Carbonette 19 R/C BG/DLG

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Maxout

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This has to be the most fun I've ever had with an R/C airplane. I bought a Whipit two years ago and liked flying it, but it proved very fragile, especially in the nose, and the battery is prone to ejecting. So my nose-less Whipit sad in a corner until December, when I stole the brick dangling from its nose and put it in this thing. The nose won't break off this one so easily, and I've yet to eject a battery.
Carbonette19_launch.pngIMG_20180115_195246.jpgIMG_20180127_114130765s.jpg

Launches nice and high too. ;)

[video=youtube;SgKCVl0MxQM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgKCVl0MxQM[/video]

watch
 
Can you show some pics of the servo setup, and control linkage?

Lousy photo:
IMG_20180115_133251116.jpg

Better idea...the instructions for building it. ;) Start around the 44 minute mark.
[video=youtube;2mNKuSTI-Cs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mNKuSTI-Cs&t=1915s[/video]
 
Sweet. It'll ship out today or tomorrow. Enjoy!

My kit arrived today, and the parts look great. I look forward to getting to work on this as soon as I get NARCON in my rear view mirror!

James
 
With NARCON behind me (except for the paperwork) I've had a few spare hours this week to invest in starting work on the Carbonette 19. Using Josh's endearingly crude yet very effective and complete video instructions*, the wing has been successfully shaped. This took about an hour, admittedly because I had been down this road using similar techniques while building a North Coast Rocketry North Hawk RC/BG, a very similar kit. All shaping and sanding was done outside due to the cataclysm of balsa shavings and dust that ensued.

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This task was made much simpler due to the use of a Master Airscrew razor plane, as well as a 12" sanding bar. An assortment of sandpaper down to 600 grit was then used to refine the shape, after which a bit of clear dope was applied to seal the wood. Yeah, it adds some weight, but I like the vibe.

Don't expect too many updates on this thread, as the simplicity of the build and the completeness of Josh's instructions make a traditional build thread redundant. I will suggest, however, that this kit is about as simple as a wood RC kit could possibly be. The engineering is just fantastic!

James

* Josh: my wife is appalled at what you've done to your wife's dining room table. <VBG>
 
A minor deviation from the kit instructions: instead of using the supplied polyester hinge material on the control surfaces, I elected to simply use Monokote hinges.

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More later,
James
 
With the tail surfaces hinged we are able to mount them on the tail boom using medium CA.

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The pushrods have been inserted temporarily just to check for clearance and operation. Construction will pause at this point because I don't have a receiver brick handy. One is on the way, though, and should be here early next week.

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At this point basic construction of the glider is complete, save for the radio installation. Next up is the launch pod build, which is really no different than building an Alpha with a single funky fin. I won't be documenting any of that unless I decide to do anything unusual.

This has been a really fun, quick build, and I can heartily recommend the kit. The Carbonette 19 will inevitably be compared to the NCR North Hawk, but I'll hold off on comparing the two until I have a chance to fly both. I will share, however, that I have enjoyed building both kits!

James
 
Knocked out the boost pod this afternoon, changing a couple of minor things from Josh's original design. First, I converted the Kevlar shock cord to an internal design, thinking that it would reduce the possibility of the recovery system tangling with the glider at ejection (the dreaded "Red Baron!"). Next, in order to provide an anchor for the shock cord, an 18mm engine block was added. If I had a loose engine hook on hand I would have added one. Tape will have to suffice for engine retention.

Next, the shock cord anchor at the nose cone end was tweaked. The plans call for the builder to cut a slot across the base of the nose cone, then thread the shock cord through that slot. I'm sure that would work fine, but I decided to go another way. First, a small craft bead (~1/8" diameter) was liberated from the craft supplies of La Esposa. A small hole was drilled into the base of the nose one, the shock cord knotted to the bead, and the bead glued into place in the hole.

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The rest of the pod was built as directed in the instructions. I'll ditch the streamer supplied with the kit, and add a replacement using some unobtainium graciously supplied by Steve Kristal for FAI altitude models.

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The rocket is essentially complete at this point. All that remains is to install the receiver brick when it arrives next week, and to splash some color on the wingtips to aid in-flight visibility.

James
 
The receiver brick for the glider arrived today, and installation was a bit of a mixed bag. The pushrods were a bit fussy and difficult to wrestle into place, but eventually they were persuaded to behave. I messed up one of them in the process, but fortunately had a replacement on hand: a .011" high E string from a pack of guitar strings.

A decision was made to augment the elevator control horn surface with something more substantial than the stock 1/64"-thick ply stock. After mulling it over for a while, I punched a 3/16" diameter disc from a sheet of .020" thick styrene, glued it to the ply horn part, then drilled a tiny hole through it. The resulting component is better and stronger, and added an inconsequential amount of mass.

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I had not previously used the hot glue recommended in the directions for receiver assembly before, but the results were fantastic. I'll add the hot glue gun to the bag of tricks for future projects.

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The CG was right on the recommended point, so it took to the air for a few test glides. I reduced the elevator throw a bit, increased the rudder throw, and added dual rates. It glides beautifully, and I look forward to flying it under rocket power soon!

James
 
The CG was right on the recommended point, so it took to the air for a few test glides. I reduced the elevator throw a bit, increased the rudder throw, and added dual rates. It glides beautifully, and I look forward to flying it under rocket power soon!

James

James,

Thanks very much for putting up this build series. It's good to see someone else figuring out the nuances of this machine. I have to agree with you that linkages are a pain in the neck on these small models. It's a constant balancing of weight and tiny parts. I do like the little stiffeners you've placed on the control horns.

One word of caution: I have yet to have any success with monokote hinges on these planes. They work great for a couple weeks, then the humidity takes effect, and the stab warps and locks the elevator. This is why I emphasize in the instructions placing hinge material on both sides of the tail surfaces--it becomes an issue even with the polyester hinges. I haven't investigated whether monokote on both sides would help with the warping. I do know that we tried thin heat activated mylar (basically super light monokote) on an early Carbonette prototype, and the engine exhaust, uhm, removed it. Monokote shouldn't be as vulnerable, but I'm rather gunshy now.
 
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