Official FlightLine F4U-1A Corsair 1600mm (63") Wingspan

[Aros]

Thanks gents! Yeah there are still pockets out here in the foothills with snow, especially snow on the perimeter of the roads that has stacked up from all the snow shoveling/plowing...The roads are clear but the sides and fields as you can see are still covered. I like snow but like an In-Law, it wears out its welcome after a couple days.

LOL

Hugh, that Warbirds Pilot with swivel head would be fantastic but indeed you would have to chop him off above the privates. Oh the humanity! :Scared:

[redbarn]

This is probably the coldest February I've seen here. More snow in the forecast and not much above freezing if you're lucky during the afternoons. Gotta see my Corsair just sitting there all ready to go but this pilot has issues with icing conditions on his fingers.We should be planting crops already. It is getting old!

[Grover54]

Retracts Timing? - I saw something on this earlier but can't seem to find it now. When I lower, they drop fine but on my port side when I switch up the retract has a significant delay, almost 3 - 5 secs before it starts to come up. I checked my radio settings and can't spot the delay. Any ideas?:Thinking:

[Grover54]

+3 on that Todd. Great job flying that bent wing!!

DWL - Always meant to comment on your Avatar photo. That's a beautiful Tigercat! You have that parked in your garage? LOL

[Grover54]

Got the Boss in his office, weathering is pretty good...Overall happy with the look. Now it's time to just fly and enjoy! :Cool:

ArosMRC - Beautiful! You've done a great job with her. We should all be glad our Corsairs weren't built by NIKE! LOLLOL Too bad the weather sucks. We're getting snow again this morning! :Angry:

[Cws]

this is a thinner that's carried by Home Depot that I use when I'm painting my planes, it slows the drying enough so the brush marks lay down.

[xviper]

Retracts Timing? - I saw something on this earlier but can't seem to find it now. When I lower, they drop fine but on my port side when I switch up the retract has a significant delay, almost 3 - 5 secs before it starts to come up. I checked my radio settings and can't spot the delay. Any ideas?:Thinking:

Unless you've got the retract doors and retracts hooked up directly to the RX, the delay is not in the radio. It's in the control board or there could be a problem in the wing connector board. Mine was wired backwards (door plugged into retract and retract plugged into door) on one side. Having had to go in there to diagnose, I saw that some of the plugs weren't fully seated and one wire was even crimped/broken insulation. Go in and confirm that they are all seated and that they are all in the correct positions. Use the diagram provided. Then, you can also check that all plugs are solid in the control board by wiggling them. Also, try to mix and match the door plugs in the control board. If that doesn't give you joy, mix and match the retracts on the control door. IE, swap the left one with the right one but make sure you have them plugged into the correct pins.
The delay should be several seconds BUT they should NOT be different from side to side. You have a problem at one of the locations mentioned above.

[RichJ53]

Retracts Timing? - I saw something on this earlier but can't seem to find it now. When I lower, they drop fine but on my port side when I switch up the retract has a significant delay, almost 3 - 5 secs before it starts to come up. I checked my radio settings and can't spot the delay. Any ideas?:Thinking:

If I understand you correctly, the delay is built in to the Blue Box as stated in the MRC corsair build video. The L39 jet uses the same Blue Box and the gear have the same 5 sec delay too.

Rich

[Aros]

ArosMRC - Beautiful! You've done a great job with her. We should all be glad our Corsairs weren't built by NIKE! LOLLOL Too bad the weather sucks. We're getting snow again this morning! :Angry:

Thanks Grover! And yes, the little snowflakes are beginning to fall again. :Angry:

[Aros]

this is a thinner that's carried by Home Depot that I use when I'm painting my planes, it slows the drying enough so the brush marks lay down.

Good tip! Thanks for sharing...I was going to HD this weekend for the paint match and might have to pick me up a bottle while I am there.

[downwindleg]

DWL - Always meant to comment on your Avatar photo. That's a beautiful Tigercat! You have that parked in your garage? LOL

Yeah, right next to the Corsair!LOLI got a friend to take that picture a few years back at the Reno Air Races. I was just standing there to give the picture some scale. It is a huge plane when you walk right up to it with those two big R 2800 Pratt and Whitney engines. Like a Corsair times two with those thirteen foot two inch props spinning. Probably the best restored Tigercat I have ever seen.:Drooling:Not much faster than a Corsair but incredible climb rate.:Cool:

[theoldALFER]

this is a thinner that's carried by Home Depot that I use when I'm painting my planes, it slows the drying enough so the brush marks lay down.

CWS: Have you used this in an airbrush with the HD latex?

All y’all: Does anyone use the HD latex with an airbrush?
If so, what do y’all use to thin it and what ratio?

[RCAV8R]

When I did my A-10 I used HD paint and Createx High Performance Reducer (per recommendations from others on the Hobby Squawk thread). It was not a pleasant experience! I was using a siphon fed, Paasche airbrush with a .5mm tip. It clogged constantly! Perhaps I could have thinned more, or gotten a larger tip, or both, but personally I decided I didn't want to repeat that experience. Later I went back and re-painted using Tamiya acrylics, and while I admit I didn't have to cover as much area, it sure was a lot more successful. I'm hoping to do the Corsair with Tamiya, but I know it won't be cheap! Rob

[Hardway]

RC is right. If you are using an airbrush, large areas are harder to spray. I used HD Behr on my A-4, but sprayed it with a basic Badger 201 single action spray gun. 34.00... I used bottled distilled water and thinned it to the consistency of chocolate milk. Have to do light coats and if it runs, just blot it with tissue... patience is the key. The paint holds up great though! It is exterior house paint, after all!! :Cool:

[Hardway]

:Scared:But, Tamiya is better and easier, but more bucks!

[MrSmoothie]

I loved your mods Smoothie. Especially the filler cap, it looks awesome. Could you be able explain how you have done your filler cap buddy? Thanks

Thanks t01ga!

I started with a piece that looks like part of a rivet but isn't -- domed top with a "tube" underneath. I have several in a parts bin and I have no idea what they are or where they came from. I soldered in a length of brass bolt and cut off to length. On the cap, I made the cross-piece from basswood and attached with Loctite superglue gel. This is great stuff and works in places that even my good hobby CA does not. The threaded part is retained with a piece of threaded aluminum spacer, cut to short length.

As for cutting holes in foam, I think I have a better way than shown in an earlier post. Start with aluminum tubing of the desired diameter. Use a brand new No. 11 blade and sharpen the inside by "slicing" while rotating the tubing. Do NOT "test" the sharpness of the tube when you're done (ask me how I know). Brass tubing is harder to sharpen, but stays sharp longer obviously. Rotate the sharpened tube into the foam and you will get a perfect hole nearly every time.

[theoldALFER]

RCAV8R:
TheCorsair, IMHO, is much too nice to “brush on some house paint.” I too have Tamiya paint and will use it and Model Master instead of the HD latex. I’m checking to see if they have the US Navy Blue Gray and the Light Gray in “rattle cans.”

[Beeg]

I painted two airplanes (FW Bearcats) with house paint using a midsized detail airbrush and it was a pain. I'll never do that again. You have to thin the paint so much to get a decent spray pattern that you have to put down multiple very thin coats to get decent coverage. It worked and looked really good but was more trouble and time consuming than a foamie is worth. It was a new detail airbrush and I may have had the settings all messed up but I tried all sorts of different air pressures and it didn't go that easy. I think maybe the particles in house paint are just too big for smaller airbrushes and trying to get a thin even coat.
That's my two cents anyway..

[sethscorsair]

I prefer brushing it on with house paint rather than rattle can, no need to mask everything off also I suck at spray painting.

[MrSmoothie]

Today I maidened two Corsairs! I flew Dad's first (I told him I could use the practice before trying mine). The fog took over two hours to lift this morning, so only one flight for each as the wind picked up and changed direction.

I don't want to draw too many conclusions from just two flights -- but my impression is that the recommended CG is too far forward. We both found it necessary to add two weights (40gm) to achieve manual CG, but I'm thinking they can both weights can come out, as both planes required noticeable up trim.

Mine has the 3.5" Robart wheels, which are 3 oz. heavier. I thought the two models would balance quite differently as a result, but inexplicably, they did not -- we both used HRB 5000s.

I had more flap travel on mine -- I had repositioned the servo arms to allow for max travel, and notched the wing edge foam where the flap control horns made contact. I made about as perfect a landing right on the center line as I am capable of, and decided to stop while I was ahead (for today).

I was super-pleased with how my F4U-1 flew -- very nice, and plenty of umph for vertical. Surprisingly there's not a whole lot of difference in level flight speed between half and full throttle -- or at least it seemed that way. I think the way to go is modest throttle until pulling vertical.

I'm hoping to fly again tomorrow morning -- and more than one flight!