My RC planes

[planecrazy]

Mustang to Messerschmitt conversion now has paint completed, had to have a yellow nose, maybe decals this evening.

[Dave Homewood]

That is an amazing transformation.

[Mustang51]

Liked the CA15............much bigger than a Mustang and bigger than a P-47 when you compare scale models....(have not looked at the specs so possibly mea culpa) but it does look great !!!

[planecrazy]

Decals on, was always going to have a yellow nose, the pureists may query
why I went Buchon and not a BF 109? Firstly, less work as lowering the motor
would have meant a lot of work, secondly the Buchon doesn’t get a whole lot
of love and she is a genuine warbird.

I am an absolute fan of the wonderful British film, the Battle of Britain, it is
the reason to this day, I am a big time warbird fan. Such films as Memphis
Belle and Dunkirk would have no choice but to use CGI, or maybe a painted
up Harvard for Messerschmitts without the Buchon!


Yes that is a bomb and yes have used a servo on the sixth channel so it can
be dropped, after the Battle of Britain the Germans used 109s to do Wild Sau
raids, lone fighters would cross the channel and bomb random targets.


Markings, “White 13” flown by Hauptmann Walter “Gulle” Oesau out of St
Omer-Nord/ France August 1940, on the 18/8/40 shot down two Hawker
Hurricanes, one over Cap Gris Nez and another over Canterbury.


Will try and get a video of "Gulle" flying a bombing raid in the near future?

[Dave Homewood]

Really great conversion!!

[planecrazy]

She flies, a little surprised needed the CG a bit further forward than expected.


“White 13” over the white cliffs of Dover!

[Dave Homewood]

Really cool! And over the white cliffs too!

[planecrazy]

Thanks Dave, next effort from the palm island plane factory, call me crazy,
converting an ultra micro Flying Fortress to a Shorts S30 Empire Class Flying
boat, well using the wing, fin and tail pane at least.

Found some three view plans, matched them up so the fuselage was the same
scale as the wings and went to work on a sheet of white foam.


Just so happens the wing is almost spot on match for the Empire Class, the fin
and elevator very close as well.


Nice Aussie site on the Empire boats.
www.aussieairliners.org/shortfb/zk-amc/zkamc.html

[Dave Homewood]

Wow, this will be interesting!

[planecrazy]

Have a couple of great books on these magnificent machines, Adventurous
Empires by Phillip E Simms and the Golden Age of New Zealand Flying Boats
by Paul Harrison, Brian Lockstone and Andy Anderson, what a great couple
of publications and wonderful reference material for this project!

May not look like it but a fair amount has gone into getting to as she is, ready
to fly. Always like to fly them before they are finished just in case it all goes
wrong?! Weight is always a problem with these small 1cell (3.7volts) jobs,
the rc B17 in it’s original form was no powerhouse, have added more drag
and weight.


Must weigh her compared to the original B17 I have. The cheesy holes probably
don’t reduce the weight by too much but it all counts. Yes that is a middle upper
turret you can see. “Awarua” ZK-AMC was trial fitted and flown with a turret for a
brief period during the war, have made this removable.


Hopefully get her own the air in the near future and some finishing details including
paint, gulp more weight!

[Dave Homewood]

That looks terrific!

[JollyGreenSlugg]

Wow, what incredible work! Thank you for sharing!

[Dave Homewood]

Peter, it is really fantastic following your threads, where imagination, handcraft skills and sheer brilliance combine to turn the likes of a Mustang into a Buchon, and now a B-17 into a Short Empire. It's really entertaining to see these projects start off and follow them through to the flying videos. Thanks for providing some great entertainment from your island paradise!

[planecrazy]

Thanks folks, Dave I've been a model maker from a young age.

The seed was sown when my late father took me to the old Savoy Theatre in the corner of
Christchurch Square to view the Battle of Britain, I was hooked hence the Buchon and as
you know flying boats have a wonderful history where I live.

Things are so quiet here due to lockdown which looks like it will hang around for a while.
So filling the time I have on my hands with projects I have had in my head for a while.

The story of the Empire boats that provided a reliable service crossed the Tasman during
the war has always intrigued me. A few years ago I discovered "Awarua" had visited the
island in an emergency. I was very fortunate when looking into some details on this visit
to get assistance from a chap named Geoff Freer who was a volunteer at Motat.

A picture of myself and Geoff Freer with a half fuselage model of "Awarua" my family
donated to Motat to say thanks for their assistance.

[planecrazy]

Been too windy to test fly my Empire Class Boat conversion and won't be happening
tomorrow either, the Met have put out a severe weather warning for these parts.

"A Severe Weather Warning for Damaging Winds has been issued. Vigorous southerly
winds expected to develop early on Wednesday morning. DAMAGING WINDS, averaging
35 knots (65 km/h) with gusts in excess of 50 knots (90 km/h), are possible
during Wednesday morning."

In the mean time another little project. Scratch built canopy then painted up a T28
Trojan to a Royal Lao Air Force machine, some of these where flown by Air America
pilots in Vietnam.


Real one of these came through on her way to a new home in NZ in 2018.

[planecrazy]

No RC flying for a couple of weeks now due to the ever present winter winds,
no tourism and therefore work due to Covid so plenty of building time among
other projects.

Bit bored withy the look of my Funcub, can see something else in there with
a bit more character, the grandaddy of STOL. Semi scale working undercart,
cut and sanded the fin, added foam to get scale look to elevator.
More soon hopefully.......…

[planecrazy]

Down the track a bit further with my Funcub to Storch conversion, really wanted to
hang onto the Funcub’s great flying characteristics but have the look of a Storch.
I do have smaller wheels, I only fly off grass so will fly her with these and see how
I go with smaller ones.


Cut some foam and did a bit of sanding to get the fin and tail plane.


Some great schemes out there went for the squiggly look!



I really wanted to get the gear as close to scale as possible, canopy cut from
foam as is the nose section. Still have a little way to go before she flies.

A few years back a chap named Nestor Slepchev used to sell 3/4 scale kits of
the Storch, pretty sure there are a couple flying in New Zealand. I was lucky to
go for a flight in one of these, amazing STOL capabilities

Couple of Slepchev Storch clips.

[Peter Lewis]

A few years back a chap named Nestor Slepcev used to sell 3/4 scale kits of

the Storch, pretty sure there are a couple flying in New Zealand.

ZK-WAZ and ZK-STO
A third, ZK-JPH, was exported to Australia back in 1999.

[planecrazy]

Thanks Peter, nice photos, they are a pretty accurate representation of the real thing, fly better with less weight as well.

[planecrazy]

Have to admit to having just short of an obsession with what could be argued one
of the most beautiful machines ever created, Mr R Mitchell’s Supermarine Spitfire.

So next cab off the rank from the palm island plane factory a suitable opponent for
the recently completed Buchon, an early model Spitfire. Very much favour the earlier
baby, pre MkV, Spitfires no cannons the clean lines of that beautiful wing shape.

Well that was a little dramatic how about I shut ups and share some pic’s as to
where I’m up to so far?


Started out with a 2 cell Mustang which is fairly close to the shape of a Spitfire.
Moved the motor back 2.5cm nose to front of the wing much shorter than the
Mustang, cut off the front section of the wing and added blue foam section.


The fuselage is the tricky bit, a lot thinner and narrower, cut off the top of the cowl
then sanded the fuselage to shape, tail plane and fin cut to scale.

Pretty close to a test/trim flight always like to fly them before finishing in case it all
goes horribly wrong, C of G may be an issue with this one seeing as I have taken so
much off the nose, relocating the battery from underneath to on top behind the
motor which should help, more soon hopefully……