1923 B3 'Charlotte II' in 1:3 Scale

[Boondawg]

Boondawg, please visit often! It is a fiendish plot of mine (and possibly others here?) to convert you (and others) into a scale sailplane builder! Thanks so very much for visiting here. I appreciate it very much!

Thanx, but I foresee the pleasure being all mine!
I'm already^schemingdreaming !

[ARUP]

Boondawg, please visit often! It is a fiendish plot of mine (and possibly others here?) to convert you (and others) into a scale sailplane builder! Once you've experienced the poetry of scale aerotowing and scale thermal flight you will almost forget about everything else! If you have any questions about any building techniques shown please feel free to ask! Thanks so very much for visiting here. I appreciate it very much!

PS- even Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni had to start somewhere! Keep 'paintin'-by-numbers' until you can make your own canvas and paint! It'll happen with experience.

[Boondawg]

Greetings!
I registered here just to let ARUP know that I was only here about 2 minutes before I fell hopelessly in love.
What craftsmanship!

I have been dreaming about trying to build those kind of wing ribs since I first learned of them, some 40 years ago.
To my eye, there is something quite beautiful about intricate skeletal structures.
Especially those that fly.

Back in the day, I couldn't even bring myself to cover some of my finished builds.
But with the clear & semi-clear coverings now, it's a whole new ball game for my particular....perversion.

I predict I am going to be peeping around here for quite some time!

Post Script: I am preparing to build a couple of cheap little vintage Balsa kits (Carl Goldberg Electra Deluxe & Mirage 550) that I built as a very young man & recently reacquired, but nothing like the complex masterpieces I see here!
I'm in the Sistine Chapel, just paintin'-by-numbers!

[eric spore]

A second link with a video after all modifications presented here above are implemented. Everything changed.

[eric spore]

What a pity! I'm very sorry after so many effort.
I checked the CG of my own Charlotte II. CG is at 15,6% of the mean chord. This means that the static margin is 9%. This is not unusual for a flying wing. Coming back to 25%on yours may not be the solution according to me.
Are you sure CG is really the problem ? I reinstate that mine at several issues at the time of her maiden flight among them lack of response on yaw axis and roll axis. I increased aileron angular displacement to +-45% instead of +-30° and combined aileron and elevator in order to improve roll reactivity. Then I modified the vertical fin in order to make it steerable.
And everything changed then.
Without a video it may be difficult to diagnose what went wrong to your Charlotte. Do you have any video ?
I hope you will rebuild her and try again. Good luck.

[Spookyeng]

Sorry to hear about the madien Michael, I hope you decide to rebuild it!

Jason

[Swiss1]

It was a great piece of work as always, we discussed it on the way home yesterday and maybe Jelly will build a smaller scale version. In the mean time he is staying focused by building his ASW 20 for it's maiden at Clover Creek...............back in the saddle my boy

Jeremy and Ben
SCCAAA TT TN

[Tom McP]

Michael,

Very sorry to hear of Charlotte's demise, it was truly a work of art. Don't beat yourself up too badly about the CG. Plank type wings are notoriously sensitive and 20/20 hindsight is always perfect! It's loss does nothing to diminish the talent in design and craftsmanship you exhibited in creating it. I look forward to your next project and hope to see you next Spring at SERA.

Best Wishes,

Tom McP.

[Tango Juliet]

I saw a short video clip on someones Flickr account of the initial tow and I thought I saw something flutter. So sorry to hear of the unfortunate event. She sure was a beauty. I have no doubt that time will see you return to it.

[lenb]

This model was a piece of art. It's a total shame she is not going to live on and grace the fields of upcoming events.
Thanks for letting me be part of the adventure, even if it was the bad part.
If we listened to our guys and pulled a bunch of weight out of the nose, she might be flying well.
Overall, the plane was pretty stable, looked fantastic in the air and towed very well. Once released, the nose came over and she proceeded to pick up speed, which would slightly raise the nose, which would slow the plane and drop the nose again. rinse and repeat. Eventually, airspeed gave way to altitude and boom.

It doesn't look like a total loss to the untrained eye, but Michael certainly knows if it's worth it or not.

[ARUP]

This thread is pretty much done. Poor Charlotte died a slow death on the maiden. The tow was fairly uneventful. The wing root gap cover came off and a strut(?) fluttered at the start. Jim Dolly, the tow pilot, immediately reduced power (dang... he's good!) and it seemed to tow okay but stupid me had the c.g. too far forward. I should have trusted my chuck glider 'guesstimate' of 25% MAC but.... after release the model descended in a slow left hand turn, just barely touched the roof of a vehicle in the commercial lot next to the field until impacting an ~4" pole. The fuselage is 'toast' and one wing panel broken through the spar near the root. I'm not going to rebuild it just yet. I'll have to ponder things for a while. Len was the test pilot and he was concerned for the c.g., too! Dang... he's good, too! He felt bad but it is totally my fault for not having the c.g. properly placed. I want to thank everyone for the 'lurks', 'looks', laughs and comments on this build. I want to thank everyone for their sympathy and, lastly, want to thank John Bawcum, the nice young lady who escorted us to the broken model and the folks of Braun Ability, Inc, whose vehicle I damaged, for their kindness and understanding.

[Dion Dunn]

Saw pics of her on Facebook. Looks good, and hope she flies well.

[oldstuff]

you might try the plastic corners for drywall. with carpet double side tape. the 3rd cent

[Tango Juliet]

I was going to suggest fiberglass tape, but the aluminum tape might actually be a better idea.

[Swiss1]

If I may add my 2 cents Jelly, cover all the edges with alluminium duct tape, as whey will eventually get dented no matter how careful you are!