submikester

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...yep...

Working on the tail last night and will continue tonight. I'm shaping the bits that go on either side of the vertical stab to match the turtle deck. Then I'll be installing the bits to glue the turtle deck and canopy to.

Not much left after that. I may start attempting to work on the cowl. I'll probably get a picture by the end of the night showing the current progress.

submikester

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I test fit the turtle deck with its support stringers last night and then I assembled it to see how it was starting to look.

I'll take a picture of it tonight before I get started on it - it's really coming together. Tonight I will check my balance with all the bits in the right places and determine where the 3 internal servos should be. Once that is done I will start on the radio - hopefully tonight.

WMB

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Does that have the plastic canopy/turtledeck? Also, how easy/difficult is it to sheet the wings?
Thanks, MikeB

dirtmagnet

my kougar has a tuned pipe that runs down the right side of the fuselageand then ends just past the ailreron then with an exhaust deflector and it hardly ever gets very bad at all. i'm about to buy a kougar kit because i never built a kit just bought the kougar and both king kobras pre built. is this plane a good kit for a first time kit build or not. also i'm going to re cover the one i have now. how hard are they to cover. dont have much experience at that either. also one more question, do they fly better with retracts which would make them heavier but more aerodynamic or with fixed which would be lighter but more drag. the one i have now is fixed gear. just need future reference for the one i might build?

submikester

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Yes, it does have an ABS plastic turtle deck and a clear plastic canopy. Sheeting the wings is easy and I use a 3M adhesive spray to do it.

I do believe the Kougar would make a reasonable first kit, graduating from ARFs. I don't think that the Kougar is very good for retracts since it's pretty small and they are hard to work out in it (I tried).

The Kin Kobra however is large enough to warrant them and I would like to give that a go myself one day.

submikester

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just a little at a time; figured out where to put things in the radio compartment and setup the mounting rails. I'll start running control linkages probably tomorrow night.

Here are a couple of progress pictures - it looks like an airplane.

dirtmagnet

i been talkin to one person on here and listening to some of his ideas i think i might want to get a king kobra kit after i get the kougar built and try retracts. man there just isn't much that looks better than an airplane 3 feet off the deck at around 80 mph with gear inside the fuselage. man that looks sweet.

aileron101

dirtmagnet....

I have one thing to say ..... L O W E R ! ! !


Actually I bought my King Kobra ready to fly W/ retracts and a pipe at a swap meet for $175 several years ago. It is indeed a blast to fly. I saw it at the swap meet and had to have it after my experience with the Kougar. I would have probably paid twice that for it. My next kit project is going to be a double King Kobra similar to the one that the late Col. Art Johnson did in the early 80s. In my opinioon that will look really cool down on the deck with the gear up and doing 100+ mph. Plans right now are for a couple of .91s for power (way overkill) I probably wont use tuned pipes initially due to the added cost and the fact that I wont need them.

I have a few ARFS to finish as well as a four* 120 before I will even start on this. I am in the "thinkbuilding" process and beginiing to acquire the goodies needed. I have to procure things gradually so it doesn't seem like I am spending a lot on this wonderful hobby at any one time. - That keeps the wife happier. If she ain't happy nobody is happy!

gentle winds and soft landings!,

Aileron101

BillS

Balance: I like to put the battery behind the former at the front of the wing instead of under the tank so the battery can be easily removed. I also like for the servos to be forward. It is easier for me to correct for nose heavy than tail heavy. Also takes less weight.

Clearance for wing servo linkage is tight if the other servos are not close to the cabin floor. The last one I set up had interference and it took slow me over a day to fix the problems. Burying the aileron servo deep in the wing and 1/4" clearance from servo bottom to cockpit floor for the other servos provided clearance.

I also make a U loop in the steering so the clevis can be adjusted without removing the wing.

A 10 oz. Sullivan tank fits the tank area without sticking through the first former. Engine mount screws will often stick through the blind nuts and chafe the tank so I tape a lite ply ring to the front of the tank for protection.

If the cowl is to slip over the fuselage there will be little room in your pictures.

Bill

WMB

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"My next kit project is going to be a double King Kobra"

What's a double King Kobra??

aileron101

I will try to scan in the SIG ad from the 80s this weekend so that you can see a picture or two of it. But it is basically two fuselages that are attached with about a 20" wing separating them. The fuselages also share a common horizontal stab as well. It very similar to the P-82 mustang (sometimes referred to as an F-82 mustang) It is my understanding that Col. Johnson used to fly the full scale as well as the model of this airplane which no doubt served as some inspiration to his kitbash of the kougar.

dirtmagnet

i never even seen the double KK. that seems like that thing would either scream or fly like a rock. i know that the normal KK flies like a dream. i heard a rumor maybe some of yall heard it? the King Kobra and Kougar are going to come out in ARF. what yall heard on this situation?

submikester

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Well, this evening went well - I installed the rudder, elevator and throttle servos and connected all the linkages except the rudder/nose wheel; I saved that for tomorrow.

Hopefully tomorrow I will get the remainder of the linkages completed, the cowl cut and mounted and the tank worked out.

I'll also start painting the plastic parts. Once those details are complete it'll be time for a finish standing and we'll start covering her. I'm hoping for that to happen on Monday night - I'll work on it all week and hope for a Sunday maiden.

jollyroger

My Feedback: (6)

I'm using Hitec Hs-225BB servos in mine. They are somewhat smaller than the full size ones.
Since I'm using electric power for mine , I have made a hatch from the rear of the canopy to the firewall. It will have to be reinforced with some fiberglass . Since I have so many other projects on the burner LOL, It's going slow. Not enough hours in the day.

BillS

General observation.

I have three Kougar's that I didn't build. Two are covered and weigh 5 1/2 pounds but the painted Kougar weighs 6 1/2 pounds. I have no skill or knowledge about painting but found the information interesting.

Bill

submikester

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I'm just using standard futaba 3004 servos with a hitec HS-55 on the throttle.

nothing special - I really like the Futaba 3003/4 servos - they are very smooth, reliable and just generally work very well.

submikester

My Feedback: (6)

CRAP!

Working on the cowl my easily 20 year old dremel gave up the ghost!

Um...well....guess I need a new dremel.

jollyroger

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Sorry to hear about your Dremel, we put them through a lot of abuse don't we?
I'm looking for the correctly sized pilot figure for mine. I need some info as to where I might find one.
Finally glassed the center section on mine and now going to align the wingtip blocks. I'm going to rough cut them with a bandsaw first and then finish them by hand. I hope the Robart strutcovers work out as they were a little expensive, as well as the two sets of Robart scale wheels I had to buy.
Why in the world can't the manufacturers package them in threes as well as pairs?
Got to order chrome Ultracote, from the LHS as aluminum is no longer available.
Nice to see your coming along with your Kougar. Looks great so far.
Never realized how thick the wing was until I glued them together! LOL[X(]
keep the pics coming.
cheers

submikester

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I picked up a new dremel at the home despot yesterday afternoon and worked on it a bit more last night and today. I cut everything I think I need to cut to get a good fit (it's tight in there) and have mounted it on the blocks. I have also started painting it with top flite aluminum. Looks okay; I think a good quality clear coat would really make it pop as this top flite stuff is just "okay" when dry. I think I will need one more coat on it at least. I'll post pics of the current progress at the end of the evening. I hope to have it ready to start covering by the end of the night and I believe I am on target for that.

I bet the robo struts would look very nice on this plane - I may have to invest in them myself for kicks.

submikester

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Just looked at the price of robo struts.

Pass.

BillS

A short piece of 1/4" neoprene tubing will fix the dremel tool.

Bill

submikester

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I thought it might but I wasn't sure. Well, I really like the new one regardless. My hope is to fix the original.

Past few minutes I've been masking and painting the canopy.

submikester

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Oops - I wish Sig's shipping wasn't so much...I just ruined my canopy (because I'm a dope).

My primer was not dope compatible (I swear I've used the two together before and they worked well) so when I applied the dope to the primed canopy it pretty much melted the primer. Tried to clean it up to redo things but it just made it worse. Hopefully I'll be able to salvage it for the maiden and I'll order another canopy and maybe it will arrive in time.

More pictures tomorrow - I banged my noggin on the garage door and I'm tired. Otherwise the plane is ready to start covering tomorrow.

BillS

Here are two slightly different setups.

Bill

submikester

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here we are...