SIG MFG. RASCAL 110

Model Airplane News, Feb 2004 by Reid, John

SIG MFG. RASCAL 110 Classic, old-timer appeal in giant scale

The Sig Rascal 110 has all the fine lines of a nostalgic '40s high-wing aircraft with the handling ease of a trainer. From the time you open the box until you set up the Rascal 110 at the field, your prevailing impression is "Wow! This plane is big."

The Rascal 110 is the largest in Sig's line of Rascals, and it's available in blue or red trim. A plane of this size can accommodate a wide variety of engines from 1.20 2-strokes to 1.80 4-strokes to small gas engines. This wide range of potential powerplants allows the Rascal 110 to display a broad array of flying personalities. Depending on your engine choice, it can be a slow-flying trainer, a fun sport plane or a graceful, high-wing pattern flyer. With a few modifications, the Rascal 110 can also perform as a camera-platform, a parachute-dropping aircraft, or a glider towplane.

FIRST IMPRESSION

As you would expect from Sig, the kit exhibits top-quality materials and construction. In the box, the large red and white wings, stabilizer and rudder rest on a cardboard divider. Under the cardboard divider are the body, fiberglass cowl and wheel pants along with the stout aluminum landing gear. All of the main parts are wrapped in plastic bags for protection. For quick and easy assembly, Sig also includes a fuel tank, main wheels, a tailwheel, a spinner, engine mount, a decal sheet and a complete hardware package with high-quality stuff. Builders are guided through the construction with the aid of a 34-page, photo-illustrated instruction manual that includes installation steps for a gas engine and Z- or 4-stroke engine.

CONSTRUCTION

The first task with any ARF is to remove the wrinkles in its covering. The Rascal has just as many wrinkles as any other ARF, but it's so big that you have to set aside a little more time for this step. The Oracover covering is easy to work with, and with my iron set to 350 degrees, it took only a quick swipe followed by pressure from the hot glove to remove most of the wrinkles.

Wings. The wings required only the installation of the hinges and the aileron servos. The four CA aileron hinges have a die-cut center slot that accepts a card wedge. When you insert the card wedge into the hinge gap, it can be accurately centered in the hinge slots. I centered the aileron in the wing panel's aileron bay and removed the card wedges one by one; then I added four drops of thin CA to each side of the hinges. With the ailerons glued into place, I installed the aileron servos.

I mounted the aileron servos on a plywood servo hatch that I attached with screws to the wing panel. After I had mounted everything, I added 24-inch servo extensions and secured the connectors at the ends of the extentions with heat-shrink tubing. A string is already routed through the wing to guide the servo wire through it. I connected the servos to the receiver and centered them. I made the pushrods and installed a control horn in each aileron. After I had hooked everything up, I secured the clevises with fuel tubing and checked to make sure that there wasn't any binding. Except for the decals, the wing was complete.

* Engine. I decided to install a gas engine to reduce my fuel costs and eliminate the need to do flight cleanup. Sig manufactures a great gas engine for the Rascal-the First Place 1.3 engine (FPE 1.3) with electronic ignition. The nice thing about using this engine is that the manual gives step-by-step instructions for its installation. Sig, always thinking ahead, also manufactures ¼-inch engine spacers for the FPE 1.3. These are real timesavers and are well worth the investment. They come laser-cut to match the back of the engine and have four centerline cuts that match the firewall centerline scribes. Lining an engine up with the centerline of the plane and cowl has never been easier. Be sure to order two packages (two spacers in each package) because you'll need 1 inch of spacing. I ordered only one set, so I had to make a ½-inch spacer.

I converted the glow-fuel tank to gas with Sullivan's conversion kit and then I installed it; I added Du-Bro's Kwik-Fill gas valve and routed the fuel lines. I drilled a hole in the lower right corner of the firewall to route the wiring from the ignition module to the engine; then I wrapped the ignition module in foam and placed it against the firewall inside the nose. I bolted on the engine, connected the throttle linkage and attached all the ignition-system wires. Before I could install it, I had to cut access holes for the carburetor in the fiberglass cowl so it would fit around the engine. Then I moved on to installing the tail feathers.

* Tail feathers. Installing the Rascal's tail feathers was perhaps easier than on any other plane that I have built so far. My only problem arose when I had to install the wings to square up the elevator; the plane is so big that I had to take it outside. Then, everything went together so well that for the first time, I used 5-minute epoxy instead of 30-minute to assemble the tail group. I finished the tail feathers by installing the control horns and gluing in the hinges.