Hey guys, the title says it all. I was curious on what equipment I need to motorize an airplane. I have very little electrical knowledge and would love a good tutorial if there is one. Thnks in advance.
There were a lot of early kits that came with motorised props, you coukd see if you could dig one of those out. Im in the process of building one of Tamiyas Kyofu N1K1’s, Its a brand newish kit and its motorised. By the time youve spent out on motors, switches etc etc your probably better off buying the kit cheap on evilbay,
…Guy
On this Pfalz Dlll,I used a tiny motor the size of a pencil eraser,the type used in cell phones.I mounted it inside the fuselage and ran the wires out through the bottom.I put the model on a raised base with a switch and a one cell AA battery holder. 
well $40 for just a motor seems a bit steap for me. I prolly wont even build that model. I dont really touch the jap planes. mainly american and german.
Hey phil did you use a certain type of wire and switch for it?I was thinking of using this motor for my project…
Jonny … hey howdy in Pearland, btw …
Check out pager/ cell phone vibrator motors on ebay. You should be able to get a package of 10 or so for about $1 a piece. You might have to use something to slow it down, but its not all that diffidult to figure out. Radio Shack has basic battery boxes and wiring.
Just try it out … you can’t do too much harm w/ a double A … just a little tingle … that all. [:D]
Haha yeah. not sure if that would be strong enough for a 1/32 dio. Ill check it out though. Where in Pearland do you live brotha? Im on the south end near Dixie Farm Rd.
Shadow Creek myself.
The small motors should be plenty for a 1/32 prop. It’s not like you’re trying to fly the dang thing … are you!?! [:D]
I haven’t done props yet, but after doing some research awhile back the one thing that I found to be most important was to make sure that your prop, prop shaft, and motor shaft all aligned PERFECTLY. Unless you dial down the speed of the motor, there’s a good chance that you’ll only have ONE chance at getting it right. If not, you might have a messed up plane, prop, and maybe one less eye!
Here’s a nice site you should check out, if you haven’t all ready …
http://dynamicscalemodeling.com/
It’ll get all kinds of thought goin’ through the knoggin’…
Hey scott, Shadow creek huh that area is beautiful!! what chapter do you go to or do you not attend any?
For the website thanks man, that does help a lot! guess I should get back to my project, times a waisting. BTW house your OH6 coming??
Semper Fi
Jonny,
I dont know if you build ships, but every motorised ship that I buy, I make sure I take out the electric motor, battery holder, and switch. Came in very handy. Every time one of my kids motorised toys gets busted beyond repair, I make sure I cannabalise it for the wiring, motors, switches. I motorised each of the 4 engines in my 1/48 B-29 and I found it real easy. I put down a bed of sikaflex (which is a grey silicon sealant you buy in cartridges) bedded down each motor in the sikaflex. The plastic tube inside a biro that holds the ink is fust the right diameter to slip over the shaft of the motor, that will give you a bit of extra reach to make it to the prop hub. I intend to motorise my 1/32 Beaufighter, and I’m going to put even bigger motors in it !
I too went the pager motor route on this 1:72 Tamiya Mustang. Made a collar for the motor out of some Evergreen tubing and cemented it into the nose. The wiring was run out each wing and attached to finer brass wire which eventually became brake lines. The brakes “cheated” around to the bottom of the tires. The base held the battery pack and there were two little brass plates that were left unpainted on the otherwise painted runway. Place the aircraft on the plates – complete the circuit – motor spins. The motor shaft was a press-fit into the spinner with Tamiya’s plastic bushings
Yes that motor should be fine!Many modelers also run the motor wires down through the landing gear!On this pylon i ran thec wires through the support arm. 
If the above video dosen’t play when you click it,then go to You tube and put Philo426 in the search box.Look for my P-47 pylon and watch it!
Take a look at this site.
Ditto the last reply. Check Dynamic Scale Modelling. They’re kind of expensive but what they offer is awesome.
The smaller pager type motor are well-suited to multi-engine applications also. 
Glad you liked that one … they’ll give you some ideas at least.
I don’t usually attend any clubs in the area … I get enough crits/ comments on my work here and w/ other sites to keep me going.
The MH-6 is coming along fine enough … check out the build over on the dio forum for the lasted.
Paul Boyer of FSM wrote a nice tutorial in Jan 2003 issue where he motorized a 1/72 Spitfire. This article is/was a free download on the main FSM site. While not 1/32, the key considerations are spelled out with respect to components - motor, battery, switch - and the tools you’ll need. Your eBay motor looks remarkably like the motor Tamiya uses in their 1/32 motorized Zero:
Note in the photo where the red (+) and black (-) wires go to the motor relative to that white dot. The dot indicates motor polarity. For example, if you’re doing a P-38 with counter-rotating props, one motor would be hooked as shown, the other would be reversed wiring (polarity).
Thanx a lot guys. This helps. Im surprised at how many comments I got. I wasn’t expecting much.
Bret
One of the best ways to bring a static plane to life is to motorize the prop!A very popular subject!