My Swap-Meet Ringmaster ! Smack Down!!!! The Resurrection Begins!!

The Baby ringmaster would be quite happy being pulled by an 049. I think there is one that will be coming my way from my parents, but I am not sure.

Here's the pic. There is a lot of repaired physical damage in this area, much better repair work than the tail. The sides of the tank are glued quite well with what looks like Ambroid or something similar.

https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12060211.jpg


I plan to recoat the seams with Testors cement after I fit the engine. All the bare looking wood will get Testors cement rubbed in, and maybe paint if I can come up with a fair match that I can brush.

Phil

Remember the engines size required for the Jr Ring was old school engines. This is an old design and in my opinion doesn't fly as well as the larger Ring. It really suffers from the thin wing and small squares. Rusty, if this plane was replaced with better quality wood like in a Pat King kit, you could fly this size plane with a .061. The Jr builds nose heavy and even using a older engine like a Fox.15 which was common back then it still builds nose heavy and it's a light engine. The TD .09 would work due to having more than enough power and it's weight is light. These planes like fast. I had 2 Jr's one was powered by a OS FP .10 and the other was an Enya .15. The Enya was great under power, when it quit however you had a nice Monokote lawn dart.

The (Sterling) Jr Ring has what I refer to as the " Rib Ripper" spar. This is the rectangular spar in the middle of the ribs that I was saying to omit in one of my prior posts. I can't throw that piece of wood out fast enough. For one, it's orientated within the Jr Ring the incorrect way as it's not utilizing the strength of the wood due to it not being up on edge. In the event of a crash, certain things are quite typical with the Ringmaster's The nose either breaks off at the leading edge, which is why I extend my doublers back to the high point of the wing. The fuse also breaks directly at the rear of the wing due to the weight of the tail feathers whipping over. The wings also separate at the trailing edge connection and breaks your leading edge. This is where the "Rib Ripper" comes into the picture. Even though the damage doesn't look bad on the outside, the damage that occurs when the wing separates breaks all the ribs glued to that useless spar.

I extended my Jr Ring fuse 2" to the rear. This improved the nose heavy condition and also it's turning ability. The TD .09 would be a suitable engine due to no muffler and it's weight. I've been always fond of Roy Clough's "Stunt Goat" which was featured in Flying Models which was designed and built for the TD .09. Good article to read and the article gives some good tips to improve fuel draw through tank mods and designs. One of my club members, Dan just built a .15 size Magician which is powered by a Norvel .061. Terrific flying plane. Dan however is a freeflight builder as well and generally builds lighter than anyone in the club. Rule of thumb is that when a kit calls for a certain group size of engines, go for the larger. Also keep in mind when they were designed and what engines were available at that given time. A loop scavenged engine is truthfully no match for a modern Schnuerle ported engine and that's what was available at the time the Jr was made. Ken

Good stuff, thanks Ken. I do remember your post about the rib ripping spar.

I missed answering a question

The previous owner bought this plane, the unfinished wing and some other stuff at auction, it had a .35 (I want to say Fox) on it. He then stripped the small stuff off such as engines, etc, and sold that on Ebay. He could not rationalize trashing the airframe, and shipping on an airframe is rather pricy due to volume so he listed it on Craigslist.

I will see what my Dad has that I can use and he is willing to part with. I am running short of storage space in this house for airplanes though... This house has almost no attic space.

Phil

I have one polite carp at Ken and others here.... You guys post way to many good hints and kinks in the middle of threads. Ken the remaking of a tin fuel tank with center through bolt is excellent idea.

phenominal how much I still learn from others

I guess it is on me to remember this stuff when I build or explain to a young-un. Damn getting old sux

I should've explained that I used a piece of brake line material. It's a bit more durable than brass. If I did use brass, I would probably oversize it a bit so that the threads of the screw won't vibrate and cut through it. Ken

Maybe I should have started a new topic...sorry.
This ain't wonderland Alice.

What an UGLY little door...

The .35 from my Dad is a bust. There were a couple Mccoy's not on airplanes, a Fox 19 NIB, and an interesting 049. I left all the loose engines behind. I will be back in a few weeks to clean and re-insulate this space.

I did return with 2 more ringmasters, a Baby with a Cox 049, and a Jr sans engine, with a decoration scheme that my brothers, parents and I agree *I* did, but I don't have clear memory of building this model. I think it was an experiment in film coverings right when I was starting into RC gliders. I may have the engine that was originally on the Jr here already, converted to RC. I can convert it back, not trivial but quite easy.

https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080211.jpg
Fallen insulation from the roof job last winter (I get to be the insulation installer again!)
gonna attempt clockwise...
The large warbird is one of my Dad's combat airplanes. The yellow and blue elevator and horizontal stab barely visible is a Baby Ringmaster with a larger Cox TD on it. The red wingtips on white wing is my oldest brother's (1) Jr Ringmaster. The red with 049 is my older brother's (2) unknown. The large fuselage is my Dad's RC Cub(?) that he never flew. The white wing with black fuse and trim is the Baby Ringmaster with Cox engine I brought home. The white wings with blue fuse and elevator, red nose, cox engine is my oldest brother's (1). (I am the youngest of 3)


https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080212.jpg
another of my Dad's combat airplanes with a typical franken-plane graft. A stack of model rockets.


https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080213.jpg
Cox 049. Does not currently rotate under finger power. Left alone for now. Dad says it was on his first RC airplane. After the airframe was rebuilt a few times he gave up on RC.


what a mess...


https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080215.jpg
Tether car?

https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080216.jpg
I don't ever remember running a tether car...


https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080217.jpg
The flames and the spider look like something I would have done 20 years ago. I don't specifically remember building a Ringmaster Jr, but apparently I did. I did build a lot of models about that time.

I also brought home some cables of unknown lengths, a control handle, and extra parts to my Fox15.

My parents won an auction and brought home a literal truckload (Chevy Blazer, seat folded up, filled neatly) of models, kits, engines, and whatnot about 20 or 25 years ago, maybe a bit more. The Baby ringmaster is from this auction.

Phil

Holy crap Phil,

What a goldmine of cool stuff.

If you are interested in selling a Baby Ring or the Jr. Let me know.

Wow!

What surprised me is I did not find any of my Mom's airplanes. I think the two loose Mccoy engines were from her planes, but I am not sure. I'll ask when I am helping with the insulation and cleaning.

Phil

pkrankow wrote:
https://i.servimg.com/u/f44/17/84/87/39/12080213.jpg
Cox 049. Does not currently rotate under finger power. Left alone for now. Dad says it was on his first RC airplane. After the airframe was rebuilt a few times he gave up on RC.

Phil

Phil,
That Cox engine is a 1953-1954 Space Bug Junior. The moulded fuel pickup is opposite the needle so it does appear to be in an "RC" configuration. To use it for CL you would rotate the backplate so the needle is inside the circle.
It has a spinner nut instead of the original Acorn nut. Replacement Acorn nuts are available from Cox International.
It seems to have the smaller glow head, which is VERY scarce. If it is burned out you may need to switch both the glow head and cylinder.
They are very user-friendly engines. Good luck with it.

George

The wings look nice, but that covering on the fuselage could use a little shrinkage. Sorta reminds me of my planes.

Dang Kim Hurry up!

Just kidding, just eager to see the completed Super Ringmaster!

Ron

Very nice work. That's a big ol' tall engine poking out of the nose there.

Boy howdy that is a sweet looking plane now!

Phil

Bang up job Kim!!! Looks really good. I saw one of those NIB today! Drool.....

way to go idaho! looks great!

It's tough to beat the looks of the classic paint jobs. Very nicely done!