The Flying Aces Club McCook Squadron out of Dayton, Ohio decided to have a one-design event for a half-sized Gollywock. I had started just such a plan years ago and this inspired me to finish the drawing and cut some parts. Here are build photos to help with the build. It all is pretty standard stuff, but the wing could be tricky for someone not familiar with this type of construction.
This design replicated the original outline of the 1941 “New” Gollywock, but is not a true scale reduction: I lessened the number of ribs and fuselage cross-pieces. But I also made the ribs 1/16″ sheet as opposed to the original 1/2-sized thickness of 1/32″.
If you look close in the final photos, you will see that I used a 3D-Printed noseblock, with a Gizmo Geezer adjustable Nose Button, and a 3D-printed prop. These weigh about 3.5g. Using a wood prop, wood noseblock, and smaller nose button, the weight could be reduced by probably 2 grams (but you will probably need nose weight to balance anyway).
Oh, and I used some domestic tissue that my wife received in a present. Domestic tissue is not always a bad product. This tissue was pretty good stuff; it is tough, did not disintegrate when applied wet (lightly sprayed), and it shrinks well.
MODEL DETAILS
Model: Half-sized Gollywock (15.875″ wing span)
Class: Sport (no real category)
Weight: ~10-15 grams – mine weighs 13g without rubber
Prop: 6″ Volare 3D-printed
Motor: 1 loop 1/8″ rubber (??? not yet flown)
Built: May 2025
You can get the Short Kit HERE.
Short Kit contents: plan and laser-cut wood
Wing Step 1: glue together spar as instructed on the plan
Wing Step 2: glue together the Wing Tip Parts and the 1/16″ square Leading Edge. The Leading Edge is ON EDGE, like a diamond. Note the tails on the wing ribs. Do NOT take these off; they are needed for proper alignment of the Trailing Edges.
Lift the Trailing Edge and slip the rib under, fitting the rib in the slot and the Leading Edge in the notch of the rib. For the wing tips, these tabs build in a bit of washout.
Here you can see how the Trailing Edge has the built-in washout.
The inboard wing panels are built similarly. In this case, the tabs hold the Trailing Edge stock at the proper angle for the airfoil. NOTE: use the provided dihedral gauge to set the proper angle for the ROOT rib (right-most in this photo)
When all four panels are built, they can be assembled on the spar. Start with the inner panels and carefully align them and glue them in place. Don’t forget to glue the center two ribs together.
this shows one inner panel aligned with the very center of the spar.
This shows two inner panels glued together.
With one inner panel pinned to the building board, slip the outer panel in place and glue. You will probably need to pin the Leading Edge and Trailing Edge in place to properly hold them while the glue dries. The spar should sit flush in the rib and tip notches.
The second inner panel pinned to the board and the other outer panel installed.
After all panels are glued in place, trim the rib tabs off the wing. Sand these areas smooth.
Typical square fuselage construction. Begin with the straight sections. Keep everything square. Then move on to the tail and nose. KEEP EVERYTHING SQUARE.
All parts ready to cover and being weighed for reference. At this point, you can start to estimate the final weight. The final weight will generally be somewhere around 2 – 3x this weight. So this 5g will result in something like 10-15g, depending on the materials used to finish.
This is my final all-up weight, without rubber, but including prop, prop shaft, nose bearing, wing pegs, motor peg, wing rails, and two coats of dope.
Finished #1 – it looks just like a real Gollywock!
Finished #2
Finished #3.
But oh so tiny!