B-29 w/ X-1....I want one!

[wing_nut]

Mucker I used to fly RC but all the usual things got in the way (time and money). I’ve considered getting a small electric one that I can fly in the large park accross the street from us but I can’t see going to all the expense and hassle of a gas one again anytime soon. It was fun for about the first year but unless you have the time and money to build new aircraft all the time (as your skills progress) you kind of get to a plateau where the fun factor drops off.

I used to fly and ditto that. Not to mention spending countless hours building aonly to have it go back into kit form [BH]when some bonehead on the flight line turns on his radio before checking to see what frequencies are in the air[:(!]

[Moon_Puppy]

Hi, Lucien —

True, there are some outward differences between the B-29 and the B-50, but it’s not a hopeless task to modify a B-29 kit into a B-50.

Here’s how the two compare in dimensions (from Wikipedia):

B-29:
Length: 99 ft 0 in (30.2 m)
Wingspan: 141 ft 3 in (43.1 m)
Height: 27 ft 9 in (8.5 m)
Wing area: 1,736 ft² (161.3 m²)

B-50:
Length: 99 ft 0 in (30.2 m)
Wingspan: 141 ft 3 in (43.1 m)
Height: 32 ft 8 in (10.0 m)
Wing area: 1736 ft² (161.3 m²)

You need a taller vertical fin which wouldn’t be that hard (the five-foot taller fin scales to about 3/8 inch). The longer and differently shaped nacelles (air-scoop below, etc.) at 1/144 can be done by taking the front of one B-29 nacelle, shimming it, adding the air-scoop, etc., with epoxy putty, then casting copies in resin.

But my point is moot: it looks like “Glamorous Glennis,” at least, was carried aboard a B-29:

http://www.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/021002-O-9999G-005.jpg

Interesting shot of the X1 here, notice the condinsation under the fuel tank. Wonder how you’d replicate that with textur also?

[Gordon_D_King]

Thanks for sharing this. This modeler’s experience really shows with this demonstration.

[PontiacRich]

Awesome video…that guy has a lot of experience. I’d almost guarantee that X-1 had an Estes rocket motor in it.

I flew RC for a little while. Built a Cessna 172 gas powered, but never quite got the hang of it. I did it when I lived in CT and the field was almost an hour away. You can’t just go to any school or ball park, RC planes need to be flown at sanctioned fields. Check for an RC club on the web before going much further. I built a glider when I lived in Seattle and found it easier to fly and much less noise. Launching only required a spool of surgical tubing that can be bought almost anywhere.

Great video!