Full size printed plans Peanut Scale "SEA FURY" Build with the "gear up" for improved performance

Full size printed plans No material

SEA FURY

Steve went a little overboard on the finish for this one, but it's worth it and he can still get 20-second flights indoors.

Full size printed plan on a sheet 11” x 17”

Four page article with building notes and photos

Peanut Scale

Wingspan 13”

Power Rubber

By STEVE GARDENER

One of the last of the prop-driven military fighter aircraft, and certainly one of the prettiest. Build with the "gear up" for improved performance .. and looks .. in the air.

I saw my first Sea Fury at the EAA fly-in at Wittman Field, Oshkosh, in 1975... It was very big, very solid, and very beautiful. I had seen pictures of it in different books and had always said that it was a very good looking plane. But now I wonder if all the other planes that I see in different books and say, "that is a good looking plane", will impress me like the Sea Fury did when I saw it for real.

I walked up to it from the front and started to feast on The prop first. It is huge! Five blades with very coarse pitch.. and a blade cord that isn't to be believed and when it turns, it turns to the left! The cowl is an example of the perfect way to hide a radial engine of this size. Right behind the cowl is the wing leading edge with it's radiator intakes (oil cooler) yawning at you and its fake cannon barrels looking very well. With a shallow dihedral break half way out on the wing, and the elliptical outer panels, it makes a pretty shape with lots of area. The canopy is perched on top of the crest formed by the slope of the tail meeting the slope of the nose, and is just the right shape. The fuselage tapers down to the well proportioned empennage in a long sweep that is just the right length to balance the wing and tail areas. Over all, it is a very handsome airplane, and with its large wing, it is a good choice for a Peanut.

You should always pick your Peanut materials very carefully to get a light model, but when you plan to add some weight with an opaque finish you should be doubly careful about the weight of all the other items. The model in the photos is very heavy for a Peanut, and it must struggle to make 20 seconds, although a lighter model could easily do twice that. The next one I build will be covered with one coat of thinned clear dope on C-paper or Japanese tissue. If you fly indoors, you might try smaller wood sizes than are called out in the plans, or leave the landing gear off to save weight.

Thank you for your interest