P51 Mustang -Build-

[MarkSSC]

Hi Guys,

This is the start of my build thread but I have to be honest, I have already started. While I am in the apology mood, I would also say that I do not take many photos, so if you need pictures they may not arrive until near the end. The P51 project has grown from my initial research into the choice of model I would like to build. I have spent a lot of time on this and do recommend the process that sifts and sorts historical and technical information. For me it also provides the story around which I am going to build my plane.

I have already built one scale plane and wanted to make this one a step upwards in challenge. The magazine article that accompanied Frank Baxters plans also attracted me because he was considering a number of aerodynamic details not normally considered with this type of plane. Being the believing type, I hope that this plane has good flight characteristics and scale presence. It will be better than standoff scale but may not have all the details of those large commercial kits. Build time and space within the structure will determine detail levels for sure.

Historically I plan that the final finish represent a machine used by the RAAF. Their Mustangs saw service in Korea and were phased out in 1959. Coincidently this is the year I was born in. In a scale sense this P51 is not large, the wingspan is 1370mm. The plans I am using come from this website however I am adding some mods, like full retracts, and making the size suit the components I can afford within my budget. It will also be electric because that powerplant suits the size and shape of the engine bay for scale effect. Four stroke engines were considered but unfortunately they take up too much room for a model this size. The electric system has the advantage of creating a streamline cowl and four blade prop for flying with. On the down side I do have to create access for the battery and the engine sound is not as good. I do like the idea of not having to worry about fuel proofing or cleaning off oil. The paintwork will love me for this.

I am a slow builder. So far I have cut out my wing ribs and will be fitting these over the spars in the coming week or so. Considerable thought has to be applied to the modification of the structure to accomodate the retracts. The original did not have these, and to be realistic I am going to fit inboard doors and tail wheel retraction as well. I have sourced my hardware for this, including a sequencer. It all works on the bench but fitting it into the wing will be an exercise in creative problem solving. Only the really big models have inboard doors and the space is really limited for the servo. All problems are solvable but not necessarily obvious so watch this spot. For now, it is time to get back to the shed and jig all the ribs and spars into place. By the way, I am a great fan of aliphatic resin and only touch the superglue in real emergencies. The resin makes for slower building times but you can't beat its strength and bond durability.

[Pumita Sensual]

Helloo from Argentina, I love P51 Mustang models, I remember me playing with lead planes and my favorite was the P51 when i was a kid! Now I must to do an adult toy scale rc version to remember these old days jeje..
Im searching for P51 blueprints, if you can help me I will never forget that  .

Take care (sorry my spanglish )

[ironmike]

I can get you a 31" span stick n tissue version.

[Bell Models]

Shameless advertising...

Check my drawings in the Builder's Plan Gallery. They are probably as close as you may get to. They are drawn using factory information, photos and blueprints. The airfoils and horizontal stabilizer are modified for rubber power. I addition, canopies are available from Golden Age Reproductions. Attached is a photo of my P-51H, which was a very successful free flight version.

John Bell 

[Pumita Sensual]

I can get you a 31" span stick n tissue version.

Can you?? 
I give you my gmail: juanpablomeil989@gmail.com
Thanks a lot 

[Pumita Sensual]

Shameless advertising...

Check my drawings in the Builder's Plan Gallery. They are probably as close as you may get to. They are drawn using factory information, photos and blueprints. The airfoils and horizontal stabilizer are modified for rubber power. I addition, canopies are available from Golden Age Reproductions. Attached is a photo of my P-51H, which was a very successful free flight version.

John Bell 

Wowww 
That´s amazing, did you build it or you bought it?

[Bell Models]

I designed it and built it.

John

[MarkSSC]

Nice to see your interest in the P51. Pity it is not RC, but I do hold a lot of respect to guys who do ff. Back to my build...I am now well into the wing build but have had to spend heaps of time fixing up up issues with the plan. I am a bit disappointed with the lack of accuracy, something I am finding to be aregular occurance with plans from magazines. In this case I had to redraw the ribs and make modifications for the retracts and spars. Doing mods is great if you can add strength and take away unnecessary weight. Tapered wings are very tricky though, and I have learnt from experience that if you build your wing vey precisely then there is a good chance that it will fly accordingly.

[packardpursuit]

Pumita Sensual,
"I am searching for blue prints" Assuming you want NAA P-51 parts and assembly drawings, I've got everything (Mustang 1 -P-51H) on CDs, plus manuals etc. I did some scale drawings too, at 1/16 scale that have generated a fair bit of interest. Got some data on the light weight experimental models too. Willing to trade or help out, if I can.  

MarkSSC,
Your desire for working inboard doors is laudable. However, there may be some are some issues that arise adding complexity/compromise to scale fidelity. On a  "real" P-51, the  gear legs retract at full shock extension. To use scale doors and gear pivot locations, a working shock system or a  fully extended no shock leg is needed. One can use shorter  legs ( to give model correct ground angle)  but the retracted wheel will want to sit outside of the wing outline. Another problem with this solution is the centerline doors are now too short to cover wheels. Extend the doors and they are too tall for scale look ( adequate ground clearance?) or one is forced  move them outboard, off center. Moving pivot point inboard will work but will mess with the visual, as well as narrow up track of wheels. Commercial retracts can be made to fit but there are geometry issue and .eg door configurations won't look correct. Messing with door outlines, no matter where you compromise, seems to adversely affect something else.

For the good news, the tall non-shock model strut is scale for when the aircraft was/is lightly loaded. Down side is there a few photos of thttps://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=40105684&postcount=6he condition and probably none for the particular Mustang you are modeling. It is a provable scale condition and it is the way I decided was probably the least objectionable, in fabrication, simple operation, and visual importance, especially in models up to.60 sized. I've got an exact scale .40 size plan in the works, using off the shelf spinner and wheel diameters that are very close to 1/8 scale, actual.


Here's a link to another project I did a few years back, but is actually in reference to possibility of a current 1/24 scale Rc Mustang, for .010 power. https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=40105684&postcount=6