chris_in_montreal

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Hello all,

Well here goes for my second kit build, the Kavalier from SIG. I was looking for a more aerobatic model as my second plane following my Kadet LT-40 trainer and one I could utilise the engine (OS .46AX) from my trainer in. While there may be "better" planes out there i was tempted by the "craftsman" style of the Kavalier kit (it's gotta last me all winter!), the semi-symmetrical wing design and the fact it offers something different to all those 4*'s and Tiger II's . On receiving the kit it is obvious that this really is a "builders" kit, lots of balsa stock in the box, with the exception of the wing ribs (die-cut) and a few other parts nothing else is pre-cut. Also included in the kit is the standard nose gear, aluminium main gear, motor mounts, CA hinges, all the screws, nuts and bolts needed, clear plastic canopy and ABS cowl. This does leave some hardware to buy i.e. wheels, fuel tank, control rods, spinner. For these I have opted for the sullivan skylite wheels, a sullivan RST 12oz tank, sullivan gold-n-rods for the elevator and rudder and tru-turn aluminium spinner.

Flipping through the build manual i'm again pleased with the quality of the instructions in these SIG kits, lots of good photographs to show each stage and clear descriptions for each step. Some of the pics give away the age of this kit design, for example the control rods are balsa sticks with wire bound to each end and there's a good section on covering with silk and dope. The build sequence is pretty standard, first is the wing followed by fuselage and finally the elevator and rudder.

So here are a few pics, i'll follow up soon with detail of the wing build.

jneesy

i love my kavalier with a webra 50 (lots of power when i need it) its a good build and you will gain valuable experience . just take your time and go step by step and you'll turn out a great airplane

ZeppelinIII

I love my kavelier...was a lot of fun to build, and it's a great flier....

chris_in_montreal

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Yep, i had a lot of good comments from guys at my field on the Kavalier, seems everyone who has had one thought it was/is awesome. Nice cover job there ZeppelinIII, thought i would try coverite for this one having used monokote on my first build.

Well the build is well underway, just catching up here as i'm half way through the wing build. For the wings i intend to add wing mounted aileron servos, side mounted and hidden under custom hatches. I'm also clipping the ailerons from full length so that they end at the next to last wing rib about 1 1/2" from the tip, cosmetic more than anything as i like the look.

The wing build is fairly straight forward so far, pin down the bottom spar with doubler at the root, then glue down the wing ribs. I'm using Titebond II wood glue as i have seen it recommended a number of times here on RCU rather than CA, and 30min epoxy for when the instructions call for it. So far i'm really liking working with it, makes for a much more relaxing build!! and no nasty CA fumes The pics below show the wing halves so far and just got to the point of joining them. I have added a small rear spar between ribs 5 and 6 on both wings to give a support for some hardwood anchor blocks i'll screw into when attaching the sevo hatches. Also cut small holes through ribs 2, 3, 4 and 5 to lead the servo wires through just rear of the main spars. So far i'm really liking how the wing is looking, nice profile and with the sheeting and rib caps on it'll cover really nice too.

ZeppelinIII

Pilgrim,

My ailerons also end short of the wingtip...even with the second to last rib. One note is to make sure you seal the hinge lines, because mine had some flutter when i first flew it (ailerons were sealed, but rudder and elevator were not)...i've since changed props and sealed the other surfaces and it is no longer a problem. I only have one servo on the ailerons, but it is beefer than a standard servo.

Thanks for you compliment on the covering...the wing is monokote, the fuse is actually glassed and painted (as an experiment)...liked how it came out and learned a lot in the process...

I have a few more build pictures, and can always take more of the finished plane if you have any questions...i love this plane :-)

donkey doctor

Hello; I bought one of those kits at a garage sale 6 or 7 years ago, there were no instructions or plans with it. I built the wings and fuselage but didn't finish it. I bought an assembled Kav about three years later and flewit for years with a Saito 50. Bob Dunne came to our field one day and saw me flying it and had to have it, so I sold it to him, or maybe swapped him for a Saito 65, I don't remember which. My memory of it was that it was a great flyer, very forgiving and agile. I remember that it did a fabulous flat spin.

Yours looks much better then mine did, but the beauty of it was the way it flew. It helped to begin a love affair with Sig planes that still lingers, since then I've built 3 Mid-stars, a 4 * 60, a 1/4 spacewalker, and likely others. All great flyers.

chris_in_montreal

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Thanks for the tips ZeppelinIII. I was going to try using hinge points on this build, i have some thunder tiger ones which are steel pinned and look like they'll be a perfect fit (maybe half the size of the Robart 1/8" points). Like the look of your glassed fuselage too.

Well slow progress over the last few days, not had too much time to play! I joined the wing halves together using 30min epoxy and am now adding the leading edge sheeting, pic below. Will add more when i've done it!!

chris_in_montreal

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Good progress this weekend, the wings are really shaping up with most of the panelling added, just the underside to do. Looking forward to covering this baby, the wing looks real neat, my only other experience is a SIG LT-40 trainer which although a nice kit is a more "functional" design than this. Before adding the panelling to the bottom I will add the hatches for the wing mounted servo's. I have some scrap 1/8" ply I will use as a tray and add a 1/16" balsa veneer to, which i can then sand back to the contour of the underside of the wing. Will post some detailed pics as i'm doing this. Before adding the panelling the wing structure felt really flimsy but now the sheetings on i'm actually surprised at how rigid it feels. As i mentioned before i switched to regular wood glue on this build and its working out a treat, i really like the time it gives you to set up the pieces and align them perfectly together, i like to "feel" any joint i'm making for alignment which you just couldn't do with CA. Anyway a couple more pics below to show my progress..... hope this lasts me all winter!!!

chris_in_montreal

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Thought i'd post the color scheme i'm working on for this when its finished too...... and a pic of my LT-40 too

flmlm

PilgramChimp,

Good looking color schematics for the Kaviler, tough choices. Was wondering how the build was going? Currently, I'm also building the Kaviler which is coming together nicely.

blw

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Nice looking wings. They build tough and fly well.

chris_in_montreal

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Thanks for the reply's guys, the build has been a little slow over the last few weeks as work got in the way but am now finished for the holidays so will be progressing it a little quicker. At the moment I am in the process of finishing the wing leading edges, not too difficult just takes time. I built this wing as the instructions said with all the dihedral but if i have time before the new season next year will scratch a modified wing which will have no dihedral and will probably leave off the wing tip blocks also. This was my first (half) year in R/C so while the first wing will be good for me while i learn to fly this one thought the second wing would keep it interesting for a longer while. Anyways will post again soon with some more updates.

blw

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This plane takes time to build....as you are finding out.

My suggestions for a second wing are to leave on the wing blocks and extend them past the ailerons, cut the ailerons short of the wingtips to prevent flutter, make the ailerons bigger for better roll rates, and no dihedral. The Kavalier is known to have aileron flutter at high speeds anyway, so be sure to seal the aileron gaps when covering.

I was considering making the rudder bigger today when I was looking the model over. It has good authority now, but maybe a larger area would be nicer. Maybe not.

I would suggest that you place the main gear about a half to full inch back from the location shown on the plans. This plane will rock back on the tail easily. It always seems that the plane is tail heavy when on the ground. Also, this is a good time to cut pine blocks for using 1/4x20 nylon bolts to hold on the gear. I did that when building mine. It is much better than just using wood screws.Tap them the same way you need to tap the wing blocks...unless you are using the rubber band method.

What engine will you use? I used a Saito .56 with a 12x6 APC prop. I use a 2 3/4" foam nose wheel and 3" main wheels. The plane was impossible to land without bouncing since the wheels were almost the same diameter. I raised the main gear with a covered 1/4 balsa block and it lands fine now. Prop clearance is okay, not great, but okay.

MikeSell

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I only installed a Fox .40 delux on mine. Its still fast with an 11x6. My ailerons have too much throw. Mine does 720 degrees/sec. I installed a STOL tip design. The tips are carved with a down turned arch. I used the standard LG location and balanced with only the battery and RX. Its been flying for over three seasons.
Hope you have as much fun with yours.

chris_in_montreal

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Hi blwblw,

Thanks for the suggestions. On my current wing i have planned to cut the ailerons short of the wingtips by one bay and extended the wing tip blocks to suit. I was interested to read your thoughts on the rudder, an idea i was toying with for the elevator and rudder was to incorporate the elevator tips into the control surface and same for the rudder like you see on some of the real aerobatic planes. I really had thought of this just for the cosmetic look, but will of course increase the control surface area, any thoughts given your experience with the Kavalier??

I had read about using pine blocks for the main gear with nylon bolts too but hadn't thought about moving it rearwards, will take a look at that when it comes to it. As for the engine I have an O.S 4.46AX i can transplant from my trainer but i'm seriously considering a four stroke .56 like you used. I want to build a Page Aviation Gee Bee Z next and the .56 is ideal for this so may well end up picking it up now. I think you sent me some info previously on mounting the .56 in the Kavalier and extending the fuselage a 1/2" past the firewall to contain the .56 under the cowl.

One idea i had, but haven't really looked in detail if its possible, is to mount the front gear on the rear of the firewall with the control linkage beneath the tank. It looks like space is pretty tight on the front of the firewall plus i picked up a fults nose gear which requires a little larger footprint than the stock gear. This would result in the nosegear being about 1/2" rearwards of its stock position which could be offset by moving the main gear rearwards - any thoughts?

blw

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Do you mean counter balances on the elevator tips? The elevators are very effective as is. The rudder is effective and will do stall turns without much trouble. I usuallly use less throw on the elevator as it is very sensitive.

Yes, that was me who extended the fuselage past the firewall for the Saito. I've seen a Fults gear and they are nice. I should get one too but the Kavalier doesn't put much weight down on the nose wheel. I would be worried about taking up any space behind the firewall. That is a problem area because it is so small. I can barely fit an 8 oz tank in there due to it having to sit high for the 4 stroke engine feed to the spraybar of the engine. There is plenty of room for the stock nose gear on the firewall. Does the Fult gear take up that much more room? It is a tight fit for the fuel tank now.

Good idea on shortening the ailerons. I used CA hinges and pinned 2 of the 4.

Sense963

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I built 2 Kavs in my time... first one taught me a valuable lesson about control throws and mfr specs. I always thought the Kav was a cool design. Typical Sig design: sturdy, good flying plane if built per instructions. A serious effort would involve reducing some weight in the model (lightening holes in ribs/fuse, hollowing out wingtip blocks, etc..) I didn't have much of a budget when I was building mine, and it always flew well on a OS 40FP (older brother of the current LA series). Sounds like a lot of good ideas and experience here with the Kav. Play around with it and make the mods you like. My money says you will probably build another some day.

flmlm

PilgrimChimp,

Sounds like our experience level is about the same with regards to air time. I'm really looking foward to getting the Kavalier off the ground. Right now I'm about 75% complete. Kinda wish I would have had some of the comments above before I began my build. I have been a little stressed with the available room in the fuel tank area and at the firewall, seems to be really busy up there with a limited amount of space. However, I think I've got it all worked out. Thanks to all who contributed with their Kavalier experience especially those with flight trim advice those comments are deeply appriecated.....

blw

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The Dubro fuel tank is better than the Sullivan. It sits higher in the fuselage. That helped me a lot. You can use a larger tank if you use a 2 stroke. I get 10+ minutes with the Saito and an 8 oz tank.

The Kavalier is pretty light if you use Dubro foam wheels and don't add anything. I may take out my Futaba 3003 throttle servo and use a Hitech 55 that is only .28 oz. I recently bought one for another kit and it is very light. The 3003 is heavy when compared to the Hitech.

Don't worry about things, I felt the same way too. I learned some of this stuff too late.

flmlm

Hello All,

Still plugging away at the Kavalier, haven't had the time to spend on it lately do to the holidays however small progress is being made. In addition, it's my first real build so that has slowed things down a bit too! Thought I'd also give a try with posting a couple of pictures.

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blw

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You are coming along with the hardest building finished. Nice fuselage and wings. You don't have much more to do from the looks of it.

chris_in_montreal

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Hey flmlm, the sanding on your wingtips looks perfect, any tips??

flmlm

PilgrimChimp,

Thanks for the comment on the wing tip. Actually the wing tips weren't that difficult to do. However, I was intimidated before I started. A lot of time was spent just looking and trying to figure out the best method to carve the tips since previously I had absolutely no experience as a wood carver.

What I did was purchase a small wood planer and a medium sized block of balsa(to test on) from the LHS. Once I felt comfortable with the planer practice I temporarily glued on the balsa blocks to each side of the wing with Ambroid glue. After the glue was strong enough to hold the tip and with support from my free hand I started carving the tip down with the planer. Once I was close to the shape I wanted I switched to rough grain sand paper for the final touch ups. It wasn't as difficult as I thought and I felt the wing tips came out better than my expectations.

Hope this helps, I'll keep you updated on the progress, this weekend I'm going try and cut in the cockpit area and add the plywood support to the center trailing edge of the wing.


Regards,
mlm

blw

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I added an extra layer of ply on the trailing edge center section. I didn't trust the single ply to hold the nylon bolts. You can add the extra ply on the underside where it will be hidden.

Nice wing tips. It took me several evenings to match mine up too.

flmlm

Blwblw,

Thanks for the tip on the TE extra layer of ply, all hints are welcome and appreciated. After I make some minor repairs to my electric , the Kav progress will continue.

Regards