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By: Rotor_1
Part I "The Tail"
21st Century fatefully modeled their Vietnam
version after the one on display at the US
Army Aviation Museum in Fort Rucker Al. "Miss Clawd IV" #17340.
What's first noticeable on the model it that it comes with a "T" tail and a five bladed rotor head. The OH-6A which first entered service with the US Army in 1966 had a "V" tail, also referred to as a "Y" tail. It also was equipped with a four bladed main rotor head.
In this first part I'll focus on how to build a "V" tail for your helicopter.
I only had a few photos of the real one to work with so it's not 100% scale.
A 6mm thick piece of balsa wood was used for the vertical portion of the tail fin. Leading and trailing edges were sanded round. This photo shows all the dimensions.
The part of the tail which angles out was cut from a discarded .30 size R/C helicopter rotor blade. (photo1) A good source for discarded R/C helicopter rotor blades is your local R/C flying field. You'll need a piece 150mm long.
To create the "ribs" on both sides of the vertical fin surfaces I cut and glued small strips of thin cardboard as seen here. (photo2)I applied pin stripping tape to the angled fin for less pronounced ribs.
The bracket that runs between both fins was made from a strip of balsa wood. It's attached 42mm down from the top of the vertical fin and 63mm down from the top of the angled fin. (photo3)It is centered on the vertical fin, but off set on the angled fin 15mm from the leading edge.
I added a stinger to the bottom of the vertical fin using a piece of 1/16" music wire bent to shape and glued in with CA. (photo4)
To attach the fin to the tail boom I cut a piece of hardwood the size of the opening on the tail boom, make sure it's a snug fit. Remove it and glue it to the fin with 5 minute epoxy. Push the whole assembly back into the hole after the epoxy cures.
Another alternative and a much easier way to
build your "V" tail is with cardboard as seen in this photo. (photo5)
The closest paint color match I could find
was from Walmart. They have a line of spray paint called ColorPlace.
The color is Camouflage Green #20018. My local Walmarts do not have anymore
in stock so I'm stuck looking for a substitute at this point. *If
you do happen to find any please e-mail me.
Next up in PART II,
building a 4 bladed rotor head.
