Park Flyer Electrics
Our Park Flyers are rugged, easy to build, inexpensive, and most importantly - THEY FLY WELL. These planes are designed to fly with the inexpensive GWS 350 or 400 sized power system and NiMh battery as a minimum setup. A brushless system with a LiPoly battery will increase performance. These designs are very rugged and light weight. Our "Snap Strut" system makes field assembly a breeze and minimizes damage in the event of a crash. These designs use a minimum number of pieces and common hardware. Our models are designed with simplicity and economy in mind. They are easy to fly with no bad habits. Get help if you've never flown before, but you should learn quickly with our designs. No expensive tools are needed, but a scroll saw and Moto tool are very handy. Typical flying weight for the biplanes is about 20 ounces and about 16 - 20 ounces for the monoplane designs. These weights are with a brushed power system and 8.4 volt, 750 mah NiMh battery pack. These weights are easy to attain, and can be lowered with careful selection of balsa and components. Less weight flies better.
Construction guidelines:
1) Use light weight balsa and CA glue.
2) All plywood is aircraft ply. Mostly 1/32" and 1/16" with a small amount of 3/32" thickness.
3) Use only covering made for Park Flyers or other light airplanes. Iron-on coverings for larger models are too heavy. There are several brands to choose from. Weight should be on the order of 0.6 oz./square yard. The iron-on films work well and make a nice looking model; however, the colors are limited. Model tissue works well if you want to detail your model with scale or more custom paint schemes.
4) Use radio gear and accessories designed for Park Flyers. Full sized servos, even though they will fit, are too heavy. Use light weight foam wheels or similar.
5) I have used commercial plastic pushrods for the tail & very vlexible cable pushrods for the ailerons and have built pushrods from balsa sticks. I prefer the commercial ones because they are easier, albeit a little heavier.
The follwing pages show some construction photos.
