PV-1 Ventura (oz5975)

About this Plan

PV-1 Ventura. Semi-profile scale twin model for RC.

Quote: "The PV-1 Ventura was a patrol bomber used by the US Navy during the Second World War. The PV-1 got the name Ventura from the British; early in the war the RAF was looking for a replacement for their aging Lockheed Hudson's; Lockheed responded to this by modifying their Model 18 Lodestar to meet the requirements. Later on the US Navy needed a land-based patrol plane to supple-ment the PBY Catalina which were suffering heavy losses in the Pacific, so they decided to acquire the Ventura.

In US Navy service the PV-1 did outstanding duty in the north Pacific flying from the Aleutian Islands to attack the Japanese home islands. In the central and south Pacific the PV-1 was used for a multitude of missions, it was even used as a night fighter by the Marines and in the north Atlantic the PV-1 was keeping the German U-boats at bay.

I have always enjoyed the sleek lines of the PV-1, so when I wanted to build something a little different, I decided to go ahead and build one. I didn't want to go all out and make a contest-worthy model of the PV-1,
I just wanted to build a plane that is recognizable as a PV-1 and was easy to build. I decided that a semi-profile model would do what I want. I call it semi-profile because the fuselage and nacelles are flat-sided but thick enough to place the engines and radio equipment inside. Scale outlines are used for all the flying surfaces. I wanted to have retractable landing gear but also wanted to keep things simple so I left the bottom of the nacelles unsheeted and eliminated the gear doors. I also felt that since this was a bomber I would leave the bottom of the fuselage unsheeted in the bomb bay area and install a bomb release mechanism.

While this model of the PV-1 is not geared toward the beginner, it is simple to build. The flight characteristics are very good and show no bad habits with both engines running. Even if you lose an engine the plane is very controllable. If you have never built a twin engine model before. don't let that scare you away from building your own Ventura, and don't knock the profile fuselage and nacelles. This model looks great in the air!

Construction. Fuselage: The Sport Scale PV-1 is a fairly simple design and I won't go into a lot of detail. The model goes together rather quickly if you cut all the parts to make a kit. Lay the left and right sides on your bench, then glue the 1/8 balsa wing saddle doubler in place. Glue the 1/4 in triangle stock around the edges. Glue the 1/8 square cross braces to the formers as shown on the plans. Once the glue has dried..."

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