More changes to the Pathfinder.

I built the plane for the Stalker .51. That proved to be a poor combination. I installed an Evolution .60 and that was a lot better. Then I got an Evo .52 and put that on the nose. It worked well also. That .52 went into the new Legacy 40 so I put a well used second .52 on it. Then back to the .60. I started having fuel tank problems and prop clearance issues and finally gave up using the larger Evo engines and went back to the LA .46. I had to use a stock muffler, a one ounce spinner nut and a plastic spinner to get the balance close to right. It does fly as well as it did. I installed drag strips on the tail and now it's very competitive. My son told me about a friend that cuts vinyl graphics. I'm having her cut some for the Navion. I found a picture of one that has "US ARMY" in large letters across the right wing. Almost full span top and bottom. That should cover a few of my mistakes. So I'm having her make some for the plane.

First flight on the second Legacy 40.

I finally finished painting the plane and used a 2 part clear coat. The usual butyrate clear dope didn't act right and got put aside. I've been looking for another Evolution .52 engine for the Legacy but no luck. I took one of the Evolution .60's I have and put it in but it didn't fit quite right. I removed the .52 from the Ringmaster Excel and put that in the Legacy. I had built it using this engine so It's only proper to use it for flying. I went to the park early and got in 3 flights with the Cardinal then brought the Legacy out. The engine fired right up and flew quite well. I had to hole up control because I didn't notice that the handle and lines I used had different size clips. I dug out another set of lines and evend things up for the next go at it. One of the club members hs a Evo .52 that was given to him so he gave it to me. I ran it on the test stand and installed it in the Ringmaster. I may have to get new bearings for it. I'll take both planes to the park next time out.

Got tired of looking at it.

After many flights on the P40-Q profile plane and getting less appearance points because ,I believe, it had monokote film on the wings and tail I stripped the film and paint off the plane. I them made some changes to the fuselage and tail to make it look like an Navion that was used by the military after WW 2 and into Korea. I have some graphics coming from Major Decal and I'm working on others from a cottage cutter. After I get those installed and the weather dries up a lot it will be time for the clear coats.

Getting close.

As you can see I have entered another dimension. Twilight Zone kinda thing. I got the Legacy 40 painted and almost color sanded as much as I feel like color sanding which isn't much. The black was sprayed yesterday and needs a few more days to dry then a bit of sanding in preparation for the clear dope. It took eight hours of taping the checkers before paint and 2 minutes to paint and a half hour to remove all the tape pieces. The weather has been raining for over a month now and it's just too humid to spray the clear. The do over on the P40-Q into an L-17 Navion is just about ready for paint. I ordered some olive drab dope but they didn's have any so I back ordered it. They sent some enamel instead of dope. I plan to use that and spray 2 part clear over it for fuel proofing. The jury is out on the compatability of the two paints but I'll find out soon. I have to order some graphics for it. That is always a treat.

More engineering brilliance.

I determined that a dope paint finish was better than monokoting the wing and tail. Appearance Judges don't like to see monokote on a model and points are hard to come by. That cost me a second place at one contest. I stripped all the 'kote and paint and figured on changing the model from the P40-Q to the L-17 North American Navion. I had to square off the stab. tips which wasn't a big deal but changing to tricycle gear was a problem. The plane has a foam wing which is cored out to lighten it and to make a passage for the leadout lines. The resulting wall thickness isn't strong enough to mount the gear support blocks and the lines would rub against part of it also. After a few weeks of study I came up with the system in the picture. I cut a chunk out of the fuselage and epoxied in a block of 1/2 inch plywood with grooves for the torque portion of the wire gear legs. I removed a secton of balsa sheeting and glued in 1/16 plywood to support the wire gear. As luck would have it I was able to use some already used wire gear salvaged from wrecks. The nose gear was easy as it plugs into the motor mount as usual. I should glue on a layer of fiberglass over the 1/16 ply for added strength. I epoxied the bare balsa wing skins and that is up to sanding before priming. I finally got dry enough weather and finished spraying the white base coat on the Legacy 40. That is up to masking for the first trim color.

June 10th.

That was the last time I flew in preparation for the Dallas contest. I usually fly every morning so this is quite a lay off. We left Dallas Saturday afternoon and came home, busted wing/arm in a sling. My wife got a date with the orthopedic doctor and had a total shoulder replacement a week later. That was a week ago and should see the doctor next week. It was also a reverse replacement. From what I can find out that means the shoulder socket is now on the arm bone and the arm ball is now on the shoulder. I'll find out why next week. The conversion of my P40-Q into a Navion L-17 is coming along quite slowly because of the broken arm. I'm going to try epoxy finish on the sheeeted foam wing instead of tissue and dope. I've squared off the rounded stabilizer tips and made a new fin/rudder. I ordered olive drab paint from Aircraft Spruce and it ended up being enamel not dope. I'll use it anyway and for the clear coat I'll use 2 part 2K Max spray paint. That should make it fuel proof. The new Legacy 40 is ready for another coat of white as soon as the air dries up a bit. I ran out of white after one coat a month ago and got some more when the humidity shot up. Nothing to do but wait.

One up, two down.

We got to the hotel around 4 pm Friday. Saturday morning had a storm that blew through quickly and didn't impact the contest. Things progressed fairly quickly and I was to be first up in the Old Time Stunt event. Some other guy fell in the longish grass and sprained an ankle. As I was about to fuel my plane I was told that my wife had tripped over a speed bump and was hurting. I packed up and brought her to a hospital where x-rays were taken that confirmed a fracture. We went to the hotel and packed up and checked out and headed for home. On Monday she got an appointment at the orthopedics and more x-rays were taken and another appointment for a total shoulder replacement next Monday, 6/21. The next local contest is Labor Day back in Dallas.