After much head scratching and looking into many possibilities, it dawn on me that nobody offers a Bü 181 in 1/4 scale and it would be a wonderful airplane to fly in civilian or military livery!

I was able to get a set of plans somewhere in the internet and planning to cut a laser cut wood kit.

At 34'9" or 10,5 m. full size  it makes a 104.25" span airplane that can fly with a 35cc engine!

A small 4 stroke twin would even be better.

Another nice feature is that it was flown by many countries and there are dozens of colorful schemes.

Looking forward to feed back or suggestions on construction features ( 1 wing, 2 wings, 3 wings, etc.)

The idea of not having to deal with retracts is also very appealing to me!

Jose G

This would be a cool project. I reckon a 3 piece wing would be the go. Given it has a somewhat narrow landing gear you could leave the center section attached and transport it on the mains.

Go for it 

1. Have the fuselage designed in solid modelling CAD system. Split the fuselage vertically and have a mold designed from the get go so it can be 3D printed in sections that will be pinned together for accurate alignment. I would included the fin in this mold.

2. The cowl can also be made in a 3D printed mold.

 

3. 3D printed plug for pulling the canopies.

4. Have the wings, horizontal tail, and rudder designed the traditional way but sheeted with flight skin.

5. It appears that the main LG was part of the fuselage. You can have it built from wood so that it can be glued permanently to the fuselage or be detachable subject to the builder's discretion. That will make the wings basically a 3 piece wing.

The above approach can shorten your time to first prototype and being production ready in a matter of 4-6 months.

Based on my recent experience with RAF (https://royalairframes.com/wooden-airframe-designs), I would highly recommend them. It is my opinion that they are absolutely the best.

I may also be able to recommend a source for the 3D printing.

Josh

Glenn, Josh, Jeff,

Thank you guys for the input!!

I agree with Josh about the 3 piece wing, leaving the center piece where the gear mounts, attached to the fuse for transport.

Josh, I've been following your Canberra build and I became very interested in the RAF company for drawings. I will start inquiring with them.

Jeff, your Bu 181 looks fantastic. Any information on the type do not hesitate to post here.

This is a long shot project, meaning I have a couple of projects on the board!!

Sometimes next year will start the build, for now, just gathering material and moral support

Jose G.

While gathering documentation I started the wing drawing in 2D CAD. The  idea is to have a plug in wing with the center section removable for maintenance.

I'm using  NACA 23016/23012 with 2.5º washout  .

Still debating: to mold or not to mold the fuse. It doesn't seem to hard to build with balsa sticks..... we will see......

Happy Holidays!

Jose G