Warbirds Replicas P51 Mustang

We electric flyers tend to get a bit spooked by puffs of smoke - particularly at start up.

Hi Trevor, as someone who flies mostly electric (of the 10S variety) my comment was a bit tongue in cheek .

However, some bright spark (!) might come up with a solution. Indeed, by putting LEDs in the stacks you might be able to simulate the exhaust flames like the jet boys simulate reheat.

Last time I had smoke was due to a faulty ESC made smoke appear in 4 servos and one retract.... luckily it was on the ground as I plugged in the battery so i could disconnect it toot sweet.

My boy got a "fire breathing dragon" for Christmas from his grandad. I wonder if it's possible to get hold of the "steam" emitter - takes 5ml of water and then uses a little ultrasound thingy to produce the "smoke". LED behind it and it looks fab.

Just a little tip. When shaping the block of balsa for the intake scoop I 0ffered it up to the former it buts up to and cut a piece of 1/4" square to fit in the former and glued it to the block. this was done before the bottom was sheeted. after sheeting I was able to hold the block firmly in place while blending it in to the fuselage.

Regarding smoke. my Son bought a tuned brushed motor for a Ripmax Spitfire half way through the first flight there was a smoke trail that would do the Red Arrows proud. He managed to land it ok and found the motor had burnt out no other damage thankfully.

Hi all,

Looking for a bit of advice on servos for the P51. I have some MacGregor DS1203MG (2kg.cm) and DS1703MG (3kg.cm) mini servos spare but wondering if they are strong and fast enough for the job. I am thinking to use the more powerful ones on the elevator and rudder, with the other surfaces with the less powerful ones. I may use two servos on the flaps.

Any advice welcome.

Just over 3 weeks on and off and its ready for the fairings and final sanding. No real issues

Gordon I can't comment on your servos as I am not familiar with them ,I would always use the most powerful on the ailerons and elevator. Unless you plan to do a lot of knife edging the rudder is used less than the ailerons. If you are planning to use a steerable tail wheel then a stronger one would be an advantage, mine are all 3kg

Eric looking amazing.

For the servos would you recommend 3kg standard size servos.

Jon

Jonathan

I have been using various servos in the past and have found a great many variations available. For anyone looking to choose a "suitable" one to fit the model, the decision is a minefield of technical jargon that dumbfounds most. Even the stated Kg rating is given by Kg per cm. This being the force the servo can exert per cm from the centre of the actual output arm. So the further towards the last hole on the arm the less there is torque available.

Weight and size is also worth the consideration as a standard servo is a lot bigger and heavier than a mini or micro and yet the latter can produce just as much torque in some cases.

Weight, is what decides how well your model will perform.

For Richards models which all, except for the twins, are around 55" wingspan and fly very well at around 6lb. I have found too the 3kg/cm micro more than adequate. Just try not to use the outer last hole on the servo arm on the servo itself.

One more thing Jonathan, the wing servo locations are designed for the mini or micro servos. a standard servo is too big for the location.

Paul, Eric,

Thank you very much for the clear advice on the servos. I will not use the 2kg.cm servos on this model as they are likely marginal. Good point about the weight being important as well for aircraft performance and handling aspect. I will have a think again about the flap actuation either a standard JR analogue servo or two mini servos.

Eric, you have made impressive progress in 3 weeks to get to that stage! The model looks excellent.

Looking forward to seeing what you guys do for the covering and finishing. Its a great help to be able to follow your experience!

Sorry to be picky Paul, torque is expressed in force x distance from the pivot hence kg.cm NOT kg per cm. Otherwise, the further out from the pivot the greater the force exerted. Kg.cm is the max torque the servo generates and so as cm increases then the force exerted decreases for servo.

Edited By Peter Jenkins on 14/01/2021 12:15:22

Can anyone suggest a simple steerable rear wheel setup for this kit?

Thanks

Retract or fixed tail wheel? Fixed is quite easy but retracts are a little more complex.

Hi Ron, The simple way is not scale but the tail wheel can be attached to the rudder and move with it. On an earlier flying picture on this thread  page 10 I think it is one of the prototypes with this set up.

Eric r.

Edited By Eric Robson on 15/01/2021 14:38:09