.

I bet your enjoying "Chuck Tuckers Hot-Rod Bell Kingcobras" article in the latest issue of Air Classics. Interesting how these WW2 era fighters were modified and used in the various air races.

Cribbs74 wrote:Yeah, but it hasn’t flown yet….

Couldn’t help myself Roddie, please forgive me. Maybe this is the year?  Hand launch it.

Ron's 100% correct! I Love You Ron.. and it's because you're always direct.

rsv1cox wrote:As you know roddie, your Bearcat is one of my all time favorite models.

I bet your enjoying "Chuck Tuckers Hot-Rod Bell Kingcobras" article in the latest issue of Air Classics.  Interesting how these WW2 era fighters were modified and used in the various air races.  

I appreciate that VERY much Robert! Thank You!

There's currently a forum thread that caught my eye entitled; "Bell P-39 Airacobra and P-63 Kingcobra confusion but so interesting".. and I'll be checking that out too. CEF member RKflyer (Richard) built a P39 Airacobra for the 1st CEF Reed Speed contest.. and it was a "true" mid-engine example;





... now that deserves notoriety.

There were several WWII-era military aircraft models built for the CEF Speed Contest series. Some members built a "second" entry.

Our "Rusty" (Lord rest his soul) built a North American P51 Mustang for the Contest.. as did Mark Boesen.

Our member batjac (Mark McRiley) built Sea Fury racers that just "Pop" with excitement.. when you look at them..

his .049 variant;



his .020 variant;



.. arent' those just wicked?

Love the flames behind tank on that one.

Getting back to my Bearcat; I overbuilt and overthought every little thing about that airplane. Geez.. I forget what it weighs.. but for a 16" w/s model.. it's pretty heavy. These photos will show most of the reason why..





There's a lot of wing area.. for a sheet-wing model of this size.

To replicate its "round-engine" design.. I made my profile's fuselages' nose to the rear-most inside measurements of the cowl that I settled on. This would provide a top/bottom mounting. Four "tabs" would be added.. which radially-stabilized the cowl.

The cowling I chose was the cap from a cartridge-style aerosol air-freshener.



I used hole-saws to cut the two holes. In this case there where no offset engine-thrust angles to be considered; therefore
the hole for the "jug" was the one that required precise-figuring, in order to be on-center when mounted to the nose of the airplane.



The engine's "back-end" was changed from the 5cc integral tank, to the later (and current) "Horseshoe" backplate/carb. which moved the entire engine "rearward" requiring a 2nd cowling to be made where the jug would once again be centered. The jugs' orientation would also be changed from vertically-upright.. to horizontally-outboard.

Some photos;



Brass tabs which key-into a "ridge" just inside the cap/cowl helping to stabilize it.

I'm glad that you're revisiting this roddie. I'm eager to read about your finishing details, where you got the decals etc.

This model was built 8 years ago.. and you know    ... it's hard to believe that much time has passed. Eight years ago "to the week".. (early Jan. 2014) I tried my hand at hard-soldering some uniflow-vent fuel tank designs. A first for me; I sought the advice of Paul Gibeault, Ken Cook.. read some articles.. and began cutting panels from .008" tinplate. I bought some Sun brand 1/8" OD soft copper tube from an auto parts store.




This was the first tank.. (photo date 2014-01-08)






I would build several tanks of this design.. never even knowing if they would work.. but it was enjoyable for me. I was creating original pieces that should in theory work.




I wanted to see "how small" I could make a tank of this design.. with these materials. I could build a "spec. cc" tank for the contest later-on.

rsv1cox wrote:I'm glad that you're revisiting this roddie.  I'm eager to read about your finishing details, where you got the decals etc.

Hey Robert! Thanks so much for the interest. The original Rare Bear decal-sheet came from Tower Hobbies; offered as a spare part to an RC model of the "Rare Bear" that they offered at that time. Their ad images were .jpg format which could be saved and resized.. which Lynne helped me with. When the appropriate scale was decided, the graphics were laser-printed onto 8.5" X 11" matte-finish shipping labels.. (a far cry from decals.. but is what I used) Those laser-printable matte-finish shipping labels were available through Staples .com at that time.

The landing gear was custom made by me. I've always been an advocate for scale-like gear on a scale model aircraft. "This one" would comply. Its tail-dragger design; I'd planned for early-on with the hardwood "strip-spar" near the L/E of the sheet-wing to provide a mounting-point for the mains.

I had no plans on winning this contest.. but wanted to look good trying. That would involve attempting to replicate the Bearcat's gear layout/location.

I'd always used K & S .062" music-wire for the "mains" on my designs. This build would be no different.. but it would be my first build having "independent" mains.. as opposed to the inverted-V style included in many 1/2-A C/L profile kits.

I needed to interface with the hardwood strip-spar.. which required a block for rigidity. I had a lg. kitbox full of pre-cut hardwood beam-stock.. and chose some Cherrywood to fabricate the two blocks. First I had to cut them to size.. then drill-through for the .062" dia. music-wire struts. What you "don't see" in the next photos is the V-notch filed-into the top of the block. The music-wire (strut) passes up thru the block and is then bent 90 degrees and trimmed to locate into the notch in the top of the block. The blocks are then drilled to accept wood-screws from the hardwood strip spar.



The wheels are homemade.. with the help of a CNC router machine..



add hot-melt reinforcement, O-ring tires, axle-bearings and gear-doors..



The gear doors were cut from .020" clear plastic sheet.. which took paint quite well.

The tail-wheel is made from a rubber grommet with an appropriate size O-ring "tire" stretched around it and into the groove. The hub-hole was bushed to fit the axle.




I cut a tab from fiberglass window-screen.. and spread epoxy through it to reinforce the .062" dia. music-wire tail-wheel strut.



The .025" music-wire link has an "eye" to engage a pin-stooge.



We are having fun..

The elevator horn is a Dubro Cat. #107 and the engine is a Cox. Most everything else.. was custom fabricated from my model-stash of odds and ends.

Back when I worked for the sign company, I designed (CAD) some stuff for my models.. including the bellcrank that would be used here.

.030" sheet aluminum.. with a cast-acrylic bearing. sized to accept a #5 machine screw.



Lead-outs are .025" music-wire "solids" and the lead-out "guides" are made from safety pins.




We're really having fun now...

So much stuff to be "fitted" then removed to resume the "finishing" processes. It's all good.. when you're "into it".. and I definitely was.



I needed to create an illusion.. being a profile model with a sheet-wing..

Beautiful work Roddie, your zoom photos prove you are very particular about the details and accuracy of the build. Congratulations. It takes crafts, imagination  and patience I could very well use when I build..

The firewall shows 2 different engine mounting patterns. Which COX engines are the candidates? I guess one is the red horseshoe backplate reedie? Or maybe the same engine but in 2 optional mounting positions with the cylinder up or sideways?

Will you post photos or vids about the maiden flight?

balogh wrote:Beautiful work Roddie, your zoom photos prove you are very particular about the details and accuracy of the build. Congratulations. It takes crafts, imagination  and patience I could very well use when I build..

The firewall shows 2 different engine mounting patterns. Which COX engines are the candidates? I guess one is the red horseshoe backplate reedie? Or maybe the same engine but in 2 optional mounting positions with the cylinder up or sideways?

Will you post photos or vids about the maiden flight?

Thanks so much Andras. "You" are certainly an inspiration for me. I only dream about being able to fly Radio Control.

The firewall does have two Cox .049 reed-valve patterns. The build started with the 5cc integrally-tanked engine with a straight-forward/upright cylinder orientation. No need for a stunt-venting.. but there was a matter of whether 5cc's would be enough fuel for the 10 laps. To swap-in an engine with the horseshoe-style backplate meant fabricating a 2nd cowling.. and working-out what to use for an external fuel-cell with a more than 5cc capacity. That's when I got involved with building the Tin-plate hard-tanks. I really enjoyed that.

Andras; this model has seen X2 outings (thus far..) where it might have flown. The 1st time was in 2014 for the 1st CEF Reed-Speed Contest.. and the 2nd was just a couple years ago. The model noses-over on a R.O.G. (stooge) launch from pavement. I've only tried to fly it those two times. The 2nd attempt saw smoother pavement (which I thought would make the difference..) but there were other gremlins involved.. that cautioned me; "today's not the day to fly this model Roddie".