Large scale interest

[Brown Baron]

The RC jet flyers spend many thousands of dollars on miniature jet/turbine engines so there is probably a market for a well-made rotary and large kit with correct fittings.
Mike

[Lucky Dog]

William,
I'd have to second the replies of here.... Terrific idea. There seems to be a real up-surge in WW1 RC modeling. Some of us would love to be able to make all those great fittings and details, but either don't have the time, tools or ability. And yes, more competition out there for products like these would great!

I look forward to hearing more!

[William]

Yiasou Mike,
καλά και ελόγου σου?
Thanks to all for their input and encourgement. We will ruminate on the idea and see if we can cost out some options. Not being a model pilot I've a possibly stupid question. A functional rotary with the power to fly in scale may be prohibitive, what about a balanced/tuned scale "dummy" with prop to mount on a modern power plant? What RPM do these engines run and what sort of torque do they generate? My hunch is high revs and low torque so it proably wouldn't work. We are playing with a 1/4 Bentley BR2 from the Blackmore drawings but haven't finished it yet so no data.
Best,
William

[Lyle]

Originally Posted by William

A functional rotary with the power to fly in scale may be prohibitive, what about a balanced/tuned scale "dummy" with prop to mount on a modern power plant?

There was a 1/4 scale Sopwith Camel at the 1992 World Scale Champs that had a "freewheeling" rotary that simply spun thanks to the propwash. The effect was totally convincing! I think Dick Hansen sells the videotape still, it's Number 15.
http://www.aero-sports.com/hansen/videos.html

[Tmoth4]

There is at least one company in the US making functional rotaries.

www.replicaengines.com/products/gnome.htm

I think what most of us need is basic dummy engines and accessories, guns, ammo, etc.

Our model engines run about 7000+ RPMs for gas engines, more for glow engines.

Jim

[William]

Clearly, there would be a broader interest in add-ons and they would be more affordable. Can you give me some idea of what an allowable total extra weight would be for dummy engine, guns, cockpit fittings etc...?
Glen Torrance's website has a downloadable movie of a 1/4 BR2 running on a test stand, lovely sound. Still a nice idea to have a functional scale rotary. We'll have to mull on it a bit.
Regards,
William

[Tmoth4]

William,

The weight needed can vary quite a bit, depending on what model engine is used. If it's a gasoline engine, not much weight is needed (if any), but with glow engines, 1 lb. or more could be necessary.

To me, durability is most important. If the dummy engine were hollow, it could be filled with ballast if necessary, or, if it's solid, it could be hollowed out. On many WW1 planes (like the DR-1) the dummy engine would be exposed on the bottom. Since some of these planes are prone to tipping on their noses, thin, plastic dummy engines can get destroyed.

Jim

[Lucky Dog]

Originally Posted by Tmoth4

William,
On many WW1 planes (like the DR-1) the dummy engine would be exposed on the bottom. Since some of these planes are prone to tipping on their noses, thin, plastic dummy engines can get destroyed.

Jim

I don't know about your Dr1 experiences Jim. But mine (which nosed over more often than not) was the only plane I've had that had scuff marks on the "front" of the prop (which rarely broke). Never got close to the dummy engine (on the Dr1 anyway). However, I had a Saito 56 on it, with a small prop. I'm going to re-engine it with my Saito 80 (since the Eindecker no longer needs it ). That bigger prop will not survive my abuse. I hope I've become a better pilot in the two summer since flying it last.

[FlyingRazor]

Well, it won't take much to come up with a long wish list, as we definitely have room for more scale details. Glad to see your considering smaller scale. Being in the WW1 business for more than a decade, it's clear we need metal parts. The average model doesn't have the tooling or time to generate some of the metal dashboard pieces or other complicated parts that can be easily found on these planes. How about turnbuckles, almost every plane needs them. A nice German hex turnbuckle would be lovely. So, when you investigate the costs and market just note that the typical R/C modeler doesn't have a gov't budget, so things need to be priced properly. Basically, if you want to make alot of money find another idea. I do it because I love WW1. Yes, you can cover tooling costs and some but that might take a while. Oh, the BR2 engine on my site was made by Paul Knapp who sells them for $18k. A little rich for me but there seems to be a demand for such engines. That engine weighs in at 9 lbs and sports 12 hp. A friend of mine is putting that engine on a 1/2 scale Antic which should be completed by Xmas. And yes it will be flown.

[William]

Hello Glen,
Thank you for your input and enjoyed your site very much. Profit isn't the motive for us either. It cost us about $60/hr to CAD-model parts we need for our 1:1 aircraft and were already making those parts, so it takes only a few moments to change the CAD-model's scale. These models will be done anyway (we've already made a smaller fortune in aero; from a larger one ). For us to share that modeling cost per part over several people rather than 2 or three doesn't make this profitable but reduces loss. Can you give us a short list of what you think would be most helpful to you as a large scale modeler? That would give us some goal to work towards. I think that we have a German turnbuckle here somewhere and perhaps a drawing as well. What else to start?
We'll be very excited to hear about how the Bentley flies. How does that power/weight ratio compare to gas engines?
Are you from N.C. originally? I'm from Elizabeth City many years ago. Attended both U.N.C. and N.C. State before they both had indoor plumbing I think.
Regards,
William