1/2A Delta (oz10690)

About this Plan

1/2A Delta. Radio control sport / pylon racer model. Wing area 170 sq in. Approx weight 12 oz.

Quote: "Designed primarily for 1/2A Unlimited racing our little pointed bird can really move it out for you! Like all Delta-type aircraft it is clean, maneuverable and, of course, fast and good looking. 1/2A Delta, by Greg Doe.

For some time, Delta wing airplanes have held a fascination for me. After admiring the performance of a friend's .60-size Delta, I decided to try my luck at a 1/2A size ship. At the time I was looking for a new design for unlimited 1/2A racing.

I asked a lot of questions and copied everything I could. I made several mistakes, but learned a lot from them. The Deltas shown here are numbers four and five of the series. Most of the experimentation was done with the first Delta. The next four followed the plans presented here and all flew very well. Ship number three was raced one time, and clocked at one minute, fifty seconds for ten laps on the two-mile 1/4 Midget course.

Some of the theories presented here were learned from my experience, and may disagree with known aerodynamic principles. However, they worked for me, so they are presented for your interpretation. More about this later.

It is strongly recommended that only experienced flyers consider this project. Control response is fast and quick reflexes are necessary, especially for the trim flights. For those wishing to gain some delta wing experience before taking on this project, North American Model Enterprises offer a 1/2A Vulcan Delta. Their ship is about twice the size and weight of the one shown here.

This design will only accept the smallest of the miniature radio systems. The wing thickness, and radio compartment were designed around the Cannon Mini system. The new Kraft KPS-18 servos are smaller still, and fit neatly into the wing.

The most difficult part of the construction sequence is cutting the foam wing cores. I have no desire to make wing cores available. Anyone wishing to make them available has my best wishes.

Construction: Formica counter-top material makes the best templates for cutting foam. You should be able to pick up some scraps at any good cabinet shop. Cut out the templates and sand them smooth. They must have no ridges or roughness, especially the tip template. Note on the plans that the templates have a small protrusion at the leading edge. This will support the hot wire as the cutting operation begins. The templates are also a 1/4 in longer at the trailing edge to provide the hot wire with support as it exits the foam. The tip template at station 15 should be thicker, about ten-thousandths, than the center template at the same location. This is to compensate for heat radiation from the hot wire, which moves more slowly at the tip.

Since many excellent articles have been written about foam cutting, I won't go into any detail here. The only difficult part about cutting these cores is the rapid taper..."

1/2A Delta, MAN, November 1978.

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Supplementary file notes

Article pages, thanks to RFJ.

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