I decided I needed a free flight model I could keep in a small box & take into a potential flying site to demonstrate what it is we fly, why they will not harm their facility & why the heat/air conditioning needs to be turned off. So, I decided to build an A6 using supplies a newcomer might not find too intimidating or difficult to obtain. I used 7 Lb/CuFt balsa for the 1/16" Sq strip wood (wing & stab leading/trailing edges, tail boom, rudder outline, prop spar), 6#/CuFt 1/32" sheet wood (ribs, prop blades) & Esaki Japaness tissue (.0088 Gr/SqIn). I used an old motor stick made out of 8#/CuFt wood, but cut the height down as much as possible to reduce weight without having it bend under tension. It was amazing how strong the 8# wood was & how much wood could be safely removed for low ceiling flying.
To manage the wood volume, the wing is 12" X 2.5", the stab 7" X 2" & the tail boom is 8". The total weight is 1.23 grams.
I flew it this past weekend at our monthly flying session. The gym is 20' high under the girders. I only had time for three flights & they were 2:58, 3:18 & 3:23. All flights were "no touch" flights, so with a little more practice & a few light hits 3:30 to 4:00 is realistic.
I hope this will give newcomers confidence that they can build a good performing A6 with common indoor supplies.
Gary Hodson
Received on Wed Feb 24 2010 - 19:02:35 CET
This archive was generated by Yannick on Sat Dec 14 2019 - 19:13:46 CET