Bobcat (oz6445)

About this Plan

Baker Bobcat. Radio control sport-scale model of the homebuilt ultralight, for .20 power. Scale is 1/6.

Quote: "A One Sixth Scale Version of an Ultralight.

Once upon a time a form of flying came into being and the machines were called Ultralights. Wow! The guardians of our existence who reside in our nation's capitol decreed that these machines could enjoy the freedom of flight with neither the machines nor the pilots requiring a license to fly.

Now, there is this RC'er named Bobby Baker who lives in Arkansas, and he had studied aeronautical engineering at the University of Arkansas. This avid Reer really got turned on over this 'no license' concept, and since he had designed and flown numerous R/C models, he proceeded to design an ultralight.

Naturally, he built an R/C model of his design to confirm its flight characteristics and was delighted with the results. Among the design requirements was the desire for a craft that resembled an airplane instead of a hang glider with an engine. This was accomplished and the next requirement was a safe, lightweight and easy to build structure. What else would an RC'er do but a great big model airplane?

The structural design was not taken without serious consideration, however, with the judicious combination of spruce, foam, and light plywood, it did resemble a large, well designed R/C model. Also, with the tall windshield and the fiberglass canopy top, it, makes one think of a crop duster. It only follows that Bobby Baker's pride and joy was named Bobcat.

When you have an attractive (and different) home-built, and if you don't live too far from Wisconsin, what do you do? You take it to Oshkosh, of course. Bobby did and the Bobcat was a sensation and Bobby was deluged with requests for plans. Bobby had a better idea, he formed a company, First Strike, and now produces kits for building the full size Bobcat.

We must call our effort a sport scale model, as it isn't exact scale. Most prominent among the deviations is our use of a flat bottom airfoil for easier building, whereas the full size craft has an undercambered section ...we used an OS .20 4-stroke, and suggest if you use a 2-stroke engine, stay within a .19 to .25 range..."

Direct submission to Outerzone. Scanning by Don at EAC, cleanup by theshadow.

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