Berkeley's Lil Duper Zilch

[Andrew Borgogna]

I got this partial kit along with a Sig Super Chipmunk.  I decided to build the Zilch first.  I am using the kit for patterns, the wing is all new except for the leading edge.  The box didn't contain plans so I went to my good friend Barry Baxter and he printed me up the plans.  Should be a fun build.  
Andy

[Mike Keville]

Andy, that's my all-time favorite Old Timer.  Built a couple of them back in the '50s....Fox .29 power....Testors 'STA' finish.  Great flying little design, even with that far-forward LG location (good for grass; lousy for asphalt).  Please bring yours to VSC-26 next March - - - along with Jackie's cookies, of course.

[Andrew Borgogna]

Will do Uncle Mikey.  I plan to power this with a Fox .35 or PAW .29 diesel (need all the points I can get).  Anyway it won't be electric and it will be for VSC.
Andy

[Bill Little]

It should do well for you, Andy, looking good!

It's always amazed me how well the Zilch's can fly when most of them have those skinny little airfoils!  Yet if flown just a tad fast, they do very well!

BIG Bear
RNMM/AMM

[Andrew Borgogna]

Update on the Lil Duper Zilch.
Well I have been making progress on the Lil Duper Zilch and I am breaking in the engine I finally settled on.  The PAW .19 is starting to show life as it continues to break in.  With a 10x4 wood prop I can peak it at just over 9K, but for the most part I am running it at 8700 RPM which is still 500 revs better than when I started.

If you look at the wing you can see the yellowing of the leading edge, that's the only part from the kit I chose to use.  I think if I had it to do over again I would have made a new leading edge.  This kit sat in some attic for many years.  The wood can best be described as horrible, and the fit of the parts is even worst. As for the plans well, if not for the plans I would have spent a long time figuring how this plane went together.  Thank you Barry Baxter!  I really don't know how Berkeley stayed in business as long as it did.
Andy

[dennis lipsett]

They stayed in business simply because of their catalog of kits and the fact that even bad wood and die crushing was better then hollowing out fuselages and cutting print wood parts as was common in the 40's kits. In other words the times made it possible for them to endure.
The plans were the best part of the kits and even those by todays standards were pretty bad. And I really hate having to say that because I really did like Don McGoverns plans for his designs.

Dennis

[George]

It has been said that you become a REAL model builder once you have successfully built a Berkeley kit. 

George

[Larry Renger]

My brother actually completed the Berkley Skyray ducted fan model! It broke apart on the first test glide and never got fixed before it burned with his first house (along with his beloved Corvair station wagon and my glass laminate bow)

[Andrew Borgogna]

It's funny I made exact copies of each part in the kit then I would try to fit them together and in almost every case the part would not fit.  The firewall is a 1/4" too wide the rudder is 1/8" too long.  Oh well, it's nearing completion and I think it will fly. 

[john e. holliday]

Just imagine the results if Berkeley would have had access to the equipment we have now.   My Brother Bob built the Good News team racer.   He was the best of my three brothers that built models.   My Brother Bill wasn't to far behind, but his specialty was the plastic cars of the time.  My Brother Howard was the drummer of the family.  Anyway the LDZ is looking good.  Now does your lovely wife make you change clothes after running that diesel?

[Mike Lauerman]

Berkeley kits definitely had the 'Gotcha!' factor... an old friend had a Berkeley Shoestring he decided to build a few years back.
We decided to work together, at his house...I took along my Larry Richards Bearcat kit. We pored over kit parts, mainly the old, hard barndoor balsa in the Berkeley Shoestring...then the Richards' parts.
I went back over 3 nights later and helped him cut new Shoe' parts from fresh Balsa USA stock!

Still love those old Effinger designs...