Ringmaster Jr Build Questions?

[Chancey Chorney]

Hi. Yesterday I was out picking up a set of lines from a fellow modeller that is local (and on here), and while there I made mention of building a .15 size plane for my Fox .15 engine. He then proceeds to ask me if I would be interested in a Ringmaster Jr. he picked up from another local modeller, and told me he had started to repair some parts as well as made new wing ribs. I had always wanted to build one, except I HATE cutting wing ribs.... With that said, I accepted it, and he gifted the kit to me and I was very happy. The 'kit' in box was pretty much complete upon inspection when I got home. All I am missing was the rudder (fin is present), 1 wing rib ( I made it last night), wing TE sheeting and spars. All are no big deal or any problems. Next trip to the city I will pick up the needed wood to have it all present.

I will be doing some things different than the plan calls for. First, I will only sheet the two bays out from center, as opposed to the plans that call for center section sheeting AND sheeting from the LE to spar. As well, I will not be using the two joiner pieces as I will be buiding this in just one solid piece. And for now, I have only one other question. Of the wing ribs previously made for the kit one stack is thicker balsa than the other. Which wing ribs would best be going where? Heavier to the inboard wing, or outboard wing? I will also have a bit of fun making a bellcrank as the original is not there, but teh drawing of it is on the plan making it easy to recreate. Just cant decide on aluminum, or aircraft plywood laminated, or plastic? I will try to get pictures up shortly of what I have to work with. At least in the mean time, I can work on the tail surfaces and hinging them.

[bob whitney]

heavier ribs on the outboard side, and I would go with the aluminum for the bellcrank

[Bootlegger]

  I have one that I fly from time to time, and it is powered by an O S 099 and it weighs 16oz and on 45' .012 lines and a 7x4 A P C prop it is TOO Fast, so I plan to make a set of lines from fishing line in the 47-48' line length.

  The little model flies well though, including some stunts..   I got the model from a friend that had a Fox 15 on it for his sons, but for me the 15 is too much..
  Hope that this helps..

[bob whitney]

it will fly on 60 ft .012 braided lines and loop and do inverted with a 15

[Chancey Chorney]

Great! Thanks for the help, and comments. I was hoping the Fox .15 x in it would be a nice c=docile flier that would not be to fast with the 52' lines I got yesterday, and now by the sounds of it, it will boogey right along. Well, I guess faster than expected lap times are still in my future!

[Chancey Chorney]

As promised earlier. A couple pictures of my new kit. Sorry they did not turn out as good as I wanted. I will try and re-take them this weekend.

[pat king]

The kit you have is a later generation Ringmaster Jr. The original Ringmaster Jr. Kit S5 did not have any sheeting on the leading edge. Your kit is more like the S1-A Ringmaster construction than the original S5. Your airplane should be fun to fly. At 196 square inches of wing area the airplane will have plenty of power with a crossflow .09 . Stunters for .061 engines are in the 230 square inch range.

Pat

[Chancey Chorney]

Great. Thanks for the ID of the kit. With every comment, I am thinking that my Fox .15 will be too much for this bird. At least the engine mounting holes are not drilled yet. So, with that said, I just may put my old Enya .09 on here and my Fox .15 on the Platter the Enya is currently on. How much faster does one think the Ringmaster will be with the Fox .15x vs the Enya .09 (2nd generation with opposite side exhaust). Or would consensus be the Fox will be alright. I am just looking for lazy circles with a wingover or two. I have not yet gone inverted ever (intentionally). Thanks.

[pat king]

With the 15 that airplane will not do anything in a "lazy" manner.  Your Enya is an .09 III. Use the .09 with a 3" pitch prop. You can slow it down by using a larger diameter prop or turning the prop over so it is backwards. The reversed prop is very inefficient, but will slow the airplane. Start with a 7 X 3 and adjust accordingly.

Pat

[Chancey Chorney]

Thanks for the comments and reminding me my engine is a Enya III. Somehow I thought it was a II, but you were correct. The fuse is built as it came to me already built, but it will fit either engine so I still have some time to decide as I have not yet drilled any holes. The platter that the Enya is currently in weight in at 12.5 oz, without fuel or tank. However, I use a balloon tank on it so weight is minimal.

[dennis lipsett]

I had a few of the smaller Ringmaster models and powered all of them with a Fox 15X . Prop was a 7/5 and I flew them on 55 foot .012 lines. They were more fun then should be legal to fly. I gave the Flash and the Pat king Jr Ringmaster to Pat to get a few younger flyers motivated. These had a lot of flights on them and had no dings or rash on them when i parted with them. They are fairly honest aircraft and fun in smaller flying areas.
Oh and for the record for the Fox hurlers mine all started on one or two flips. Just follow the drill every time.

Dennis

[Chancey Chorney]

Thanks Dennis. Now, if I may. What is teh 'Drill' to start a Fox? Never fired one up before. As a note. The bellcrank mount is missing so was wondering what the best way to make one and how best to install it? Would a 1/8" plywood plate fitted between the wing ribs and epoxied in place both to the ribs and spar be ok? Or is there a proper way to do it. I unfortunately do not have the original parts to see how it goes, nor do I have Pats version. Thank you.

[pat king]

Chancey,
The attached show the bellcrank installation for an Estes 19 Stuntin' Ringmaster and the control installation from the original design Ringmaster Jr. . My wing construction is not the same as the original or the 19 Stuntin' Ringmaster. Your mount should be 1/8 aircraft ply glued between the ribs and glued to the spar. It is very important to tie the open edge to the wing center sheeting. That adds a lot of security in the mounting.

Pat

[Chancey Chorney]

Awesome. Thank you very much Pat for the help. And if I may, what do you mean by 'It is very important to tie the open edge to the wing center sheeting'? Is this reffering to the plywood bellcrank mount (1/8" ply)? Or is it for the screw that holds the bellcrank in place? Sorry for the silly questions, but building anything bigger than an .049 is very new to me. Thank you.

[Chancey Chorney]

Sorry. I think I see it now. In the first picture, it shows a balsa 'shim' at the rear edge of the plywood mount.

[dennis lipsett]

The drill

It is simply following a known sequence when starting the engine. Prime,flip it over a number of times hook up the battery and start the engine. after awhile you get to know how much to choke the engine, how many times to flip it over to vaporise the fuel and then flip the engine with a firm flip. enough practice and you get really good at it.