First Appeared in: RCM&E November 2009 Issue Name: Colomban Luciole Model type: Scale home-built Designed by: Peter Miller Wingspan: 60” Fuselage length: 431/4” Wing area: 348 sq. in. All-up weight: 64oz Wing loading: 261/2oz / sq. ft. Functions (servos): Rudder (1); elevator (1); throttle (1); aileron (2); flap (2) Rec’d engine. 18
-. 21 two-stroke, or possibly a good. 15 for flying in light winds. FAST & FRUGALThe first thing that strikes you about the Luciole is the very high aspect ratio of the wing: with a span of 221/2ft but a chord of just 26in, the wing looks like a ruler. Most of the trailing edge is taken up with very large fl aps, but the wingspan means that the small ailerons out at the tips have plenty of leverage! Between them, the flaps & ailerons take up almost a third of the chord, but the tail does better still since it has all-fl ying surfaces. The construction of the MC30 would look very familiar to most model aircraft builders, with spars, foam ribs, leading edge sheeting, cap strips & a fuselage with ply sides, a ply bottom & a stringered turtle deck. However, the lightness of this construction, when coupled with the Briggs & Stratton 650cc OHV V-twin engine, allows the Luciole to cruise at 105mph while sipping just five litres of fuel every hour. With an endurance of five hours you can do some serious travelling in this aircraft. Richard suggested that I build a model of the Luciole but I took one look at the three views & said, “ No thanks!” That wing just didn’t look suitable for the size of model that I’d build. A couple of evenings later, however, I made a few calculations & realised that it would be possible. Article in November 2009 RCM&E
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First Appeared in: RCM&E December 2009 Issue Name: Ultimate 20-300 Model type: 3D / sport aerobat Designed by: Dave Royds Wingspan: 39” (991mm) Fuselage length: 47” (1194mm) Wing area: 4.3sq. ft. (0.4 sq. m) All-up weight: 35
- 50oz (1
- 1.4kg) Wing loading: 8
- 11oz / sq. ft. (2.4
- 3.3kg / sq. m) Functions (servos): Rudder (1); elevator (1); aileron (2); throttle (via ESC); Rec’d motor: Hacker A30-16M / Tornado 4240 Not content with the performance of his full-size Pitts Special, Canadian Aerobatic Champion Gordon Price decided to modify it like no other. Such was the interest for his bespoke Pitts components, Gordon went into production & the Ultimate Aircraft Company was born. As his product line expanded the next logical step was to produce a complete airframe, & his diminutive 10-100 bipe hit the market. Following the success of the little home-built, Gordon returned his sights to the aerobatic scene & produced a series of high performance aircraft, culminating in the fl agship 300hp, Lycomingpowered muscle bipe
- the Ultimate. Despite the Ultimate gaining in popularity & the order book fi lling up, the company hit diffi culties, forcing its doors to be closed less than a decade after it all began.WILD BLUE Although the day of the maiden dawned with a beautiful blue sky, previous days of torrential rain had turned the runway into a mud bath. Not wanting the risk a nose-over so early in the day, I decided to bite the bullet & go for a h&-launch. Gripping the top wing & with a gentle underarm push, the Ultimate eased skyward. After a few test circuits to adjust the trims, it was time to see what she could do. Throttling up into wind & pulling back on the elevator soon had the Ultimate climbing vertically
- gaining a little height & kicking the rudder & elevator over produces a very scale spin; adding a little opposite aileron levels the wings & reduces the rate of descent as she pulls into a controlled, fl at spin. Releasing the sticks & dipping the nose pulls her straight out without any over-rotation or control surface stall. Very nice. Although not designed as an out-&-out 3D machine, she’ll still handle the basic staple manoeuvres with relative ease. Prop-hanging & torque rolling requires very little in the way of corrective input, whilst walls, harriers & elevators are effortless with minimal signs of wing-rock. Knife-edge & hesitation rolls require a few degrees of top rudder to keep the nose up at low speed, but as speed increases the large side area of the fuselage keeps it tracking on the straight & level. Slow speed manners are quite exemplary; inducing a stall merely slows her to a crawl followed by a gradual, controlled descent, needing only a blip of the throttle to return to fl ying speed. Subsequent to the initial fl ights with the Hacker 16M, substituting the motor for the Tornado 4240 defi nitely upped the Ultimate’s aerobatic performance; while she’s never going to be rocket ship, the difference in acceleration & vertical punch-out were defi nitely noticeable. Article in December 2010 RCM&E





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Designer: Mal Shepherd Name: Red Ned Model type: Motor glider Wingspan: 110.5" Fuselage length: 52.75" Wing area: 4 lbs 4oz Wing Loading: 11.5oz / sq ft Functions: (Servos): Aileron (2); throttle (1) rudder (1), throttle (1) Rec'd engine. 25 cu. in two stroke Featured in the May 2010 Issue of RCM&E. A 110.5” SPAN MOTOR GLIDER FOR. 25 cu. in ENGINES ...

Name: Harmony Model Type: Sports Aerobatic Designed By: Peter Miller Wingspan: 42" Fuselage Length: 35" Wing Area: 330 sq. in. All Up-Weight: 46oz Wing Loading: 20oz / sq. ft. Functions Servos: Aileron (1), Elevator (1), Rudder (1), Throttle (1) Rec'd engine. 20-.25 cu.in two-stroke A few flights later, the engineseemed to be gaining some power, whereupon I was really able todemonstrate what a handy littlemodel th is is, fly ing inverted, performing some passable squareloops & tidy vertical flick rolls. Andin the depths of winter, of course, thefact that the Harmony is a little modelis a real advantage, as I can fit herinto even my tiny car in one piece! Iheartily suggest you build your own Harmony, & if you fit a. 25 you 'llhave an aerobat that looks terrific andis capable of doing the book. Article in June 2010 RCM&E ...

Name: Rivets Model type: Semi-scale racer Designed by: Tim Hooper Wingspan: 36" Fuselage length: 34" Wing area: 238 sq. in. All-up weight: 290z Wing loading: 180z / sq. ft. Functions (servos): Aileron (1); elevato r (1); rudder (1); throttle (via ESC) Powertrain: Typhoon 15/10; APC-E 8 x 6" prop; 3s 1800m Ah Li-Po Article in July 2010 RCM&E ...

RC2075 Wittman Tailwind Plan by Peter Miller The Wittman Tailwind is probably the most famous aircraft youve never heard of. Steve Wittmans cheap home-build cross-country sportster kick-started the home build boom in the 1950s & its still being built & flown today. Peter Millers 48" span model reproduces the Tailwinds pleasing lines & flies superbly well using a. 20-.25 two-stroke or four-stroke equivalent engine. The huge fuselage means an electric conversion should be easy to engineer too. The new CNC/ Laser-cut parts set speeds up the build process by reproducing the ribs, formers & other parts (apart from strip balsa) required for the model while a wood completion pack that

Includes:: the strip & sheet balsawood is also available. The cowl is made using balsa & ply. An electric conversion build blog can be found at www.modelflying.co.uk & builders can chat with designer Peter Miller in the friendly forum. Data File Name: Wittman Tailwind W-10 Model Type: Scale home-built Designed by: Peter Miller Wingspan: 48" Fuselage length: 39" Wing area: 360 sq in All-up weight: 66oz Wing loading: 26.4oz/sq ft Functions (servos): Aileron (2); elevator (1); throttle (1); rudder (1); flap (2) Recd Engine. 20-.25 two-stroke/. 26-.30 four-stroke Published in RCM&E, August 2010

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Name: Van’s RV-3 Model type: 1/5-scale home-built Designed by: Peter Miller Wingspan: 47.5” Wing area: 510 sq. in. All-up weight: 5 lbs 14oz Wing loading: 26.5oz / sq. ft. Fuselage length: 44” Functions (servos): Ailerons (1); elevator (1); throttle (1); rudder (1); flap (1) Power. 48
-. 52 four-strokes. 32
-. 40 two-strokes Plan along with project build first published in the December 2010 Issue of RCM&E.

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RC2079 Pix-E Major Plan by Tim Hooper Tim Hooper reinvents a classic Keil Kraft model that rekindles the spirit of aeromodellings gentler age. The 42" span Pix-E Major is for inexpensive electric power systems & three-channel control (rudder, elevator, throttle) & it flies a treat too! Its easy & relaxing to fly while very forgivving. Go on
- relive a design classic! Datafile Name: Pix-E Major Designed: Tim Hooper Wingspan: 42" Wing area: 232 sq. in. All-up weight: 13.5ozwing loading: 8.5oz / sq. ft. Functions: elevator, rudder, throttle Powersystem: 2408-21 size outrunner, 15-amp ESC, 2S 1300m Ah Li-Po battery, 9x 6 prop.
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Jitterbug is an 'easy to build' low-wing trainer/aerobat designed by RCM&E's Alex Whittaker. It's ideal for first time builders & featured (with build photos) in the April 2011 issue of RCM&E. To see extra build photos & builders notes left by other Jitterbug builders just visit: www.modelflying.co.uk & see the the RCM&E plan builders forum section. Name: Jitterbug Model type: Sports aerobat Designed by: Alex Whittaker Wingspan: 62” Fuselage length: 43” Wing area: 651 sq. in. All-up weight: 6.5 lbs Wing loading: 23 oz / sq. ft. Functions (servos): Aileron (2); elevator (1); rudder (1); throttle (1) Rec’d engine. 46
-. 60 two-stroke. 53
-. 60 four-stroke Rec’d powertrain: Turnigy C5055-600 motor; 4s 3200m Ah Li-Po; 80A ESC

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RC2083 Airspeed Courier by Tim Hooper First published in RCM&E May 2011 Back to the 30s with Tim Hoopers take on a little-known six-seater Despite being largely ignored in the annals of British aviation, the Airspeed Courier was actually something of a minor landmark with its semi-retractable u/c, & served as the predecessor to the much better-known twin-engine Oxford & Envoy. Although the production run of 16 aicraft means it was hardly prolific, the 1933 Courier could be considered ahead of its time in several respects.A six seater cabin monoplane, with a range of over 500 miles in standard trim & featuring the aforementioned retracting u/c, the Courier also boasted a high-aspect ratio wing of around 47" span. The seven cylinder AW Lynx radial engine was encircled with a cowling, & endowed the Courier with a top speed of just over 150mph. Not bad going for 1933! ...