the Clark Clan - Planes - Eastbourne monoplane

For my first scale model designed for radio control I chose a fairly straightforward model of a 1913 Eastbourne Monoplane. The original plane was designed by the Eastbourne Aviation Company in East Sussex, England. This was just before the first World War broke out and hence the emphasis in aviation turned to military craft and the aircraft was not widely sold.

This model is a 36inch balsa and liteply construction covered with cream Solarlite film. It is based on a plan drawn up by Peter Rake and appeared as a free plan in the Februrary 2005 edition of Radio Control Model World magazine.

As I'm not yet experienced at flying a radio control plane I have not fitted this with any electrics at this point. Once I have some experience I'll fit this with a motor and radio gear and see how she flies!

	This shows the initial lamination of the tailplane.
	Once dry the tailplane was built up.
	The wing ribs were marked...
	...and then cut out. These were pinned together for shaping and sanding.
	The wings could then be assembled.
	The rear fuselage was then started.
	This shows the front and rear halves of the fuselage before fitting.
	...and another angle.
	The front engine cover in progress.
	The control horns before fitting.
	The finished and sanded components before covering.
	...and another angle.
	The components were fitted and sitting in place before being covered. They were removed and covered separately before assembly.
	...and another angle.
	...and another angle.

Finally the model was covered & assembled, the controls fitted, the front sections painted, the wheels made and the rigging added.

This aircraft was featured in the publication 'Flight' on May 3, 1913. The following was the reviewers comments;

A new machine has been added to the list of British built aeroplanes. The monoplane in question has been designed for the Eastbourne Aviation Co., Ltd., by Mr. E. L. Gassler, who has had considerable experience in this direction, besides being a practical engineer and an able pilot, so that, although the machine is an experimental one, it should be fairly certain to give a good account of itself.