PD Parasol (oz6446)

About this Plan

PD Parasol. Radio control sport model.

Quote: "Reminiscent of an earlier day in aviation, this .15 to .19 powered parasol wing model is one of the finest small-field sport aircraft you'll ever fly.

PD Parasol, by Johnny Johnson.

I started by writing down everything I wanted in my next model and it came out like this - it has to be lightweight, so build with sticks and cover it with silk. It has to be strong, so use some real engineering in the design. In fact, strong isn't good enough, it has to be super strong, so use external bracing. It has to look like a full scale airplane, but not a scale model of anything, so I can have any proportions and innovations I want without worrying about deviating from scale. Other items included - at least a 60 in wing span -a small engine - no nose gear - steerable tail wheel -absolute minimum ten minute tank -no wing through the fuselage - and it has to be different.

Well, this airplane isn't exactly what I originally pictured in my mind, but it has met all the above objectives and my friends, who at first sight of the model were not too impressed, have since been converted, especially when they saw the strenuous flight loads the model will take.

Although the PD Parasol is not a competition or pattern model, it is definitely an acrobatic airplane. It is designed for 50G's positive and 25G's negative and it has the wing area, the light weight and strength to do the most violent acrobatic maneuvers. And yet, with restricted control move-ments, it is a very gentle and docile airplane. As a beginner's airplane, it is excellent at reduced power, due to the light wing loading.

For the effort it takes to build this model, here is what it will do for you in return: Short take off - good climb - very good glide - gentle stall - not too good aileron rolls (too wide) - smooth easy aileron turns - also very tight turns - snap rolls, inside and outside -slow rolls-spins - loops, inside and out and, naturally, any combination of the above, such as Immelmans - split esses - snap roll on top of a loop, etc. This plane really excels in snap maneu-vers and spins, depending upon the skill of the pilot.

The first twenty or more flights with this model were made with a Super Tigre .15 diesel which proved quite satisfactory. The last thirty or so flights have been with a Super Tigre 23 Glow which is perfect. I use a 10 x 4 Tornado Propeller on both engines. With the .15 diesel I obtained 22 minutes of flight on the 4 oz clank tank and very reliable idling, although it had a slightly higher idle rpm than its glow counterpart... "

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Scanning by Don at EAC, cleanup by theshadow.

Supplementary file notes

Article pages, text and pics, thanks to theshadow.

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