For years I've been wanting to build a 60" T-Craft to fit into the realm of the J-3, Super Cub, Beaver and others in that larger size class. Well, the good folks at Dare stepped up and gave the go-ahead to work one up that will be offered as a new addition to their Brodak kit line.
The model is not unlike most of the later designs in that it will be set up for 4 ch. R/C and the typical Suppo 2217 Outrunner motor on 2 cells. The wings will plug in for easy transport. Then to eliminate the need for a hatch for battery access the cockpit doors will be functional. That was a change made "on the fly" since adding a hatch looked like there really wouldn't be a good place to put one anyway. Then once the plans were roughed in and parts were in hand, the project sorta' took on a life of its own, and construction was underway. . . . .
The vertical and horizontal stabilizers are all standard stuff. The stab tips and rudder outline are bowed up and the rest done in the usual fashion.
The wings are built up using the typical "egg-crate" style construction with bowed tips. The tip bows are a bit thicker then on previous designs, so they're done in 3 layers rather then 2, and because of the non-standard shape will be laser cut.
To get started, the parts are removed and laid out to speed up construction. A couple of ribs are placed on the spars and pinned to the plans where the remainder of the ribs are slipped in place.
Pressing On. . . . .
With the spars and ribs assembled the leading and trailing edges and the tip bows are added. The ailerons are built in place on the wing. The root and tip bracing are added while the wing is still on the board. Note the shims under the bottom root bracing to raise them up to prevent the cover from making contact.
Then once the wing is completed it's removed from the board, the aileron removed, and the sanding and shaping done.
Fuselage construction begins with the Side frames. As mentioned earlier, the doors were added on the fly, so the openings were built in from the start. Both frames are identical with the exception of the elevator push rod guide on the RH side.
The landing gear beams are gouged to accept the struts first, then pinned over the plans. The frames are located over the beams and the upper cabin formers added, then the assembly is squared up and glued together. The firewall goes in next, then the tail post pulled together and glued. From there all of the cross bracing is added to complete the basic frame.
The cabin is framed out and the stringers added. The door frames are filled out with 1/8 sq. balsa and the top section tapered into the wing root.
As a side note, not all of the Taylorcrafts had the "D" window behind the door, so if the one you decide to build doesn't have one you can omit the out-fill behind the door frame.
At this point the fuselage assembly is pretty well done, so the entire frame was sanded and shaped in preparation for adding the boot cowl and IP hood.
Before the sheet metal was added, the landing gear was made up and lashed in place on the mount beams and the bottom stringers added. A Balsa cross fill was also added on the front LG beam to bring it flush with the outer edge of the stringers and proved support for the lower boot cowl at the back edge.The boot cowl, IP Hood, and "D" window frames were then made up from file folder and glued in place with Canopy Glue.
Meanwhile, there's more to come real soon, so stay tuned for the next up-date.
Although it's not a Fleet Canuk, you are forgiven cuz I like Taylorcrafts too. And I love the 60" size.
Looks good. I built the Clipped Wing T-Craft years ago. It would be great to add a larger version to the hangar.
The doors are framed using 1/8 x 1/4 balsa with 1/8 sq. at the top. Because the doors are tapered at the top, shims are used to space the top spreader. Then once the frames are done, the taper is sanded into the top section and the file folder skins added.
The handles are made up from brass wire and tubing, inserted into the door and the final bend made. The latch stops are 1/8 sq. balsa glued to the inside of the door frame. The set up is definitely simple, but it seams that simple usually works.
And last but not least, the cabanes were added. The T-Craft does have a bit of a complex cabane system up there, but by building the top "V" section and then adding the vertical bracing it goes smoothly.
The windshield pattern was made up from plain typing paper, trimmed to fit and taped in place.
The W/O Jig was used to set up the lift struts. The cabane struts were added and then it was time for the first dry run. Note that the cowl plug is finished as well. Now that I know it fits, it's off to Sparky for the plastic parts.
At this point, all the radio components are in and the model is about ready to cover. Don't have the motor yet, but that's only a day or two away and can be added after the cover is on.
Cover on this one is simple too -- White Microlite. The red trim was added using stock vinyl sheets from Callie along with the graphics she did up as well. The door was hinged using stock vinyl, and the windows added using .007 Acetate.
The IP hood and forward cabin were painted using Model Master Acryl and the rest of the windows glued in. Meanwhile, the motor got here and mounted up without a hitch. Then the last of the details were added, wheels installed and all the putsy work completed. All that's left now to get her finished up is to get the cowl and set it up. The radio is all in and set up, so once the cowl is on and the battery in she'll be ready for test flights. Will post up the results as soon as it happens.