Whats on the bench – Cloud Clipper – Old Timer

I am getting old, well not THAT old, so I decided I needed to invest in an Old Timer model. After searching around I found the Value Planes Cloud Clipper at Albury Models and Hobbies and decided to pull the trigger and have a go.

I found the construction so far to be fairly easy, although you do need to understand Chinglish with the instructions, but most half competent modellers would be able to work though it and understand what it is that is being described.

The Fuseagle was simple enough to assemble although you do need to decide if your model will be electric or IC powered before going too far as it makes a difference what parts you instal. This point was not made in the instruction guide but is shown on the plan so it’s a small trap for those who don’t read ahead (like me).

Once the majority of the Fuselage was assembled It also became apparent that no mention of a battery holder was made if you are going electric, so I modified the front where I thought was the best location and installed a battery tray that could not only hold the battery and Speedy but also allow enough forward and back movement of the battery to assist with the CofG. The location between the Servo tray and the Firewall allows for a lot of adjustment for the CofG so hopefully there will be no need for ballast.

The rest of the construction of the fuse was straight forward but I found a couple of parts missing, that being the tail skid block and the tail skid wire, but I had plenty of scrap laying around to make those parts myself.

I also added a couple of extra longerons behind the last ply bulkhead to allow for a better transition from the flat section of the wing mount to the more rounded section of the turtle deck for the covering to fit better. I decided to “fill in” the area around where the dowel for the wing connection rubber bands goes to also allow for a better fit for the covering.

The wings were next, and they went together very easily, with a clip together design and once again the die cutting was superb, and I can’t help but be impressed with Value Planes quality.