The Digester was designed in the early 1960s as an equipment test vehicle for the new digital proportional radio control system. \u00a0It is the direct precursor to Phil Kraft\u2019s famous Ugly Stik. \u00a0Everybody should build a historical RC plane at least once, and I think this is a pretty good candidate.<\/p>\n
The original Digester was a 3 channel model, but I offer the choice of high or low dihedral braces in case you want to build it with ailerons. \u00a0So let\u2019s start with the dihedral braces. \u00a0The plan shows \u201crock hard\u201d balsa braces. \u00a0I have replaced these with enough 1\/8\u2033 plywood braces to add up to the correct thickness. \u00a0I suggest adding glass cloth to the center joint as well. \u00a0If you want to add ailerons, you could trim some of the ribs and turn them into barn doors. \u00a0Or you could do what Phil Kraft did: use the standard Digester wing and add flat sheet ailerons to the trailing edge. \u00a0Either way works great.<\/p>\n
You may notice that the firewall is very far forward, so there\u2019s not much cowling to cover the engine. \u00a0When you order the kit,\u00a0you can get the small firewall to be installed as per the plan, or a bigger one to be installed an inch farther aft. \u00a0In the case of the farther aft firewall, your tank floor will also be an inch shorter.<\/p>\n
Other than that, it\u2019s pretty much like the plan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Digester was designed in the early 1960s as an equipment test vehicle for the new digital proportional radio control system. \u00a0It is the direct precursor to Phil Kraft\u2019s famous Ugly Stik. \u00a0Everybody should build a historical RC plane at … Continue reading