TIGER MOTH the landing gear pushed back against
the edge. Hold in position with a rubber
band in minimum tension o v e r t h e deck,
on pins stuck into the board on each
side. Block up at the tailpost three-
q u a r t e r s of an i n c h to e s t a b l i s h the
incidence angle. Cement the bottoms of
the root ribs to the longerons w h e re
they make contact, and block up tips for
the dihedral. The upper wing centersec-
tion struts are built accurately over the
side view. Cowl sheeting is notched to
allow them to set down on the top
longerons. A jig is not needed. Just
eyeball to make sure they're vertical.
W h e n nearly set, the upper wing can be
cemented in place and carefully aligned.
The interplane strutsand the rigging are
functional and shouldn't be omitted.
Use two-pound test nylon monofila-
ment instead of thread, if you can. It can
be tensioned with a light application of
heat.
A plastic prop can be used, but you're
stuck with the bladearea and molded-in
pitch. The prop shown is, I believe, more
efficient for light m o d e l s ; a n d pitch
changes can be steamed-in. Build-in
some blade twist to approximate helical
pitch bysoakingthe biadesandstrapping
to a two-inch can at about 15 degrees
forward skew and curing a half-hour or
more in a 200 degree oven. Drill the shaft
hole in the middle of a round, birch
• The D.H. 82 was the next generation small straightedge. Sand off bumps and t o o t h p i c k a n d p i n the parts d o w n ,
development of the D.H. 60Gipsy M o t h , high spots and build up any lows to blocking up the blade leading edges
and first flew in 1931, using the inverted prevent deformation of the sheeting. I 13/32 of an inch at two inches from the
in-line air-cooled Gipsy II engine. The used styrofoam for the nose blocks and shaft, to o b t a i n i n i t i a l p i t c h . Lightly
airplane was the primary trainer for the ended up adding about a third of a gram epoxy them together. When cured, sand
British and Canadian Royal Air Forces, as of lead in the nose, so balsa blocks are the hubs to blend with the blades and to
well as a number of other European and more suitable and much tougher. balance. Start with a 10 to 12-inch loop
M i d d l e East c o u n t r i e s , t h r o u g h o u t T u r n e d f o a m w h e e l s are r e c o m - of 3/32-inch Pirelli or equivalent. This
World War II. Thousands were built m e n d e d , w i t h f o u r o r f ive c o a t s o f s h o u l d be a b o u t right for p o w e r if
using the Gipsy M o t h 130 hp and 145 hp thinned white glue to seal and harden weight is in the six to eight-gram range.
and Menasco Pirate 125 hp engines, and the s u r f a c e s a n d p r o t e c t t h e m f r o m I didn't build adjustable surfaces on
many are still flying. attack by the paint. Leading gear brace this one. The tail moment is pretty long
An excellent article by Don Berliner, struts should be left free at one end to and the tail feathers must be kept light.
w i t h B j o r n K a r l s t r o m ' s d r a w i n g , was allow the gear to flex. After tissue and In order to get it to fly well, I had to
published in the April, 1972, American trim is on, the parts can be sealed and a loosen them and block-up the stabilizer
Aircraft Modeler. A d r a w i n g in t h e little gloss put on with a light spray of leading edge 1/64 inch and cock-in just a
December, 1975, Model Airplane News Scotchguard or K r y l o n Crystal C l e a r little right rudder. My biplanes tend to
of the 82C series gives some excellent acrylic coating. The automatic slots on wind-in easily when allowed to fly left
details of how the frame was put to- the upper wing can be detailed with with torque, so I make 'em fly right.
gether. I modeled the 82A as shown on tissue strips instead of the 1/64-inch
I found this Moth version to be an
Karlstrom'sdrawing and colored it white sheet shown, which tends to slightly
attractive, stable model with the scale
and black to match the one which came alter the airfoil.
dihedral and sweep-back in the wings.
to our 1981 fly-in to compete in the
W h e n mounting t h e l o w e r w i n g panels It's a good flyer in stable air, capable of
antique group. If neither magazine is in
to the fuselage, lay it on your building an easy minute duration at the weight
your files, and you should need a draw-
board with the nose hanging over and mine finished-out. •
ing for d o c u m e n t a t i o n or to c h e c k
details, Repla-Tech International has the
Karlstrom version. Ask for BK48.
All the scale structure is d r a w n , s o y o u
can choose how much of it to incor-
porate in your version. 1 put it all in and
grossed out at 0.22 ounces (6.3) grams
without the motor. The only intentional
scale deviation is the M c C o m b s flat-
bottom airfoil instead of the reflexed,
undercambered one used by de Havil-
land. Scale tail surface areas are ade-
quate for a free flight model.
Select all y o u r balsa c a r e f u l l y for
needed weight and strength, but espe-
cially use the lighest sheet wood avail-
able for the rear turtledeck. Check these Who cares if it can't outflv a Fike in Peanut competition . . . it sure is a lot prettier, and flies
formers all over, after mounting, with a well enough to satisfy most anyone!
I lowEflWwp 1
' 5°20' Sweep 1
4 0 3 0 ' D.hedrol
(,50"@ t i p s ) .
hobby from Russia
I
from Russia with
Love
