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Author Topic: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak  (Read 2007 times)

Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« on: March 02, 2021, 11:24:23 AM »
I'm curious.   I've never built or flown either a Flite Streak or a Lightening Streak.   What's the difference?  Looking at the Brodak catalog, I can't see much, if any differences in the proportions of the two.

Is the construction that much different?

Do they fly differently?

Joe Ed Pederson


Offline Dan McEntee

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #1 on: March 02, 2021, 04:48:16 PM »
  Hi Joe;
   As far as I know, the Lightning Streak is pretty much the same as the Flite Streak with some changes to construction. At the time Brodak came out with that kit, Top Flite was still in business and still owned the rights to the Flite Streak and the other control line kits in their line, and Brodak couldn't use that name. When Tower Hobbies bought Top Flite, all they wanted was the rights to the R/C kits and Monokote. The destroyed all the tooling for everything else and it all ended up in the land fill. The way I understand it, that reverted the rights to that stuff back to George Aldrich and he then turned the rights over to Brodak and then they could use the name and they followed up with the Original Nobler. That is pretty much the way it was explained to me.
   Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee
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Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #2 on: March 02, 2021, 06:12:46 PM »
Thanks, Dan.

I thought it might have been that way.

Joe Ed

Offline dave siegler

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #3 on: March 02, 2021, 08:22:51 PM »
I have built both very little differences. 

Lightning streak  2 spar wing, diamond leading edge, sheeted trailing edge,  cap strips, squared off tail feathers, 2 wheeled gear, think horizontal has less span an a little more cord

Flite streak  sheet spar, 2 piece leading edge (or preformed), preformed trailing edge, no cap strips, rounded tail group,  narrow cord elevator, one wheel gear.

Dave Siegler
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Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2021, 06:15:18 AM »
Thanks Dave,

I don't know that I would ever build either of them, but because of how you described the construction and especially that the Flite Streak comes with a two wheel landing gear, I would choose the Flite Streak.  I fly from a stooge frequently and not having to adapt a one wheel design to two wheels would save me some time.

Joe Ed

Offline BillP

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #5 on: March 03, 2021, 06:36:36 AM »
Thanks Dave,

I don't know that I would ever build either of them, but because of how you described the construction and especially that the Flite Streak comes with a two wheel landing gear, I would choose the Flite Streak.  I fly from a stooge frequently and not having to adapt a one wheel design to two wheels would save me some time.

Joe Ed

I fly my single wheel Flightstreak from a stooge on grass...no problem with the single wheel take off. The stooge is home made and holds the bottom of the fuse with a loop of wire. Has a Fox 25.
Bill P.

Offline dave siegler

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #6 on: March 03, 2021, 07:49:27 AM »
I fly my single wheel Flightstreak from a stooge on grass...no problem with the single wheel take off. The stooge is home made and holds the bottom of the fuse with a loop of wire. Has a Fox 25.

I like one wheeled gear better.  I put a paper towel roll under the inboard wing and its fine. 

The 2 spar construction is easier for me to scratch build that the egg box.   So there is no real difference and I wonder why brodak offers both models now. 
Dave Siegler
NE9N extra class
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Offline Paul Smith

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #7 on: March 03, 2021, 08:37:54 AM »
I built about a dozen Top Flite Streaks and three Lightning Streaks for plans.
The principle difference is the large, expensive machined balsa LE & TE in the Top Flite kits.  These are virtually impossible to duplicate. 
The Lightning Streak uses common off-the-shelf balsa stock.

I perfer the 2-wheel wing landing gear.
But when I do use one wheel and a stooge I put a drag rag on the outboard wing.  This keeps the plane in the proper attitude and falls off as the plane takes off.
« Last Edit: March 03, 2021, 09:08:17 AM by Paul Smith »
Paul Smith

Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #8 on: March 03, 2021, 12:01:08 PM »
Thanks Paul, Dave, and Bill on the input on how to launch a single wheel model off grass with a stooge. 

I have a Brodak Shark 402 kit that is on the short list to build.  The Shark 402 comes as a single wheel design and I didn't think it would be safe to launch a single wheel model with a stooge.  Now I think I will build it with the single wheel and give it a try.

I wonder if a single wheel 1/2A model can be safely launched with a stooge off of concrete or asphalt.

Thanks again,

Joe Ed Pederson

Offline L0U CRANE

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #9 on: March 03, 2021, 12:45:50 PM »
Joe Ed,

As long as the prop clears the ground when the outboard tip is on the ground, it should be fine. A 'drag rag' or some such works very well to keep your pull before launch from pulling the inboard tip down. THAT could cause a squirrely takeoff...

Advantages? Less drag than two wheels. Lighter. (Wheels are useless weight and drag in flight!)

Also, Paul's pix of the kit parts shows what was in the  (two spar) original Top Flite kit in the 1950's. The milled LE and TE weren't always well done, and occasionally pretty warped in the box. My first TF Flite Streak was a huge advance over what I had been flying. (On first flight it got about 3 laps ahead of me - but didn't complete a first full lap... Ah, youth! I had balanced it where the kit instructions said - ON the spar. That's been a legendary no-no for over 60 years now...)

 Brodak's 2-piece LE joins 2 strips (approximately 1/4 by 3/4 and 1/4 by 1/2 ) into an L-shape that can be formed like the TF milled LE.
\BEST\LOU

Online Brad LaPointe

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #10 on: March 03, 2021, 02:22:15 PM »
Launching a single wheel model from a stooge is much easier if your stooge is mounted on a piece of plywood. My launcher system has a roughly 1 foot long piece of 1/2x1/4 on the centre line of the plywood. This enables me to tighten the lines and get the wings level before pulling the pin . I have tested a lot of sport racers this way . Make sure that the centre strip ends before the prop !

The plywood also keeps dirt out of the engine and makes finding things that get dropped easier to find than in the grass . For me this works great as I leave it at the field, lugging it around probably would get old quick.

Brad LaPointe

Offline john e. holliday

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #11 on: March 03, 2021, 03:01:35 PM »
Flying from a stooge is easy if you remember to take a step back when pulling release line and don't ever throw it.   Just let it drop.  Big thing is make sure release line is under the flying lines.  I have three different stooges I use depending on the planes I fly. D>K

Biggest thing is don't ever get in a hurry to set up and fly.   ???
John E. "DOC" Holliday
10421 West 56th Terrace
Shawnee, KANSAS  66203
AMA 23530  Have fun as I have and I am still breaking a record.

Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #12 on: March 04, 2021, 10:59:47 AM »
Flying from a stooge is easy if you remember to take a step back when pulling release line and don't ever throw it.   Just let it drop.  Big thing is make sure release line is under the flying lines.  I have three different stooges I use depending on the planes I fly. D>K

Biggest thing is don't ever get in a hurry to set up and fly.   ???

John, thanks for the tip on not throwing the release line.  I never figured out how the release line got over the flying wires on one launch (the Cosmic Wind rolled about 5 feet and did a 4 foot loop back onto the pavement).  Could have been that I threw the line still attached to the reel and it bounced up and over the flying lines.

I have two stooges, one is a metal plate, the other is plywood, but the release is not at the front of the plywood; therefore I couldn't add the 1/2 x 1/4 strip Brad uses.  Won't be much trouble to build a second plywood stooge with the release at the back so I could add the 1/2 x 1/4 strip. 

By the way, after I spent the money and time to make a metal plate stooge so I could launch off of concrete/asphalt, it occurred to me that I could have used my plywood plate on concrete/asphalt simply by putting rubber feet on the bottom and placing a ten pound dumb bell weight on top of the plywood.  I'm frequently, a day late and a dollar short when it comes to ideas.

Thanks, everyone.

Joe Ed Pederson



Offline john e. holliday

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #13 on: March 04, 2021, 11:08:42 AM »
John, thanks for the tip on not throwing the release line.  I never figured out how the release line got over the flying wires on one launch (the Cosmic Wind rolled about 5 feet and did a 4 foot loop back onto the pavement).  Could have been that I threw the line still attached to the reel and it bounced up and over the flying lines.

I have two stooges, one is a metal plate, the other is plywood, but the release is not at the front of the plywood; therefore I couldn't add the 1/2 x 1/4 strip Brad uses.  Won't be much trouble to build a second plywood stooge with the release at the back so I could add the 1/2 x 1/4 strip. 

By the way, after I spent the money and time to make a metal plate stooge so I could launch off of concrete/asphalt, it occurred to me that I could have used my plywood plate on concrete/asphalt simply by putting rubber feet on the bottom and placing a ten pound dumb bell weight on top of the plywood.  I'm frequently, a day late and a dollar short when it comes to ideas.

Thanks, everyone.

Joe Ed Pederson

Don't feel lonesome. H^^
John E. "DOC" Holliday
10421 West 56th Terrace
Shawnee, KANSAS  66203
AMA 23530  Have fun as I have and I am still breaking a record.

Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #14 on: March 04, 2021, 12:26:48 PM »
John: Yeah, I know I'm not alone but it would be nice to be ahead of the curve a little more often.

Another day late and a dollar short.

What do you do with a one wheel landing gear to protect the wingtips from getting scuffed up or sanded down?

My first thought was plywood runners on the wingtip ribs and the second thought was a strip of heavy duty clear packing tape on the wingtip ribs.

What do you guys do?

Joe Ed Pederson

Online Brad LaPointe

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #15 on: March 04, 2021, 05:20:01 PM »
For my sport racers I use a 1/16” wire loop for a skid .

I have used my plywood launcher on hard surfaces without any issues. It’s 4’x4’ ,1/2” thick around 20 years old and oil soaked. At one time it was white!

I’m sure everyone that uses a stooge a lot has a “story “ . Mine involves an ARF Flite Streak , the stooge and a combat streamer . Regulation F2D streamers are really tough . So LA .25 , 8x5 prop , streamer , really good needle and the streamer snags in the stooge . It took a while for the engine to quit , no way I was dropping the handle ! No more streamer on the stooge . Lesson learned.

Brad

Offline BillP

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #16 on: March 04, 2021, 07:29:22 PM »
John: Yeah, I know I'm not alone but it would be nice to be ahead of the curve a little more often.

Another day late and a dollar short.

What do you do with a one wheel landing gear to protect the wingtips from getting scuffed up or sanded down?

My first thought was plywood runners on the wingtip ribs and the second thought was a strip of heavy duty clear packing tape on the wingtip ribs.

What do you guys do?

Joe Ed Pederson

I only fly on grass and use heat shrink covering. Nothing really gets sanded down or damaged.
Bill P.

Offline Steve Berry

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #17 on: March 05, 2021, 11:28:03 AM »
John: Yeah, I know I'm not alone but it would be nice to be ahead of the curve a little more often.

Another day late and a dollar short.

What do you do with a one wheel landing gear to protect the wingtips from getting scuffed up or sanded down?

My first thought was plywood runners on the wingtip ribs and the second thought was a strip of heavy duty clear packing tape on the wingtip ribs.

What do you guys do?

Joe Ed Pederson

What I've seen & used in the past is simple - an old nylon control horn attached to the outermost part of the wingtip. Works a treat, and usually free (from a wrecked donor plane.

Offline john e. holliday

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #18 on: March 05, 2021, 01:40:53 PM »
If flying over pavement all the time a Ply peice can be glued under the wing tip or wire as some stated. D>K
John E. "DOC" Holliday
10421 West 56th Terrace
Shawnee, KANSAS  66203
AMA 23530  Have fun as I have and I am still breaking a record.

Offline Joe Ed Pederson

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #19 on: March 05, 2021, 06:35:32 PM »
Thanks, everyone.

Joe Ed

Offline Serge_Krauss

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Re: Curiosity: Difference Flite Streak - Lightening Streak
« Reply #20 on: March 06, 2021, 08:41:19 AM »
My mono-wheeled SkyRay has never given a problem when launched from my stooge, which is just two looped coat hanger pieces with a piece of wire passing through them and a hole in the fuselage between them. It just skims along and rises nicely. The only flight streak I flew took off fine from the ground with single wheel. Two wheels were my choice for my other original designs, but I don't see any problem with the "Streak" as designed.


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