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Building Tips and technical articles. => 1/2 A building. => Topic started by: Dave Royer on March 29, 2024, 05:13:49 PM
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Does a full size plan exist for the Sterling 1/2 A kit that only had assembly instructions? Or maybe part tracings?
Any help appreciated.
Dave
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Someone did this and uploaded it to Outerzone for the 1/2A . They have the .15 size instruction sheet but no plans.
https://outerzone.co.uk/plan_details.asp?ID=10029
I would think about enlarging this a little bit for .049s. I think 2 .020s would fly this with decent wood.
Type at you later,
Dan McEntee
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I spoke (well, typed) with a gentleman on the Guillows FB group regarding his 1/2A Sterling P-38 because he had it showcased with his 400 series Guillows planes. He indicated that it was very nose heavy with two Babe Bees and strongly recommended a pair of PeeWees. In fact, his is the plane on the OZ plan page!
Dave Cowell of DPCModels has the clone Sterling P-38 in his Short Release Kits list. Prices are (were) very reasonable for what is basically much more than a short kit. Don't be shocked by his packing methods. The wood is carefully stacked with the plywood (and the plastic parts if supplied) shrink-wrapped to a piece of corrugated cardboard, and placed in a "just big enough" cardboard box. But be prepared to whittle block leading edges and use (or substitute) his laser cut plywood bellcrank. He cut great kits for me several years back. The kits ship with paper-print "decals," plywood wheels, and steel music wire for landing gear. For the P-38, he goes "all authentic" by supplying a square stock balsa pushrod for the elevator, just as the kit was marketed back in the day. His goal was to market authentic reproductions of older kits. I sure hope he is still cutting kits because I want to order a few more for the "retirement locker."
No financial investment, and never dissatisfied by his wares.
"Airsoft Brenda" on YouTube has a video of her electrified DPCModels P-38 in case one was to consider electromotive power.
https://dpcmodels.homestead.com/SRKS.html
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Thanks a lot for the lead. I'll shoot DCP and email and hope for the best.
Dave
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No luck there. The search continues.
Dave
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I built the DCP P-38 and it really came out remarkably nice looking. 90% of Dave's kit is laser cut. Dave cut this kit for me as he didn't have any ready. He explained it would cost a bit more than the price on the site. I can't locate his site now unfortunately. The leading edges are square stock and requires shaping. In addition, no angles are present on any of the pieces and this needs to be transferred from the prints to the pieces. No dados are cut on any of the stock. The dados required for the ribs are not square to the leading or trailing edges. I did them using a miter gauge on the table saw. I used a 1/16" kerf blade to make the dados. A wider kerf blade could be use which might accommodate the angle of the ribs to the parts.
I did fly it and it is indeed nose heavy with the Babe Bees. I wasn't looking for stunt like performance. I built it to replace my C-47 which broke a line and exploded into pieces. My outboard Bee was acting up and I believe I resolved that. It will fly next weekend. I'm concerned in regards to the trike gear. Trike gear blows and it just cartwheels, I should've eliminated the gear all together.
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Ken,
The link is the last line/bottom of my previous post.
All.you say is correct. Frankly, I like the square stock LE/TE as this makes for great datum lines. I've got two started kits that really only need finish work (they are assembled and have been for a while). I also have four or five of his other kits in the retirement locker, and wanted to buy a couple more. I really want another swing at the Scientific P-40 Kitty Hawk (build log on CEF) to replace my crashed OEM one that Dave borrowed (before construction) for reverse-engineering.
But I'm concerned that Mr. Dave R could not reach Dave Cowell (DPC). My last email from DPC was early January. This is my fault as I have not responded to DPC's last send. Hopefully Dave R fat fingered the address from the DPCModels site, so I sent my last know good for DPC to Dave R. I've got my fingers crossed!
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Thanks to your direction to outerzone I have what I was looking for. Good luck connecting with the other Dave.
And thanks again,
Dave R
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Dave, are you going to use .020s or .049s- Mine has .020s ask me how I know to use .020.!!!!!Lets Just say it went very very fast with .049.
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The plan is for a couple of Golden Bees recently revitalized by fellow Fireball member Doug Powers. They're basically Baby Bees with stunt vented integral tanks. Intended to use longest lines I could get away with but with recent health issues probably won't be able to fly myself anyway. I'll get one of the race guys to fly it for me if I manage to complete the project.
Dave
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The plan is for a couple of Golden Bees recently revitalized by fellow Fireball member Doug Powers. They're basically Baby Bees with stunt vented integral tanks. Intended to use longest lines I could get away with but with recent health issues probably won't be able to fly myself anyway. I'll get one of the race guys to fly it for me if I manage to complete the project.
Dave
I would seriously consider almost doubling the size if using Golden Bee type engines. The .15 sized version is small also, and I think Chris McMillin's son Michael built on as a kid with 2 Norvel .061's on it for that 1/2A twin scale event they used to have in Tucson. Anyone else remember that? Enlarging the outerzone files for the parts would be easy. Unless your plan is to just go blazing fast!! PAint it a vermillion red and put YIPPEE on the bottom of the wing!
Type at you later and HAPPY EASTER!!
Dan McEntee
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Thing only has a 24" wingspan. I have put a single Cox .049 on larger planes. Bump it up to at least 36". I built the '.15 size one as a kid. It was grossly overpowered with 2 Fox .15's if you can imagine a Fox 15 overpowering anything!
Ken
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The P-38 Lightning always comes out with too much power and weight and not enough wing area.
Anything from full size to .020.
It will look impressive and go fast and not stunt no matter what you do.
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Shhhh!
I know this is "SH," but for as much as I've learned here (plenty), I'm still happy to go "Roundie, Roundie, Up and Downie." Then, depending on the plane, maybe wrong side up (inverted)! I recorded my last loop and inverted flight...and managed to get back upright before landing. If one plays the video at 1/4 speed, one can actually see I was a few eye-blinks behind the plane on that one! Phew...at least I didn't lawn-dart it like the last plane.
LL~
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Everything for the Sterling 1/2 A P-38 is at https://outerzone.co.uk/plan_details.asp?ID=10029 Download the supplement marked vec for parts and decal sheet for very clean and nice drawing
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FWIW here, I built the 36" Sterling P-38 once long ago with two bone stock LA.15's. It was built dead straight and reasonably light, but the weight was killed with the heavy engines. With that combination all you really dared do with it was level to some wavy (hilly?) up and down flight and a few mild wingovers here and there. If you wanted to bring it home in one piece the wing loading was just too high to make it worth trying anything else. When the engines quit it had the same natural glide slope as a brick, maybe not even.
Hindsight says two Medallion or Tee Dee .049/.051 engines, or Norvel .061/.074's would be plenty of power and be a lot of fun on it. Still wouldn't be a great Stunter but it would be a fun flier and much better overall than with the heavier engines.
The little 1/2A version wouldn't need any more than reedie .049's, maybe even just .020's.