emoment my SeagullB-25took to the air I’ve been hooked on itsdocile flying characteristics, benign handling and true-scale appearance. It’sareal Geof Wallace
JPerkins
Futaba Team Display Pilot
Seagull 71” P-51D(35cc)
Well-behavedand extremely easytotakeofand land, Seagull’s71” P-51 is awarbirdyou’ ll absolutely adorefromthe moment the roll-outbegins.
Mark Leavesley 2025 UK TopGun Champion
News,tips, videos &more
There’smoretoexploreat your local model shop JPerkins.com/local /WeAreJPerkins /WeAreJPerkins
Seagull95” B-25(2x 20cc)
Welcome to the August 2025 issueofRCM&E. My local club recentlyhosted its thirdFun Fly competitionofthe year in which members taketurns to tryone theregularfun �lydisciplines, albeit using amuchmore relaxed format thandie-hard fun �lyers would probablyrecognise On that evening it was‘Touch &Goes’.The rulesweresimple: makeasmanytouch andgoes within two-minutes as possible, scoring apoint each time the model landed anywhereonthe strip,with twopoints forany touches made withinasmaller area marked out in frontofthe judges.Mypractice �light went well so Iawaited my twominutes of glory,enjoying the friendly banter as my clubmates put theirskills and models through their paces
When my turn came Idid okay but wasa bit disappointed in my performance,not really being able to get into the same sort of groove that Ihad enjoyedduringthe practice �light.As expected, clubmateNeil, �lying an Xtreme 3D, waseasilytop of the scoreboard.Chris,�lying asimilaraircra�t, also didverywell, but came a cropper mid-�light.Nextupwas Tim, arecent recruit to the hobby, �lying the high wingbush plane he used as atrainer
Tim’s �lying wasarevelation.Hesimply �lew several unhurried but very well controlled circuits,putting intopractice all the skills he hadtaken on board during training. By doing this he wasable to skim the much sought a�ter double points area on practicallyevery pass Compare this with my more rushed approach, scoringa pointa�ter everybouncy arrivalbut rarely troubling the ‘two-point’ band marked on the runway.Icamesecond overall but Tim wassnapping close at my heels!
This reallybrought home to me thevalue of practicing circuits,evenfor those of us who have been �lying model aircra�t formany decades.It’saskill that takes alongtime to master but is onethat caneasily degradeifyou don’ttakethe time to brush up on things from time to time.
Nowfor ourusual quick lookatthe articles in this month’s magazine startingwith ‘Model Magic’asMatthias Hausmann detailsthe development of his F4Hmodelofa Robin DR400. Next,Nigel Cartwrightdescribes the constructionofhis Bell 47 helicopter, familiartoall readers of acertainage from the MASHtelevisionseries.Continuing the scale theme,in‘Make It Scale’Danny Fenton revisits
Wolverhampton University to join fellow enthusiasts at the Scale IndoorR/C Nationals In the latest instalment of ‘Scale Gliding’ Chris Williams sees several maiden �lights of models made from his scale glider designs and returns to theWhiteSheet club fortheir Spring soaring event.
Ourfirst event report of this issuecomes from MikeFreemanwho travels to Popham airfield to see what wasondisplayatthe busy southern model show. Next,wereturn to Chris Williams forparttwo of hislatest Pro-Planarticle describing thebuildofa1950s SlingsbySkylark glider.Sticking with gliders, in ‘Just ForFun’David Ashbybuilds aFresh RES glider then scours alocal swap meet.Backto powermodels,Chedworth RCFC’s first retro meeting in earlyJunewas well attended; event organiser DickSpreadbury took time out from his busy daytorecord some of the pilots andplanes
On the final stretch nowand it’s over to John Stennard andhis latest ‘Insider’column;indoor jets,biplanes andamphibians areamongst thevaried topics coveredthismonth.Topping itall o�fis‘OneMan &His Shed’ in which Dave Goodenough adds to his diesel collectionand witnessesaSpruceGoose taketothe air.
Ihope youenjoyreading it all.
HappyFlying!
Editor:Kevin Crozier
Kelsey Media,Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle,LincsLN9 6JR kcrozier@mortons.co.uk
PRINT AND DIGITAL
Thewhole package –just £5.50 per issuefor a printed anddigital version www.classicmagazines.co.uk/subscription/RCM
On thecover
Photo: Mike Freeman
Ourcover this monthshows Joe o�thouse’s . metrespanCARF AEHawkiniconicRed Arrows 0th Anniversar yliver y, lookingstunning ag ainstthe backdrop of treesduring it sdisplaysatthe opham ModelShow. Joehad only recently finishedthe model so opham wasthe jet’sfirstpublic outing.Inf ac t, Joehad only logged . hour s� lyingwithitbeforehandsohe mu st have been very nervou sto� ly it in theblu ster yconditions. Anyner ves didn’t show though andJoe gave several memorabledisplaysduringthe event.
Regulars
8 SWITCH ON
Ourlatestround up of model� lyingnews.
68 PILOTS’PICTORIAL
Send us apic ture of anew or favourite modeland it couldappearinour reader s’ models galler y
82 ALLWRITE
Have your sayinRCM&E’s monthlychat room
91 COUNTERPOINT
Aselec tion of newkit s, bits andg adgets foryou to buy
92 GOINGPLACES
Ourupdated list of modelevent sand competitions foryou to visitoverthe next fewmonths
DavidAshby builds aFresh RESglider then succumbs to temptation at the localswapmeet
76 INSIDER
Jets,bipes &hibiansare amongst theindoor� lyingsubject scovered by John Stennard in hislatestcolumn
84 ONEMAN &HIS SHED
This time Dave Goodenough adds to hisdieselcollection, look satcontrol surf aces on wingsand witnessesa Spruce Gooset aketothe air
Free Pro-Plan
48 SLINGSBY SK YL ARK1
ChrisWilliamsisbackwithpar tt wo of hislatest ro- lanarticle describing the buildofa 9 0s Slingsby glider
SWITCH ON
LLEYNMAC BRING&FLY
AlanWilliams,webmasterofthe Lleyn Model Aero Club,extends awarmwelcome to all RCM&E readers to visitthe club’s annual‘Bring &Fly’weekend from 26th -28th
September 2025:
Despitethe 2024 event beingrestricted to Saturday only duetothe weather the club considered it asuccess andagood rehearsal forfuture events.Atthe last event theaircra�t on displaywereanimpressive collection of high-quality models with some equally impressive �lying.The club wasalso pleased to welcome acontingent from alocal Air Cadet Squadron who brought along their models andwith the help of ourclub members they gotupand running andtest �lown at the event. Following on from the 2024event the club will continuethe theme into2025, presenting an opportunity fornewcomers to the hobby, as well as experienced andnot so experienced �lyers,tojoin us at ourexcellentpower site at en erth wllheli and�ly with the beautiful backdrop of the Eryri Snowdonia Mountains or the view across Cardigan BaytowardHarlech And, of course,wewill also be hosting visitors to ourexcellent slope soaring sites on the Lleyn Peninsular.
Ourinvitationtothe event isalso open to those who wish to discovermoreabout the hobby, anditpresents an opportunity to gain some knowledge andhelp on how to get started from the more experienced �lyers.Hopefullywewillbeable to o�fersome buddy�lying setups forpeople to have ago. Also,members of thepubliccan joinus as
spectatorstoenjoya dayout watching some aerobatic antics
Formoreinformationabout theevent anddetails on howtofind us please visit ourwebsite: lleynmac.org.uk/bring-and fly-2025
We plan to post more information about theweekend as we move closer to the date andthe websitewill also contain links to local accommodationwebsites should youwish to makeaweekend of it,which we thoroughly recommend. We look forwardtoseeing you.
SK YL ARKONF
ILM
Judging by the requests that Chris Williams has receivedfor additionalbuild picturesand PDFsofdrawings from which to cut parts,his renditionofthe SlingsbySkylark 1, our featuredPro-Planinboth this andthe July issues,has capturedthe imaginationofmany readers looking forasatisf yingbuilding project
As Chris says, “Ato ne-sixth s cale it ’s aver y handi ly sized glider and fits nicelyw ith my
previous types at this scale.Althoug hs mall in size this gl ider needs as muc hb ui ld ing as anyl arg er model. So,i t’ sd efin itelyn ot a Kw ik-Build design!”
If anyadditional inspirationisneeded to clearyourbuilding board,then whynot takea look at Chris’ newly released video showing the Skylark 1inaction, bothfrom the slope andwhen being aerotowed. Visit ouTubeand searchfor TheFirst of the Skylarks or visit: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=dy5NK3f YgW4
RAFPHOTOGR APHICRECONNAISSANCEUNITS MEMORIAL
Plans to recognisethe unsung heroes of the RAF’s Photographic ReconnaissanceUnitshave successfullymovedtothe planning stage,the VeteransMinister,AlCarns MP,announced in the House of Commonsrecently.
More than 00 M sfromeightdi�ferent parties have supported the campaign fora memorial in ondon, outside the Treasury, close to the ImperialWar Museum’sChurchill WarRooms,facing St James’ ark EcoGroup,based in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, is oneofthe businesses which has provided its expertise to help createthe memorial. Thecentrepiece of the memorial is set to be aRolls-RoyceMerlinengine from an RAF Mos uitoassignedto 40 Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron at RAF enson, which crashed intoaWelsh mountainsidein1944, whichEco’s specialist EcoDry Icecleaning team have recentlyhelped to restore.
TheRAF hotographicReconnaissance nits (PRU) operated highlydangerous,clandestine photographic reconnaissance operations over all WW2 theatres of operation, capturing more than26millionimages of enemyoperations andinstallations duringthe war. Flying Spitfires andMos uitosthe intelligence they gathered wasused by all the armed forces, giving same dayintelligence on enemyactivity. Duetothe clandestinenature of their operations,�lying unarmed and unarmoured, the death rate wasnearly 0 percent.Despitehaving oneofthe lowest survival ratesofthe war, life expectancy
in the PRUbeing around twoand ahalf months,thereisnonational memorial to the RAF’s Photographic Reconnaissance Units However, since 0 , the SpitfireAA 0 roject has campaigned to establish such amemorial to the 1,746 PRUpilots andnavigators. It is alsointended that the memorial will recognise the Photographic Interpreters,based at RAF MedmenhaminBuckinghamshire. Using stereoscopythey analysedthe photographs,with their reports arriving at the Cabinet WarRooms within 24 hours
of aPRU aeroplane landing. Photographic Interpreters included the likes of post-war actor, Dirk Bogardeand SarahChurchill, the wartime Prime Minister’s daughter
Welcoming the announcement in the House of Commons, SpitfireAA 0 roject Director, Tony Hoskins,said “Since we frst looked at commemorating the highlyclandestine and near suicidal work of the RAF unarmed Reconnaissance Squadrons we have uncoveredsome incredible stories of the work these young men and women carried out,their actions unknown yetsovital to millions of people impacted by the conflict.Now on the 80th anniversaryofVEDay it is so ftting to have this support foramajor step forwardin recognising their work and sacrifce.”
EcoGroup is oneofmanybusinesses which has helped the campaign. Steven McCreadie,HeadofDry IceatEco Group, andcolleagueGordonKeenan, travelled to the Classic Collective in Bicester,wherethey carried out the Mosquitoengine cleaninthe base’s workshop using their specialist dry ice equipment
Steven said: “Weare delighted to have played our part in restoring apiece of equipment which is so historic and signifcant to so manypeople.Well done to Tony,everyoneatthe SpitfreAA810 Project,and all those who have supported this campaign. We look forwardtoseeing the memorial in situand to paying ourrespects along with so manyothers.”
If thereare anyreaders who arerelatedtoor knew someone who servedinthe PRUduring the war, or who wants to knowmoreaboutthe monument campaign, please go the Spitfire AA 0 roject website www.spitfreaa810. co.uk or get in touchwith Tony Hoskins Tony spitfireaa 0.co.uk.
Steven McCreadie,Head of EcoDry IceatEco Group, cleaning the engine with the company’sdry ice solution.
Rolls-RoyceMerlinengine afterbeing cleaned by Eco DryIce
ROBIN DR400
MatthiasHausmann details the development of his fine scale model of afavouriteaerotow light aircra�t
Words: Matthias Hausmann
Photos: Matthias Hausmann,TeamErhard
It’sthe summer of 2018 andI’m in Meiringen, Switzerland at the F4 Scale WorldChampionships on alarge military airfieldsurrounded by the beautiful Swiss Alps.Myfather,Marcus,isattendinga World Championship forthe first timea�ter having resumed �lying a�terseveral yearso�f.Heis competing with his 1:3 scale Stampe S.V.4c A�ter the second roundmydad is surprisingly nearthe topofthe rankings asa newcomer and has agood chance of making it to the podium. As youcan probablyguess,hedid it -mydad becamethe WorldChampion in F4H
“Incredible,I want to do thistoo!”,Isaid to my dad.
So,wedidn’t wasteany timeand started right away.The searchfor the right aeroplane wasquick as Ialready hadafavourite. At 13 yearsold, Iwas determined to build the Robin
DR400 0 �lown from aichingen Airfield, Germany.The DR400 0R Remor ueur is awell-known andwidespread Frenchlight aircra�twith four seats.With its crankedwings it is very easy to recognise.The original is poweredbya ycoming O-3 0 four-cylinder boxerengine with 0 horsepowerand is mainlyused forglider towing. TheFrench word remorquage,which is similartoremorqueur, means towing. This aeroplane is so common that it canbefound at almost every�lying club. It hasbeen in production since 9 andisstill beingdeliveredinmoremodern variants today. aichingen is asmall airfield, mostlyused by glider pilots,with about 0gliders andfour motorised aircra�t. It later turned out that I would earn my glider pilot’s license there. Ihad already �lown in this Jodel andhad o�tenseen it in action�lown by very experienced pilots
Ihad even been towedbyitduring F-Schlepp (aerotow)operations.
DESIGN &BUILD
Theperfect conditions were in place to build and�ly ascale model of this aircra�t,except forthe poorconditionofthe full-si e. It had damaged paint andoutdated technology.But that didn’t matter,Iwas determinedtohavea model of this plane,sowestarted building. With the help of devWing anddevFus so�twarewecreated ourown plans anddesigns based on photos we took with adrone anda high- uality camera, as well as various plans that we foundonline andeveninmuseums.To makethe appearance and�light characteristics as authentic as possible we integrated details likethe original aerofoil andthe pendulum tail. Theribs andformers were cut out of 3mm
poplarplywood on ourCNC milling machine, which hadpreviouslybeen used to cut out twoStampe planes.Within afew days we had the basic structure of the fuselage andwings, which just hadtobeassembled andglued together likeagiant puzzle.
Thewing ribs were mounted onto aselfdesigned spar. Forthe joiner we used a40mm carbon fibre tube.Togluethe ribs, we fixed them onto aprintedfull-si e plan using push pins, then we applied thin resin using asyringe with aneedle to attach them to the spar.The ailerons and�laps were attached with wooden crossbars at the ends of the ribs which, a�tergluing, hadtobecut o�f, ensuring the ailerons were straight andprecise.The wingsand horizontal
stabiliser followedthe same building principle Thecrankedwings were amorecomplicated issue, but we solveditbyreinforcing the bends with carbon fibre joiners,both internallyand externally. To enable thependulumrudder control system, we used thegap meant forthe trim rudder.A steel rodwas inserted through this gap, whichwas actuated by aservo inside
Thehori ontal stabiliser,vertical stabiliser andwing leading edges were coveredwith plywood to makethem look as authentic as possible andbemorepracticaland durable
Assembly of theele ator ith left andright hal es stillconnected.
Installing thethinply sheeting with thehelpofnegativeforms.
inished canopy frameftted to thefuselage.
ail endnears completion in use.The plywas applied usingshaped forms.The 0.4mmaircra�tgrade plywood was soaked beforehand to make it �lexible enough to bend around the wing leading edge in onepiece
To create the fairing between thefuselage andthe vertical stabiliser,Ishaped astyrofoam positive mould, which wasthenused to makea negative mould. However, on my first laminating attempt Iused resin that wastoo
old, which started to set within afew minutes So,wehad to start over.Eventuallythe fairing wasfinished andcould be adjusted.Ialso made anegative mouldfor the engine cowling whichinalater versionbecametwo parts
To makethe fuselagemoreuniformand to coverthe cavities that hadbeencarved out forweight reduction,Icovered the sides with 0. mm balsa. This wood wassothin it almost brokejustbylookingatit, making it
hesameply sheeting is used forthe ertical stabiliser
Fuselage assembly.
uildingthe canopy frame.
“Within afew days wehad the basic structure,which just had to be assembled and glued together likea giant puzzle”
challenging to work with. But it wasworth it as no cavities were visible throughthe covering Theareabetween the engine cowling and cockpitwas also coveredwith aircra�tplywood to createaround, stable form.
Thenext step wasthe cockpitcanopy. Since it wasquitelarge andwedidn’thavethe facilities to deep draw such alarge part,wepurchased an existing canopyand made adjustments.The
framewas madefromseveral layers of aircra�t plywood glued together in asandwichmethod. Thestrips were soaked in watertobeshaped, then fixed onto acardboard template. The framewas then gluedtothe glass canopywith aspecial siliconeadhesive
We also boughtthe wheel fairings buthad to rework them as they didn’t have the correct shape.The landing gearwas made from steel
tubing, welded together andfitted with a custom spring mechanism.
AVIONICS
Now, the electronicscould be installed, including the servos, lighting, batteries, cables andother R C technology.All cableswere routed to the installed servosand the lights were mounted andconnected. To replicatethe original’s lighting, Iused Unilight’s system, with twolanding lights,positionlights on
ndercarriageset is self-made. Ma ing thepositi efor theco lmoulding.
Abouttopaint everything white!
ullyhandmadeinstrumentpanel is constructed ithparts from allaroundthe house!
Saitoengineand ignition mount.
Leathersealing stripbet een an aileronand ing
Firstseating test with thepilot
Finalassemblyinthe workshop to measure the eightand fndthe entre of ra ity.
the right andle�t,and on the verticalstabiliser, andabeacononthe fuselage.The blinking pattern could be controlled viathe transmitter with athree-wayswitch.
To make sure Ididn’t forget any electronic connections whileassemblingor
disassembling the plane,Ibuilt in automatic connectors.I soldered all cables to the pins of aVGA connector, whichwould then connect to the corresponding counterpart in thefuselage when assembled. This method hadproven useful in twopreviousbiplanes
Forthe engine we chose aSaitoFG four strokeengine,whichweighs twokilogramsand provides 4. horsepower, perfect foranaircra�t of this sizeand it kept the model from getting tooheavy
To maintain the correct CentreofGravitywe regularlyweighed the plane during theentire construction process,thusminimising the need forballast.Inthe end we didn’t need asingle gram of lead.
TheRobin wasnow readyfor its skin. To createasmooth surfacefor painting we covereditwith self-adhesive,self-tightening fabric. se of ahigh- uality fabric made this step easy andevenmanageable formeasa 3-year-old.
With everything readywetook the plane to aneighbouring woodworking shop,whichhad apaint booth, to paint the plane.I used ahighquality 2K lacquer, starting with white,then red, andlater applied redstripes, markings andthe orange patch on the right wing using carvinyl.
SCALEDETAILS
Now, the scale details were my focus.Ibegan with the largest part,the cockpit.I milled wooden boardsfor theinstrument panelwith the necessary cutouts forthe instruments, which were printed on photopaperand glued on from behind. Ialso added each individual screw, button andlever
Theentirecabin interiorwas built using balsa wood, Styrofoamand fabric.I paid attentiontomaking theassemblyeasy, using elcro,sonotools would be neededwhen assembling the plane
Irecreated the wing-to-fuselage transitions with old, dirty rags.The individual metal plaques were printed on aphotoprinter and glued on nder oneofthe fuel-filler caps Ihid another VGAconnectorwhich, with the help of asmall adapter cable,connects allthe batteries to the
Classicapproachshotshowing theRobin’s cran ed ingtips. Picturecourtesyof eamErhard
Readyfor ta e-o f.Picture courtesy of eamErhard
“After several test flights it turnedout Ididn’tneed any expo on the elevator controls”
charger.Thismadechargingthe four batteries much easier as the model didn’t have tobe disassembled to charge it.
Thefuelling valveislocated under the maintenance hatch in the enginecowling, wherethe original has the oil filler cap. With the details completed the Jodel DR400 0 in 3 scale andweighing 3. kg was finished a�ter . years.
FIRSTFLIGHT
May 0 0 It wasabeautiful summer day, perfect forthe maiden �light.Finally, the moment hadarrived-the momentevery model builder dreams of.Wefuelled up the Jodel anddouble-checked all the connections andfixings
Iheld the plane steady while my dadstarted the engine.Wetaxiedher to the starting point Thetensionwas at itspeak. Since Iwas too scared, my dadtook thefirst �light.Hegave it some throttle andthe plane accelerated, eventuallyli�ting o�f. It wasama ing anda dreamcometrue
A�ter afew minutesof�lying,several turns andattempted landings,hemanagedtomake adecent first landing. Theplane wasstill intact andshe �lew beautifully, just like the original. A total success
A�ter several �lights andsomeadjustments, we fixed the last issue. Initiallyweused a
Waitingfor permission to start.
Sittinginthe full si e ith my modelof theRobin R400alongside.
simple homemade exhaust,but the sound was disappointing. A�ter switching to a‘ rumscheid’ silencer the engine sounded much better and seemed to have gained abit more power.
Another problem wasthat Icrashed the landing gearafew times.A�ter severaltest �lights it turned out Ididn’tneed anyexpo on the elevator controls.This solvedthe problem of having to rebuild the landinggear.
COMPETITIONHISTORY
A�ter finishing the Robin, Ifirst competed in national events andwas abletoprove myself. With an extremelycleanand authentic performance Iimpressed many judgesand ualifiedfor the WorldChampionship in F4C.
Thenext Scale WorldChampionshiptook place in 0 in T nsberg on amanned airfield. Ascale competitionisdivided intoa �lying evaluationand abuilding evaluation,where judges check the authenticity of the model.
A�ter asomewhat unfortunatebuilding evaluationitwas time forthe �lying evaluation
My first �light wasama ing andI wasinthird place in the �lying category,just seven points behind the leader normed to 000 points . ou could almost say‘it couldn’t get anybetter’, but it did. A�terthe second �light,I wasstill on the podium, tied with the third-place competitor Then the building evaluation wasfactored
in andIhoped that no thirdround would be �lown, which could have changed my results ut that didn’t happen -they foundtime fora thirdround
Having �lown so well under extreme crosswinds,intense heat andthe scrutinising eyes of thecompetition, the trophywas almost within reach. But it wouldn’t happen. Dueto the extremelylow sun, Icouldn’t improve my
score in the third�light. In the endIfinishedin fourth, just onepoint behind thirdplace.Still, it wasahugesuccess
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the Robin is afantastic �lying aeroplane that brings alot of joy. It’s avery forgiving aircra�tand canbeusedfor avariety of purposes ■
eam ausmann.Matthiasand Marcus ith theirimpressi escale models
Line up of allthe scalemodelsusedbythe erman team at the orld hamps in Romania, 2024.
Lo pass. Picturecourtesy of eamErhard.
Full Wood pack,carbon and Spinner. Requires hardware, electronicsand covering etctofnish
This is MVM’sfrst foray intoa scalemodel,and we are morethanabit proud of this elegantmodel.
he ellf lies really ell justli ethe Align -Re 00it sbased on. ote thegentlecur e of thetaildri e.
BELL 47
Nigel Cartwright describeshis semi-scale Bell helicopter
Words Nigel Cartwright
Words Nigel Cartwright, Mark Boughton
Mylove a�fair with the 4 startedata very youngage,probablyabout 11. I wasinvolvedwith the AirScouts and oneofthe perks wasaccess airside duringthe local annual airshow. One year the Army Air Corps ‘ lueEagles’ team arrivedwith their two-tonebluepainted ell 4 s or, more accurately, their Westland built Sioux . Ispent amemorable half hour sitting in the pilot’s seat goingoverthe instrumentsand controls.Iwas hooked
At the time Iwas dabbling in fixed wing radio control andthe R C helicopter market wasin
its infancy. Apartfromthe Micro Mold ark andthe early expensive Schluter Heli aby therewasn’t much else available. ut then Jim Morley came along with his ell 4 kitand while theplans were ordered andexamined in great detail, the costs of allthe parts meant this model remained apipe dream.
BUBBLE PARTS
Roll on many years decades actually andthe dreamof�lyinga 4 remained. Ihad looked at the two ario models available andwhile they
here it allstarted. he author sittingina lue Eagles estland Siou atanairsho in theearly 19 0s.
areexcellent models,the 4 scale version was toobig andthe scale versionwas stillabit on the expensive side.For many yearsI’d �lown at Sean rown’s eamington HobbyCentre. All good things come to an end andcircumstances meant Sean wasclosing down the �lying field andthe shop.For ashort period,hehad imported aChinese kittoconvert aHirobo Shuttle intoa ell 4 . It lookedokaybut it hada
bentupthe 2mmdiameter irelattice or o er thedra ing.Scre splacedatthe cornershelpedtoget thebends in thecorrect place.
slightlyodd set-up in that themechanics were mounted back to front, with all sorts of mods re uired to get thetail drive working.
What reallypi ued my interest wasthe couple of spare vac-formed cockpit bodyand clear canopybubble parts he had, along with a wiretail boom. Adeal wasdoneand the parts brought home.The boomwas very well made, with anice powder-coated finish,but reference to some picturesand drawings showedittobe not very scale.I wanted something better
Ithen started drawing up some ideas using freelyavailable 3-view general arrangement drawings,scaled to matchthe vac-formed parts Thescale wascoming outataround . .I then realised that themodel wasroughly 00 heli si e. Could Iuse the widelyavailable Align T-Rex 00 helicopter as the basis forascale model
At this point Igot carried away,producing adetailed drawing of the boomand custom side frames,using the motor,main gearand tail drive,swashplate, main rotorheadand tail rotorfromthe T-Rex 00. Ihad no idea howthis would turn out, but it alllooked doable.The model wasnever intended to be asuperscale contest winner,just amodel that looks the part forrelaxed �lying.
Isoonac uired asecond-hand T-Rex 00 ES .I chose thisearly model as Iwanteda �lybar forscale andthe motor is mountedlow down which helped with the layout.I test �lew it to
“The model was never intended to be super scale,just amodel that looks the part for relaxed flying”
ensure it all worked andthen dismantled it to give me all the whirling parts Ineeded for the conversion.
TAIL BOOM
As the tail boomfelt likeitwas the biggest hurdle to cross,I decided to makethat first Theboomwas builtfrompiano wire, using 3mmdiameter forthe longeronsand mm diameter forthe lattice. Istuck aside view drawing to asheet of MDF,put screws in wherethe lattice bends occurand then simply hand bent the lattice ‘ ig ag’aroundthe screws.Eachbend hadtobeoverbentslightly but a�terhalf an hour ’s work Ihad twosides done.I then repeated the exercise to makethe toplattice.
ell 4 laid out readytostart ma ing parts.
It wassimple enough to bend up the three longerons, whichwerethen mounted ina simple jig to hold them in the right place while
Isilversoldered the threelattice parts in place. Ifirst boundthem in place with tinned copper wire, then added the silversolder
Anyone who has done anysilversoldering will knowit’sa bit of ablack art. Thekey is getting enough heat intothe joint uickly. I used asmall butane torchbut if Iwas doing it again, I’dbuy asmall jeweller’s gas oxygen torchtoget more heat.The firstjoints were a bit rough but by the time Igot to theend Iwas getting uite good. Avariety of smallbrackets were folded up from 0. mmbrass sheet and soldered onto the boom. Twoweretoallow the boomtobescrewed to thetop rear of the chassis while the others were to fit the tailplane andfin.
CANOPY &SIDEFRAMES
Attentionthen turned to the canopy. This was cut andtrimmed to shape,thenscrewed to the cockpit moulding. Ihad some trouble getting the bubble to fit neatlybut got thereinthe end
Thedoorframes were made from three layers of laser cut mm plastic, glued together to form a‘C’ channel which strengthenedthe opening. Imay fit doors eventuallybut to keep thingssimpleIdecided thepilot would enjoy some fresh air fornow The undercarriage is simple aluminiumtube,the cross struts andskids being joined with four 3D printed nylonstruts
I’ddesigned aset of compact sideframes to hold everything together,thenlasercut aset of plywood parts to proveeverything fitted just right.Having done that,I then had trouble finding someone to cut them. uotes forcutting them in mmcarboninthe ranged from expensive to ridiculous -several hundredpounds in onecase In theend Igot them cut by RJX in Chinaataround 0 forthe frames,plus 0 shipping. They turned up in less thanaweek, beautifullycut in mmmatte carbon sheet.These were uicklybuilt up,the
he3mmdiameterlongerons ere placed in asimplejig.Lattice sidesand topbeing ire boundand soldered onto thelongerons
ail end ie ofthe boom a aiting sil er solder
inished coc pitmouldingand bubble canopy. t too alot of fettling to geta good ft
