Royal Rudder Bug (oz10551)
About this Plan
Royal Rudder Bug. Wingspan 62 in, wing area 600 sq in. The Royal Rudder-Bug (oz1730) first appeared in Flying Models, Feb 1954. This here is the design as it appeared when kitted by Berkeley.
Includes detailed build instructions.
Quote: "The Royal Rudder-Bug is an extremely easy to build rugged Radio Control design in the medium size class. Designed by Dr Walter Good, one of the countries best Radio Control flyers, you are assured of an all around performer. The tricycle gear and ample dihedral make the model stable on the ground as well as in the air. Spiral stability is excellent, ample load carrying capacity is no problem for this model.
Start construction with the wing. As the first step, remove die-cut ribs etc. from the sheets, and trim up with sandpaper it necessary. Layout the wing spars first, and join with the plywood spar gussets. There should be 4-1/2 in dihedral at each tip. After the cement has set thoroughly, slide the wing ribs onto the spars, starting with the 5 center section ribs. Lay the wing over the plan, align and cement ribs cs usual. When the panel is dry, remove from plan and repeat proceedure with other half of wing, following outline indicated on the plan. The leading and trailing edges should offer no problem. The center section is now added and planked with 3/32 in sheet . Extra balsa is included on the die-cut sheets for this purpose.
The stabilizer is easy to build and takes little time. Pin one 1/8 x 1/4 in spar spar to the plan, blocking the tips up 5/32 in. Cement each rib to the spar, and to the trailing edge. Align carefully as cement dries. This is followed by the leading edge, die-cut balsa gussets and the 3/32 in center section planking.
This brings us to the fuselage construction. The crutch is the load carrying backbone in this fuselage, and must be constructed first. Note in the fuselage details above, a 1/2 in sheet balsa floor is used for strength. Cement together at the center line and trim to fit perfectly in place on the fuselage top view. Make sure all edges are square before pinning and cementing the 1/4 x 1/2 in crutch members in place. We suggest you splice the crutch as indicated before pinning over the plan..."
Direct submission to Outerzone.
Corrections?
Did we get something wrong with these details about this plan (especially the datafile)?
That happens sometimes. You can help us fix it.
Add a correction
Do you have a photo you'd like to submit for this page? Then email admin@outerzone.co.uk
User comments
Hi. Please see the first sentence of the description: “Royal Rudder Bug. Wingspan 62 in, wing area 300 sq in.” A typo? Regards, IyerK K Iyer - 30/05/2020
Sorry, I don't understand. This is quoted from the title block on the plan.
SteveWMD - 30/05/2020
Steve, K K is saying the area of 300 sq inches is not correct. With a wingspan of 62 inches the chord would then have to be about 5 inches for an aspect ratio of roughly 1:12. Looks like the chord is closer to 10 inches for an area of about 600 sq inches.
Could well be a typo on the plan, can't quite read what is printed there.
Wasn't there a smaller version of around a 40 inch span? The 300 would be about right for a half A version.
Bill Hibbets - 30/05/2020
I think KK is referring to the quoted wing area. 600 square inches would be nearer the mark.
RFJ - 31/05/2020
Definitely a typo on the plan. Should be close to 600 square inches.
Phil Bernhardt - 31/05/2020
the ribs are approx 10in long so if the span is 62in the area is approx 6oosq in
KLH - 31/05/2020
Ah, I see. Ok, have set this to say 600 now. Many thanks.
SteveWMD - 31/05/2020
This is just a suggestion: I use a pc with windows 10 and a free Adobe reader, all in Danish. When I open a pdf plan I will have a window on the right showing functions available. At the bottom of the list it says "more". If I press that button I get some more functions incl measuring. You can measure distance, circumference, angle and area. You should advertise this function much more.
KLH - 26/06/2020
Hi Steve, Here are a few photos of my Berkeley Royal Rudderbugs. My original plane [pic 004] was built from a Berkeley kit while in high school, circa 1953. It flew with a Webra .15 diesel motor and only rudder control by escapement and a Lorenz two tube receiver and Gyro ground base Tx.
The second photo [main pic] is a replica I scratch built from my original Berkeley plans, flown with modern equipment.
The third photo [pic 005] is when I appeared on the cover of Model Aviation, October 2003.
Both planes are finished in silk and brushed dope.
Bob Noll - 11/02/2021
Add a comment
- Royal Rudder Bug (oz10551)
- Plan File Filesize: 1788KB Filename: Royal_Rudder_Bug_oz10551.pdf
- help with downloads
Notes
* Credit field
The Credit field in the Outerzone database is designed to recognise and credit the hard work done in scanning and digitally cleaning these vintage and old timer model aircraft plans to get them into a usable format. Currently, it is also used to credit people simply for uploading the plan to a forum on the internet. Which is not quite the same thing. This will change soon. Probably.
Scaling
This model plan (like all plans on Outerzone) is supposedly scaled correctly and supposedly will print out nicely at the right size. But that doesn't always happen. If you are about to start building a model plane using this free plan, you are strongly advised to check the scaling very, very carefully before cutting any balsa wood.
Terms of Use
© Outerzone, 2011-2025.
All content is free to download for personal use.
For non-personal use and/or publication: plans, photos, excerpts, links etc may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Outerzone with appropriate and specific direction to the original content i.e. a direct hyperlink back to the Outerzone source page.
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site's owner is strictly prohibited. If we discover that content is being stolen, we will consider filing a formal DMCA notice.