Clipwing Diet

[Forrest Barber]

Re: Clipwing Diet

Another great person comes to mind Sandy Pierce had a clipped D model too... yes very strong and really over built....that same ship with a bit of beef up became the "Glomb" Navy LBT-1 at a Gross weight of 7800 lbs... Great story thanks!!

[Dennis D'Angelo]

Re: Clipwing Diet

Eric:

I've been reading this segment and you've all convinced me that a built-up wood wing would best meet my goal of a light clipped. A while ago you mentioned building wood wings with the Pitts-style ailerons--those that do not require any servos or spades. Please explain the hinge setup and the airfoil design. Was the aileron airfoil and extension of the NACA 23012 or a more symmetrical airfoil?

Thanks for the information and keep the information coming.

dd

[Acroeric]

Re: Clipwing Diet

Dennis- The design was an extension of the 23012 which is practically symmetrical at that section of the airfoil. The hinge point was around 29%. I had Steve Wolf help me with the design- he builds the wings for Sean TUcker and some other hard core aerobatic performers. The chord of the aileron went to 18" an dit looked pretty neat. I have decided to keep the stock aileron chord and just counterbalance though in interest of simplicity and weight. I built a few ribs for the new design and I felt there may be too much of a weight penalty.

I am using a full 8' aileron though. It should do just fine.

[Dennis D'Angelo]

Re: Clipwing Diet

Eric:

Thanks for the information. Since you kept the stock wing tip, how did you counterbalance the aileron? Did you use a system similar to Swick or just weight the aileron leading edge? A full 8' of alieron with stock cord should provide a pretty aggressive roll. Appreciate the response.

dd

[Acroeric]

Re: Clipwing Diet

I am not keeping the stock wingtip- I am using a laminated wood tip that comes back further than the stock one- it is also a bit more rounded like a Monocoupe. With it coming back a little further I have the room for the counterbalance. It is similar to the Swick but much narrower-

I have been guilty of trying to make the Tcraft into something it is not. Regardless of what you do to it it will never perform like an Extra or a Pitts. With the proper mods it will be an excellent competitive aerobatic mount through sportsman which is what I am looking for.

[Howard Wilson]

Re: Clipwing Diet

There's a pair of clipped wings for sale in the Experimental section of Barnstormers, says they're from a T-craft.