Newbie question

[RDJeff]

What's the difference between a Thunderebird and a Smoothie?  They seem to be the same, but I may be missing something...

[Bob Whitely]

Good Question. The differences are orders of magnitude. Both models are good flyers
in their own right, however the t-Bird is arguably the better of the two.
The Smoothie has a straight leading edge and a thinner airfoil. The overall size
is smaller. Built very,very light will do a decent corner. The T-Bird is a more
competitive model in every way. The Smoothie is good as a Classic model. The T-Bird
is great for Classic and very good in the Expert or Open class competition. The  Smoothie
needs a strong .35 whereas the T-Bird needs a strong .46-.51.  That's it, that's all there
is.  RJ

[Mike Keville]

52" span (Smoothie) vs 56" span (T-Bird).  As noted by RJ, thicker airfoil on the 'Bird, and a much better flyer.  With proper power, turns on a dime.

[Trostle]

(Clip)

 The Smoothie is good as a Classic model.

(Clip)

 RJ

Actually, the Smoothie is OTS legal as well.  But it will be penalized because of its flaps.

Keith

[RDJeff]

Will an FP40 be adequate for a Brodak T-Bird?

[Bill Little]

Will an FP40 be adequate for a Brodak T-Bird?

HI Jeff,

I believe the OS .40FP would be fine for all but the windiest of conditions.  Plus it will be cheaper for you not to have to buy another engine.  If you decide to get another engine, drop a .46LA in it.

The Brodak T-Bird is the T-Bird I, upright engine and ever so slightly smaller than the Veco T-Bird II.  Both fly very good.

Bill

[Hoss Cain]

What's the difference between a Thunderebird and a Smoothie?  They seem to be the same, but I may be missing something...

The differences are very much. Back in the late '50s I flew a Veco Smoothie, Fox 35, a lot. It was not comparable to a Nobler on the contest scene. I built the first Thunderbird, Fox .35, which brought me my first Competition Trophy, a 3rd place in an Orangeburg SC event. That Thunderbird was smooth and capable but maybe a tad nose heavy because the corners were not really sharp. Back then I did not know much about the effects of CG and or prop selection on a CL model.
In the mid '60s I modified the then current Thunderbird II by slimming the fuselage, extending the tail moment 1.3 inches, and used a Johnson Stunt Supreme .35 with an OS needle valve and a plugged venturi by about 25%. Using a Tornado wood (plast-cote they called it) 10-4 prop, that combo was the STUNT SUPREME machine. I had to buy up every Tornado 10-4 that I could find. WITH ANY OTHER PROP it had a wing wobble on outside squares at the top of the maneuvers. WHY? I could never figure that one out.
It won 3 contests with George Aldrich judging when there were Noblers on the scene. It won several others around the circuits of those days including a Lake Jackson TX contest where a fellow of "Stuka" fame came in second. It also won at a couple events in the Chicago area in the late '60s. By that time I was flying the early designs of my own "Migs" then RC took over my activities. I sold out my CL inventory.
The Mig shall return!

[peabody]

I believe that the Smoothie, as offered in kit, ARF, or ARC from Brodak has the thicker airfoil......and the plans were signed by Bob Palmer......
As Bob says, a 46 or 51 work real well on the TBird....
I am working on a Smoothie right now that I plan to power with a Brodak 40.


Have fun!