Mini Swelta (oz17026)

About this Plan

Mini Swelta. Radio control sport model. Wingspan 42 in for .40 engine.

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Quote: "Hi Steve and Mary, I was unable to scan this plan in one go, and unfortunately it's in a very sorry condition. I hope you can stitch these 2 together and make is suitable for publication. I have no building instructions, but I have built and flown the plane with an ASP 32 on a tuned pipe. We hand launched it to avoid the weight of an undercarriage. It's not very fast, but flies well.
Best regards,
Kris"

Update 27/9/2026: Added article, thanks to RFJ.

Quote: "A sporty, 42 in span near delta wing model for .40 size motors - offers you nice flying characteristics and exciting aerobatic performance. Mini Swelta, by Charles Toms.

SOME of you may have seen my large Swelta, a semi delta aeroplane covered in what became known as 'Charliecote', a chrome silver plastic covering. It was flown at Cranfield on two occasions and its shape, and appearance in the air caused a great deal of interest. Easy to fly, with good flight characteristics, I found it pleasing to handle even with my limited ability with the sticks. After 4 years, and over 200 flights, pilot error (my own, lets face it the majority of crashes are caused this way) put Swelta into the workshop with a broken back and rather than repair this old faithful, I felt that a smaller version, with the same flight characteristics, quicker to build and more easily transported, was required.

Thus was born the 'Mini Swelta', powered by a 40 engine (a smaller unit can be used, as long as provision is made when building). One small snag (there is always one no matter how careful one is), the largest tank which I could make fit was an JM 4 oz, so unless a deeper shorter tank can be found or made, flights with a 40 engine will be about 10 mins. The wing is foam and veneer covered, it can be ordered unjoined from: RCS Leicester or Isleworth and Aviette Kits, at £8.00 or cores only £4.00 plus postage.

A look at the plan will show that the Min Swelta is easy and quick to build, you could be airborne in approx one week. The method of building is very simple a-la-Kwikfly, on its back, but it will help in forming the wing seat, if, before joining the wing cores, a template is taken of the aerofoil section at the root.

The plan is more or less self explanatory, so I will deal mainly with building the fuselage, a few general hints and tips and leave the rest to your own ability.

First, prepare all items of wood needed in the early stages of building the fuselage, and leave the rest to do whilst waiting for the glue to set. One important point is to cut out and drill all necessary holes etc in the 1/4 in ply former F2, and fit nose wheel bearing with blind nuts and bolts before gluing into position. I used the Mercury nose leg parts.

The plan shows a separate cowl, but if you prefer, the whole fuselage side can be made to include a fixed cowl, the engine will slip in reasonably easily. The bolts are a little awkward to tighten but the one piece side gives a cleaner line. It is more or less certain that the radio equipment will have to go where shown on the plan, using the power pack in the forward position to act as a variable weight to correct CG, which is slightly nose down without fuel.

It goes without saying that RCS gear (Digi-Four) is used with four PS3 Orbit servos, the three at the rear mounted on a PS3 servo tray, with the far ends trimmed to fit, so you should have no difficulty in finding room for any modern size equipment..."

Note see also 54 inch Swelta (oz8081) by Harry Hodel from March 1968 RCM.

Supplementary file notes

Article.

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