|
John treated
us to an update on his Ki-76
project! He’s been working with
Dave Andersen on a new design
for a unique and rare Japanese
scout aircraft. We last
saw this project at the December
2022 meeting.
The Ki-76 is
like the German Storch, the
British Lysander, and other
designs. It is a high-wing
design with a radial engine and
stout landing gear. While
over 900
 Ki-76s
were built, there were no
survivors for scale
detail.
This model
is ¼ scale and will have a
wingspan of approx. 148” and is
expected to weigh somewhere near
45 ponds. John has installed a
twin cylinder 3W-85 for power.
The vertical and horizontal tail
assembly is removable to
simplify transport. It is
held with (2) screws and (2)
servo connections.
John and
Dave are experimenting with a
Balsa-Free designed model.
The construction is lite-ply,
spruce, and shaped foam. John
brought in the nearly completed
fuselage with the removable
tail. (Only 4 screws and 2 servo
connections!)
As of the
last appearance, John’s
experiments in glassing and
painting balsa sheets were not
better in weight or cost than
simply painting 1/64th plywo od.
Unfortunately, using 1/64th play
has become much more expensive,
so he is looking at using
FliteSkin AeroScale manufactured
epoxy glass sheets as an
alternative.
John also
experimented with finishing the
pink foam used in construction.
He used two different covering
materials, fiberglass, and SIG
Cover-All. The stab and
elevators covered in .73 ounce
glass cloth with finishing
resin. The vertical fin with
.73 ounce cloth and Minwax water
based poly to secure it.
The ONLY place Coverall
will be used is on the rear of
the fuse and the rudder.
These being the only open frame
structures on the aircraft.
John shared
the wing plan to show the size
of each of the two wing panels.
His next objective is to build
both left & right wing panels at
the same time.
Since the
construction of the Ki-76 is so
simple, John figures he might
have it ready by the 2027 summer
flying season. We hope it can be
earlier! |
