Thread: Shackleton Mk III

After a search there appears to be very little in the way of drawings for the Avro Shackleton,the only flying model was the one done as a plan by APS,although dated it does provide the basics for parts to scale up although being a control line model it is quite beefy in construction,there is however another avenue open to you and that is to purchase an example of a plastic kit done for the Mk.3 and use that as your plans basis,having done this several times myself including building a Lancaster it works well,after all you have all of the shapes and cross sections that you need to make drawings for your model.
I suggest that if you have not made any scale models before,then start with a simpler subject than the Shackleton,you have picked one of the most complex of design subjects to make as a flying model ! so tread carefully to avoid any pitfalls and start with something simpler,likewise when you come to be ready to fly,get proper instruction on a trainer model first and get some flying hours under your belt,there was in fact a radio controlled model of the Avro Shackleton shown on the cover of a 'Model Aircraft' magazine I think around the 1960 era,off hand I cannot remember who built it ? but it was shown in South African Air Force colours and looked very impressive indeed.
The original Frog Shackleton kit was taken over by Revell who revamped it,you can till pick them up from specialst model shops,keep your eyes open.

Thanks Kiwi,your info access is excellent and I wish that I could lay my hands on things as quickly as you can ? looking at this drawing which I have not seen for a long time,it looks perfectly feasible to scale her up to a reasonable proportions to make a flying model,she would make a great electric scale model subject with a few modifications.
The only other drawing that has been located is one done by the British MAP for building a model for recognition purposes.

Originally Posted by Kiwi

Here is a scan of the C/L Shackleton planned I mentioned and that Barry later came up with

Wasn't the Shackleton (and probably many other aircraft) described as

"a hundred thousand rivets flying in close formation"

What are the flying characteristics of scale aircraft in comparison to the real life counterpart, do design faults manifest themselves in the scale replicas or does pyhsics and power to weight ratio negate those?

I was reading a pilots account of the shack who said the shackleton was happiest when it was on the ground, whereas the lancester wanted to fly and infact trying to get it to land was a problem as it just wanted to float rather than touch the ground.

I'm not making any derogatory remarks about the shack tho - fantastic looking aircraft and an excellent subject for a model!

It all depends on the size,type and weight of the model, but there are so many other factors like wing loading and the use of other aerofoils more suited to models,sometimes a scale section is totally unsuited to scale models as many have found out in the past.
A model is also more unstable due to its size in general and needs inherant stability built in such as washout at the wingtips to prevent a tip stall,especially on narrow wingtip shapes.
There are too many factors to say that a model will emulate its full sized counterpart,on the other hand types like world war one biplanes will fly in a very similar fashion to the original,it all depends on the design,in the case of the Shackleton I doubt whether it would fly as per the original,things needs careful consideration,that is why I say it is far from a beginners subject,you just build up to making a model like this from experience,having built three Lancasters I am still learning !
The only way to find out is to build one and see,using as many desirable features as possible to give the model a chance.