Getting so close to maiden. But, I feel I keep saying that. 🙁 The punch list feels endless at times but it’s pretty short now. Bit more wiring, aileron pushrods attached, cowl brackets (3D printed), flying wires and carburetor needle access. Final CoG check and battery placement. This motor isContinue Reading
About 11 months since starting this Barth 1:3 Waco project. It’s been an adventure! I expected to be further along but the winter months slowed me down as it’s too cold to spray dope. I need two more nice days to apply a final coat of Sig Tennessee Red. ThisContinue Reading
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’ has been too long since I posted in the build series. Truth is the work has been continually progressing and focused on the finer bits of finishing the Waco. Did not feel there was anything really exciting to show you. “Look Ma, rivets! Real ones andContinue Reading
Admittedly, it’s been too long since I posted an update. Partly because life got in the way. Second, progress was slow with wiring and the like (not very exciting work to photograph), third, I got stuck in a few areas and had to do some re-work. The N struts wereContinue Reading
This beast is destined for the firewall of the 1:3 Scale Barth Waco which is nearing completion. Naturally this engine is overkill but, hey, why not? Spent last weekend breaking in the motor at the Field. One gallon of gas, run rich, and no more than 3/4 throttle. With frequentContinue Reading
It has been too long since my last Build post but I have not been snoozing in the cockpit. Seems the work moved from large components, like wings and surfaces, which are easier to show off…to a million-and-one small things, which are not photogenic. Covering remains for the tail controlContinue Reading
We had a good time for the 2nd Annual Biplanes over Bonhomme Island event. Crowd was smaller than last year (likely due to heat) but we had a great time. It was an open event so we had some fast-movers as well. I brought out the Barth 1:3 scale WacoContinue Reading
Paul Geders brought a couple news planes to the Club Meeting Show-n-Tell. First one is an XK Innovations Beech-17S biplane. Available on eBay in red or yellow for $89.99. It comes ready to fly with a 3D6G system for stability and control, two flight batteries, spare propellor, receiver, battery charger,Continue Reading
Stringers! Each former had to be notched for the stringers. I grabbed by Dremel and tripled up diamond grinders. This made the correct width and nearly the right depth. Tedious! And plenty of mistakes no one will ever see. Set the angle of the wheel pants so I can drillContinue Reading
Top Center Wing Section Straightforward build but the video shows me starting then stopped because I forgot to shim the rear spar. That could have been bad. This section of the wing will remain attached to the fuselage at all times. Only the wing panels will be removed for travel.Continue Reading
The horizontal stabilizer is 42″ across. Larger than many planes flown at Gizzie Memorial Field! (The wingspan is 120″). The edge material comes as pre-molded balsa laminate. So nice to NOT have to do it myself! Build process was stick layout, balsa sheet at the core, and then the secondContinue Reading
It’s been hectic on this build project. The landing gear mount made no sense and looked like it would tear out on the first hard landing. (I specialize in those kind of landings!) To make matters worse; once the gear is attached I would be unable to remove it withoutContinue Reading
Wow, this project is challenging given the lack of manual, photos, and one drawing. Manual was translated from German so the language is awkward and difficult to understand. The Manual was written for v3 of the kit and mine is either v1 or v2 so instructions do not align well.Continue Reading
Pre-bent hardwood was a nice, and welcome, surprise to round the fuselage nose in towards the firewall. I will find out many of mistakes are due to an inadequate manual and lack of photos. As Wayne N says, “Just keep gluing”. For me it starts with “cut it apart and then…”Continue Reading
Waco YMF-5 History The Waco F series is a series of American-built general aviation and military biplane trainers of the 1930s from the Waco Aircraft Company. The Waco ‘F’ series of biplanes supplanted and then replaced the earlier ‘O’ series of 1927/33. The ‘F’ series had an airframe which was smaller and about 450 pounds (200 kg) lighter thanContinue Reading
Greg Bowles and Greg Tesson showed off a newly completed Taylocraft. The plan passed thru several shops before coming to fight worthiness.Continue Reading
