A little Fokker saved from the scrap heap....

At least the prop is turning in the best direction to maintain line tension.

I can't blame you for wanting to fly your D-VII.. or the Skyraider. If you can find an un-cut hayfield and bring a pitman for a hand-launch, even the worst crash might be cushioned by the tall grass. I had a Cox .049 powered Sopwith Camel as a very young kid (1968?) which was flown mostly by my Dad. The lines were probably 20-25 feet long.

(internet photos)



Here's another version of your Fokker...



I have to agree with George on building one from balsa though. It will fly sOoOo much better! I was in the process of building a Sterling-kit DR-I (23.5" w/s) and decided to trace the top and middle wings and tail-plane pieces onto 1/8" sheet-balsa for a "sorta'-scale D-VII. I used 1/4" sheet-balsa for the fuse. I had a LOT of fun with that model! It towed banners, busted balloons and with it's large, thin lightweight wheels; did great R.O.G.'s from a freshly-mowed lawn.. every time.

Here's the Sterling kit that I scaled from..


Shown here with a Babe Bee (early) The wing struts and tailskid are popsicle sticks.. and the main inverted-V gear is 1/16" music-wire mounted to the firewall.. well-forward of the C of G.. which helped both; take-offs and landings.



and later.. with a product engine/wedge tank.. circa 1992  

It's a plastic toy. Fly it and have fun.

It probably will fly level just fine. Expect a long rollout.

Thanks all.  I'm not risking anything here, not exactly "collector" quality.  

I'm glad you posted that Cox D-7 picture roddie.  Looks to be much more believable color scheme that the one I have.  Gives me an idea as to what the vertical stab should look like too.  

I notice the thrust line of your Bipe is more or less aligned with the fuselage.  Not so on these Cox models as they have a lot of down thrust built in the engines.  Curious.  I also like the built in the fuselage fuel tank.  

I like that Camel.  There is a partzer on ebay just like it.

Soapbox (me ) wrote:
Downthrust in the Fokker DVII is to compensate for the undercamber wing, which has a tendency to lift, for better inherent stability, while providing adequate lift for a relatively heavy airplane. Many of your 1/2-A R/C trainer and some sport aircraft are set up this way when they employ a modified Clark-Y or formed undercamber sheet wing.

Problem is, when flying into the wind, velocity tends to cause the plane to rise due the acceleration of the air over the top surface causing a low pressure area (increasing upward suction) and with the undercamber causing a high pressure area. This ballooning tends to get the neophyte in trouble. However, the experienced flier will more likely than not choose better weather for flying.

Enjoy your find, rsv1cox, we'll need a flight report.