In light of the disappointing entry in the CO2/electric class at the 2022 scale indoor nats, I vowed to build something to enter in 2023.
The Bristol Superfreighter is a subject I have long wanted to model, but it is impractical for rubber. A span of 36" was chosen so that I could
swing a pair of 5" props without having to cheat and move the engine nacelles outboard. Using a pair of Voodoo 25 motors (combined thrust 50 grams),
this would mean a target weight of 100 grams, so I would have to build it light.
As it turned out I wasn't able to enter the model at the Nats as I couldn't get it trimmed in time. When the photo above was taken, a few details had yet to be added (including the cockpit windows) but the plan was to do that after trimming. As it turned out, the model got damaged a couple of times and is currently awaiting repair.
the fuselage is a box using 3/32" sq. longerons with 1/16" formers above and below. There are just two 1/16" sq. stringers top and bottom
with the corners covered with light 1/32" sheet. I pre-formed the sheet to the required curve using the technique described by Tom Hallman in this YouTube video,
(though I used a larger diameter rod).
The multi-spar wing uses ribs that are flat between the spars so that the ribs don't show through the tissue. The section between the leading edge
and front spar is curved, but covered with light 1/32" sheet.
The wing was covered before assembling to the fuselage. The nacelles were added, the motors installed and all the wiring connected and
guided out below the centre section. Access to the motors is by removing the tops of the cowlings, as shown. Note the considerable amount of side thrust
incorporated, as found necessary in previous electric models.
Here is the wing now assembled to the fuselage and faired in - the fuselage top was the last part of the model to be covered.
The tailplane and fin have a symmetrical section with flats sanded
between the leading edge, spars and trailing edge, again to stop the ribs showing through the tissue.
The cockpit section is removable for access to the Zombie controller and 200 mAh battery. After this photo was taken, I moved the battery box back one bay
as the model had come out nose-heavy.
The model is airbrushed with Xtracolor enamels and all the cheatlines are cut from painted decal sheet, as are the large BAF titles. Final weight came out at a shade under 100 grams. The two Voodoo 25 motors had plenty of power to fly the model, but initial test flights outdoors showed a tendency for the left turn to tighten up as the power ran down resulting in a couple of heavy arrivals. The join between the cowlings and the nacelles proved a weak spot, and I have had to glue them back on twice now. This has also lead to wires being separated and I have had to remove sections of tissue to make repairs. I will have another go though - maybe it will work better as an outdoor model than an indoor one. I'll keep you informed.
Update June 2024
After making repairs and strengthening the joins between the engine cowlings and the nacelles I had another go at getting the model to fly on a perfect, almost windless morning on Port Meadow. This time I added a little right rudder to see if the model was happier flying right and was delighted to discover that this, indeed, was the case. There was no sign of the model spiralling in as the power ran down - in fact the landing approach was almost straight. After the flight below captured by Andy Blackburn, I glued the rudder into position and will make any further trim adjustments using gurney strips. I did apply a small amount of weight to the left wing tip to reduce the bank slightly. I'm hoping that this flight pattern can be contained in a large sports hall, so intend to bring the Superfreighter over to Nijmegen in November to find out.
Here's another video taken by Chris Brainwood in 2025 on Port Meadow during the OMFC competion which incorporated a BMFA FF2 scale
free flight event. The weather was forcast to get windier as the day went on, so I got in this flight with the Superfreighter as soon as I could - it is
really only suitable for outdoor flying in calm conditions. Chris's video covers the whole event - the Superfreigher is first up, but be sure to watch Mike Smith's Mercury Tiger Moth flight which is on afterwards - you won't believe the precision landing, which was just a few centimeters from disaster!
DPC Models Airco D.H.5
Well, this wasn't in my carefully curated model building plan.....
I was fortunate enough to win a DPC Models De Havilland D.H.5 kit at one of our local indoor meetings, took it home,
opened it, and before I knew what I was doing it was on the building board. It's laser cut, so progress has was rapid.
Span is only 16", but due to the fairly low-aspect wings, it's quite a
substantial model. It's a quirky plane with its octagonal fuselage and reverse stagger.
The structure was as as per kit apart from some extra gussets, plus I cut the main undercarriage V-struts from 1/64" ply then faced them with 1/32" balsa both sides and sanded
to a steamlined section. Wire pins were inserted at the top to engage with holes in local fuselage sheeting. Covering is all Martin Dilly Japanese tissue, steam shrunk and given two coats of banana oil.
The model was finished with Xtracolor enamels, which dry glossy, allowing decals to be easily applied. All markings were cut from painted decal sheet and applied (in layers for the roundels - first a white disc, then the blue and red sections). A final misted coat of Tamiya matt varnish from a rattle can gave a nice, hard-wearing matt finish. Power is two loops of 3/32" rubber with a 6" IGRA plastic prop.
I had a go at trimming the model in our small school hall and nobody was more surprised than me that it coped with the necesarily tight circuits without any trouble at all. I didn't need any gurney tabs or tip weight to keep the left wing up in the turn. It seems the reverse stagger layout in conjuction with the type's generous dihedral leads to a very stable aircraft. For proof, see the video of a test flight below (thanks Lurk!)
1/20th scale De Havilland D.H.5 for electric power
One thing leads to another....
So, I ordered the Windsock Datafile on the D.H.5, read it through and became increasingly attracted to the idea of doing an open electric model as a backup for the 2023 scale indoor Nats, in case I couldn't get the Superfreighter to circle safely in the hall. To clinch the
deal, I had a brand new Voodoo 15 motor, matching cell and a spare Zombie controller in the drawer just looking for a home.
Some rough calculations indicated that I stood a fighting chance of getting a 1/20th model with a wingspan of 15.3" out at close to 30 grams.
Richard Crossley advised me that substituting a 5" prop for the supplied 4" folding one would actually boost performance a touch, so that's what I did.
Also, it looks more realistic, being close to scale size.
I drew up the plan from scratch based on the Windsock Datafile - the only intentional change being a tiny increase in dihedral. Rib spacing is scale and there are no fewer than 85 riblets.
The area in front of the cockpit is quite complex - not helped by the offset machine gun. Access to the motor and controller is by removing the upper cowling.
Short-nosed WW1 models like this lend thenselves very well to electric power as you can put all the
weight where you need it, i.e. right at the front.
It was quite a squeeze getting the controller and 90 mAh cell alongside the motor and still be able to fit
on the upper cowling, but I just about managed it.
The yellow tape is present to try and stop the wires flexing
too much, especially while changing the battery, hence avoiding fatigue fractures.
The model was covered in white Esaki tissue (I still have a few sheets left) apart from the tail surfaces, where I used Martin Dilly's Japanese tissue
due its less severe shinkage. After steam shrinking, the components were given two brushed coats of banana oil.
I used Xtracolor P.C.10 enamel for the upper surfaces and their "clear doped linen" for underneath and am very happy with the colours (though it's a shame all the schemes are rather dull). They are both gloss finish to help decal application, so after all the markings are on, you have to spray over a mist of matt varnish (I used a Tamiya rattle can). Roundels are built up from cut-out discs of painted decal film, as normal for me. I couldn't live without my Olfa compass cutter! Rigging is fishing nylon. One problem with having the cowling tightly packed with the motor, battery and controller was that there was simply no room for a 3D dummy engine, so I used a printed paper version instead. It looks fine from a distance, though is guaranteed to lose me a few scale marks.
This model was actually finished before the DPC kit as I was rushing to get it finished in time for the 2023 Indoor Nats. Sadly I was unable to get a qualifying flight, as even with the motor turned up to maximum power, the model would not climb much above head height from a hand launch. Thus I never got a qualifying flight - frustrating, as the model looked nice and stable, even with its scale sized tailplane. My fault for building it too heavy.
After the Nats, I removed the motor and replaced it with a Voodoo 25, which weighs exactly the same and has an identical motor mount. Importantly, it can deliver 10 grams more thrust. Test flights at the May Old Warden meeting were successful with this power unit and the model cruised around nicely at well below maximum power.
Peanut scale Heinkel He 45
The story behind this one is a little unusual. My next peanut scale model was going to be a Blackburn Dart, but during a clear out of my cupboards and drawers prior to
moving to a new modelling den at the other end of the house I found these old wing ribs and wingtip laminations. I had absolutely no idea what model they were for!
Trawling through the many reference folders on the computer I eventually discovered one dedicated to the Heinkel He 45 with a partly drawn peanut scale plan created back in 2008.
It seemed a shame to waste all that work, so construction commenced!
Here are the bones ready for covering. To save weight I didn't do separate ailerons or elevators on this model, but hinged the
rudder to aid trimming. Weight at this stage was 6.8 grams.
Weight after covering and applying a coat of banana oil was 8.9 grams.
Thw components were all airbrushed using Xtracolor enamels and the decals applied before assembly. All markings are cut from painted decal sheet apart
from the fin logo which is a laser printed decal. As the Xtracolor enamels are gloss (which makes decal application easy) a final thin coat of Tamiya matt varnish
was applied using a rattle can.
The distinctive exhaust pipes were a bit of a challenge. My final solution was to laminate them from strips of thin balsa around a form to give the correct shape and when dry, sanded them carefully to a round cross section. The functional rigging is fishing nylon.
Initial trim flights were made with a loop of 3/32" rubber installed and after adding a little nose weight it looked very promising, circling left within the confines of the hall. Only snag was that the rubber cross section looked a little small - even on 1000 winds the model wouldn't go above head height. Next time out I'll go up to 0.105" rubber to give it a bit more power. Weight came out at 18 grams all-up, which is about the same as my Blackburn Ripon.
Ray Malmstrom Bi-Star
The Trinity flyers had organised a informal competition for Ray Malmstrom models for December 2023, so I picked through his many designs
to find something suitable to build for it. Taking advantage of the "re-sizing
allowed" rule, I decided to go on a bit of a nostalgia trip and build an 80% Bi-
Star. The original was published in December 1973 as one of those free plans
stapled into the centre of Aeromodeller. I would have been 16 at the time and
built it straight away. I think it flew OK but I don't remember any details.
The original span was 17.5", which becomes a handy 14.5" when scaled to 80%.
I reduced wood sizes more or less proportionally. For example, 1/20"
sheet fuselage sides instead of 1/16", tail surfaces 1 mm sheet and upper wing
spars now 1/16" x 1/32" etc. I covered using
Dilly Japanese tissue and then airbrushed a thin coat of Tamiya white
acrylic before adding some decoration.
The registration G-AZMF is the same one Ray used on his prototype. Lettering
was done using laser printed decals and the blue and red markings are cut
from painted decal sheet (as usual)
The finished model was a touch over 19g with rubber on board. Initial
hops in the garden showed it was nose-heavy so instead of adding trim tabs to the
tailplane I glued a strip of 1/16" sq. all the way along the top of the tailplane trailing
edge which did the trick (not added when this photo was taken). Indoors it flies very nicely on a loop of 1/8" rubber.
Morane Saulnier Type AI
With my electric D.H.5 needing a Voodoo 25 motor to get it going, I now had a spare Voodoo 15 without a home. So, I thought I'd try again to build a model weighing 30 grams for it to go in. I chose the DPC Models Morane Saulnier A.I parasol which is 18" span, but rather less bulky than the D.H.5. Also a monoplane of course, so less draggy.
There are some changes to the kit design, including hinged tail surfaces and balsa fill in around the forward fuselage instead of paper panels.
The model was covered with Martin Dilly Japanese tissue, steam shrunk and finished with two coats of banana oil. I added 3/32" wash-out at each wing tip during steam-shrinking.
I'm a glutton for punishment because the colour scheme I chose was the same labour-intensive French camouflage that I had done on the Thomas Designs Nieuport 27. Markings were put on the same way as the Nieuport, apart from the fuselage squadron insignia on a yellow background which was a laser-printed decal placed over a carefully masked white panel.
It was a tight fit in the cowl to fit in the electrics - in fact the Zombie controller has to sit vertically.
The machine guns are just a push-fit into their slots to allow the upper cowling to be removed.
There are a lot of struts on this model, as you can see here! The model weight came out at just over 30 grams including the 130 mAh cell and a touch of noseweight. The Voodoo 15 has enough power to fly the model and it will take off indoors after a long straight run. Outdoors, from a hand launch, the model will climb away nicely and circle left overhead, it's duration limited only by the Zombie timer setting.
Blackburn Dart
After the 2023 Nijmegen contest I was looking to build a new open rubber model to replace the SOC Seagull. I have rather a soft spot for Blackburn's often inelegant inter-war naval biplanes and my peanut scale Blackburn Ripon was a good stable flier. However, I wasn't sure my documentation and scale drawings were good enough for the stricter static judging in the open class, so decided to tackle the Blackburn Dart instead. The layout looked pretty good for free flight, and Eric Coates stated in his flying scale column in Aeromodeller back in the 70's that it made a stable scale subject - always good to hear. It may look rather ungainly (I don't want to say "ugly" as beauty is in the eye of the beholder) but it was by all accounts a docile aircraft to fly, popular with its pilots and had a stalling speed of only 43 mph - very handy when landing on an aircraft carrier. The Dart successfully fulfilled its role as the Fleet Air Arm's standard single-seat torpedo bomber between 1923 and 1933.
The wings were built using Dave Rees's method, as described elsewhere on the website, with scale rib spacing and separate hinged control surfaces. Both the fin and tailpane are streamline sectioned, with hinged rudder and elevators. Wingspan is 27", giving a scale of 1/20th.
Getting the nose shape correct was important for the charactor of the plane and was achieved using balsa sheet and blocks.
Here are all the components covered, steam-shrunk and given two coats of banana oil. The cowl louvres are balsa. Note also the large amount of struts - all are hard balsa apart from the cabines, which have 1/64" ply cores.
The engine cylinder banks were from balsa. The bolts on the cylinder heads were simulated by inserting small pieces of toothpick which had been sanded to a suitably small diameter
The nose of the model was sprayed with tamiya gloss aluminium from a rattle can to simulate the natural metal of the full size aircraft, then this was masked and the fabric areas airbrushed with Xtracolor RLM silver enamel. The roundels and rudder were airbrushed in gloss white enamel then the red and blue rings, discs and stripes overlaid using pieces cut from painted decal sheet. The squadron markings are not very colourful, but were chosen because I had a good photograph of this aircraft for my documentation.
I used nylon fishing line for the structural rigging and lycra thread for the control surface runs - the latter coloured with a black marker pen before attaching.
Here you can see the nose louvres and the torpedo cradles, which are made from aluminium tube and plastic rod and should soon be occupied by a torpedo. The exhaust pipes were the biggest challenge on this model, especially the sections that guide the exhausts inside the undercarriage legs. The whole system is from balsa, with the bends carved from sheet, or in the case of the sections around the undercarriage, from block.
The undercarriage is completely rigid as I couldn't think of a simple way to spring it
Weight without rubber came out at just under 100 grams, which I thought was reasonable considering the wing area, but after putting in a motor of four loops of 3/32" rubber and giving it some test glides in the garden, then later at Trinity school hall, it became immediately apparent that a lot of nose weight would be needed. By the time things were looking reasonable I had an extra 20 grams in the nose.
Final trimming was done at the 2024 Scale Indoor Nats, after which I had another 5 grams of lead in the nose, so 25 grams in total - that's a quarter of the empty airframe weight. I double-checked the incidence angles and they looked OK, with both wings at plus 2 degrees relative to the tailplane. I took some solace from the fact that even with all this extra weight, the wing loading was still less than my Curtiss SOC Seagull. To achieve a take-off I had to add an extra loop of 1/8" rubber to the four loops of 3/32". It's early days but the model looks stable and circles consistently left, holding the turn to the end of the flight and I was pleased to get a qualifying flight first time out.
I'm intending to add a few more details and a torpedo before I take it to Nijmegen in November.
Keil Kraft Beechcraft Bonanza
After finishing the Veron Tru-Flite N.27 I grabbed an old Replikit Keil Kraft Beechcraft Bonanza out of my stash and started it as another possible
kit scale entry.
Although it went together quite quickly, I rather wished the kit had been printwood rather than laser cut. It seemed that too
much balsa had been removed by the laser, so for example, the rear of the ribs were only about 1/32" thick, so half the thickness of the trailing edge.
I added gussets at every rib to strengthen the joins. There was just no spare balsa to trim anywhere - I'd much rather parts were slightly oversize to
allow trimming to fit.
One of the building challenges with this model is that the instructions tell you to cover the tops of the wings, then attach them to the fuselage and only then fit in the undercarriage mount, which also acts as a dihedral keeper, from underneath. Next you have to cover the bottoms of the wings before adding the lower fuselage stringers.
Here you can see this process completed. It wasn't possible to hold down the wing panels to keep them flat while steam shrinking and adding two coats of banana oil, but I got away with it. You can also see that I sheeted in the first fuselage bay between the stringers with soft 1/16" balsa and have tack-glued on the nose block prior to shaping.
This photo nicely shows the plunge-moulded windscreen I made for the model. The kit suggests you make it from two flat pieces of clear sheet, one either side of the central balsa keel, but I thought this would look horrible. I found some nice photos on-line for this attractive yellow scheme with white and black trim. The white wing and tailplane tips were painted first, then masked and the gloss yellow enamel airbrushed onto the yellow tissue. I didn't try to get a completely opaque finish, always tricky with yellow - the aim was just to increase the depth of the colour. The registration and fuselage stripe were decals.
I got lucky with the trimming, as the model had a natural tendency to turn left without me having to apply any trim tabs. Below is a video of the Bonanza in action, taken at the 2024 International Indoor Fly-In during the kit scale competition. In a smaller hall, that straight in approach and landing could have ended up in the wall, so this was the only time I have entered the model in an indoor competition. It goes well outdoors though on a calm day.
Schweizer SGU 2-22
This was something a bit different for me - a scale glider built for a competition organised by the Oxford Model Flying Club. It was built from the 36" span Tom Hallman design available as a short kit from Volaire Products in the USA. A few of us got together to make a joint order to save on the shipping costs. As well as the laser-cut parts sheets, the kit also comes with a 3D printed wheel and fuselage skid.You can find more details on Volaire products here.
The model was covered in yellow Esaki tissue prior to airbrushing.
It was an enjoyable build, though the fuselage does offer some challenges, especially the scalloped nose block, which requires careful shaping. I added laminated balsa canopy frames to support the glazing as without them I think you would struggle to keep the correct shape. As you can probably see, the front half of the nose block is removable to allow nose weight to be hidden inside.
The model was finished in Xtracolor enamels as usual. First flights on Port Meadow showed that the model needed quite a lot of nose weight to get a good glide. Bungee
launching was a bit hit and miss, but I did manage one two minute flight when the model came off the line overhead and found some good air.
Keith Rider R-5 Elmendorf Special
At the same time as ordering the Schweizer, I also bought a short kit for the 16 inch span Keith Rider R-5 "Elmendorf Special". It was a fairly quick and simple build, though I had to plunge mould a cockpit canopy. It's covered with Dilly Japanese tissue, steam shrunk and given two coats of banana oil. Finish is airbrushed Xtracolor "clear doped linen" enamel. Race numbers are cut from black-painted decal sheet and the tail registration and nose lettering are laser printed decals. Final weight came out at 26.6 grams including a motor of two loops 0.70" rubber.
Below is a video taken first time out at Trinity School. You can see that quite a tight turn is needed to fly in our small hall. Trimming involved adding left rudder, a small amount of nose weight, a small blob of blu-tack on the right wing tip and a short Gurney strip under the left wing to keep it up in the turn. The circuit is very stable and I think it could do well in the annual air race at the BMFA Indoor Nationals, if I was brave enough to enter it!
You can find more details on Volaire products here.
Pistachio Scale Folkerts SK-3 Jupiter
Why, oh why, do I torture myself like this? With three failed pistachio models under my belt, there was no reason to think that a fourth attempt would go any better, but I thought I'd give it one more go. The model was based on a successful "Model Builder" peanut plan from 1977. Reduced to 8" span, the fuselage is still quite large - as big as some peanut models, so I thought this might help.
The covered model, complete with prop weighed in at 4.6 grams. Very heavy for a pistachio model, but I kept telling myself that shouldn't matter so much since it was so large.
I was rather pleased with how it came out looking - finish is Xtracolor "clear doped linen" enamel and there are a lot of home-made laser printed waterslide decals on there.
Trimming has proved "interesting". At first things were looking more hopeful than usual, when after playing with thrust angles it flew like a normal model aeroplane and even completed a wide circuit and a 20 second flight. I thought, "great - I've finally cracked this!" Since then it has only got worse and worse, so I don't have a clue what it's doing any more. I think I need to go back to first principles, replace the prop with a lump of clay and start with the glide again. I've not quite given up on it yet, so watch this space for updates.
Stupid tiny aeroplanes.....
1/24th scale Blackburn Shark
Having damaged the Dart at the 2025 Indoor Nats and knowing that the Inbternational Indoor Fly-In later in the year would be held in a smaller hall than usual, I thought maybe it was time for a slightly smaller open rubber model than my recent efforts. My big Comet Blackburn Shark had been a reliable flier, so I decided to do a more accurate 1/24th scale version, giving a handy wingspan of 23". As a reference I used the excellent MMP books publication in their Orange series, written by Matthew Willis, which contains great 3-views and loads of photos and colour plates.
I didn't do a Dave Rees style wing for this one, just 1/32" sheet ribs with lightening holes cut out. I did a scale rib spacing because that always looks nice under silver paint. There are no hinged control surfaces on this model apart from the rudder in order to keep the weight down. The outlines are all to scale, but I did add some extra dihedral to both wings as I really wanted this to be a reliable flyer - I'm getting a bit fed up with my indoor models constantly heading for the walls at the end of their flights! If it means losing some static marks in the process, then so be it.
You may notice that there are no wing rib to trailing edge gussets on this model - instead I went for a different
method to reinforce the joins. At the bottom you can see the 1/16 x 1/8" trailing edge with the ribs attached. I then glued pieces of 1/32 x 1/16" balsa between each rib and the trailing edge, greatly increasing the glue area for each rib. You can see the finished result, after sanding smooth, in the wing at the top of the photo.
The components were covered with Dilly Japanese tissue, steam shrunk and finished with two coats of banana oil.
I airbrushed the model using Xtracolor enamels as usual - the fuselage, struts and undercarriage are in light aircraft grey and the flying surfaces in RLM Silver. The upper decking was Revell matt black. Roundels were cut from painted decal sheet using an Olfa compass cutter and the white fuselage numbers cut from white-painted decal sheet. The black serials were home-made laser printed decals. The final weight came out at 71 grams, including rubber and a slightly cut-down 8" plastic prop (the scale prop for static judging is shown in the photos).
One advantage of the Warren girder strut layout is the absence of almost all riggig wires, but it was a right pain getting all the struts fitted neatly. Every strut gets wider at the end, so you can't just sand a long length of balsa to a streamlined section and cut to length. Each strut had to be shaped and fitted individually, which was rather time consuming.
I took the model to the Netherlands untrimmed apart from a short powered glide across the garden. Fortunately it was very easy to get it circling in the hall, though it needed quite a long Gurney strip under the left wing trailing edge to keep the wing up in the turn (clearly visible in the photo above). I upped the rubber cross section a little to get the cruise portion of the flight a bit higher - it now has two loops of 1/8" plus a loop of 1/16". See video below taken by Vladimir Alfery on Sunday at IIFI 2025. I'd like to reduce the bank a bit further I think - maybe add a bit of tip weight on the right wing, or even open the turn out a touch if I'm feeling brave.
Comet 25"span Luscombe Phantom
As my Veron Nieuport 24 had been written off earlier in the year, I had to find a new kit scale model for the 2025 International Indoor Fly-In. I didn't think the Bonanza would work in the smaller hall we would be using, so had a rummage through my plan and kit collection to see what took my fancy. I decided to have a go at the pre-war Comet 25" span Luscombe Phantom as it is an attractive aircraft and a lightweight design. Plus I found some excellent pictures on-line of a gorgeous preserved example in a lovely cream and dark blue scheme.
Here you can see the sparse structure of the design - if I hadn't been building the model for kit scale I would certainly have doubled the number of fuselage stringers and added a few more wing ribs. Changes I did make included using a 1/16" sheet wrap for the cowling instead of notepaper, filling between the stringers in front of the windshield, the inclusion of a wire into the main undercarriage, hinging the rudder to aid trimming
and moving the 1/16 x 1/8" spar to the top of the wing to stop it curling up after covering. You may notice the negative angle of the tailplane slot in the fin - the kit plan shows both the wing and tailplane at zero degrees, so I set the tailplane at -3 degrees rather than increasing the wing incidence, which would have been be much more difficult. I also made bigger wheels than shown on the plan as they are undersized.
As you will not be surprised to learn, Dilly Japanese tissue was used to cover the model. Because of their fragility, I used pre-shrunk the tissue for the fin and tailplane. Two coats of banana oil were applied to seal the tissue.
For the cream colour I used Xtracolor "clear doped linen" enamel, thinned with Revell Color Mix thinners about 50/50, building up the layers gradually. To match the dark blue of the photographs, I chose Xtracolor "Aloha Airlines Dark Blue" enamel. Only two areas were masked off and airbrushed - the front of the cowling and the wing leading edges (minus the pointy bits). A sheet of A4 decal film was sprayed at the same time, and and most of the other markings were cut from this and applied to the model later. The fin markings were home made laser printed decals.
Trimming was done at the competition in The Netherlands (never a sensible thing to attempt!) but happily the model proved very docile and after adding a fair chunk of nose weight it was soon circling nicely, if a little underpowered with two loops of 3/32" rubber. Note the gurney strip below the left wing to keep it up in the turn. I also added a little weight under the right wingtip. The final all-up weight was 56 grams. Before the Sunday competition flights I changed the motor to one loop of 3/32" and one loop of 1/8" rubber, which improved the climb out and cruise height. The video below was taken on Sunday by Vladimir Alfery.
