Chickadee Indoor RC Airplane Plans
Chickadee RC airplane plans build log, page 2/3
FREE Chickadee fuselage plan PDF download here!
Top view of the Chickadee from RC airplane plans, showing generous wing and tail surfaces
Chickadee RC model plane plans fuselage under construction
The Chickadee’s fuselage, as shown on the RC airplane plans, consists of a flat frame built from 3/16” square balsa, on which are mounted wing posts, the engine mount and the tail surfaces. The first step is to build the fuselage frame directly on the full size RC airplane plans. As with the wings, cover the RC airplane plans with plastic wrap to prevent gluing the wood parts to the paper. The fuselage frame is made from 3/16” square balsa, just as shown on the RC airplane plans. Use a medium grade balsa for strength on the forward section, and a lighter grade on the tail section to minimize weight. Gently “crack” the 3/16”square balsa at the point the fuselage frame tapers to the tail to maintain strength at the joint, and reinforce with 1/64” plywood strips and CA if needed.
Chickadee's RC aiplane plans front and rear wing posts with metal tubes and Spektrum radio gear
Mount the Chickadee’s forward and rear ¼” square balsa wing mount posts at this time, using dense grade balsa for strength as shown on the RC airplane plans. The ¼” square balsa wing mounts will overlap slightly the 3/16” square balsa fuselage frame as shown on the RC airplane plans. Use scrap balsa fill to fair the post bases into the fuselage frame. Reinforce the wing post mounts to the fuselage frame with four F-4 braces made from 1/16” ply as described on the RC airplane plans.
Cut out two W-2 wing tube mounts from medium to hard grade ¼” balsa. The RC airplane plans dihedral angle of two inches at each wing tip is built into W-2. Carefully mount and glue W-2 to the inside face of the front and rear wing posts, as shown on the RC airplane plans. Take care to ensure the bottom of each W-2 is perfectly horizontal, to ensure an equal dihedral angle to each wing panel.
The wings frictions fits into 1/4" metal tubes as shown on RC airplane plans
Once the W-2s are in place, glue on the ¼” inside diameter, 1” long metal wing mount tubes. In order to ensure the four tubes are perfectly aligned with the RC airplane plans wing ¼” balsa dowel inserts, clamp the four wing tubes on top of the front and rear W-2s, and insert each wing panel. Check that the two wing panels have an equal dihedral angle, and trim the top surface of W-2 as needed. Note that the RC airplane plans show a 2” dihedral angle. This 2” dihedral angle will be met while the Chickadee is in flight. The wing dihedral angle will be slightly less on the ground due to the weight of the wing panels when not under air loads.
When satisfied with the wing tube alignment as shown on the RC airplane plans, use a small amount of thick CA glue to fasten the four wing tubes to the top of W-2, taking care to not accidentally glue the wing ¼” balsa dowel inserts into the tubes. You want to be able to remove the wings for ease of model transport. When the wing tube’s CA glue is dry, remove the wing panels, and use 5 minute epoxy to fully secure the wing tubes to the wing mounts.
RC airplane plans horizontal stabilizer under construction
The RC airplane plans tail surfaces consist of the vertical fin and rudder, and the horizontal stabilizer and elevator. The tail surfaces build directly over the full size RC airplane plans, and use light grade 1/8” square balsa. Do monitor the grade of the 1/8” square balsa on the tail, as a heavy grade balsa is not needed for strength, and can adversely affect the Chickadee’s RC airplane plans center of gravity location. Install the 1/8” balsa corner braces and reinforcement for control horns as shown on the RC airplane plans. Bevel the elevator and rudder leading edges as per the RC airplane plans to allow for full control surface movement.
Entire structure of Chickadee before covering
It’s best to cover the stabilizer and fin before gluing to the fuselage frame. Use a lightweight covering of your choice. I have had very good experiences with Coverite Coverlite on the Chickadee and other models. Coverlite is a very light weight iron-on covering that requires a heat activated glue such as Balsarite. You do not want a normal, heat shrink plastic covering for this model. The Chickadee’s RC airplane plans structure is so light that any heat activated shrinkage from the covering will just deform or break the affected part. With Coverlite, you simply coat all balsa surfaces the Coverlite will adhere to with BalsaRite, and iron on the covering to the wing or tail surfaces. You will not need to use heat to shrink the Coverlite. While the covering will not be drum tight, it looks pleasing for this type of airplane.
Chickadee's RC airplane plans wing and tail surfaces covered
To save weight, I covered just one side of the fin and stabilizer on the Chickadee prototype. I think I will cover both sides of the fin and rudder on future models to improve the appearance; the weight penalty really is not all that much. Glue the stabilizer to the fuselage frame as shown on the RC airplane plans. Glue the fin to the stabilizer, cutting away the stabilizer’s covering on the center 1/8” square balsa stringer to ensure a strong wood to wood glue bond.
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RC Airplane Plans