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Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Zeppelin 1.7, by Eric Johnson

Hereafter are some information about a new 1.7m model called the ZEPPELIN I have developed utilizing some foreign materials nowadays – Balsa and EPS foam! Such a novelty in the foam world today.






Seriously I’m more of an old school type designer/builder but I enjoy the challenge of building light and durable primarily for the Vtpr class of aerobatics where as we know maneuvers are performed very close to the terrain. This design borrows some elements from indoor ultralight modeling for the slope. I wanted to make it easy for the average builder to be able to assemble and use common materials available at most any local craft or hobby store. And easy to repair or maintain with its exposed gear feature. The exposed gear doesn’t add any parasitic drag of consequence as this plane is designed to fly at 0-25mph maximum.

Flight control surfaces are extra large requiring more expo mix than normal. This feature is very useful in tight and close maneuvering and also serves as a safety net for getting out of trouble as can be seen in the video. Its low mass weight construction adds a durability factor that is not normally seen of this size glider on the slope. The AUW (all up weight) is 800-875 grams fully loaded. Wing is 345, fuse assembly is 528 grams. Balsa fuselage and tail feathers are carbon fiber reinforced yet still flexible enough to survive medium impacts with the terrain as shown in the video. More details can be read here:

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1490418

The model will be available soon as a short kit with EPS foam cores, carbon fiber tubing, templates, wood cut list and simple plans and instructions. Currently there are 5 more models in the “1.7m PSP” line being developed and assembled for testing.






Thanks and Cheers!

Eric Johnson,
Slope VTPR Aerobatics

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