How to Build the Ultimate Fun Fly Plane By James Goss      Fun-fly planes have been around for many years now and I guess I have built most of them. A lot of them were indeed fun to fly, but they were all missing something. I didn't know exactly what they were missing until I built the “Postage Stamp”, a fun-fly plane that I am now flying. I am finally 100% happy with this plane and I am no longer searching for the fun-fly plane of my dreams. Who would have thought that a little plastic plane with absolutely no airfoil and a small bushing engine could satisfy a modeler of thirty some odd years, I still can't believe it. But this is the truth; I get more pleasure and relaxation from flying this little plane than I do from any of my giant scale or regular planes that I have been flying for years. I guess it is the fact that it doesn't cost much to build and it is a very rugged plane. You can do aerobatics while only three feet off the ground and you are not worried about a crash. If it does hit the ground (and it will sooner or later), most of the time you just restart the engine and let it go. Flying one foot off the ground has its advantages when it comes to damaging your plane. With a little experience you can bring this plane in for a landing and hover at mid field about ten feet above the ground, reduce power and do a vertical landing with the engine still running, take off in five feet and do it again.      With this plane I spend most of my flying time just above the ground, but it will perform well at high altitude also. It does a nice flat spin and has a really fast roll rate. A nice maneuver I have just started doing is to hover it about three feet off the ground, power up and give max ailerons, don't wait for it to torque roll. While it is gaining momentum going up it is rolling very fast and really looks nice rolling that close to the ground. Its inverted flight is about the same as any other plane; it needs a little down in the elevators. It is so nice to be able to fly this close to the ground and be able to see the plane so well. Being able to see the plane makes all the difference in the world when it comes to hovering.      One of the amazing things about this little plane is that it doesn't try to fall to the sides when you have it in a hover position. When it torque rolls it is easy to keep up with and maintain a vertical attitude. It would probably hover fine without a rudder, but the rudder is nice while on the ground for steering the plane. I think I will build one without a rudder and vertical fin, and also leave off the landing gear. This would save a lot of weight, about eight ounces or more. I bet it would really increase its vertical thrust.       I have had many request for information about building this little plane so I thought I would write it up and put the information on my site. I would like to see many of these planes in the air with different engines so we could do more research and determine the best combination. You will be amazed at how easy it is to build compared to how much fun you will have with it. Two or three evenings and you are in the air and already thinking about your next one that you are going to build for a backup. This plane flies by angle of attack, but at times it will fly as level as any plane and you will wonder where the lift is coming from. I am amazed each time I take it to the field at how well it performs and the new stunts it will do. Even with a dead stick it glides better than you would think. So I say Airfoil! Who needs it?        I always build the wing first; actually the wing is the whole plane other than the vertical tail. There is no fuselage on this plane; the servos are mounted in the wing. The wing is flat with no airfoil at all. It is build from coroplast, as is the vertical fin and rudder. You can get coroplast from any graphic sign shop or order it from harbor.com (this is not Harbor Freight). Cut the wing 24 inches square with your hobby knife and a straight edge. You have built the buck of the plane in three minutes! The corrugations of the plastic run from left to right of the wing and not front to rear. This gives you maximum strength. The elevons are also quick to build. They are five inches by eleven inches and are made by removing one side of the corrugation plastic. Be sure not to cut through both sides when you cut them. Sometimes I place a bass wood strip in the slot so I will cut into it and not go through the other side of the plastic. Any place that you install a screw through the plastic you will need to install wood to prevent the plastic from crushing. I use 1/8 by 3/32 bass wood strips for this. I have found that the hollow slots in the plastic (corrugations) come in different sizes, depends on where you get the plastic. Light ply will also work fine. When you insert the small strips of wood into the corrugations hold the wing up to a bright light and you can see through the plastic to position the sticks.      Next build the engine rails for mounting the small engine. They are made from any hardwood, but pine or plywood will also work fine. They need to be spaced to fit your engine and need to project out in front of the wing to allow enough room to slide the engine forward and aft to balance the plane. Mount the engine last and use it to balance the plane at five inches from leading edge of wing. This is a good starting point for the CG. The rails are ¾ by ½ -inch stock and are attached to the plane with three 6-32 screws on each rail. They extend eight inches from the leading edge of the wing toward the rear and are installed on the bottom of the plane.      Now is the time to cut your servo holes in the wing. They will be cut to fit your servos and are spaced for best balance. The elevon servos are located at the rear of the wing at 8 ½-inches from the rear of the elevons to their centers and use solid metal 2-56 push rods to attach to the elevon horns. The elevon servos are spaced ½-inch from the aluminum channel that will be running down the center of the plane. The rudder servo is just forward the elevon servos at 11-inches from the rear of the elevons and is also ½-inch from the channel. The rudder servo can be mounted on either side of the aluminum channel; I mount mine on the right side. The throttle servo is mounted up front; try to locate it around the CG point that is about five inches from leading edge of wing and about one inch from the channel. The throttle also uses a solid 2-56 rod with no outer tubing.      Next I run a ¼ by 3/8 basswood down the center on the wing on top. I guess you could call this the fuselage. This gives the wing rigidity and also allows you to attach the receiver pack to it by using nylon tie straps. Place the receiver and battery in an 8-ounce fuel tank that has the front cut off. This makes an ideal package and you can replace the front of the tank with rubber bands. The servo leads exit the stopper hole in the tank and the tank is pointed to the rear of the plane.      A better way that I now use is to replace the ¼ by 3/8 basswood with a ½ inch aluminum channel that you can get at Lowes Building supply. It makes the wing much stronger. Be sure to drill tie down holes for the receiver in the channel before you mount it to the plane. Save the mounting of the receiver and battery till last, with the engine, to achieve balance. Mount the channel so its flat side is down toward the top of the wing and its open side faces up. You may want to taper the front of the channel to remove its sharp corner. The channel is mounted to the wing with five 6-32 machine screws spaced so they do not interfere with the vertical fin. Remember to put wood strips in the slots where the screws go through. I use three slots at each screw to place wood in, one under the screw and one on each side of the screw. I place the wood strips in position by using a 4-40 rod to push then in place. The strips are about two inches long. Place a pin through the plastic to hold the wood in place and allow some thin ca to run down the slots by holding the wing vertical; this will hold the wood in place for good. Place a paper towel on the bottom side to catch any ca that runs all the way through.      The vertical fin and rudder measures 8 inches across the bottom and 5 ½ inches across the top. Of that the rudder is 2 1/2-inches wide. The fin is 8 inches high. Taper the rudder at the bottom so it will have clearance of the elevon horn. The rudder and fin are build from coroplast and the rudder is hinged the same as the elevons. The fin and rudder size are not critical, almost any size will work fine. Mount the fin by placing it in the channel slot so it is flush with the rear of the plane. Place two popsicle sticks on each side of the fin running lengthwise of the channel and place two 6-32 screws through the fin, sticks, and channel. This allows for easy removal if needed.  The plane works best if you have a tail wheel. Place a small hardwood block about two inches by 3/8 thick by 5/8 wide on bottom at the rear of the plane. Attach it to the aluminum channel with 4-40 or 6-32 screws. Mount your tail wheel to this block. It does not need to be steerable, with a little speed the plane will steer fine on the ground.     The main landing gear is built from 1/8-inch music wire in two pieces. They mount to the motor mount rails by having the end at a 90 degree angle and ¾ inch long to fit into the hardwood rail. It then comes across the bottom of the other rail and is shaped to give your prop plenty of clearance from the ground. You will need this clearance when you are doing vertical landings and the plane bounces as it sometimes does. Having this clearance will keep the engine running.   Place a nylon-landing strap across them to hold in place. They should be located so the 2-½ inch wheels are just under the leading edge of the wing when you look down on the plane. With this information and the picture on my web site you should be able to build this plane and start having the ultimate fun-fly experience. If you need any more help just let me know. Happy Flying James Goss