F4 Phantom Makeover

[jetfool]

Nothing exciting except the process of Poly-acrylic/sanding over and over. So, to take a break I started assembling parts for a 64" Brian Taylor Japanese George. I bought the plans from him in 1984 while I was working in England. Plan to use the FMS P-47 landing gear, motor and prop. Will order these after the holidays. I might post the build if there is enough interest. Feels good to be working with balsa again.
Best Regards, Rex

[jetfool]

Shop is chilly and work has slowed. We got 5" of snow and temp is 13', windchill -3 so a few of us are going to the field to snow fly. probably won't stay long. Beats the house blues! Call us crazy
Here is what I plan to fly

Not much happening on this forum lately.

Best Regards, Rex



Painted the white floats alum and plan to scale out the floats and re-paint Cub in yellow later this winter. Once we start to modify our planes it becomes an addiction on all of them. This plane flies beautiful and can fly slow like the real one. Wish me luck, Rex

[Elbee]

Rex,

I like it.

Back in days of yore ('83') I made some ply skis and installed those on my Train-Air .40.

Though you can't see the skis in the picture, we flew her off a frozen pond all New Year's Day.

It was as much fun just zooming around on the ice as flying.

Developed rudder instincts quickly.

I am wearing my Dad's USAAF Winter Flying Gear.

He served as a B-17 Bombardier/Pilot with the 8th Air Force.

Crazy warm.

Best, LB

[jetfool]

Elbee,
Nice outfit. I bet he had a lot of stories to tell as you were growing up. I remember those 80s days. Nitro fuel on your fingers in the winter wasn't fun.
Rex

[Elbee]

He didn't talk about his service to us kids.
I inherited his military things while in college.
It was good, but difficult to keep it all together over the years.
I donated some to our local CAF member group late '80s.
I still have a few things that have proven to be great reference today.

[jetfool]

Elbee,
Same with my dad, he didn't talk about his pacific war days until he was in his 80's. Then I learned some horrible things that went on at that time, he was wounded during the Okinawa invasion and while recuperating in the Philippines he told of searches he went on into 1946 trying to get Japanese soldiers to surrender. Most fought to the death. The things they went thru for us to have a good life today. He came home and made a good life to grow up in. I have his military things he brought home

[jetfool]

Question for you, guys.
My trusty Futaba 7C radio has been my only 2.4 radio I have owned and looking to get another radio. I have always flown Futaba and looking at the 12ch. Most of my club members are flying Spectrum and our expert is flying an IX20. He wants me to get the 10X spectrum for my scale plane needs. Either way I will need to purchase new rec. The spectrum rec cost more than the Futaba ones and I like the model memory and talking features . I have many of the 7C fasst rec from motion and have had no issues. What are your recommendations?
Thanks in advance, Rex

[Evan D]

I flew Futaba for more than 30 years. When I decided to go 2.4 I tried all the radios that were 2.4 at the time, Futaba, Spektrum (originally designed by JR, JR, Hitec and a couple others. I was lucky to be in a large club and most let me borrow their TX for a minute (some even gave me a receiver to put in my plane and fly it) to try them, to get the feeling, to try their programming. AT the time I had two 10C Futaba's with modules

At that time I had 45-50 planes and helos with receivers in them, ready to fly. Buying receiver was as much an issue as the feel and programing of the TX, plus who would be around in 5 years.

Hobby King had just come out with their first "clone" DSM2 receivers, they were cheap, full range 6ch was $6. I was looking for at least 10ch.

A good friend gave me a Spek DX-7, the old original one. I started buying receivers and swapping over. The JR 9503X, not a modue radio like the 9303 and 9503 was announced and I preordered it. I did not like the JR programing after flying Futaba so many years. Then open source happened. I bought a couple different transmitters to try, they were cheap, why not. I hated open source, I hated they had basically no warranty or service.

Then came the DX-18. I went through four of them, then the NX 20, on my second one. Before getting the NX20 the iX 14 came out and people were selling iX12's cheap. I picked one up to try their OS and the touch screen. Put all my models on it, more than 100 planes, helos and quads. I hated it. I sold it for the same price I paid a week later.

My advice. Ask to borrow any TX you are thinking of getting. Not just for the feel but how well you interact with the programing. Try to borrow it "long term" and do a test drive. Get as much radio as you can afford. Buy a radio others around you use and know how to program, no matter how good you are you will have questions. Don't be afraid to move on when something new comes out. There are a lot of receivers out there for the different protocols. For DSMX you have Orange (I have more of them than the others combined), Redcon, Lemon , iRanger and others. Spek has priced their receivers to a just crazy point. They are good but $150-200 each is nuts.

[jetfool]

Thanks Evan D for your advice. Our best pilot in our club helps everybody set up there planes whether Futaba or spectrum. He knows Spectrum set ups inside out and recommends a NX 10 for my needs. He had the Spectrum 14 ch and let me fly a plane. I liked how it talked in all the different functions during flight. I didn't have to look at the transmitter to keep my thoughts. I could concentrate on flying. LBest Regards, Rexooking at other brand rec for spectrum to get a feel for the cost. Now that I'm getting some EDf jets it's time to move forward with a new radio.

[Evan D]

The NX10 can do 20ch, excellent choice.

[Grossman56]

https://www.amazon.com/Spektrum-Channel-DSMX-Transmitter-SPMR8210/dp/B0DBL8P5P9/ref=asc_df_B0DBL8P5P9?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80470698948530&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=69048&hvtargid=pla-4584070172156693&psc=1&msclkid=88d90eaa9cfb134f383767ea3a42697d

Twenty channels, great radio and has the 'Bitchin'Betty' function as well.

Grossman56
(Dangerous Dan)

[jetfool]

Thaks Evan

Here I am ready to face the 3' temp

taxing in the snow getting ready to take off




A great take off but the wind started gusting hard and the floats kept weather vanning into the wind. And i couldn't get back to runway. fought it hard but kept going further away until thi happened



bad feelings but able to find all the pieces. Not as bad as it looks and will re-build and new paint color. Hope to have it ready for our New Year Day fly. They will aways land, sometimes not how you want

Should have just taxied around, Rex

[f4u ausie]

Oooh that's not fun bad luck

[Evan D]

Sorry to see but floats on snow is fun.

[jetfool]

Yes it is fun on snow. My buddy and I were racing on the snow until he said let's fly and we took off together. Thinking it over I may have lost a lot of battery voltage fighting the wind at full power and racing in the snow. Had 3.6 volts when I checked it. I almost have it all back together tonight. They used very little glue at the factory and most damage came apart at the glue joints so it isn't as bad as it looks. Wanted to re-paint anyway and detail the cockpit. With everything open I can put the cub pilot in the back seat like the real ones were flown from. Need to get this post back on the Phantom but today was heartbreaking and laughable. My buddy posted pictures on our group text and the rest of the day club members ribbed me on the outcome of this cold day.
Best Regards, Rex

[jetfool]

Guy' s,
Do any of you know how to get slightly wrinkled creases out of a foam fuselage? I have heard of water and steam but don't know anything or other solutions. If none I will fill with spackle and sand smooth.
Thanks, Rex

[Evan D]

I use a wet paper towel and a soldering iron then go over gently with a cold (room temp) smooth metal object.

[davegee]

Rex,

I like it.

Back in days of yore ('83') I made some ply skis and installed those on my Train-Air .40.

Though you can't see the skis in the picture, we flew her off a frozen pond all New Year's Day.

It was as much fun just zooming around on the ice as flying.

Developed rudder instincts quickly.

I am wearing my Dad's USAAF Winter Flying Gear.

He served as a B-17 Bombardier/Pilot with the 8th Air Force.

Crazy warm.

Best, LB

Love the duds! When my late step-dad mustered out of the Navy at the end of WWII, he was based in Honolulu. They had been issued full sheepskin-lined jackets and breeches, similar to what you are wearing in the picture. Fighting in the Pacific Theater, he never used them, and now was expected to return them to Uncle Sam. They were brand new condition, but the clerk accepting such items refused to do so. He told my stepdad and others just to keep them. He did that, and my stepbrother eventually inherited them after stepdad passed away in 2010. My stepbrother still has them, occasionally wears the shearling jacket on cold winter mornings in Kallispell, MT, where they live. It's still warm, regardless of the outdoor temps!

Thanks for the great pic of you and your plane and your dad's outfit!

Cheers

davegee

[davegee]

Thaks Evan

Here I am ready to face the 3' temp

taxing in the snow getting ready to take off




A great take off but the wind started gusting hard and the floats kept weather vanning into the wind. And i couldn't get back to runway. fought it hard but kept going further away until thi happened



bad feelings but able to find all the pieces. Not as bad as it looks and will re-build and new paint color. Hope to have it ready for our New Year Day fly. They will aways land, sometimes not how you want

Should have just taxied around, Rex

That's unfortunate, but I'm confident it will have a new life in a different livery someday. I find snow flying one of the best ways to enjoy RC airplane flying. I still have a Timber on floats/tundra wheels, depending on the season. We don't really get all that much snow as you might imagine up here, at least over the past 6 years we have lived here. Most of the time, I just keep the tundra tires on it, but it is an easy changeout for that snowtorm that dumps enough snow on our field to enjoy that.

Cheers

davegee

[jetfool]

Davegee,
I have all the broken foam glued back together. Most of damage split at glue joints that had very, very little glue on them. May be reason FMS discontinued this model. Flys great though. Will brush some poly on and then re- paint in yellow.
Phantom is slowly coming along, just poly/sanding still. It is building up to a smooth finish.
Best Regards, Rex

[davegee]

Davegee,
I have all the broken foam glued back together. Most of damage split at glue joints that had very, very little glue on them. May be reason FMS discontinued this model. Flys great though. Will brush some poly on and then re- paint in yellow.
Phantom is slowly coming along, just poly/sanding still. It is building up to a smooth finish.
Best Regards, Rex

Enjoying watching your work on the F4. I look forward to news on how it does at the upcoming show next Spring. If I lived closer, I would go to it, too. Sounds like lots of fun!
I'm sure you'll have your Cub back up and flying this winter.

davegee