Freewing 80mm A-10 Modifications

[RCjetdude]

Sorry I said cockpit images but meant the instrument panel.

Here you go.

[RCjetdude]

Thanks for keeping this bird under wraps, RCjetdude, I know it wasn't easy. And thanks for all your skillful work, too! You're right, this aircraft is really a "Detailer's Delight". Customizers like you and Brandon Moon and TiredIronGRB and others will have fun with the possibilities this bird's large palette provides. Might I recommend after your current slew of customizations, to also consider fabricating the adapter rail for the AGM-65s. Were you going to do TERs as well?

And in case anyone was wondering, RCjetdude was one of the first pilots to pre-order and he paid in full, so his A-10 discussed here is not a sponsored build --it's entirely his aircraft, his thoughts, his feedback as a paying customer. We've asked him as we've asked all our customer review partners to be thorough and objective. I for one know I'm very excited to try some of these mods when my production A-10 arrives (which is long after all of you receive yours!).

Now, finish up that cannon! BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT

Hey Alpha, thanks for chiming in. Yes, once I get these mods complete I would love to add the additional detail of the adapter rails and TER's. There is so much that can be done. I was impressed with how Kelly's flew. Even the sound was impressive in person. You and your team did an outstanding job designing this bird and I am excited to fly mine soon.



Gotta get the paint finished first though.

Kelly's autograph...

[Pogo]

Seeing the photo of the wing underside with Kelly's signature reminded me of something I meant to post awhile back regarding servo covers. Parkflyerplastics (Keith Sparks) makes awesome servo fairings that'll clean up those exposed servos nicely. A great guy to deal with, Keith also makes a bunch of other useful stuff. :Cool:

http://parkflyerplastics.com/cart/in...roducts_id=315

Tom

[RCjetdude]

Cool. Thanks for the information. I will definitely get some of those.

[RCjetdude]

I am calling the paint done! On to decals, weathering and then a clear coat.



Weathering will darken the colors a bit and the decals will make it pop...

[Pogo]

Looks incredible- well done! Steve, I was just looking at the Parkflyer servo fairings I have on hand and remembered even the large ones are only ~10mm high which may not work on the A-10. In the past I've used these- the middle ones are ~13mm high.

http://parkflyerplastics.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=44&products_id=278

Tom

[TiredIronGRB]

I am calling the paint done! On to decals, weathering and then a clear coat.



Weathering will darken the colors a bit and the decals will make it pop...

Bring it over and let's maiden it!

[crxmanpat]

Gorgeous paint job Steve! Looking forward to seeing the final result.

[RCjetdude]

Looks incredible- well done! Steve, I was just looking at the Parkflyer servo fairings I have on hand and remembered even the large ones are only ~10mm high which may not work on the A-10. In the past I've used these- the middle ones are ~13mm high.

http://parkflyerplastics.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=44&products_id=278

Tom

If you trimmed the servo arms down I think they could work.

[RCjetdude]

Bring it over and let's maiden it!

I wish George. Not just yet. ;)

[RCjetdude]

Gorgeous paint job Steve! Looking forward to seeing the final result.

Thanks Pat. I'm a sucker for camo. I'm anxious to get the decals on it.

[F106DeltaDart]

Awesome work, the camo job looks fantastic! I am amazed at how fast you have done all these mods! I still have repaint projects that have been on the shelf for months, and you've done four times more inside of a week!

[TiredIronGRB]

Bring it over and let's maiden it!

I understand...I like to "pet" them a while before I risk destruction myself ;)

[RCjetdude]

I was up until 3:00 in the morning on Thursday trying to get it painted enough to take it to the Nall but ended up just taking a wing for Kelly to sign. Still I have been working on it almost non-stop since the 4th. The canopy/cockpit was the most time consuming and it still needs a little work to get it to close better but it was time for paint. I don't necessarily enjoy painting but love the A-10 and Euro scheme.

[RCjetdude]

I understand...I like to "pet" them a while before I risk destruction myself ;)

That's a good way to put it. LOL

[RCjetdude]

Canopy/cockpit mods (continued from post #76 and next installment is post #194)

Still trying to get caught up on this part of the build. For all the changes I made where I needed to add material I would make templates out of poster board to ensure a part would fit before I even cut it. Once I had the cockpit the right size and shape and the instrument panels fitting the way I wanted I then set to work on separating the front and back sections of the canopy and making the frame members from 1/8" plywood. I used the section of the canopy deck I removed earlier to help determine the size and shape of the sill plate.





I temporarily taped the front canopy section in place which allowed me to trace around the canopy onto some poster board to make the template for the windshield frame. Once drawn I cut it out and folded it in half vertically to determine that it was symmetrical.



I made two of these frames exactly the same size and shape by using the tiniest amount of medium CA to tack them together in three spots. This allowed me to sand them on my belt sander and with my Dremel to be identical and the pop them apart.



The frame parts ready to go.



Next up will be the raising mechanism...

[Jpahemi1]

Steve
for me the tough part of building an opening canopy was designing a lock system to secure the canopy at the front to ensure it doesn't open in flight or place additional load on the servo driving the canopy. I've been thinking about using a gear door sequencer to drive the canopy servo and lock pins with a separate servo.
The other option would be too have the canopy move forward at the end of its cycle locking the pins.
im looking forward to how you design the opening and closing mechanism. Weight is a consideration on planes this size but not so much on big jets
thanks
John.

[RCjetdude]

Steve
for me the tough part of building an opening canopy was designing a lock system to secure the canopy at the front to ensure it doesn't open in flight or place additional load on the servo driving the canopy. I've been thinking about using a gear door sequencer to drive the canopy servo and lock pins with a separate servo.
The other option would be too have the canopy move forward at the end of its cycle locking the pins.
im looking forward to how you design the opening and closing mechanism. Weight is a consideration on planes this size but not so much on big jets
thanks
John.

Hey John, the geometry of the mechanism is tricky for sure. I have mine sliding back to disengage a strip that is attached under the edge of the front canopy frame. The strip slides under the edge of the windshield frame to lock it in place. In addition the mechanism also secures the canopy from opening quite well just by itself. I will get into the detail of this soon.

[Jpahemi1]

Sounds great you sure do nice work. For me I really enjoy the design challenges. Painting us fun too.

[RCjetdude]

I just received from Kelly the shot of him signing my wing at the Nall. Thank you again sir.