Hooda thunk it??

After winning the profile event with my then new Nomad I built another. This one has wing mounted landing gear and I reversed the wing tips. Instead of being longest at the leading edge the wing is longest at the trailing edge. After those two I built a third Nomad with a full fuselage that I crashed a little while ago. Then I had a foam wing doing nothing so I built a forth Nomad only bigger, that one is still in one piece. Then I built a fifth one with a change to the canopy shape and that one is the best looking and flying one of all the others.
  I got an idea to get all the important measurements from nomad 5 and apply them to Nomads 1 and 2. I didn't take much to get no. 1 to match 5 and a half ounce of nose weight on 2 matched it to 5. I set the leadouts to match and that was all it took. I took 1 and 2 to the park this morning and got in some flights with both. No. 1 and 2 flew better than before and as good as No.5 The weather was perfect for the flights which made things all the more better. Now if I'm asked how my planes are set up I will have the right info. The guy who is building one of the Nomads should be close to finishing it.
   The details for the contest are under control and everything is going forward. The food still needs to be ironed out but I have an alternate plan if the cook can't make it. It's all up to the weather now.

Some progress.

After several flights I adjusted things to balance the Legacy where the plans said to balance it. That took an ounce and a half of lead bolted to the tail. Anyway on the next outing it reacted much better. More stable in level flight and the turns are sharper. And with no fuel leaking out of the feed line the engine runs longer and the plane is a bit cleaner.
  The SV-11 is flying well also. I'm having a bit of trouble getting the right speed and I'm changing propellers to bring it in. The same with the P-40Q. It's flying pretty good but the speed is off. A bit too slow. Prop changes on this plane also.
 The wind is up today and is forecast to be high tomorrow and Friday.

More problems.

I've been flying the Legacy and SV-11 trying to get them trimmed enough to do the full pattern. I've been trying different propellers and line lengths. The Legacy engine has been throwing fuel all over the plane. After a short flight the sides are covered in oil. I noticed that the residue wasn't used fule but raw fuel that had the alcohol evaporate in flight. I removed the engine and put it on the stand for testing. I found that the mufflers end plate was not sealing. I fixed that yesterday and this morning went to the park. After a short flight the plane was covered in oil again.At home I removed the engine cowl and took it outside for a test run. While it was running I inspected the engine for leaks but couldn't find any. Then I looked at the fuel hoses and there was a pin hole that was pissing fuel out. I cut the hose at the pin hole and re started it. This time there isn't any leaks. The winds are forecast to be light tomorrow so I'll take them back to the park for some more trimming sessions.

First flight.

We headed to the field around 1400 today. The weather had eased a bit and the wind and rain were less. I had the P-40Q ready to fly and got the engine started after a bit of haggling. I only put in 1.5 ounces of fuel as I didn't know what to expect. The plane is stable in level flight and turns corners quite well. The second flight saw several of the pattern maneuvers performed and I called it a day after that. I made a change to the elevator travel at home to tame it a bit. The home made muffler leaks and a lot of oil was left on the wing. I looked on the Brodak web site and found one that will fit and hopefully provide a better seal.  The Evo .52 has plenty of power for the plane.

I fixed it.

I had trouble with my electric Pathfinder. The motor wouldn't start. I tried several things to diagnose the problem without success. To make it easy on myself I ordered a new motor, speed control and timer. I also ordered some decals from Northeast Screen Graphics for the new P-40Q. Everything came in today's mail. I installed the decals then started trouble shooting the electric problem by installing the new speed control using the same old timer and motor. It started like it was supposed to so the old speed control was bad. At least I have a spare motor and timer.
  The Legacy is 99% finished. I'm waiting for the test flight of the P-40 so I can use it's engine. Both planes came out in the high 50 ounce range which surprised me a bit.

Almost ready to fly.

The fiberglass came in early and I had both planes ready for it. I decided on finishing the P-40Q before the Legacy.  I also bought some ready mix fillet material. I got to use it on both planes with pretty good results.
I went to the hobby shop to get the aluminum Monokote. I had aluminum paint. At the shop I found two rolls of covering and one of them felt lighter than the other. I bought both as I figured I would need both. When I got home I opened the light roll and found 6 feet now measured 30 inches. I called the shop and they said they would swap it out. I ended up needing the 30 inches as I figured I would.
  A few days later the weather was real dry so I sprayed the aluminum paint after brushing on the white for the canopy and the green for the glare shield. Then I sprayed on some clear for good luck. Today I assembled all the pieces after gluing in the hinges and control surfaces. Total weight is 58 ounces with one ounce of tip weight. The wing is 635 square inches in area with a 58 inch span. I ordered the proper decals for it and they should be in a few weeks. The plane will be ready for the contest here if I get to fly. Definitely for the El Dorado contest in early May.
  I'm still mulling over what design/color scheme to use on the Legacy. I think that one will be in the high 50 ounce range also.

Update on the fiberglass.

I ordered some, what I hope is half ounce to the yard, fiberglass cloth from Amazon. The last time I ordered it it came from China. This time too. About 6 weeks for delivery. I think I have enough from the last order to cover the new profile fuselage. It's about ready for covering then final assembly.
  Some of the club members are showing up at South Park for a look see and contest prep this morning.