The decision to build a RE8 is from recent information from Belgium confirming my Great Uncle died whilst flying an RE8 in Belgium at the end of the First World War, which was a surprise as he normally flew Bristol Fighters.
This first model is small with a 37″ wingspan and 25″ long and a bit heavy, it is intended to test its ability to fly, as they had a reputation of being a ‘Killer’ even models are said to be difficult to fly. The plan is to build a larger version next winter using wood and cloth. I used the attached drawing plus a specification of the original planes to design the model using balsa, aluminium and foamboard for the main wings.
The maiden flight was a surprise as it took off cleanly and was stable with no trim required… however, like the fullsize aircraft it does not like too much roll as it stalls the wings and drops into a dive. but flown in gentle circuits it is stable together with a nice glide for landing. It did manage 1 loop, but was not happy.
Roll on the weekend for another fly
well done barry
it looks a very nice plane
and great that it flew first time with no problems
see you on sunday weather permiting
michael
Very nice Mr Barry, I guess we need to wait a while before we can see the large version, but looking forward to seeing it.
It will be a winter project, as it will be quite complex as I want to build with wood and cloth and keeping it to the original aircraft design.
Looks fantastic Barry, I love some of the designs of these early warbirds.
Best of luck with the larger version.