Originally Posted by jeffpits

Near the beginning of your build you mentioned that you were not going to glue the wing halves together. The bottom wing has the wing bolts and the locator pins to keep the halves together but I was wondering what you're using to secure the top wing halves together. Are the struts alone strong enough not to let the halves separate or did you add a couple of straps?

Hey Jeff,

After considering several options for a temporary upper wing join I decided a permanent join wasn't a hardship so that's the route I went. You can see the details in post #71.

Wow. I completely missed that. Thought I had followed through the whole thread. I appreciate the reply.


I had a GP Stearman that I lost when I let my battery get low on "one more flight". I have one new in the box that I was hoping not to have 2 six foot wings to carry when I finally get to putting it together.

Originally Posted by jeffpits

Wow. I completely missed that. Thought I had followed through the whole thread. I appreciate the reply.


I had a GP Stearman that I lost when I let my battery get low on "one more flight". I have one new in the box that I was hoping not to have 2 six foot wings to carry when I finally get to putting it together.

Hold onto that Stearman... word is it's been discontinued.

Last night I got the throws and rates dialed in. I checked the CG and was very pleased to find it bang on. I guess moving the battery and ignition so far forward was just the ticket.

I used the scale method first (results below) and verified it with the fingertip method. The manual specifies a flying weight of 14.5 to 15.5 pounds and mine came in at 14.3. Woo hoo! I finally built a light airplane! :P






Just waiting for decals now... Callie ships tomorrow!

My order from Callie Graphics arrived today.




Callie does great work. I am very pleased with the way the graphics went on and the way they look.

Lookin Good.

Thanks Chuck.

Getting close to lifting the wheels off the ground

Originally Posted by CHUCK

Getting close to lifting the wheels off the ground

Yep! Hoping to get it outside this afternoon for a run-up.

Got it outside late last week for a run-up. Much easier once I got the throttle servo going in the right direction. :P

Got a reliable idle set and the engine is responding well. It should - this is the third plane it's been in and it's got a few gallons through it.




Yes, I did it without attaching the wings. I know, I know... it was just for a couple of minutes...

No flying weather here last weekend and we're camping this one. Hope to get it maidened next week or weekend.

Yesterday was a great day for a maiden flight.

It took almost half an hour to get everything unpacked and assembled at the field. I had a friend look everything over and he also acted as my spotter and trimmer for the first couple of flights.

After a short takeoff run the plane leapt off the ground and stooged around nose-high as if tail heavy. I had checked the CG before and did so again at the field and I may yet add some nose weight, but in the interim 12 clicks of down elevator solved the problem.

The engine was a little lean in the top end; it sagged and threatened to quit when I throttled up after a low-speed pass, so I richened it an eighth of a turn after landing - that solved the problem. It still pops a bit in the mid range so I am leaning out the low end a tiny bit after each flight. The DLE 20 is an excellent match for this airplane, which cruises between 1/3 and 1/2 throttle. A ten minute flight uses about 90 mL from the 330 mL gas tank (27%).

The aileron throws were too high at first - I dialed those down a little after each of the first two flights. By the third the Stearman was flying beautifully; it is a joy in the air and hasn't shown any nasty tendencies.

I checked before disassembly and was very pleased to find that the plane fits into my truck fully assembled. I was also able to carry it assembled into the basement and set it on the stand. This will cut down on non-flying time on trips to the field.

I recharged the single 2500 mAh A123 battery when I got home; for 27.5 minutes of total flying I put 550 mAh back into it. This gives me more than enough capacity for an event or a typical day of flying.

There were a couple of photographers at the field - photo credits to Jim Denyer and Armon Kolaei.

Nice job! I should have mine up in about a week. I have a Saito FG 30B in mine. Are you happy with the CG in the manual or are you going to move it more forward? What prop size are you using?

Originally Posted by jlc

Nice job! I should have mine up in about a week. I have a Saito FG 30B in mine. Are you happy with the CG in the manual or are you going to move it more forward? What prop size are you using?

Thanks! I am very happy with the airplane. I will leave the CG alone until I can confirm it with an inverted 45º upline in flight.

The prop I am using is a 16 x 8 Master Airscrew. It fits the spinner perfectly and works very well with the DLE 20 in this airframe.

Originally Posted by grosbeak

Thanks! I am very happy with the airplane. I will leave the CG alone until I can confirm it with an inverted 45º upline in flight.

The prop I am using is a 16 x 8 Master Airscrew. It fits the spinner perfectly and works very well with the DLE 20 in this airframe.

Thanks I'm probably going to use a 17-8 but I know it doesn't fit the spinner.

Congrats on your maiden. I am very happy for you.
Real planes have two wings. Yes.