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Pietenpol Air Camper
by Russ Lister
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When I
first learned of the SFA
website my first port of call was the
free
plans section! My interest was shifting to scale
free flight models and I was looking for a suitable
subject as an introduction. The 28" wingspan
Pietenpol by David Collins
seemed to fit the bill perfectly. Although the original
was rubber powered, I had decided to use my GM120
CO2 motor.
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Construction was straightforward, as is the construction
of the full size aircraft.
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I searched the Internet for a suitable colour scheme
and found an attractive subject being built in Tasmania.
I have been in contact with the owner and as far
as I know the original has still not flown.
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I used Litespan to cover the model, then sprayed
the fuselage with Tamiya acrylic
paint. Though the model has been nearly complete
for just under a year now, I still have a few details
to add once it passes the trimming phase.
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Damage was sustained during early trimming flights
and the model was put away for a while. During this
time I decided to build a peanut scale version using
basically the same plan scaled down. The peanut
version is closer in detail to the subject modeled.
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Later, with the original model repaired and a beautiful
calm evening beckoning, I quickly went off to the
flying field. At first the model was flying in a
tight banked turn. The model cart-wheeled and damaged
the nose. But the weather was perfect, and I felt
that a better flight was within reach. So I strapped
up the nose, opened up the turn and tried again.
Luckily I had my camera with me and decided to shoot
what I could in case I didn’t get another
chance - it flew beautifully!
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To see a video of the Pietenpol in flight, click
here!
(8.41MB download)
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