A Farman Moustique

19 March 2024

Hmm, I didn't solder the motor up to the capacitor and didn't fly it. Now I don't even know where is this model.

The advantages of capacitor plane:

Use direct drive small prop, simplest.

Doesn't look scale size? Stick paper prop for static display, remove to fly.

It will be more durable than geared motor and larger prop, less work, weight and damage.

You like pushers? Absolutely no problem, at least much lesser than rubber powered.

You like jets? No problem, the small prop is hardly noticeable anyway.

For tractor, choose medium nose because direct drive small prop is so light, rubber powered would benefit from longer nose.

Snub nosed planes not suitable, the cowl block most of the propeller.

Use slightly longer prop, it will have more thrust and shorter power run. The long decreasing power cannot be avoided.

Hmm, shall I shop for more donor plane?

26 October 2022

Photo log

Model completed with electric model pushed into nose. Electric motor is taped between 2 wooden picks.

Close up of motor

The 3 cylinders will be glued to the motor to represent the Anzani 3 cylinder engine. The holder of the capacitor will be under the nose of the model, not a scale feature, but easy.

future flying site

6 October 2022

Model has been tissued. The silver tissue does not seem to shrink: when wet it loosened and expanded but when it became dry again, it doesn't appear to shrink smaller than the original size. I could repeatedly mist and dry to see if it improves.

Black tissue markings on the tissued model looks ok and oil-based pen was also used for thin line markings.

If I were to print on the tissue paper?

Will the tissue shrink when heat is applied and remain shrunk?

I have still to:

• properly shrink the tissue for a neater appearance
• mark the lines for ailerons
• tissue on the cockpit outline
• mount the motor
• mount the capacitor
• make the cabane
• make the 2 wheels
• make the 3 cylinders engine
• make the tail skid 
• make a pilot

I will try to use 3D pen to make the cabanes, wheels, engine, skid, pilot.  

Make outlines to represent them, so there will be lesser weight and drag

12 August 2022

I'll make another fuselage and pair of wings.

The wings made from sliced polystyrene is too flexible. I will use the 2mm compressed foam and I will join the 2 wings into a unit for strength.

This also requires a new fuselage because the old fuselage was for the wings to butt against the sides of the fuselage.

The new fuselage will be cut from 2 pieces of expanded polystyrene.

I had a problem cutting the planform of the expanded polystyrene, it wasn't neat. So for this time I will try some changes.

1. Cut the rear taper from a single piece of 10mm foam. It will be a straight taper, the curve will come from joining the rear ends together.
2. Cut the 10mm tapered foam to 2 pieces, square them up to make the left and right sides of the fuselage. Use a small piece of double sided tape to hold the 2 pieces together temporary, the taper sides are facing inwards.
3. Thumbtack the card side templates to the flat side (outside) of the 2x10mm tapered foam. Square up the two templates.
4. Cut the side profile and then separate the two 10mm tapered foam profiles.
5. Using the same card side templates, cut the dihedral wing seating on the two 10mm tapered foam profiles.
6. Join the two foam profiles to become the fuselage, join the rear ends together.
7. As the intended motor mount is a toothpick, the nose of the fuselage is not tapered, so the curve for the nose planform is next cut. This ensures a solid foam nose.
8. Tidy up the fuselage, put in spacers where necessary to achieve the curvature on the rear fuselage.
9. Cover with tissue and decorate etc but leave the wing seating bare.

For the new wings.

1. Cut a rectangular piece of 2mm foam, the centreline is where the two leading edges meet. Draw this centreline.
2. Curl the entire piece.
3. Cut along the centreline.
4. Cut the wing roots using the card template of 10 degrees.
5. Glue paper reinforcement where the rigging lines will pass through the wings.
6. Lightly glue the wing roots together. 
7. Cover the top only with tissue and decorate.

After the wing is glued to the fuselage, add tissue covering to camouflage the joints. Then add the pylon truss and then the rigging.

2 August 2022

Haha! Change change!

The last wire of the motor snapped off from the charging plug on the capacitor just now and I changed my mind and think it is easiest to have the motor and capacitor separate.

The motor could be heatshrunk to a wooden pick and then the pick can be inserted to the polystyrene fuselage nose. Not happy with the thrust line? Remove and pin again. The pin is to one side of the motor can, so the penetration point can be rotated around for fresh bite, it need the same entry point as the first attempt since there is nothing (like the capacitor) to restrict the anchoring points. 

Covering the motor (without the capacitor) with a fake engine would be easiest because I only have to deal with making a hole that allows the motor to pass through.

The capacitor could be held in a mini bracket/clip and hung underneath the fuselage. Lowered CG would be more stable and the capacitor on the clip could be slide fore and aft to allow fine adjustments. The wires would be hanging, but I think that's ok for a simple toy. 

Hold final adjustments? A bit of UHU Por.

Since both motor wires need soldering, I could also replace with a similar or even bigger motor for a bigger propeller and I could choose to have the propeller rotate either direction!

I think the model will be very light and need very little thrust. The current motor spins too long on the capacitor. I could use a lower pitch propeller? 

Just dreaming, no hands-on.

1 August 2022

This is for a capacitor powered model.

The outline is from a plan by Walt Mooney available from Outerzone. I print it to A3 paper and it's about 16-17" wingspan. It is definitely not the largish model that Mr. Mooney had designed.

It was quick work to cut the wings, tail, rudder and landing slabs from thin polystyrene sheets which I had sliced a long while ago. I kept the tail surfaces straight without the scalloped trailing edges because 1) the wings' were not scalloped, 2) I didn't fancy making so many scallops that have to appear uniform. It is very easy to use straight edge and NT cutter to cut them out. Make multiple slices to cut the foam without tearing.

I intend to curl the left and right wings before covering with tissue on their top surfaces. The horizontal tail will be top covered but the rudder and the landing structure will be covered both sides. 

For the fuselage, I went from building up from 1mm balsa to thicker polystyrene sheets to a chunky sheet split in 2 with internally tapered rear fuselage to now: 2 pieces of polystyrene blocks and hot wire cut like a solid balsa model. All I need is 2 templates of the side, and 2 templates of the planform (which could be half-planform). The polystyrene is so light that I think a built up model will be equivalent or heavier because of the glue. 

I don't know how I will assemble the capacitor and motor. Maybe I will glue them into a single sub-unit so they can be positioned for many models. My motor is wired up to use a pusher propeller, so I must remember to have left thrust. I would want the motor and capacitor be integral and rely adding weight to rear fuselage for balancing. The motor will protrude in a non-scale fashion. Currently I am thinking of placing the capacitor at 90 degrees to the motor, socket up, glued/secured on a thin ply or wood with a firewall for gluing to the fuselage. The business end is then covered slightly with dummy engines.