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Ken spokes and a giant conversion
My recent workshop activities have been mainly confined to converting a model from i.c to electric. About twenty years ago I built a 120" monster for the purpose of launching gliders piggy-back on Epsom Downs where it was considered unsafe to have towlines and bungees . It was also used as a toffee bomber and parachute dropper at Club events. Since moving to New Milton, it has been gathering dust in the garage loft together with its OS90 engine which powered it adequately. Its weight was a tad under 15 lbs of which the engine, silencer and fuel tank accounted for 58 oz. As the L4 will not be needing the big Axi for some time, I wondered if this could be substituted for the OS. When I checked the weight of the Axi , the controller and an eight cell 3200 lipo this came out at 50oz - a saving of half a pound.
The installation of the Axi proved a lot easier than I had anticipated thanks to the fact that the OS was bolted to a mounting plate. A replica plate was made with a mounting for the Axi which then dropped into the motor bay with no further modifications.
The model's fuselage is in two parts to make it easier to work on and transport. It has Fowler style flaps and NASA wing tip sections which make it ultra stable in flight. The design was roughly base on the Senior Telemaster. It was exhibited at the Model Engineer Exhibition at Alexandra Palace where it was awarded "Highly Commended" I'm afraid its not in quite the pristine condition it was then and a bit of TLC is needed before it flies again.
Ken
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