New Bird on the Wire(s)

Here are a few pictures of my new bird (if I manage to post the pictures properly). It's not white so some people will be a little upset about that and it has decals, lots of decal, so some people are positively going to hate it but I think the effect came off not badly. It's sort of Winston Cup racer meets CLPA plane. The plane is a SIG Magnum, started so long ago that I began referring to it as the 'infernal eternal Magnum' but over the past year I finally got to work on it and finished it off mid-June. It ended up being an experiment in low VOC finishes. I used water based polyurethane the way you would normally use clear dope to fill the grain and adhere and fill 1/2 ounce glass cloth. The colour is also water based polyurethane (Flecto Diamond Finish) and the clear coat is Nelson Hobbies cross linked clear. I still have a lot of learning to do with this finishing system but I feel it's worth pursuing farther. I also learned that ink jet decal paper made by Walther is not compatible with HP colour inks. The engine is one of Len's honkin' Magnum 53's (sorry Len, you don't have a handy dandy logo for me to copy and put on a decal so you don't show up in the decals on the plane) and it hauls butt big time. The plane now has 10 flights on it, I have the controls feeling good and I had it inverted the last time out so now I'm ready to go at the pattern hammer and tongs.

Because of a lot of dumb things I did (won't repeat them) when I first started building this plane it's embarrassingly heavy but I'm astounded at how well it flies, turns and glides when the engine quits. At this point, the only thing holding it back is its pilot.

Best, Hoovie

David,
Please allow me to be the first to say, "Nicely tarted up" Job well done,..and about "time" too.

Sorry, Tony - you're not the first to say that! I was among the first to see it, but not the first to see it fly, unfortunately (I still haven't seen it in the air). He got a compliment from Konstantin Bajaikine on it, so don't let him be too modest! Can't wait to see it fly...

Loverly! I particularly like the wing fillet..

I'm sure it's a big old pussycat to fly - the SIG Magnum is still a great design.

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"A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for." -William Shedd

Larry,

Thanks for the compliment on the fillets. Tey were made with West System epoxy with micro balloons mixed in until a very stiff paste was achieved, then smoothe out with a wet finger. They added 0.4 ounce to the weight. Yes, I kept track of the weights even though it is a porker. How else would I know what parts need lightening the next time around?

Your comment about the Magnum being a great design brings up my next quandry. I have a Saito 72 and would have put it into the Magnum except the mounting lugs were too wide and the cowl was already painted and I didn't have the heart to butcher it again. Should I do another Magnum with just a slightly wider fuselage to accommodate the engine or build something else, an Impact, perhaps? It's clear that the Magnum can compete with the best of them given an able pilot. Your votes, please.

Best, Hoovie

Life is simple.. Eat. Sleep. Fly.

I remember the Magnum kit box with photos of Mike Pratt's 4 stroke experiments (long before 4 strokes were hip..).

I'd bet money that the Magnum would be an ideal 4 stroke candidate.

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"The way to get things done is not to mind who gets the credit for doing them." -Benjamin Jowett

Hi, Dave - one of our club members is presently building a Magnum around a SAITO .50. Should be interesting. Hoping to see it fly soon, I'll update you on how it goes.
Bob Z

Man, you have a lot of sponsors!!

Very nice plane.

Randy,

I guess the only real sponsor is my emplyer, Berminghammer Foundation Equipment (logo is right behind the cockpit) whose paycheque twice a month sponsors my entire air force.

Best, Hoovie

Glad to see yuo got it finished at last.

Gee,

I'd expect to see at least one Ryder decal on a yellow vehicle but I guess they're coming all white nowadays.

Perhaps Yellow Cab?

David,

Fine looking airplane, the decals really look good. If someone would have told me they had a stunter with sponsor decals all over it my first thought would be uck! but you pulled it off extremely well and it looks really great.

I have a Magnum in the box that I will get around to building one of these days. Would you mind sharing your weight tracking figures so I will know what to watch out for..

Thanks,
Bob

Wow! Nice one, but POULEN? Don't they make chain saws? I can just see it now, the Great C/L Chainsaw Massacre. Hmmm...sounds like there might be a movie in there somewhere. Are the water-based Polyurethanes safer than the auto formulas? Is it fuel proof, or do you have to apply that after the color coat?

>Wow! Nice one, but POULEN? Don't they make chain saws? I can
>just see it now, the Great C/L Chainsaw Massacre.
>Hmmm...sounds like there might be a movie in there
>somewhere. Are the water-based Polyurethanes safer than the
>auto formulas? Is it fuel proof, or do you have to apply
>that after the color coat?

Perhaps it has a Poulan engine in it!? Used to work in karts.
Bare

Dats what da engine is for...Poulan da plane

Greatcircle,

The water based polyurethanes are definitely much lower in VOC than the solvent based automotive counterparts or traditional dope, hence my reason for using them. I live in a small house, I have asthma, my wife does not care for the smell of dope AT ALL and I share my workshop space with a gas furnace so a low VOC finish is mandatory for me. The Nelson Hobbies material is fuel proof up to 10% nitro without the cross linker and well beyond 10% with the cross linker added. You also have to use the cross linker if putting it over open bays. You can check it out at http://www.nelsonhobby.com/ The fuel proofness (?) of the Flecto Diamond Finish is a little uncertain, however, I used it on my succession of Ukey 35's as I was learning the pattern and it still seems intact (on the ones that survived).

I'm pleased that you were able to make out the Poulan logo on the low res pictures. I was a little worried that the logos would show up as just coloured blobs when the pictures were squeezed down to 50k.

Best, Hoovie

David,

I am very interested in the water-based finish. I have a baby on the way and once it's born, I'll have to stop using ANY kind of toxic chemicals in the house. What was your cover/finish/paint methodology?

I finally got to see the new bird in the air - it's really smooth! That engine pulls like a freight train. It's definitely got some trimming flights to do, but I think once it's all trimmed out, it'll fly like it's on rails.

One thing you can't see, because David hasn't yet taken any pictures of the bottom, is that on the underside of the wings, he's put the motto from the Possum Lodge (you'd have to have seen the Red Green show, or know about the Red Green character as seen in the movie "Duct Tape Forever") - Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati (When all else fails, Play Dead) - sure hope it never comes to that...

Talk about the Finishing Touch! Puts me in mind of 'the Big Boys'
at Reno Air Races. Fine representation of a competitive Stunt ship.
Mike in Atwater

"We must not tolerate Scale Amenities, we must demand them."...RFK

Dave,

The Mag looks great but does that spreader spring and wire give you any trouble in the grass?

You said it is a "porker" but I didn't see a weight, are you gonna' let us in on it?

Steven,

Please check your email if you already haven't.

Bob,

I'll look forward to the Magnum/Saito 50 combo updates. I see that Tom Dixon sells plans for a 'Super Magnum'. Seems to me that a Super Magnum teamed with a Super Saito 72 might be an interesting combination. Does anyone out there have any experience with this plane?

Randy,

The spring and wire between the gear legs has not given significant problems thus far and I fly from a grass field. We have a section of rubber conveyor belt for a runway that we use for takeoff (same direction no matter what the wind) but we have to land in the grass. The only hint of trouble was on the first flight which took place the day before the weekly mow and I brought it in rather hot. Just at the end of the landing roll it nosed up then settled back on the tail wheel. Other than that landings have been ridiculously easy requiring almost no interference from me. The spring and wire form a 'puller in' rather than a spreader. The Winship CF gear is intended, I believe, for weights up to 60 ounces. Since I'm well over that I was concerned aboiut durability, besides, I didn't want to break that work of art Dan Winship created so I put in the spring to take some of the impact load. To bad he no longer makes CF gear commercially.

OK, I've alluded to weight again so I'd better come clean. When I first finished it the weight was 74.5 ounces which was a lot but not as bad as it could have been so I didn't feel too badly. Then I checked the CG and discovered I had to add 6.5 ounces in the nose to get it to balance! Man, was I dejected. How could I have built it that tail heavy? Then I read on this forum (Flapless Stunters) that Alan Resinger had to add 5 ounces to the nose of his Shukoi to get it to balance properly and I didn't feel so bad. If a pro like Alan had to add about the same percentage of weight that I did, maybe I wasn't doing so badly after all. Then I flew it and I'm not sweating the weight any more.

Right now I'm working my way through the tip weight/leadout position part of Paul Walker's trimming chart and having a ball.

Best, Hoovie

Dave,

Keith Varley, of the dreaded Canadian Stunt Contingent, has flow several Super Magnums over the years. Built very light and with a Stalker rear exhaust 60 up front. Here's a picture for your enjoyment. Keith is one of the top Advanced level fliers in the NW.

>I finally got to see the new bird in the air - it's really
>smooth! That engine pulls like a freight train. It's
>definitely got some trimming flights to do, but I think once
>it's all trimmed out, it'll fly like it's on rails.
>
>One thing you can't see, because David hasn't yet taken any
>pictures of the bottom, is that on the underside of the
>wings, he's put the motto from the Possum Lodge (you'd have
>to have seen the Red Green show, or know about the Red Green
>character as seen in the movie "Duct Tape Forever") -
>Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati (When all else fails,
>Play Dead) - sure hope it never comes to that...
>

Should have done it up in grey like the Possum Van. Could have been the Possum Plane.

The New Bird went to its first contest today. Nothing spectacular, finished 6th out of 7 in Advanced but considering the three filghts today were only the 3rd, 4th and 5th full patterns it had flown I think that's not too bad. I spent a long time chasing down a propeller that would pull that heavy beast through the pattern without overloading and overheating the engine. Finally came up with something last Thursday evening that works although is not optimal. By the time I was flying my last official today I was really enjoying myself and that's the name of the game.

Everybody loves the way it looks and I aced appearance points.

Best, Hoovie

There is another Hoover that used to fly a yellow P51. Any relation?

I think you'd have to go back a very long way in the family tree to find any connection. Nice thought though.

Best, Hoovie