Leroy Gardner

I remember back when I built my Tiger 60, it was a really nicely done kit with very good wood. Only thing I didn't like about it was the fuselage side walls being so flimsy from to much material removed, I put a lot of it back. Anyway when I got done with it it did not rack and was solid. At any rate it's a great performer and flies rock solid in the wind with that wing, it's my go to plane.

Leroy

FlyerInOKC

My Feedback: (6)

VincentJ

Mike, thanks for that clip, I had to smile when I saw it!

Leroy, you're right about CG taking too much material out of the fuselage. I've been putting back much of what they removed to get the strength back as well. For me since I'm modifying much of this plane I can deal with the issues that I've had so far, but for those that want to build this "stock" these areas of concern need to be addressed.

TomCrump

I thought that these models built tail heavy, when built stock. This is for glow powered models, though. I don't know about gassers.

VincentJ

Yes you're right Tom, they always come out tail heavy (if building a tail dragger). From my experience with Tigers it usually requires about 2-3 oz. of weight in front to balance out (with glow engines). Increasing the size of the tail feathers also adds to the problem.

VincentJ

Checked on my supply orders yesterday. I ordered wood from Balsa USA and they confirmed that it was shipped (good news). I had also ordered a carbon fiber wing tube and sleeve from Graph Tech. When I called to check on the order they informed me that the 3/4" x 30" CF wing tube was out of stock and they didn't expect anything soon (bad news). I cancelled my order and spent more time than I wanted to find another company that could supply me with a 3/4" CF wing tube. I couldn't find any, so I changed plans and called TNT Landing Gear and settled for an aluminum 3/4" wing tube and sleeve. They did have one in stock and it has been shipped. I wanted a CF tube because of the weight savings over aluminum but it wasn't meant to be...

VincentJ

Still waiting for supplies, but that didn't stop me from making some progress and finalizing some changes that I've been thinking about. I did read the instruction booklet, but since I'm making changes to the shape and size of this plane the instructions and sequence of events will not be followed. Trying to dry assemble the fuse with rubber bands in my opinion is a sure way to build yourself a banana shaped fuse, so I opted for tape and clamps. Doing it this way will ensure that the fuselage will be built straight.

One of the subtle changes that I made was to the front of the fuselage. The sides of the stock fuse follow a straight line. The diameter of the fuse increases until you reach the front of the wing, there it starts to taper or narrow to the nose. I chose to continue the straight line all the way to the nose, giving me about 1/4" wider fuse at the front. This can be seen in photo #6. This additional space will help in keeping my DLE-20 cooler!

The last two photos show the position of the firewall. (The top has not been trimmed as of yet though) I spent a bit of time measuring, ensuring that the firewall will still have its 2 degrees of down thrust and 2 degrees of right thrust. The angles on the sides of the firewall was made using my 12" disc sander, this will make sure that I have good contact with the fuselage without any gaps for a stronger glue joint. Also note that the firewall has been increased to 3/8" thickness. Gas engines of this size in my opinion need more strength than the 1/4" supplied thickness can provide. Since the firewall was moved back, the size of the firewall increased in size so I scraped the original wood supplied and used good quality 5 ply Birch. Once the overall size of the firewall is determined, I will epoxy a thin sheet of aluminum covering the entire outside surface.

thailazer

Always love a Tiger build so signing up! I know what you you are putting up with regarding the fuse sides as I bought a vintage Craft Air Mystique kit off of eBay and all the ply parts were warped or twisted. Replaced so many it might as well be a scratch build. Best of luck with the project!

VincentJ

Welcome to the party Thailazer, I hope that you will enjoy this thread!

ETpilot

I've been following along since you started this thread. I’m learning as you build. I purchased a Tiger 2 kit. It will be my first kit build since the late 70’s IIRC. I've been scratch building all my planes these days. Just following along.

thailazer

The main gear legs are so close to the CG that the plane will sit on its tail. (The CG ends up behind the wheels contact point with the ground when the plane's nose is pitched up.) On all the Tigers I have built or bought, the main gear legs had to be bent back at a 30 degree angle to keep that from happening. That keeps them well behind the CG even if the tail is pushed to the ground.

RICKSTUBBZ

I'm along for the ride.
Looking forward to seeing what all you do (modify) with this one.

Also interested in the DLE 20RA . How's its size and weight compared to 60/90 glow engines.
( I reckon I can get on the web and find all that out)

By the way...love the clamps. Every time I go to harbor freight, I pick up at least one or two more!

VincentJ

Welcome ETpilot, hope following along helps your build. I've had several Tigers, all 60's but I never had its smaller brother. Is the construction similar to the 60?

VincentJ

Welcome Rick! My last Tiger had a OS .91 four stroke in it. It was a good engine, but every time I flew it I always wanted more power and thought , gee next time I'm going to put a DLE 20 in it! So here we are, I don't know off hand the weight of one versus the other off the top of my head, but I'm going to assume that the DLE weighs a bit more which works out well as all of my Tiger's needed weight up front. I'm sure you know the differences between the DLE-20 and the DLE-20RA, I thought the latter would be a better fit for this application.

You can never have too many clamps of different sizes, I do the same every time I head down to the hardware store!

ETpilot

When I read your statement about tail flex, I opened up the box and checked the parts. It looks very similar to the pictures you posted. Fuselage sides has the same cutouts. The rest was balsa sheets and sticks plus canopy and hardware. I'm sure I will learn a lot from your thread.

Leroy Gardner

Good to see it going together Vince, I know it's going to be a fun build and be turned into a better plane when you get through with it. Everyone seams to love this plane and through your build they will be able to see the improvements your going to make that really make this plane special in the air.

Leroy

VincentJ

Thanks Leroy, if my plane comes out half as good as yours did, I will consider it a success.

Yesterday my wing tube arrived and today my long awaited wood shipment came! Time to make some wood chips...

VincentJ

I filled in the voided areas on the fuselage (wing saddles) where the stock wing would have been using 1/8" Lite Ply. I also freed all of the ribs from their sheeting, they all popped out very nicely. I have to say the laser cutting and quality of the Balsa used on the wing ribs are excellent. Almost makes up for the fuselage, almost... sorry no pictures, forgot the camera and was too lazy to go get it. I'll snap some pictures tonight.

VincentJ

After releasing the ribs from all the balsa sheets along with the two 1/8" Lite Ply ribs that I made, they were stacked in preparation to get them all uniform in shape an size. Two inch sections of the wings Balsa spars were cut and inserted to aid in alignment (Photo #1). The rear portion of the ribs were drilled with a 5/16" drill bit. A small two inch dowel was inserted in the hole preventing the ribs from pivoting out of place while sanding (Photo #2).

I sanded off what I thought was appropriate to give me the uniformity that I was looking for (Photo #3). Going through this step will later ensure all the ribs on your wing will line-up perfectly giving you a better shot at a straight wing.

In Photo #4, I would like to share with you a tip that greatly aids me when I need to make accurate measurements and lines. I'm sure you've all carefully placed your ruler into position only for the ruler to slip on your work while using your pencil. How frustrating! I solved this problem by taking sand paper that I use on my sanding blocks that have adhesive on one side. I apply the sand paper to one side of the ruler and that gives me the right amount of friction to ensure that the ruler doesn't wander.

Leroy Gardner

I have wondered If anyone has considered using the plans and building the fuselage truss style with 1/4" stringers and lite-ply backing inside the forward half and wing area, could be done fairly easy as I look at it. Lots of stuff you could do with this plane, just being an idea guy I don't expect Vincent to do it this time, maybe someone else. "Any brave ones out there".

Leroy

VincentJ

Nice idea Leroy, doesn't look like you'll have any takers! I just may have to on my next Tiger build. I have already been pondering building (after this is completed of course) another set of wings that I could use on this Tiger, wings that are fully symmetrical and tapered along the trailing edge...

Murphey

My Feedback: (11)

If I understand Leroy...I think that's exactly what I did. I spent way to much time trying to straighten out the warped lite-ply sides, so I cut the middle section out...from just aft of the wing TE to just in front of the stab LE. I used 1/4" x 3/8" hardwood stringers on all 4 corners and 1 down the middle of each side. Not much weight gain, but at least it is straight and relatively ridged. Also did a "mock up" of an open cockpit, but not sure I like the look so will make another run at that. I'm enjoying your build VJ.
M

ETpilot

That is stick building. I like stick building. I had plans to stick build a Tiger but never got around to it. I'm starting a stick build now with tapered wing.

VincentJ

Nice work ETpilot! What model is that BTW?

Leroy Gardner

Vincent good idea on the ruler, them 6"ones are really slick. My longer steel rulers come with cork on the back, that works good too. You true up your ribs the same way I do, that method does a very nice job, laser cut ones are nice but even them can be off a little. Tricks of the trade that really work and help build a better plane. It's nice to see these small things to do to your parts before you start gluing things up only to find discrepancies along the way. I think it comes from being a teacher, your a good one.

Leroy