The Professor

So, as I mentioned in my introduction post, I am very new to the whole RC plane 'thing'......

In the 70's my uncle used to build planes, but my mum and dad would not buy me one as they were very expensive and 'too difficult'.

I have recently joined an arts and crafts group as part of my rehabilitation following an illness. I have all the artistic ability of a dead cockroach! So what should I do? Build a plane of course 😁

So I ordered a plane (Piper Cub J3 trainer), but I have never flown an RC plane before. Although I did used to fly 3 axis microlights.... I have never worked with balsa before and so I ordered a cheap second plane to get started with the basics. I bought a small Sopwith pup, just to get some kind of feel to the craft. I also bought a transmitter, airbrush, and a few other bits I thought I would need, including paint, brushes and glue.

The Sopwith is coming together, but I do need to get some balsa filler. Not sure if it was my assembly skills, or the model, but I have some gaps between some of the panels that I want to fill. (It could be that this is normal, and everyone has to gap fill a little.

As well as being used as a test bed for the assembly, it will also be used as a test bed for painting (I have not painted any model since being 10 years old and finding electronics as a hobby, and I have never used an airbrush in my life)

And if everything goes ok, I am hoping to get my first taste of flying with this model as well.....

Anyhow, does anyone have any recommendations on a good balsa filler? And deliberately vague photo, just to show the steps currently taken


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quorneng

That all looks pretty neat.
A 'lightweight' filler is ok ((B&Q or similar) as long as it is just for 'filling'. It has no structural strength but sands well.
Decorating a plane is another art all together.
The level of finish rather depends on whether your preference is to fly or for show,

The Professor

So, the basic model is slowly coming together.....

It was missing the Vickers guns, so I have 3d printed a couple as shown......

But my big question is paint ........

I want to paint this model as an RFC fighter as in WWI
I bought an RFC paint set Revell email color and I would be very grateful if someone could give me some instructions as to how to paint my model....

I have also bought a tub of model lite balsa tint to fill the gaps and cut outs..... So the surface should be smooth and ready to paint in a few days, but any help with the painting will be much appreciated

The Professor

This model is to screw up.......

Let me explain....

Having not made any model for over 40 years, and never made an RC model, this is the one to make mistakes with.....

The mistakes could be in building the model, painting the model or flying the model......

I am trying to mitigate mistakes, and the build is going well at the moment.....

So it would appear that mistakes could be painting, or heaven-forbid flying.

I have downloaded a flight sim for my controller, and have successfully crashed 8 times out of 10.....

Even that is an improvement, it was 10 out of 10 to begin with. It seems to be a lot harder to fly an RC plane than a real one..... I guess that is because of lack of 'feeling'

The Professor

This is the current state of play of my 'screw-up' plane.....


This is a cheap 14" wingspan model. I do have a 1.2M wingspan J3 Piper Cub trainer that is somewhere over the Pacific Ocean at the moment, and I want to have a basic level of skill before I try and build that one.....

The Professor

So, the cheap screw up plane has got definite issues.....

Wing spas are useless, trying to find the ancillary bits is a nightmare..... The engine mount is badly cut and so the motor is on an angle both vertically and horizontally.

This is not a massive problem, as it has served one function of showing me that this is a hobby that I want to continue and it will serve as a practice piece for me to learn how to use my airbrush once it arrives.... It also allowed me to assemble a modellers toolkit and given me an understanding of assembly.

I am hoping that tomorrow a nice Tiger Moth will be arriving and then I will still have a biplane. I will also be recieving my Piper Cub soon as well, so I will have a trainer, and a nice plane as well.

quorneng

I think you will find that the motor is meant to be at that angle. It is called down thrust and side thrust. It is used in model planes to counter both the effect of the motor torque (side thrust) and the natural tendency for a stable plane to climb when under power (down thrust).
In a full size plane to maintain level flight the pilot has to adjust the stick and rudder position for each change of power and speed.
.

The Professor

I can see the practicalities of the motor angle, thank you for explaining it.

However, I already ordered a better model, and so the little Sopwith is doomed to be a shelf model, and painting practice.....

I have ordered a Dumas 35" Tiger Moth, and hope to pick it up on the way home from work.

I guess one advantage will be decent plans (supposedly 1:1) unlike the small set of 1" square pictures that came with the cheap model.....


But I will be sure to ask questions before I make any more mistakes.....

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solentlife

What will you cover the model with BEFORE applying paint ?

The Professor

Always someone asks the difficult question......

The kit comes with tissue although it would need doping..... However, I am considering something like a textured antique Oratex.

However after just reading war and peace..... Sorry, I meant manual, I think I have time to look at the pros and cons of traditional or more modern coverings.