Walter Umland All-American Senior

Product Reviews · 10 of 10 known posts recovered · the forum listed 29 replies

Tim McTigue · Oct 08, 2003 08:12 PM

This kit just arrived this morning, and I'm really looking forward to building it.

First impressions:

1. The kit was beautifully packed, including styro-peanuts inside the kit box to fill all empty space. Definitely a premium job.
2. All parts accounted for. Everything checked out against the parts list.
3. The wood looks beautiful and light.
4. All laser-cut parts are fantastic.

The kit is definitely geared towards the experienced modeler, so I'm gonna take a while to absorb the instructions and get the feel of the kit. Once I start, I expect it to build up pretty quickly. I'll post my progress and impressions here, along with pictures when I get 'em...

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Oct 08, 2003 08:49 PM

#1 source

More impressions:

One of the things I love about this kit is the way it is packed, the feature I think really tells the tale:

Groups of parts that are the same size, or related by function, are masking-taped together. For instance, the rib set is packed this way, as are the fuselage sides, the doublers, etc. Smaller parts are packed in ziploc baggies. This makes it easier to find all the parts and identify them, as well as make sure all parts are present and accounted for.

This is my very first laser-cut kit, and I'm amazed at the precision of it! WAY better than any other kit I've ever seen. Okay, I've only seen one other kit within the past 2 years, which was a Brodak Smoothie. Other than that, I have to go back to the Sterling Ringmaster Jr. I built when I was about 13, which was a LONG time ago (don't ask me!), so I'm not the best person to go on about the relative merits of various kits, but with this kit, both the laser-cut and hand-cut parts are amazing.

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Oct 21, 2003 05:31 PM

#2 source

I began construction last evening. It was late, so all I got done was to make the cutout for the stab in the fuse sides, and glue on the doublers. I used 30-min epoxy, and just the very thinnest possible coating of it. I applied it with a broken APC prop, and squeegied it off with an old putty knife (wide). Aligned the parts, weighted them down and left it overnight. This worked out very well. They came out nice and straight, no warps, and perfectly aligned. This wood is so light, I'm constantly amazed. I'm being very careful so as not to mess it up.

The stab cutout was not hard to do, but I was careful to measure several times before I cut. Then I test-fit the stab, and adjusted the cut a bit so it fit perfectly. My main fear was that I'd cut it so there'd be some incidence I don't want, but it seems nice and straight. Next I'll test-fit the bulkheads and other parts so I know how everything will go together before gluing anything else...

I am taking pictures, but since I don't have a digital camera, it'll be a bit of time before I can get them up here - gotta finish the roll and get it developed, but I'll add 'em when I get 'em...

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Oct 22, 2003 10:33 PM

#3 source

Last evening I got the first two bulkheads glued in between the fuse sides, so the basic fuse structure has now taken on 3 dimensions. This evening after work, I thought maybe I'd glue in the motor mounts before supper, so I could tackle the remaining bulkheads after supper. So I started to dry-fit them, and... whoa! I was wishing I had checked them out ahead of time, because they didn't seem like they were going to fit into the opening in the first bulkhead! I thought initially I might have to do some surgery on the bulkhead, which was hard to believe, because everything looked like it was going to fit so well.

Well, don't forget, this is a Walter Umland kit, and I needn't have worried. With a few minutes more inspection, I realized that the (hand-cut) motor mounts were merely a little rough on one side (saw marks), and a minutes' sanding created a perfect fit. I checked the positioning of the mounts with a level, and everything was fine, so after supper I glued them in. After they dried for an hour (30-min epoxy) I went ahead and glued in the remaining bulkheads (3 and 4). That's where I left it for tonight, because I had some finishing work I wanted to do on my Smoothie.

At this rate, I should be finished the fuselage by this weekend, and on to working on the wing! Talk about a quick build!

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Oct 25, 2003 05:46 PM

#4 source

I didn't get anything done Thursday or Friday, but today I did get back to it. I drilled the motor mounts for a Fox 35, glued the L.G. block parts together, drilled both the L.G. and the block and installed the L.G. block in the fuse, blind nuts in place. I just took a picture of it - it's actually starting to look like something now. Just a bit of sheeting, and the fuselage will be mostly done. I'll be starting on the wing sometime early this week, but I'm going to be working on finishing my Smoothie as well - I'm hoping to fly that one next weekend...

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Nov 02, 2003 06:54 PM

#5 source

Today was cold and rainy, no flying, so it looked like a good day to stay in and build a wing. That's exactly what I did.

I have to say, the ribs in this kit were so beautiful, and so light and "fluffy", I was at first afraid to stick pins through them - I was afraid they'd break, but none of them did. It was a real "leap of faith" to stick that first pin through the first rib, but I'm glad I did.

First time I've built from a laser-cut kit. I guess I say that pretty much every time. It means a lot, because it makes a BIG difference. For one thing, with the ribs, it means that the spar cutout is "just a little" bigger than the spar, so I didn't feel I could trust thin CA alone - I used the thin CA to tack-glue and then followed up with wood glue. I'm sure that's just me - I just have to make sure the glue joints are good.

The wing pretty much built in a day. I got the ribs all glued to the bottom spars, the bellcrank mount glued in, and the upper spar as well. I may also get the lower T.E. sheeting glued on this evening. I spent about an hour just studying the plans and the parts, and making sure I knew what each part was and where it went before I began, but once I started, it all went together very easily.

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Nov 04, 2003 04:05 PM

#6 source

LAST EDITED ON Nov-04-03 AT 04:05 PM (CST)

Wow, this wing is really a quick build, even using mostly wood glue. I spent Sunday afternoon at it, and just odds-and-ends of time on Monday evening, and it's mostly built - I just have to add the control system and the sheeting and it's done. I've got a bit of work left to do on the fuse, so I expect that by the end of this week, I'll be putting the wing and fuse together into a complete airframe. Cool! It sure is nice to build a wing and hardly have to use the X-Acto knife at all...

Tim

MAAC 65703

Bill Little · Nov 05, 2003 10:29 AM

#7 source

LAST EDITED ON Nov-05-03 AT 10:30 AM (CST)

Tim,
I am enjoying the follow along.

I have an AA Sr. covered and filled, waitiing for paint right now.
The basement gremlin got mine and now I have to repair a bay of silkspan on the top of the outboard wing.

Keep us up dated!
Thanks,
Bill <><

Dont worry about the mule going blind 'til you get the cart loaded!

Tim McTigue · Nov 05, 2003 06:22 PM

#8 source

Bill - thanks for the encouragement! I have to say, I'm really having fun building this kit. Since I wasn't even a glint in my father's eye when this design was originally made, it's not a "trip down memory lane for me, but I really am partial to the old-time and classic designs, and I have fallen in love with this one. Just this evening I got the tail and turtle deck in place, and all of a sudden it really started looking like an All American! That really gets my adrenaline flowing - it's like a flash-point, all of a sudden it's a plane! Now I can hardly wait to get the top block in place and carved. I'm planning to make the tank removable, so once the cowl block is carved to shape, I'll cut it "in half", and make the front half removable using the same technique I learned with the Brodak Smoothie. Once that's done, it'll really look like itself!

This past summer, an older gent who wasn't flying anymore donated 5 vintage planes to our club, and four of them now reside in the MAAC museum (which, coincidentally, is here in Burlington!). One of those was a Dmeco All-American (not the Sr., but the 19-sized one). I'm planning to decorate my AA Sr. to look like that one. Here's a picture...

Tim

MAAC 65703

Tim McTigue · Nov 13, 2003 06:29 AM

#9 source

"I've got a bit of work left to do on the fuse, so I expect that by the end of this week, I'll be putting the wing and fuse together into a complete airframe. "

Well, I always seem to overestimate the amount of work to be done, and underestimate the available time to do it! Nonetheless, I now have most of the fuselage work done. I tack-glued the cowl block to the fuse, sanded it mostly to shape, then removed it, marked it and cut it in half so the front part (over the tank area) will be removable. I then hollowed out the back half, glued a bit of 1/4" dowel into it (to fit into a hole made in the front half) and glued it onto the fuse. Last evening I spent a bit of time fitting the front half (making the hole for the dowel, etc.), but when I went to do the hollowing, the battery in my B&D Wizard died (I only have one), so while that was recharging I decided to do some work on the control system.

This is my first exposure to a Brodak bellcrank, at least in this type of installation, and I am amazed at how perfect it is! This is the best bellcrank I've ever had the pleasure to use. Even with a "traditional" installation, I think I'll be able to get the controls to be nice and free, the way they should be. I'm going to use the Brodak bellcrank from now on instead of the Sig one!

Tim

MAAC 65703