theanorak73 Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Thought a few people may be interested in this. I guess this should really be in the RC plane section but that never seems to get many visitors and as I am concentrating on the actual build of the plane I'll post in here unless anyone objects.So I'm building a DeAgostini RC Spitfire. for those that don't remember, this was available years ago as one of those buy weekly magazine kits. the type where issue one costs 99p and then you have to take out a mortgage to buy the rest of it. I got mine as a complete set from E-bay last October and started building just before Christmas.No one seems to have a good word to say about this kit in the RC world. There are a few problems with it that I will try to sort out as I go along. These are even included in the instruction books as a "how to improve you model" section. But then my interest is only really in the building part (and the fact that it's a spitfire) and it probably will never get the chance to fly.So the plane is made from pre-cut balsa sections with only a few parts that need cutting and shaping. Most kits come with some wood sections and a few "interesting" parts like the propeller and wheels, but I'm concentrating on the main structure at the moment and leaving the extra bits alone until they are needed.progress so far...kits 1 and 2...kit 3 ...kits 4 and 5...kits 6 and 7...kit 8. now nearly 3 foot long...kit 9...next to my "ready to fly" parkzone micro spitfire...this is the resin pilot that I bought for it and painted last year...kit 12 now fitted. Starting to put the skin on. as you can see the pilot may need cutting down... 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acky190 Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Interesting stuff mate! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted January 1, 2014 Author Share Posted January 1, 2014 (edited) thanks for the interest Acky190. A little bit more progress on this before I return to work.the lower part of the nose has to be blocked out...and then sanded to shape.the rear fin is created using a stencil...and will be fixed in place later...a bit more skin has been applied at the front. final shaping and sanding will happen when the last of the skin is on...starting to look like a spitfire now... taking into account that its not actually an accurate representation. Edited January 1, 2014 by theanorak73 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(ex)Sgtrafman Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Thats coming along quite nicely mate. What are your plans for it once its complete and how are you going to finish it? Cheers Yours aye Iain 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossy Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Looking good mate. Always wondered how you guys make RC planes 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P.o Prune Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Very interesting build there. Looking forward to follow you. I'm in the process of starting on my 1:7 Spit Mk.IXc which is also an RC but I have decided to build it as a model. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted January 2, 2014 Author Share Posted January 2, 2014 (edited) its going to be built and finished as per the kits. it has a heat shrink pre-coloured skin. its probably just going to be hung in the garage. seen so many clips of them being crashed !!!! this is a finished one... Edited January 2, 2014 by theanorak73 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomjw Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 My god its huge. Nice to see something so different. Cheers, Tom. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOUSTON Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 ASTOUNDING work so far.. Great to see something so very different .. Way yo go. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted January 2, 2014 Author Share Posted January 2, 2014 thanks for the interest everyone. got a bit more time to type now.it's the first time that I have made anything like this and the step by step instruction books really do help to make things go together without too much stress...I always loved seeing the big planes hanging up in the model shops and i can actually remember this kit when it came out in the shops. in fact I did get "part 1" (including the VHS video) and then gave up after working out the final cost. actually buying everything in one go was a lot cheaper and means I don't have to keep waiting for the next parts to turn up. I'm now up to kit 17 of 60 after a couple of weeks work. on a weekly basis this would have taken 4 months !!!the plan is to make the plane as per the instructions, but one thing that does shout out at you is the lack of any under wing radiators, a very distinctive feature on the spitfire, so I may add these. also the standard wheels are a bit pathetic so I will be changing these. the pilot is extra and i will also try to add some sort of instrument panel.the main criticism of the kit is the fact that the Ailerons share a common servo and the control rods have a huge amount of flex that makes the plane very unresponsive in flight so I will be fitting separate servos in the wings.i will get it running and taxi it around but I'm not planning to get it flying any time soon. it's all too easy to crash them... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted January 26, 2014 Author Share Posted January 26, 2014 made a bit more progress on the spitfire.with the rear fin now fixed on I've been slowly finishing the application of the outer skin. this still needs the final sanding and shaping doing so I can smooth out any bumps and panel joints...the pilot was sitting a bit high in the cockpit so instead of trimming him I decided to lower a section of the cockpit "floor",I also added a head rest and will be making up an instrument panel...so now the pilot fits...and the canopy is trimmed to shape. I may also change the shape of the cockpit opening so its less visible inside the canopy...also added the mounting points for the nose cone...nose cone is trimmed to fit. will need to add various holes to the nose cone for the engine to protrude through but this will be done later...so now it's looking quite nice. need to do more work at the tail end and the final sanding down. next stage is to build up the rudder and rear wing !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 5, 2014 Author Share Posted May 5, 2014 (edited) been a while since i did anything on this, but then i like to take my time and work on things when the mood takes me.decided to get the rear wing parts together this weekend...final shaping and sanding will take place when the glue is set...just held in place by tape for the photos...getting bigger as the work continues. the fuselage is nearly done now apart from final sanding before its covered with the heat sink. but before that i have the main wing to put together !!! Edited May 5, 2014 by theanorak73 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Breaker Posted May 5, 2014 Share Posted May 5, 2014 Starting to come together nicely, makes me want an RC! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheStig Posted May 5, 2014 Share Posted May 5, 2014 Coming along nicely, I fly RC but I would never have the patience to build one from scratch. I think the almost ready to fly ones are as far as id go. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 5, 2014 Author Share Posted May 5, 2014 it's the building part that i most enjoy. not sure i'll ever fly it as my small parkzone one broke a wing on its first outing. but it will be "flyable" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
85sqn Posted May 5, 2014 Share Posted May 5, 2014 Great stuff I made most of one of these a few years ago but ended up selling it before it was completed so I never got to see it fly. It will be great to see this one done as it looks like your making a great job of it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kill3r Posted May 12, 2014 Share Posted May 12, 2014 this is is looking good , i have just brought all the bags for one of these off ebay, no electrics or engine though, any ideas where i can find the build instructions as the seller had lost them ? Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 12, 2014 Author Share Posted May 12, 2014 mmm, not sure about getting the instructions separately as they were supplied monthly with each kit. anyone selling the old kits would sell it the same way... usually !! good luck on that one. can't even offer to scan them for you as 1. I don't have scanner and 2. they are 264 pages long !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 12, 2014 Author Share Posted May 12, 2014 on e-bay now...http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/rc-plane-/321403323244?pt=UK_ToysGames_RadioControlled_JN&hash=item4ad521836c Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kill3r Posted May 12, 2014 Share Posted May 12, 2014 Thanks, will keep an eye on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 15, 2014 Author Share Posted May 15, 2014 started building up the main wings. the first thing to do is to make the jig that holds all the parts during construction...then you basically build up one section, then move it along in the jig and add some more. the frustrating side to this is that you have to keep stopping and allowing things to set, however it does seem to be coming along quite quickly despite the small number of parts used.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 made good progress on this over the weekend, got one of the main wing structures done and nearly ready for skinning.slowly building up the parts, including the wing tip...I'm not using the aileron control rods, i will mount the servos direct to the wings, but the tube helps to position things in the right place...leading and trailing edges in place...underside view. you can see the landing gear support block...looking good. you can see how the wing tip still needs shaping...so after the glue has set for a bit its time to sand it all over, shape the tip and then its on to the 2mm balsa skin... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 24, 2014 Author Share Posted May 24, 2014 started putting the skin on the first wing half...i have decided NOT to use the heat-shrink finish provided with the model. im going to give it a light fiberglass coating that will allow me to paint it like a giant model. i think this will look better.bought some of this to try although a test piece seems to suggest that my matting is too think (i only got it because it was cheap on E-bay). have have to get some thinner stuff if i want to use this water based coating ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theanorak73 Posted May 25, 2014 Author Share Posted May 25, 2014 made a start on the 2nd wing half...and started putting the tail together. now that I'm going to fiberglass the plane I'm adding a balsa skin to the rear parts. this will need more shaping once the glue has dried... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomjw Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Where are you going to store it? The size is immense. So is your skill. Well impressive Cheers. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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