Great Planes Pete 'N Poke Sport 40

Model Airplane News, Sep 2002 by Van Tassel, Bob

A nostalgic parasol per former

Looking somewhat like a 1929 Pietenpol Air Camper, the Great Planes Pete 'N Poke Sport 40 kit makes a great Sunday flyer. As does its predecessor, the popI ular Slow Poke, the Pete has a flat-bottom wing for excellent slow-speed performance. I had a ball building and flying my Slow Poke, so I know the Pete would be a winner before I ever opened the box.

THE KIT

Included in the kit is a 43-page construction manual that is full of instructions, photos and illustrations; it also contains a metric conversion table and a checklist of materials, supplies and tools needed to complete the kit. I really like the "Tips from the Experts," as they make building the kit easier. It's obvious that Great Planes wants you to enjoy building this plane. The materials are top quality, especially the wood; the die cuts are crisp and sharp. You'll need to add a 10-ounce fuel tank, 3-inch-diameter main wheels and a 1-inch tailwheel to complete the kit.

CONSTRUCTION

I started by identifying the parts. For most of the building, I used Great Planes thin, medium and thick CA along with 5- and 30-minute epoxies. For easy sanding of the sheeted areas, I used aliphatic wood glue.

* Tail feathers. The elevators and stabilizer are built using a combination of laminated die-cut parts and balsa sticks. When the assemblies were completed, I sanded them flat and then rounded the leading edges. I marked the hinge locations and cut the slots using my Great Planes Slot Machine (it's a great labor saver that accurately cuts hinge slots). The two elevator halves are connected with a joiner wire, which I fitted but didn't glue into place until final assembly. The rudder and fin are built and finished in the same manner.

* Wing. The wing is built over the plan in three sections. I started with the center section; it is constructed on top of 146-inch balsa sheet. Be certain to build it accurately, as it sets the wing alignment and dihedral. I glued the ribs and spars onto the sheeting and then added the dihedral braces followed by the trailing edge. When all interior construction was completed, I sheeted the top of the center section with lhs-inch balsa. I carefully drilled the mounting holes for the wing and cut a semi-circular hole over the cockpit area to provide visibility for my pilot figure. Be sure to center the cutout; it's incorrectly shown on the plan as being off-center.

Building the outer panels is straightforward and held no surprises; they went together quickly. After placing the ribs and spars, I added the leading edge and the top and bottom sheeting; the panels are sheeted from the leading edge to the spar, and then I built the ailerons on the plan with the wing panels still in place. I now added the two aileron servo trays and the strut support pockets in each wing. I sanded the wing and set it aside until later.

* Fuselage. The first step is to construct the two fuselage sides using the die-cut balsa and plywood and to glue the fuselage parts together. Be sure to follow the instructions carefully when you attach the engine doublers; they set the required right thrust. Now glue the fuselage formers into place and check their alignment as you go. Then build and add the strut-reinforcement blocks that hold the parasol wing. I took particular care in this step, as I knew that this would later affect the wing's alignment.

I added the tank floor, stab base and landing-gear block and then coated the inside of the engine compartment and forward fuselage bays with alcohol-thinned epoxy. As directed, I added the fin and stabilizer to the fuselage, and I glued in the cockpit floor and the rear formers and then added the rear stringers.

The parasol wing is held in place with front and rear cabane struts, each consisting of three hardwood pieces. The proper placement and alignment of these struts is crucial, so I used 30-minute epoxy and checked the assembly with a Great Planes Accu-Point Laser Incidence Meter before the epoxy set. The struts required a number of adjustments, but it was worth the effort to get it right. I next sheeted the forward section of the fuselage, added a Great Planes 10-ounce fuel tank and completed the fuselage.

* Engine and radio installation. The engine, radio-equipment and landing-gear installations are a snap; there is plenty of room to work on all of these components. I fabricated the wing struts that are nonfunctional but dress up the plane.

* Finishing. After dry-- fitting all of the parts, I laterally balanced the plane and then final-- sanded it. I used two rolls of maroon and one roll of white MonoKote to cover the plane, and I generated a tail graphic on my computer and printed it on Micro-Mark decal paper with my ink-jet printer. The main wheels are Great Planes 3-inch-- diameter treaded wheels, and the tailwheel is 1-inch diameter. To attach the two windshields, I cut a slit in the covering and used medium CA. I dressed up the cockpit by adding a Williams Bros. ;6-scale pilot that I detailed with acrylic paint and then fuel-- proofed with a coat of clear polyurethane.