F4U Corsair Instruction Page

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The following pictures will show you step by step how to assemble the Corsair by JK Aerotech. Be aware that this page has some 40 pictures in it and they will start to load from the top so take your time and the pictures should be loaded before you get to them. 

This is an incredible machine. What's even more impressive is that it is constructed of Styrofoam and packing tape and a couple of other odd-ball materials. Actually what it's made of is precisely why it is so tough. The foam is rigid and the packing tape when reinforced with strapping tape is incredibly strong. If you want a combat aircraft that --- will  track, turn, and cut, will slow to a crawl then go vertical, is completely predictable and responsive, then try this one. Be sure you warn your fellow combatants to never let their little balsa planes get directly in the way of the mighty Corsair because it will, most assuredly, go right through them ----- you will fly again --- they probably won't.

The side captions pretty much follow along with the instructions sent along with the kit and the picture captions sort of highlight important things along the way.

 

Contents:

Fuselage – in two halves.

Wing – two tapered wing panels, right and left, and three piece center section

Horizontal and Vertical tail sections – 4mil coroplast

Fuselage doublers – 2mil coroplast

Aileron stock – cut from extra 4mil material attached to the horizontal tail

1 roll of packing tape – your choice of color or blue since this is a Corsair

Three control horns

Piano wire

 

This is not the Corsair tail grouping but they are put together the same way.

Measure 3" from the front edge of the horizontal tail to locate the hinge line and make the hinge according to the generic instruction set.

Tail group       (see the generic instruction set for tail group then read the following)

 

Trim the tail sections from the coroplast and save the excess. From the left-over coroplast you will trim strips for the ailerons and a filler strip for the trailing edge of the gull wing center section (this will be covered in detail below). Slice off three strips of coroplast from the horizontal tail left-overs by counting three complete ribs and slicing along the forth rib. You will want the ailerons so that they and the center filler will have three complete ribs with flashing on each side when you look at the end view. Set these aside, they will be used later.

 

The elevator is “self hinged” as per the main instruction set and the hinge line is located at about 3 inches from the front edge of the horizontal stabilizer.  After cutting the hinge and properly setting it up, slip the horizontal tail into the vertical tail and locate the tab into the slot and set up and glue as per the generic instruction set. While these are drying lets go on to the wing.

 

Same here, this is the Mustang tail but set up and glue the F4U the same way. Block them up square and run a bead of Goop or silicone along the top of the joint.

Note: Goop will melt un-taped Styrofoam! Make sure anything you put Goop on has at least 2 layers of tape. Silicone will not melt anything. Goop will work great on coroplast.

  

Trim the trailing edge so the thickness is constant from the root to the tip. You may have to sand it a little with a sanding board. The idea is to have the 4mil coroplast aileron fit up to a trailing edge that is the same thickness as itself.

 The wing is the hardest so I like to get this done first. This wing is a little more time consuming than our other planes but with a little care and perseverance you will be rewarded with a very strong and durable bent-wing Corsair that will look great and fly incredibly well. This is a semi-symmetrical airfoil of the E-205 variety so the flattest surface is the bottom. The first thing to do is to remove the wings and center sections from their sleeves and lay them out – top side up. Since these are tapered wings you will need to trim the trailing edge for constant thickness as per the general instruction set.

Now sand all the wing and center section surfaces smooth with about 150 grit sand paper. The smoother the surface – the better the tape will stick!

find a block to set the center section on so the tips will rest on the table. Temporarily tape them together and make sure they are the same angle down and be sure to get the incidence (angle of the wing panel in relation to the center section) exactly the same. Glue with epoxy. 

 The center section consists of three parts: the center and a right and left “down” section to start the gull wing. These already have the angles cut in them but due to the limitations of hot wire cutting you may have to sand the joints smooth with a flat sanding board before gluing them together. Be sure not to change the angles as you sand and do a trial fit to see that the butt joints fit with no gaps and that the gull wing drops equally on both sides. Use some masking tape to temporarily hold the three pieces together and find a suitable block to support the center section level with the table and so the ends of the “gull drop” just touch the table.

Note: before making the wing, check out the Mig 3 instructions for ideas on a stronger and lighter way to make the wings using spars instead of a lot of tape. 

Note: in the instructions included with the kit, the wing tips have already been shaped with the included pattern by the time you get to this point. Go down about three pictures to see how I do that. The choice is up to you, but I do feel that you can make sure the wing tip shape is the same on both panels if you cut them before gluing the wing together.

 The wing panels should have an angle cut in it to match the ends of the gull drop. Here again you may have to sand the end of the wing panel so it fits tight and smooth. The wing tip should mate perfectly with the gull drop center when the wing tips are blocked up at about 3 inches from the table to the top of the wing tip. It is very important to fit all the pieces so they have no gaps. We recommend gluing the wing pieces together using 5 min. epoxy because it sets quickly and fills minor voids in the joints. Before gluing, make sure you will be able to assemble all the pieces so that when done, one wing panel will not be twisted in relation to the other wing panel. To help with this, use the support mentioned above and make sure both drop sections are joined to the center correctly and that both sides are the same angle and equal in relation to the table. If you get a twist here, the wing will not build straight. Now epoxy the drop sections to the center and check alignment before the glue sets. Use enough epoxy to fill any gaps between the sections. Use masking tape to temporarily hold it together. When the glue sets you can then do a final check fit of the wing panels making sure you have some means of blocking the wing panels to the correct alignment and height before gluing. Again, it’s very important to get the wing panels exactly the same incidence to each other. Incidence is the term used to describe the angle a wing or tail plane is relative to another surface, motor thrust line , or one wing panel to another. In our case, we are concerned that we don’t attach one wing panel at a different angle than the other panel because the plane would want to roll and you may not be able to dial in enough trim to counter the roll. Glue the wing panels to the center section.

Sand the outside corners of the wing joints to get rid of the sharp pointy look. This makes a smoother looking wing.

 When the glue sets, sand the excess glue from the joints and kind-of smooth the points where the wing panels and gull centers make outside corners. In other words, instead of a wing that looks like you stuck some sharp angles together, you want the make the wing flow smoothly from one angle to the other by rounding the joints a little bit.  After dusting the wing off, spray it with 3M 77 spray glue and let dry to prime the foam for the tape. Put a strip of masking or strapping tape along each joint top and bottom to help hold the joint. Now lets proceed with the taping.

This is the center filler strip that comes from one of the three strips you cut from the left over coroplast of the horz. tail. Notice the cuts that allow it to make a nice sharp bend at the upper joints.

 If you look closely, you will see a strip of strapping tape along each joint. Before starting the taping, remember the strips of coroplast you cut for the center section and ailerons? We will use one of them now to fill out the trailing edge of the center “gull drop” section. Cut it long enough to reach from one aileron - up and across the center - and down to the other aileron. Cut it a little longer than you will need and mark the center. Find the “center” of the wing center section and align the center of the filler piece on it so you can mark it at the first joints of the “gull drop” - at those marks, cut only the top surface of the filler piece. Make the cuts exactly perpendicular to the edge of the filler piece. This will make a nice and crisp bend at each of the wing joints and allow the filler to follow the gull bends down to the tapered wing panels where the ailerons will attach. Use several strips of strapping tape to hold the filler strip into position on the trailing edge of the wing center and gull drop. Trim the ends off at the gull to wing panel joint.

The wing tip pattern is used to get the shape for wing and ailerons. There is a reference line on the pattern that should be about seven inches from the first wing joint. Our wing panels are a little bit longer than finished size so you could fake it if you want a little longer wing span.

 Now use some masking tape to temporarily tape the ailerons to the trailing edge of the wing panels and tape them so that there is about a 1/8” gap between the wing and aileron and about ¼” clearance between the aileron and the center filler strip you just attached.

This is the bottom curve of the wing tip that you should sand into it. This could have been done before the panels were glued together. On the real F4U, the bottom surface of the wing tip curved up to the top surface. I don't sand the tip to a sharp edge but leave about 1/8 to 3/16 thickness and sand that to a rounded edge.

 

 Cut the provided wing tip pattern from the paper and lay the pattern on the wing. The reference line on the pattern should be Seven inches from the root of the wing and the front edge should line up with the leading edge of the wing core. Draw the curve and trim the wing to the shape. Lay the wings on top of each other and check to see that they are exactly the same (if you haven't already glued everything together). Sand them to match if you have to.  Now turn the wing upside down and sand the bottom of the wing tip so as to thin the wing tip edge to about 1/8” thick. You will sand a gentle curve from the wing tip to where it smoothes in to the bottom of the wing at about 3 or 4 inches from the tip. The real Corsair had the wing tips like this so we will do the same. If you don’t you will have a wing that will work OK but will be really thick at the tip. Remove the ailerons and set aside.

Use you finger to solidly push the tape into the gully and it helps to support the wing during the initial tape layering.

I usually start all phases of the the taping on the bottom side of the wing.  No good reason, I guess, except that when you wrap the excess tape around the edge, the top of the wing will look better and the bottom will end up with the raw edges of the tape. So I just got in the habit of doing the bottom first.

 Start the wing taping with strips of filament strapping tape running span wise with three strips on the top and three strips on the bottom at the thickest portion of the wing (where you would normally install a spar). Do not stretch these any more than necessary to keep the wrinkles out or straighten out a bowed wing. Leave the ends about an inch long to wrap over the wing tip. ALWAYS make sure the tape is pushed firmly and stuck well into the bent gull wing joints.

It is very important to get the tape to stick into the gully of the bends.

Note the built up tape running chord-wise on the gully of the gull wing. The same tape build-up is also on underside of the wing, only on the next joint between the center section and the down section. Also note the whole center section fully covered, past the last joint and onto the tapered wing panel, with strapping tape. 

  After the full-length tapes, we want to cover the bent portions of the wing completely with strapping tape running span wise. I start with the bottom of the wing at the trailing edge filler strip we just installed and work forward. Lay the tape side by side until the center is covered from trailing to leading edge. It is hard to tape from wing panel to wing panel in one continuous piece because of the gully formed by the center gull section. So to make it easier, and actually ad more strength, I start the tape past the opposite joint about an inch from the direction I am taping. So that when I have taped from the center both ways, the center and the first joint will have two layers of tape on them. I also run each strip of tape past the tapered wing panel joint about 4 inches toward the tip.

note the span length strapping tape (It was installed first but this picture shows it better than the previous ones)

This is the wing with all the strapping tape finished top and bottom to the point that we can now start taping with the colored tape.

 . The curve of the airfoil will make the tape want to over lap at the ends – don’t worry about it – let it over lap a little. Just make sure to get good adhesion in the joints. Wings take the most stress at the fuselage out to about 1/3 of the wing, so the main idea here is to reinforce that area completely with strapping tape before applying the colored tape.

Now if you want really strong wing joints or intend to install a motor larger than .25, you could sand a shallow trough across the gull center and out into the wing panel four to six inches or so. Make it about an inch or two wide and lay some carbon fiber and/or a layer or two of fiberglass tape in it and epoxy it. But you would have to do this before starting the strapping tape. Then when it is dry, sand it smooth and proceed with the taping as outlined here. This not necessary for a durable and great flying plane but would definitely produce a strong wing. 

After the bottom is taped with strapping tape, turn the wing over and do the same thing to the top surface of the wing starting at the trailing edge and working forward. Again, I like to see the center and the first joints with a double layer of tape because they take the most stress. After the center is covered with strapping tape top and bottom, stick four pieces of strapping tape in the “gully” joints (the inside radius of the wing joints), from leading to trailing edge. Put one strip down then two more strips side-by-side centered over the first one. Then lay one more strip over the center of the last two. Stretch them tight and stick them down firmly. This will build up the gully joints and strengthen them. Do the same to all the inside bends of the gull wing section.

This is a little difficult, but don't stress out if you get a few wrinkles. The important thing here is (if you haven't figured this out by now) to get the tape stuck well into the gully. I sound like a broken record, but it really is important! 

Go ahead and stretch the tape as you apply it and it will conform better to the compound curves. Then try an iron to help smooth and stick the tape, (if you have one, not totally necessary but helpful). Poke bubbles to let air out.

 Now we are ready to start putting colored packing tape on the center section. Again start on the bottom of the wing. We are going to run tape from leading to trailing edge starting in the center with about a half to one inch overlap on the preceding tape strip. Do this from the center both ways past the wing panel joint about 3 inches and you could double the tape at the joints. Wrap the ends over the leading and trailing edge to the opposite surface. When doing the inside joints (the gullies right over the seam), the tape will want to pull and wrinkle in a funny way. You can make it go on fairly smooth by gripping the center of each end of the tape and stretching it firmly as you stick it into the trough of the joint and kind of pull, stick, and smooth the edges as you work from BACK TO FRONT. Or you can stick the tape down one side of the trough and cut hash marks along the other edge so the tape will conform better to the trough and the curve of the airfoil, see the generic instruction set for tips on covering compound curves. You can also cut hash marks to help the tape conform to the outside corners of the wing joints. A Monokote iron works good to stick, smooth, and shrink the tape a little too. Remember to smooth the tape into the joint trough to get the best adhesion possible and if you get bubbles, poke them with a needle or Xacto knife and push the air out. Above all, don’t stress out too much about wrinkles. We will be putting on another coat of tape running span wise in a minute. Turn the wing over to the topside and do the same thing with the colored packing tape stretching it from leading edge to trailing edge and using about a one inch overlap. Leave the tape about an inch long and wrap around the leading and trailing edge to the bottom side of the wing. Again, double the tape over all the wing joints.

You can also cut hash marks to help the tape conform to the outside corners of the wing joints. A Monokote iron works good to stick, smooth, and shrink the tape a little too. Remember to smooth the tape into the joint trough to get the best adhesion possible and if you get bubbles, poke them with a needle or Exacto knife and push the air out. Above all, don’t stress out too much about wrinkles. We will be putting on another coat of tape running span wise in a minute. Turn the wing over to the topside and do the same thing with the colored packing tape stretching it from leading edge to trailing edge and using about a one inch overlap. Leave the tape about an inch long and wrap around the leading and trailing edge to the bottom side of the wing. Again, double the tape over all the wing joints.

Notice the tape is heavier at the joints!!

 After the center of the wing is covered thoroughly, you need to decide how to work the ailerons. There are two possible ways: 1, a single center servo with flex cable to each aileron or, 2, a micro servo in each wing.

 The flex cable would need a channel to be cut from where the cable would exit the wing to the aileron control horn, up the gull wing to the center where it could intersect the servo horn. Do the same on the opposite wing. Sink the servo into the wing so that a continuous cable would thread through one tube through a quick-connect fitting and down the other tube. Leave enough cable sticking out for threaded ends to be soldered on for clevis ends to connect to the control horns. If you aren’t familiar with this type of control system I would use the next option……

Sink a micro servo into each wing and connect them with a Y connector. We have Y connectors in stock for a plug-in installation or you could solder the servos together with three-conductor wire and make a pigtail that will be long enough to route up to the receiver in the cockpit area. Use an FMA S80 to S100 servo and lay them side ways so the servo horn sticks up through a slot in the wing. Make a snug fitting pocket at the correct angle so the horns on the aileron and the servo are in line and at right angles to the aileron hinge line. Give the servo arm enough clearance to operate freely. To route the wires up the wing to the center you can either lay them on top of the colored tape and tape over them or cut a tiny channel up the gull wing and bury the wires in them, then make them disappear with a strip of tape, your choice. After you figure out where to run the wires and get them in place, cut about a 2” x 2” piece of cereal box cardboard (see four pictures down) with a slot in it for the control horn to cover the servo hole. This will strengthen the wing at the servo area. Glue the cardboard reinforcement over the servo and tape it over with colored tape. BUT FIRST check the servo action to see that all is working properly and that the servos are centered and the control horns move unrestricted.

Start by laying the aileron upside down on a strip of tape, trim and fold the tape around the trailing edge of the aileron but leave the tape long at the hinge line.

With the wing upside down, stick the aileron on to the wing with about an 1/8 inch gap between the aileron and the back edge of the wing. Turn the wing over and press the tape onto the wing to make it stick good, but only after making sure it is where you want it!!

 After the servos are tested and working, install the ailerons. Refer to the generic instruction set for and detailed discussion on how to do that or follow these pictures for a little different method.

Turn the wing over. Fold the aileron back and temporarily hold it there with a piece of masking tape.

 

Now run a strip of packing tape along the folded over aileron. line the edge of the tape up with the trailing edge of the aileron and smooth the excess around the edge and stick onto the bottom surface of the wing. When you open up the aileron, turn the wing upside down and run a blunt object along the hinge line to stick the top tape and the bottom tape to each other. Presto!, you have a very strong hinge!

 

Here we are with the ailerons attached and the cardboard glued over the servos.

This is the final taping from leading to trailing edge. I do this to help keep the tape running tip to tip in place in the gullies. Again, it is very important to make the tape stick firmly in the gully of the gull bend. Notice here how the edge of the tape is sliced to help it bend into the gully.

 After fitting the ailerons, start taping the bottom of the wing using the general taping convention of starting at the trailing edge and working forward, overlapping each successive strip about ¼ inch as per the generic instruction set. The only difference on the Corsair is that if you want to two-tone it with white, you would do the bottom with white tape. In fact, for the white under side color scheme, you should have used the white for the underside of the first taping of the center section. If you didn’t – oh well. When final taping the wing, it is still difficult to run tape from wing tip to wing tip in one piece so start each strip in the center and go up the gull wing and out to the tip, then do the same to the opposite wing. Just work back and forth until the whole underside is covered. The gull wing will tend to throw off the overlap margins a bit but don’t worry about it too much. The important thing is to get the whole wing covered and again make sure the tape sticks well in the gullies of the gull wing joints. Leave the tape about an inch long to wrap around the edges to the topside.

The wing is finished and if done this way, will withstand all the hi -g turns you throw at it.

After the whole wing is taped going span-wise, put one more layer of tape chord-wise (leading edge to trailing edge) form the servo area to the center and stretch it in real well. This will help keep the tape sticking tight into the trough made by the gull wing joint.

Turn the wing over and apply the final tape, span-wise,  the same way as you did the bottom. Trim the edges to let about ¾ inch wrap over the edges to the bottom. Again, put one more layer of tape chord-wise (leading edge to trailing edge) from the servo area up the gull to the center and stretch it in real well. It is a good idea to hook the servos up to the ailerons and temporarily set up a radio to see that all is working well.

 

Note: before you go further with tank, throttle and doubler installation, check out the Mig 3 instructions for a new and easier method of assembly.

I have already sanded the fuselage to the shape and the under belly of the plane is removed so the wing can be installed. The firewall was temporarily stuck to the fuse for the sanding and now I am ready to drill the engine mount and cut the clearance for the muffler.

 WOW! What a job!! You are now about 80% done with the Corsair. The fuse is next and you will need to have your engine, tank, motor mount, and radio gear in hand for the final leg of this project. You should have already assembled the tail group and it should be cured by now. If you haven’t done that, do it now. Next you will need to make a firewall of suitable material. I usually use ¼ plywood. Cut out the firewall template and use it for the correct shape for this plane. You will notice that the firewall is not exactly round. While this plane is very close to scale, the sides are flattened a bit to make muffler clearance less of an issue and will also allow airflow through the cowl if you use a round bleach bottle for the cowling as outlined later. You will probably have to saw a divot in the edge of the firewall to clear the muffler so you will need to check that by setting the engine and mount up. Drill the firewall to accept T-nuts for the engine mount and set it up so the thrust line of the engine is in the exact middle of the firewall. Now take the two fuselage halves and glue them together using 3m 77 spray glue. Take care to get them lined up perfectly. Before sticking the firewall on, temporarily set the engine and mount up with the firewall, slide the tail group in position and check the overall length of the plane. You should end up with a length of 33 to 34 inches from the end of the tail to the prop. If your engine/mount combination is too long, just whack off the fuse a little making sure to keep the face of the fuse the same angle. Use a light coat of spray glue to temporarily stick the firewall on. Now your sculpting talents will come in to play. The firewall will establish the main shape of the nose but you will have to round out the canopy area and the aft section of the fuse. A couple good pictures of a Corsair would be helpful but you can be as fussy or un-fussy as you want. We have some suggested cross-sections included that might help. You will have to remove a lot of material so use a sanding board with very course sandpaper, about 40 grit, for rough sanding. A Shur-Form tool works great for fast foam removal. These are wood working tools that look kind of like a cheese grater. When you get the shape close to what you want, switch to a finer sandpaper grit, about 100-150, to get a nice smooth finish for the tape to stick to. After you get the fuse shaped, cut off the under-wing belly so you can get the wing into the fuse, check the fit and dig some clearance in the foam for the aileron servo/wires.

Here the tank cavity is made and the fit checked. Use a scrap of foam to wedge the tank to the rear of the cavity. 

 Now we need to dig a pocket for the fuel tank. Since the fuselage is very thick, and my engine throttle arm is on the right side of the motor, I installed my tank from the left side of the plane just a little higher than center of the fuse. Use a 4oz tank, round tanks fit well, and get the plumbing set up for the clunk and pressure line. Bring the two brass tubes straight out about ½ inch and locate the tank about an inch back from the back of the firewall. Dig the tank cavity out of the foam so the tank will fit snug and just far enough into the fuse to clear the fuselage doublers that will go over the side. This will put the tank to the left of center (no, we’re not talking politics here) giving plenty of foam area to the right to run a throttle pushrod without goring the tank. Use a scrap of foam to wedge between the front of the tank and the firewall to protect the fuel lines in case of a sudden stop. Now drill two holes to pull the fuel lines through the firewall in a convenient place for your particular motor. Incidentally, we have an old K&B .20 that we use for combat. This plane flies vertically on that and a Royal .25 that happened to be kicking around. We have not used anything bigger but there is plenty of space in the engine room so bigger engines should be no problem. Just be aware that if you go bigger, that will mean faster and heavier so carbon fiber or fiberglass wing reinforcement would definitely be in order.

Use a dowel with sandpaper wrapped around it to make the divot in the foam for the muffler.

 After sanding the fuse, check the muffler clearance to the fuse. If you had to saw a divot in the edge of the firewall, then you will have to sand the fuse to match that. Most mufflers will clear nicely if you glue sandpaper to a dowel and use it to sand a smooth crease from the firewall back tapering it out to nothing several inches back. You can now remove the firewall and re-glue it using more permanent methods like a good coat of 77 spray glue or epoxy

Score the inside of the doublers along the ribs to help it bend around the cowl.

 After the tank location is secured, take the fuselage doublers and check for fit. The doublers will be attached so that the wing saddle area is flush with fuselage wing saddle. The first thing to do before gluing them on is to locate and cut a trap door in the side your tank is on for easy tank repair/removal. Cut a three sided box over the tank area large enough to remove the tank, with the forth side being a hinge line along a rib of the coroplast. Don’t cut the door off but let the coroplast form a hinge so you can close it and tape over it. Then if you need to get to the tank, slice through the tape and bend open the door. Now, before you glue on the doublers, use strapping tape to cover the firewall and seal the front of the foam. Just run strips across the firewall and down the fuse about 2 inches until the nose and firewall are completely covered. Take the doublers and score the inside along the ribs with a blunt object. This helps them to conform to the curve of the cowl of the Corsair.

The fit is checked and firewall is sealed with strapping tape before the doublers are glued on with 3M77 spray glue.

 You can leave the doublers long to form a cowl around engine or you can slice them off at the firewall and make a cowl out of a half gallon Clorox bleach bottle. Check out our web site for pictures of both ways and you decide which you like better. Using the doublers is a very easy way to do it and doesn’t look too bad. Besides, it sure makes the engine much more accessible. If the doublers are too long or you want to shorten the nose length of the plane, just cut off the front of the doublers so they clear the back of the prop.

. In any case, we have included some extra 2mil coroplast for filling in the space the doublers miss on the top and bottom of the nose from the firewall back to the start of the canopy.

It is time now to glue the side doublers on with 77 spray glue. You have already scored the inside of them along the ribs so they should bend nicely and fit the round front of the fuselage. 

 

The incredible strength of the this plane comes from the way the nose is wrapped in 2mil coroplast that is stapled through to the firewall. This is further enhanced with strapping tape wrapped all around the nose and wing saddle. I fully expect that you could drill this plane straight in and the nose would be intact. You would buy a new engine, though.

 Be sure to put the one with the tank hatch on the correct side! After the fuse doublers are glued on, there will be a space on the top of the fuse from the front of the canopy to the firewall and underneath the fuse from the front of the wing to the firewall that will need to be covered with scrap 2mil coroplast. This is the secret to the incredible strength of the nose section of this plane. After sticking the doublers on and filling the gaps between them over the top and underneath, use strapping tape and wrap strips of it around the fuselage to pull the coroplast tight to the fuse and smooth the edges of the doublers.

Notice the muffler clearance and the top filler piece that fills the gap between the doublers (there is plenty of left over material on from the 2mil doubler sheet). Strapping tape is wrapped around the front end and pulled tight to conform the 2mil to the fuse curve.

 Run these side by side from the firewall to the canopy and do the same under fuse. I would recommend running strips across the wing saddle to pull the doublers in tight to the fuse there also. After the nose section is wrapped with tape you can make the front of the plane nearly “bullet proof” if you use a hand or air staple gun and staple through the coroplast into the edge of the firewall. If you don’t have a stapler, short wire nails or small hammer driven staples will work also. You will have to take care not to staple or nail any of your fuel lines – that could be a problem. You don’t have to staple the firewall in, but I can tell you from personal experience that the nose of this plane will become a battering ram that will go through anything in it’s way. 

Notice the filler piece in front of the wing saddle filling the gap between the doublers

  

You can see in these pictures the strapping tape covering the wing saddle and the top and bottom filler pieces. 

 There is only one more thing to do before actually covering the fuselage. The upper rear portion of the doublers form the lower edge of the canopy line so you will need to slice off the canopy across the front and along those lines and then straight up from the back point of the doublers. This will give you a sort-of scale looking canopy. Remove the canopy and you can start taping the fuse with the colored tape.

The canopy is marked and cut off. Try to follow a line that would be close to the real canopy line.

  

If you are two-toning the fuse, start on the bottom with the white and work up. Leave the ends long enough to double back into the engine room and up to the firewall. Then after you are done taping, the firewall will get a layer of colored tape before the mount is screwed on. 

Fuselage taping

 

The first thing to do is run a strip of strapping tape down each side from the front to the back of the plane. Then cover the wing saddle with at least two layers of colored tape.

 

The wing and tail section can be attached now. Use a spot of Goop at the front and rear of the wing saddle then put a fillet along the fuse to wing transition to glue the wing and seal the gap. Spray a wet coat of 77 spray glue on the part of the tail that goes into the fuse and slide it in position. gently clamp it or hold it until the glue sticks.

 Basically you will follow the taping instruction in the generic instruction set. Tape up the complete fuselage. Tape up the canopy separately. Tape up the under wing belly section that you cut off earlier. After the fuse is taped, glue the wing into the wing saddle with a spot of GOOP at the front and back and run a fillet of GOOP along the wing to fuselage gap to stick the wing and seal it from fuel. Be sure to line the wing up carefully before Goop-ing it, because after the glue sets – it’s a pain to remove it!

Canopy

The canopy should be taped now and after the radio gear is in you may have to carve some clearance out of the inside. Just be sure you can tape the canopy on without it interfering with servo arms and such.  

 

The under belly can be glued back on with spray glue and then taped over

 OH! One more thing, before sticking the wing you will had to have bored a hole from where your aileron servo wire exits the wing through the fuse into the canopy area because that’s where the radio gear is going. Take the completed tail assembly and slip it into the slots at the back of the fuse to check fit and when you are sure everything is fitting well, glue it in as the main instruction outlines.

 

 

This may be a little confusing but the battery is to the right under the front cowling. The switch is siliconed in just above it and the lever sticks out of a hole in the doubler on the other side of the plane. I let the charge cord hang out under the canopy line when it is taped on. In the foreground, are the elevator servo (left) and the throttle servo (right). The receiver is barely visible just above the elevator servo. It gets tucked back into a pocket under the rear deck. I think it is good to keep as much distance from the battery as possible and sink it in a little where it can't be chopped by some guys prop.

 Refer to the main instructions for the radio and servo installation details because it will be about the same. This plane has ample room under the canopy for all the radio gear. You can dig back under the rear deck to make a pocket for the receiver or battery depending how you need to distribute weight. The center of gravity for this plane is at 2 ½ inches from the leading edge of the wing at the side of the fuse. Use the battery to help obtain that point by shifting it fore and aft. You can always cut another trap door in the front deck of the nose to hide a battery or throttle servo or whatever. If you check the web out, you can see how our plane is laid out, but real quickly – the battery (standard Futaba square pack) is in a hole bored forward from the canopy under the front deck. The elevator servo is to the rear of the right side of the canopy and the wire pushrod runs through about a ¼ inch dia. hole bored through the fuse to a convenient exit spot close to the elevator. The throttle servo is in front of the elevator servo at the right front of the canopy and the throttle pushrod runs through a hole bored through the front of the fuse and exits through a hole in the firewall at a convenient spot that will connect with the carb throttle. Be careful not to drill the fuel tank if you bore through the front!! That is why the tank was installed to the left side of the fuse, so the throttle pushrod could use the right side. The switch is installed on the left side of the fuse in a pocket under the canopy so the switch knob pokes through a slot in the coroplast doubler. These are all just suggestions. Use your imagination and if you come up with a better way – use it!

It really doesn't look too bad with the fuse doublers forming a sort-of cowl. You could jazz it up a little with checkerboard or something. 

I didn't notice when I took the picture, but the wide angle lens really distorted the wing in the foreground on both these pictures. OOPS

Control set up and cowl

The kit includes control horns so the ailerons should be installed already and you probably have the elevator horn installed too. Set the deflection at 3/8 inch up or down for the ailerons and ¾ inch up or down for the elevator. These numbers give this plane incredible turning power and precise control. Our Corsair has been battle tested already, and believe me when I say that this plane is a formidable opponent!! We set ours up with a bleach bottle cowl and K&B .20 and is turning a heavy fiberglass 10x5 prop. You will need as large a prop as your engine will turn because of the size of the cowl

 

If you install a cowl, you will need to purchase a ½ gallon bottle of Clorox bleach. Someday we might have formed cowls and canopies but this works well and is cheap! Some peanuts and cashews come in poly-carbonate clear jars that might also work but the nuts cost about $8 bucks. 'Course you could eat them while you build the kit and you should finish them about the time you need the cowl! Anyway, cut off the top of the bottle and cut the bottom out leaving about ½ inch flange all around. Trim the end that fits over the firewall so the overall length is about 4 to 5 inches. A nice touch is to make slices around the perimeter of the back of the cowl and bend them out like the vents in the real plane. I spray painted the cowl with dark blue Rustoleum and made some checkerboard paper on my computer to wrap around it. Cover the paper with clear packing tape to protect it from the engine oils. You will need to cut a hole for the engine head and muffler clearance. Then you can use #4 pan head screws to attach the cowl to the firewall. If you were thinking ahead, you could have installed some pads of 1/8” plywood under the tape to screw too (or do now, stick them on with Goop and tape over them). If you do that, you would have accomplished two important things 1) strong cowl attachment, and 2) held the cowl off the fuse for a little bit of flow-through venting which would keep the motor cooler and help the plane to go faster by allowing the air to escape. That is why the fuse is flattened on the sides, to allow some air to flow through the cowl.

Flying

 

You will should have a buddy to launch this plane. It is almost too big to launch it by your self; at least it is for me. Make sure all the controls work and move in the correct direction and set the ailerons and elevator level. There are two ways to launch that work well. The first way is overhead by supporting the under-wing area with one hand and grasping the fuse behind the wing with the other for the push. Or grasp the wing tip with one hand and the top of the fuse with the other and give it a solid push towards the sky. Either way, with a strong motor, it will pretty much take off on it’s own. The corsair is big and easy to see and despite it’s size is very maneuverable. It will glide slowly and beautifully. Landings are gentle and stable. Clean up the oil and fuel with mineral spirits. If you need to make field repairs, wash the repair area with a rag soaked with mineral spirits and wipe with a clean, dry cloth. Repeat a time or two until you can get good tape adhesion.

  We hope you enjoy flying the big bent wing bird as much as we do.

Thanks, JKA