SBD Dauntless (oz8172)

About this Plan

SBD Dauntless. Free flight profile scale model. For Cox .020 Pee Wee power.

Quote: "Generous tail area and ample dihedral makes this great dive-bomber suitable for free-flight. The first model flew out of sight.

HEY, DAD, how is it going to fly? I don't see any wires on the wing. I sat stunned. Had I neglected something important in my son's education?

After reviewing the planes we had built recently, I understood the reason for his question. We had been knee-deep in control line, but this was our first free flight model, and a word of explanation was needed. A free flight is a plane with properly proportioned flying surfaces and a somewhat smaller engine. Once launched, it is entirely on its own, but engine running time must be restricted since, if the model flies too well, all that will be left after the first flight is happy memories.

Some tips which should permit free flight ownership to last quite some time follow. The model is a liberal copy of one of the famous Navy Carrier planes of WW II, the Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless.

Fuselage: The fuselage is constructed of hard 1/4 in balsa sheet and is slotted 1/8 in at the back to provide a groove for the one-piece stabilizer. Then the wing mount is cut out and a 1/4 in balsa frame mounted around the cutout. This will provide a better and more secure platform for the wing. Titebond cement, which is strong and handles easily, is used for all joints.

The canopy, made of 1/16 balsa sheet, is cut and fitted as illustrated. Canopy frames are made of painted drafting tape cut to the given size, but they are not mounted until the plane is painted.

The firewall is 1/4 plywood angled to the right approximately 1/32 in. Backing it up are filler pieces made from 3/8 balsa sheet. The cowling is cut from thin cardboard which, when doped and painted, looks fine and is not as fragile as thin balsa. It will bend but not break. The tailwheel is cut from 1/16 sheet plywood. Wing rubber hold-down pegs are added to the fuselage where indi-cated.

Rudder: Use hard 1/16 balsa sheet for the rudder. Its rear is a separate piece which is mounted with fine wire to the front piece, thus permitting trim adjustment as required.

Stabilizer: The stabilizer is cut from 1/8 balsa sheet. I made mine in three sections, with a crossgrained 1/4 in wide balsa strip inserted between the inner and outer panels to hold warpage to a minimum. This construction method is optional but recommended. After the stabilizer is glued into its slot in the fuselage, fill the gap behind it with scrap.

Wing: The ribs are cut from 1/16 balsa sheet and the leading edge is 1/4 sq hard balsa. The model has two 1/8 x 1/4 center spars and the trailing edge is 1/4 x 3/4 tapered balsa. To provide a good secure mounting to the fuselage, the center area only has a 1/16 balsa skin.

The wing is made in three sections, inner and two outer halves. The first rib on the outer panels must be angled in assembly to provide the proper dihedral, and gussets are added to strengthen this area. Wing tips, made from balsa sheet, have smaller upper and lower ribs to permit a good blending of the wing covering at the tips..."

Hi Mary/Steve - Here is Paul Schaaf Jr.'s SBD Dauntless from American Aircraft Modeler magazine issue 04-71. Regards,

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Supplementary file notes

Article pages, text and pics.

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