Top-flite TOPA0145 User Manual

WARRANTY...Top Flite Models guarantees this kit to be free of defects in both material and workmanship at the date of purchase. Thiswarranty does n

❏ 2. Place one of the balsa skins over the stab planand cut the sheeting as shown in the sketch below.Be sure to cut the balsa skins slightly larger t

❏ 9. Before you sheet the top of the stab, refer to thephoto at step 10. Use a ballpoint pen and a squareto mark the center of the stab and the root e

❏❏2. Cut a 1/4" x 3/4" x 30" [6.4 x 19.1 x 762mm]balsa stick to the length shown on the plan for theelevator leading edge. Use a straig

❏ 12. Using the sketch above, cut six hinges fromthe CA hinge strip supplied with this kit. Snip thecorners off so they go into the slots easier. You

❏ 6. Glue the die-cut 1/8” balsa fin TE to the fin TE spar.❏ 7. Glue the die-cut 1/8 balsa fin tip between the TEspar and the top of V5. Be sure that

BUILD THE FUSELAGEFrame the Fuselage top❏ 1. Cut the fuselage plan on the dashed lines andtape the fuse top view to your building board. Coverthe plan

❏ 10. Test fit former F1 onto the main stringers. Usethe die-cut 1/8" [3.2mm] ply firewall gauge (FG) toset the proper amount of down thrust. Per

Mount the stab and fin❏ 1. Remove the elevators from the stab. ❏ 2. Place the stab on the stab saddle, aligning thecenterline mark on the trailing edg

❏ 10. Hold the fin vertical with masking tape strappedacross the top of the fin over to both stab tips. Adjustthe tension on the masking tape to pull

❏ 5. Cut away former F3 and IP as shown in the photograph.❏ 6. Cut the tail fillet pattern from the plan andmake two of them from some of the leftove

TABLE OF CONTENTSAND BUILDING SEQUENCEINTRODUCTION...3PRECAUTIONS ...

❏ 10. Cut out the ABS plastic exhaust stacks. Aftertrimming, mark "left"on one and "right" on the other,on the back of each piece

❏ 6. Test fit formers F1A, F3A and F6A to the wingsaddle. The formers and saddle have been notchedto allow the structure to interlock together. When y

❏ 21. Locate five die-cut 1/8" [3.2mm] ply guidetube holders. Drill a 3/16" [4.8mm] hole through thepunch mark on the holders.❏ 22. Support

❏ 29. Trial fit the floor assembly with the fuel tankinto the fuselage. Be sure that the aft end of the flooris resting against the basswood block you

Step 41 - 43 apply only for the fixed gear installation.Skip to step R1 if you are installing retracts.❏ 42. Drill 1/8" [3.2mm] holes in F1A at t

❏ 45. Glue the other half of the nose ring (NR) inposition on the front of the fuselage. Temporarily gluea few 1/16" [1.6mm] spacers to the nose

punch marks in the two die-cut 1/8" [3.2mm] plywoodFlap Bellcrank Plates. Assemble the bellcrank partsas shown in the sketch (don't worry, t

❏❏11. Position W1 onto the spars. Locate the die-cut1/8” dihedral gauge (DG). Use the gauge to set theangle of W1 when it is fit into the spars. When

If you have installed the fixed gear, skip thefollowing 6 steps.PPPP--33339999 FFFFaaaaccccttttThe Airacobra was never outstanding incombat and was s

Sheet The Bottom Of The Wing❏❏1. Remove the T-pins. Use a sanding bar to sandthe LE, TE spars and ribs so they are smooth andeven. Be careful not to c

INTRODUCTIONCongratulations and thank you for purchasing theTop Flite Gold Edition P-39 Airacobra. We are sureyou are eager to build and fly your P-39

❏❏4. Use some coarse sandpaper to roughen theinside of the ply hatch and the end of the mountingblock. Glue the mount to the hatch with 30-minuteepoxy

❏ 8. For this step it will be helpful to position somethingunder the wing so that you can give support to the twowing halves while they are being join

Make the right flap first, followed by the left flap.❏ ❏ 4. Refer to the sketch above. Use medium orthick CA to glue a 1/32" x 3/4"x 14-1/2

❏ ❏ 16. Locate the 2-56 ball, ball link socket and 2-56 nut. Attach the ball through FR3D and FR3 andretain it with the nut. After tightening the nu

❏ ❏ 5. Test fit the flaps into position. Sand as neededto fit the flaps between the ribs with 1/16" [1.6mm]clearance at each end.❏ ❏ 6. Make a s

❏ ❏ 15. Using the 1/8" [3.2mm] pilot hole as a guide,drill through the pilot holes from the top of the wingthrough the bottom center section shee

❏ 7. Use 30-minute epoxy to glue the blocks in place onthe saddles. Clean any excess epoxy from the block.Glue some leftover 3/8” tri balsa to the blo

❏ 3. Glue former F1F into position on the stringersand glue the remaining center stringer in position.This will provide something to which the sheetin

❏ 13. Cut out the two plastic cannon pods. We madethe cannons from 3" x 1/4" [76 x 6.4mm] brass tube,7/32"x 1/2" [5.6 x 12.7mm] br

will provide clearance when mounting the cowl. Besure to only drill the clearance hole in F1CM, not thefirewall. Apply some thin CA to the holes in t

COMPETITION-MINDED MODELERSWe designed our P-39 Airacobra from scale three-view drawings supplied by Scale Model Research(address follows) and photos

❏ 2. Inspect all surfaces for uneven glue joints andseams that require filler. Apply filler where needed.Many small dents or scratches in balsa can be

Covering sequenceRefer to the painting section that follows before youcover the fuse.Fuselage1. Stab bottoms, then stab tops2. Fin3. Aft fuse bottom4.

you join the elevators to the stab, remove the staband insert a pin in the center of the hinges to keepthem centered. Use a tissue dampened with alcoh

❏ 3. With the wing attached to the fuselage, thelanding gear extended (if you have retracts) and anempty fuel tank, lift the model at the balance poi

We use a Top Flite Precision Magnetic PropBalancer (TOPQ5700) in the workshop and keep aGreat Planes Fingertip Prop Balancer (GPMQ5000)in our flight b

4. I will operate my model using only radio controlfrequencies currently allowed by the FederalCommunications Commission.FLYINGTakeoffTake offs with t

Top Flite CorsairTOPA010162” Wing span 7-9.5 lbsTop Flite P-51TOPA011065” Wing span 8-10 lbsTop Flite P-40E WarhawkTOPA012064” Wing span 8-10.5 lbsTop

Top Flite BonanzaTOPA030581” Wing span 11-13 lbsTop Flite P-47D ThunderboltTOPA013563” Wing span 8.5-10.5 lbsTop Flite 1/7 Scale Warbird PilotTOPQ9000

TWO-VIEWUse this drawing or photocopy it and use the copies to plan your trim scheme.

OTHER ITEMS REQUIREDThese are additional items you will need to completeyour P-39 Airacobra that are not included with yourkit. Order numbers are in p

6DIE-CUT PATTERNS

7DIE-CUT PATTERNS

(continued from page 5)12' [300mm] roll of Adhesive-backed sandpaper:80-grit (GPMR6180)150-grit (GPMR6183)180-grit (GPMR6184)220-grit (GPMR6185)A

BUILD THE TAIL SURFACESMAKE THE STAB SKINS❏ 1. Use the Hot Tip that follows or your own methodto glue two 1/16" x 3" x 30" [1.6 x 76 x