50 year old "Guppy" converted to electric and GG

Waggly tails
jmendoza
Posts: 167
Joined: 18 Feb 2018, 23:07

Re: 50 year old "Guppy" converted to electric and GG

Post by jmendoza »

I built 3 Guppys, well 2 and 1/2. .
The 1st one was in 1976 and finished the fuselage with white epoxy. The Pee Wee .020 was barely able to keep it in a shallow climb... the engine was weak and too heavy of a finish. 2nd one was not much better but had just clear finish, built it in 1978. The 3rd time was a charm as we ditched the heavy foam wing and instead built a sheet balsa wing from 1/20th" a-la Schoolboy( sheet top and bottom over a few ribs and hard leading edge) Taking no chances on the Pee Wee, we used a Tee Dee .010 with a bladder and Dale Kirn drilled out the venturi a bit. It was capable of full aerobatics. I also lightened it up a bit by taking one magnet off the Adams Baby Twin to make it a Baby. We flew it at the 1980 Skynaughts nite fly using button cells and grain of wheat bulbs for nav and stroke lights.

Can't remember what happened to the Guppy, but I still have the Ace Pulse Commander and the TD .010, ran across them in their original boxes the other day while rummaging around. The Leisure Dynamics era (post 1969) Cox engines were hit or miss as they cut many quality steps out of the process, so you could get honker, or a dog....mostly dogs.

Great memories, thanks for posting your Guppies,
Jay
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drigotti
Posts: 54
Joined: 29 Aug 2018, 12:44
Location: Ohio USA

Re: 50 year old "Guppy" converted to electric and GG

Post by drigotti »

Folks,
A little late in getting my Guppy in the air...But I did fly her Sunday August 13, 2023 for the first time since the conversion. She flew GREAT! The guys at the field were really interested in how it worked. I'll bet it has been over 50 years since the last time I flew it!
Sorry the picture I took didn't work out.
Dave Rigotti
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