Top Flite RC-33 INSTRUCTION MANUAL

Product Support
(Do Not Remove From Department)
INTRODUCTION
TOP FLITE MODELS, INC. is
proud to introduce the new Elder
40. This design is a direct result of popular demand after the great little Elder 20 was introduc­ed. Modelers loved the design, still do, but wanted something "larger" and "while you're at it, give it ailerons." So, here it is and does it ever fly nice'.
The Elder 40 was designed and sized expressly for .40 engines and this includes the popular .40­.45 and .49 engines. The design turns in great performance with the four-stroke power plants and there is plenty of power margin left over for the aerobatic­minded pilot. However, the real "kick" of this design, like its smaller brother, is the realistic, slow-speed flights that allow you to actually see the airplane instead of just a blur.
The design lends itself to all kinds of detailing, if you're so inclined. For the beginner, nothing fancy is needed; go out and fly it. The Elder 40 makes a remarkably good training aircraft with gentle and totally honest flying characteristics. A big bonus here is that your trainer is just not going to look like everyone else's high-wing, trike-gear, slab-sided beginner's airplane. In terms of strength, theEIder40 is a lightly-loaded design that does not tend to build-up inertia with excess flight speed. This means that fairly rough handling does not necessarily mean destruction. While nothing is "crash-proof", the
Elder
40
is a rugged aircraft that will keep coming back
for more. While we touched on power earlier, a little more should
be said. This design simply does not need a lot of excess
power to fly the way it was intended to. Our experience
has shown us that normal 2-cycle .40's work great as well as the 4-cycle engine sizes mentioned earlier. With awing area of just under 800 sq. in., the Elder 40 gets its tail up quickly and is airborne in just a few feet. Flying
the design with 4-cycle engines is Give it a try in your Elder we have provided in the kit may not fit some 4-cycle engines and it may be necessary to visit your local retail hobby shop to get the right one for your engine.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
TOP FLITE MODELS, INC. would certainly recommend the Elder 40 as a first R/C powered aircraft. However, if
you are a beginner to the sport of R/C flying, we would urge you to seek and use experienced assistance in con­structing and flying this airplane. Again, if you are new to this hobby, consider this:
Flying this or any other radio-controlled model aircraft is a PRIVILEGE and not a RIGHT and this privilege begins with the utmost safety considerations to others and yourself as well. An R/C model airplane in inexperienced hands has the potential of doing serious personal or pro­perty damage. These safety considerations start at the building board by following instructions, seeking com­petent help when you are confused and avoiding short­cuts. These considerations have to be carried over to the flying field where safety must come first and limitations
40.
Note that the motor mount
an absolute delight.
TOP FLITE MODELS INC.
1901 NORTH NARRAGANSETT AVENUE • CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60639
cannot be exceeded. We urge you to:
1. Send for and obtain your AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics) membership which will provide in­surance for your R/C activities — DO NOT RELY ON HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE.
2. Join an AMA sanctioned R/C flying club in your area where you can obtain competent, professional in­struction in trimming and learning how to fly this model.
Check with your favorite local hobby shop for the re­quired AMA forms or the address where they can be ob­tained.
WARNING!!!
A radio controlled model is not a "toy." Care and caution must be taken in properly building the model, as well as in the installation and use of the radio control device. It is important to follow all directions as to the construction of this kit as well as installation and use of the engine and radio gear. The advice and assistance of a well ex­perienced builder and pilot is highly recommend­ed. Don't take chances! Improper building, opera­tion, or flying of this model could result in serious bodily injury to others, yourself, or property damage.
PRE-CONSTRUCTION NOTES
The Elder 40, like other Top Flite kits employs the use of die-cut wood to ease the task of construction, parts fit and identification. The dies used for this kit have been rigorously checked for absolute accuracy and should provide you with excellent fit. Die-cut parts should be carefully removed from their sheets by first lightly san­ding the back of each sheet of parts and then carefully
removing each part. Use a light garnet paper for the san­ding and keep a sharp hobby knife with an X-acto #11 blade, or equivalent, handy for assistance in removing any parts that might not have completely cut-through by the dies. Parts which oppose one another and must be precisely uniform—such as fuselage sides, ribs, etc.— should be carefully "matched" after their removal from the part sheets. Matching is the process of holding the opposing pieces together with either pins, tape or spot gluing and lightly sanding the edges of the parts until they are identical. A sanding block with light garnet paper is most useful for this and other phases of con­struction.
Your building surface should be at least large enough to accommodate the wing panels. This surface should be as absolutely flat as possible and yet be able to accept
pins easily. We have found that a product such as Celotex fiber board works quite well for this purpose. Another good surface can be found in most well-stocked hardware stores—a 2' x 4' fiber board ceiling tile. These are quite inexpensive and can be used for several airplanes before needing replacement.
As with most R/C kits that are constructed from wood, a selection of tools—most of which can be found in the
average workshop—are a must to do the job correctly:
Hobby knife and sharp #11 blades
Single-edge razor blades T-pins Sanding blocks in assorted sizes Sandpaper in various grits
Hand-held hobby saw, such as an X-acto Dremel tool or power drill and assorted drill bits Straight-edge, preferably metal, at least 36" long 90" triangle Soldering iron, flux (silver) and solder Carbide cut-off wheel for wire cutting Small power jig-saw, such as a Moto-Saw
Razor plane Tapes, such as masking and cellophane
Our Elders were constructed using a variety of common hobby adhesives including 5-minute epoxy, Cyano-
acrylates, aliphatic resin (such as Titebond) and 1-hour epoxy. Since all of us have our own construction techni­ques and favorite adhesives, stick with the ones that you are familiar with and prefer. However, in certain areas there will be callouts for certain types of adhesives, and we urge you to try not to substitute since doing so could possibly cause problems structurally.
The last thing we should touch on before we begin ac­tual construction is the sequence in which the Elder is assembled. The sequence given to you in this booklet has been proven to be the most straight-forward and pro­vides the finished components in the order that you will need them to progress to the next assembly phase. Try to stick with the building order presented here to avoid mistakes.
Spread the plans out on your work surface, cover them with a clear plastic material, such as the backing from a roll of Monokote or plastic wrap and commence con-
struction.
WING ASSEMBLY
Wing construction for the Elder consists of building three separate pieces; the two wing panels and the center section. These will be joined in the Final Assembly section of this manual. You will need the center section, with its top unsheeted, during the Fuselage Assembly section. In this sequence, be cer­tain that you are working on a flat work surface. Careful­ly join the two wing plan sheets, 3 of 4 and 4 of 4, at the center section and secure with tape. This provides the full wing plan on which to work. The wing is built directly over the plans, so cover them with Monokote backing or clear food wrap.
1. Start with the center section first. Locate the die-cut sheets containing parts W-11 (2, ply), W-12 (2, ply), W-13, two of the W-1A's and W-1 B (4, balsa). Remove these parts from their sheets and clean up any rough edges before assembly.
2. Using the plans as a guide; measure, cut and butt­glue the sheet and the 3/32" x 1" trailing edge that makes up the bottom center section. Note desired grain direc­tion of these pieces. Measure, cut and glue in place
1/4" x 1-1/2"
lower leading edge,
3/32"
balsa
2
the 3/8" x 1/2" upper leading edge. Glue one of the W-11 ply dihedral braces in place against the inside surface of the leading edge—be sure that it's
centered. Glue the outer W-1A half-ribs in place against the rear face of the dihedral brace, lined-up
with the edges of the bottom sheeting at right angles to your work surface. Now glue in place two more
W-1A's, 1" inboard of the two outer ones.
3 As shown on the plans, the center dihedral brace is a
composite made by laminating the two W-12's (ply) to each side of W-13, which results in a 1/4 "thick part
—do this now. Glue the completed composite dihedral brace in place to the bottom sheeting and up against the rear edges of the four W-1A's. Be sure
this part is centered.
4 Locate two of your 1/4" x 1/2" pieces of spar stock.
From each, cut one 5" length. Glue one of these
pieces in the top rear slots in the W-1A's and against the top forward face of the center dihedral brace. Glue the other on bottom sheeting against the bot­tom rear face of the center dihedral brace.
5 Now glue the four W-1 B rear half-ribs in place behind
the main dihedral brace. Glue the remaining W-11 (ply) dihedral brace in place on the bottom sheeting against the rear edges of the four W-1B's. Locate the
1/4" x 3/8" trailing edge material and cut a 5" length.
This is now glued in place against the rear face of the
rear W-11 brace and to the bottom sheeting.
NOTE: For now this completes the center section con-
struction. You will finish it after it has been used in the construction of the fuselage. Set it aside for now and build the two wing panels. Both panels are built directly
over the plans at the same time.
3
6. In this step we want to prepare each of the required components—the top and bottom spars, the 3/8" x 1/2" front LE. and the rear proper dihedral angle at their inboard ends. The
cross-section of the wing that is shown on the plans
is ideal forthis purpose. Simply lay, for instance, the bottom 1/4" x 1/2" balsa spar in place over this draw­ing. Note that the outboard end is cut at 90 degs.; but
that the inboard end must be cut at an angle achieve the required 3/4" per panel dihedral angle.
Make two of these bottom spars. Now repeat this process with the top spars, the leading edges and
the trailing edges (note that the length of the leading edges is developed from the top view of the wing
plan). The inboard edges leading edges should be first cut at 90 degs. and
then slightly chamfered to match the needed dihedral angle.
7. Start construction by first lower leading edges in place, directly over the plans. Note that the inboard edges of these two parts ter­minate at the outer edges of the two outboard
W-1A's. Next, pin the 3/32" x 1" bottom trailing edge
planking in place. Now glue the 1/4" x 3/8" trailing edges in place on the top, rear of the 3/32" trailing edge bottom sheet. Now cut, fit and glue each of the 3/32" x 1/4" bottom cap strips which sit beneath each of the W-2A's, W-3's and W-4's—pin these in place over the plan to keep them from shifting. Using the 3/32" sheet balsa provided, measure, cut and glue the
inboard bottom wing sheeting in place—note grain direction. Glue the W-6 wingtips in place. Now glue and pin the bottom spar in place (angled end in­board) on the bottom wing sheet and the cap strips.
Now glue all W-2A, W-3 and W-4 wing ribs in place. Make sure that these are at right angles to your work surface—pin and allow to dry.
8. Glue all of the W-5 angled ribs in place. NOTE:Toob­tain a flush fit, use your sanding block to chamfer the forward ends of the W-5 ribs where they contact the W-3 rib sides.
9. Glue all of the wingtip braces (W-7, W-8, W-9, W-10 and W-15) in place on the W-6 wingtip sheet. Note
that W-7, W-9 and W-10 need to have their inboard
ends chamfered with a sanding block to fit flush
the outer face of W-3.
10. Now take the center section which was assembled earlier and fit ittooneofthewing panels.Tilt it until thetwoarmsoftheW-11 plydihedral braces fit flush to the front and rear bottom sheeting and the center
brace is correctly positioned against the bottom
spar. Check this fit to be sure all components fit
nicely. Trim as needed to get proper fit. Prop and/or pinthiscenter section inthispositionasyouwill use it as a guide for the remaining wing panel parts.
Remember not to glue anything to the center section
yet; it's only in place for spacing purposes.
11. Glue the front 3/8" x 1/2" leading edge in place on top of the lower 1/4" x 1 -1/2" leading edge and against the front of each full and half rib (angled end inboard to
1/4" x 3/8" T.E.
of
the
1/4" x "I11/2"
pinning
the
—with the
to
lower
1/4" x 1-1/2"
to
fit against tilted center section). Glue the top 1/4" x 1/2" spar in place (angled end inboard). Cut, fit and glue the 3/32" x 1" leading and trailing edge planking in place—pinortapetohold. Remove the center sec­tion from the wing panel and repeat the above steps on the remaining panel.
12. Cut, fit and glue all of the remaining top 3/32" x 1/4" cap strips in place on all of the ribs and half ribs.
13.
Remove the wing panels from the work surface. In-
spect them for any dried globs of glue, remove these with a #11 X-acto knife. Tape or hold the two wing panels together with the bottoms of each facing the other—align carefully. Use your sanding block to now shape the forward wingtips identically with each other and the curves shown on the plans. With the exception of the inboard ends, use your sanding block to carefully "match" the wing panels, leading edges, tips and trailing edges. Separate the panels and use a sanding block with light paper over all of the panels' surfaces to smooth them for covering later (after final assembly).
14. Note on the plans, the points shown for the 1/4" sq. spruce flying wire anchor points. These are full rib depth. If it is your intention to use these optional wires on your model, cut and glue these anchor points in place at this time. Set aside the completed wing panels for final assembly later.
TAIL GROUP
The tail group of your Elder is built directly over the plans
in a quite straight-forward manner. Note there are op­tions open to you with these parts in terms of shape. The stab's gentle curves which terminate in sharp points the trailing edge of the elevators give a certain "look," which can be changed by rounding the outboard trailing edges of the elevators. This "softens" the look of these shapes. The same thing can be done to the fin and rud­der, top and bottom—looks nice. As shown, you can also scallop the trailing edges of the rudder elevators to give yet another different look.
1. Start with the stab. Build it directly over the plans which have been covered with the clear backing from Monokote or food wrap. Position the two S-1 tips in place and the center S-2 as well; pin. From the 1/4" x 1/2" balsa stock provided, cut, fit and glue in place the two leading edges and the trailing edge. Using the same material, cut and glue in place the "cap" in front of S-2, thus completing the stab
outline.
2. Cut, fit carefully and glue the 1/4 "sq. balsa ribs (three
per side) in place. Use short lengths of 1/4" x 1/2" stock to make the fillets—note grain direction.
3.
From the1/4" x 1-3/4" balsa stock provided, measure and cut the two elevators. Notch them as shown accept the 1/4" dia. dowel elevator joiner. With the stab still in position on the work surface, pin the elevator halves in place. Protect the trailing edge of the stab with a strip of waxed paper and epoxy the dowel joiner in place in the notches—allow to set completely.
at
and
to
4
4. Remove the stab and elevators from the plans. Build the fin next in the same manner using the R-1 and R-2 die-cut pieces with 1/4" sq. and 1/4" x 1/2" balsa frames shown. Cut the rudder to shape from the remainder of the
1/4 " x
1-3/4"
balsa stock used for the elevators. Position the rudder in place to the back of the fin and glue R-3 in place to the leading edge of the rudder. Remove the parts from your building board.
5. Using the 3/32" x 1/4" balsa provided, cap strip both sides of the fin and stab assemblies as shown on the
• plans. Be sure, when capping the lower edge of the fin, to leave a distance of 3/32" from the bottom to allow the fin to fit into the slot between the two top S-3 caps. Glue the two S-3 caps to the upper surface of S-2, leaving a 1/4" gap at the centerline for the fin. Test-fit the fin in place on top of the stab. With the fin still in place, cut, fit and glue the forward 3/32" x 1/4" cap strip in place forward of the fin. Remove the fin.
6. The elevators, stab, fin and rudder are now final­sanded to shape. Start by using masking tape to mount the elevators to the stab. Use a sanding block to go over all of the outside surfaces to carefully match them. Lay the stab on a flat working surface, masking tape down, and use the sanding block to sand it flat. Use the sanding block to taper the elevators as shown on one side. Tape the stab/elevator hinge line, turn the stab over, remove the tape from this side, and repeat the process. The same method is used for the fin and rudder. Once complete, use sandpaper to round the leading edges. Set these parts aside for covering and assembly to the fuselage.
FUSELAGE ASSEMBLY
Before starting construction, study the plans and draw-
ings to familiarize yourself with how the fuselage is assembled. Note that it really is nothing more than a basic "box" fuselage with semi-formers in the nose area to create the rounded cowling effect. This simple and ef­fective way of making a fuselage can only be ruined in one way; building it crooked. This can be done by not making the fuselage side frames identical and/or mis­sizing the top and bottom cross braces. Another com­mon error is to make improper joints. The Elder relies a great deal on the strength of its frame—make those joints fit correctly! Note also that the uprights and cross braces are a mix of both spruce and balsa. These are notated.
1. Locate and remove die-cut parts F-5 and F-9, two of each. Securely pin F-5 in place directly over your covered fuselage plan. Note that the bottom aft spruce longeron terminates in the rear notch in part F-5. Disregard the curve of this longeron for now.
2. Pin F-9 in place directly over the plans. Measure and cut the top rear spruce longeron that fits in place
from the back of the "tab" on F-9 aft to the tail post. (A tool such as an X-acto mitre box and razor saw is quite good for cutting spruce.) Glue the top rear longeron in place to F-9.
3. As you can see from the plans and building sket­ches, the top 1/4" sq. spruce longeron fits in place
from the front edge of the
1/4" x 1"
x
3-5/8"
ply wing
hold-down former. Eventually, when it is installed,
this
ply former will be backed-up with a 333/8"
length
of 1/4" x 1/2" balsa. Hold this former on edge with a
piece of 1/4" x 1/2" behind it and mark its forward loca­tion on F-9. Cut a length of 1/4" sq. spruce to fit from this mark forward to the front face of the
firewall-
glue in place to F-9.
4. Cut, fit and glue the four required 1/4" x 1/2" balsa uprights from Cross-Section B-B back to and in­cluding the one beneath the "tab" on part F-9—note that the bottom, rear longeron will need to be block­ed in place as the bottom, rear curve starts. As shown on the plans, a 1/4" balsa doubler is made to fit inside of the fuselage frame, at the nose, between F-5 and the top longeron and against the front of the 1/4" x 1/2" upright at Section B-B. This doubler is cut to fit 1/4" behind the top longeron in order to accept the firewall. Glue this doubler in place.
5. Cut, fit and glue in place the rearmost 1/4" sq. spruce tailpost upright—be sure that the correct angle is also trimmed into its lower end for the bottom longeron. With the frame firmly secured to the building board, bend the bottom longeron up to meet the rearmost upright that was just installed. Glue and securely block this longeron in place.
6. Cut, fit and glue in place all remaining spruce uprights while bending and block-pinning the bot-
tom, rear longeron in place as you go. This com­pletes the basic fuselage side frame. Now make a second, identical frame. Be absolutely sure that they're identical by building the second frame directly on top of the first, carefully covering the first frame with Monokote backing or food wrap.
7. Hold or tape the two completed frames together and use your sanding block to make sure they are iden­tical. Separate them and sand their sides smooth (both sides) with the sanding block.
8. Note on the side view of the plans for the fuselage that there are six 1/4" x 1/2" balsa cross-brace loca­tions shown (numbered 1 through 6). All of these cross-braces, with the exception of #3 (directly beneath the wing's trailing edge) are 3-1/8" long. Carefully cut all
five
to length.
#3
is 3-5/8" long,cut this one as well. Carefully position the two fuselage frames upside down, over the top view of the plans. Block or pin as needed to hold them in place at right angles to your work surface. (NOTE: Due to the slight incidence angle in these frames, they will not fit flat
to the surface. This is not important at this time.)
Locate two of the1/4" x 1"
x3-5/8"
ply formers. Epoxy these in place in the notches located on the bottoms of the F-5's. Glue bottom cross-braces 4, 5 and 6 in place between the two fuselage frames and allow to set. Remove the frame from the work surface, turn it over and install the three remaining cross-braces, 1, 2 and 3 in place. Now epoxy the remaining 1/4" x 1" x 3-5/8" ply
wing
hold-down former in place on top of
F-9.
5
Loading...
+ 10 hidden pages