Fiat CR.32 (oz3286)

About this Plan

Fiat CR-32 Chirri. Radio control scale model of the WWII Italian biplane fighter. For .40 to .48 four stroke power. Scale is 1/7. Wingspan 54in, AUW 7lb.

Quote: "Paul O Blakeborough's 1/7th scale 54in span replica of this attractive Italian biplane fighter is suitable for .40 to .48 size four-stroke engines. Makes a worthwhile scale project for serious scale competitors yet is straightforward enough to construct to tempt scale beginners. Construction is uncomplicated from traditional balsa and ply.

I first came across the Fiat CR 32 'Chirri' when a good friend of mine showed me an article about the aircraft in Aeromodeller about four years ago. The lines of the aircraft were an instant attraction to me, although the detailing daunted me some.

However, I had just settled down after another house move, when I remembered the Fiat. I then started looking into the possibilities of reasonable documentation, and eventually dug up enough - in fact more than enough - to make it a viable proposition for a scale subject. I have mainly Gordon Whitehead to thank for most of the documents and Dave Arnold of Scale Model Research for some fine photographs of a full-size version.

The Spanish Civil War was where the Chirri made an excellent name for itself; it became well favoured by both the Italian and Spanish pilots who flew for the Spanish Nationalists against Franco's Republican forces. Aircraft that it faced included the Russian 1-15
and I-16s, and it was also reputed to be able to see off a Gladiator in some dog-fights. The appearance of German monoplanes like the Me 109 caused the demise of the 32 as a front-line fighter although they were still used in a training role, even into the beginning of the second world war. The aircraft that I modelled was flown in 1938 by Sergeant Pilot Giovanni Carmello who was the Squadron Leader of the Asso Di Bastoni squadron (Ace of Clubs).

The basic structure should be familiar to many and should not present too many problems, however some parts will require the knowledge of an experienced modeller to manufacture but many short-cuts can be taken and these I will leave to you. But, for the moment, let's motivate.

Lower wings. Because man has to start somewhere when building a model, let's start by getting to grips with the wings. I firmly believe that this is the best place to start, as building wings to fit a
completed fuselage has got to be a harder job than 'tickling' a fuselage to fit a completed wing.

All the wing panels are made similarly, and the first job I completed was to manufacture the wing tips from laminations of 1/16 in ply, in the well proven manner of wrapping the PVA soaked strips around the finished shape, the shape being panel pins tapped into a scrap of wood in the shape of the wing tips. These were left overnight and then released from the 'jig' to give a nice strong wing tip.

Onwards. After all the spars and ribs were cut out (don't forget the support tabs which initially support the ribs) I set to with the lower wings. First of all, pack as necessary and set-up the leading edge (LE) in position followed by the two lower spars after thinning them towards their tips. Glue on the formed tip, packing as necessary, following this with all the ribs remembering the dihedral on the inboard one..."

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