About the Plane:

The X-35 was the winner of the Joint Strike Fighter competition in October 2001. It beat the Boeing X-32. The production fighter will be known as the F-35. The model was intended to be a inexpensive jet based around the popular .25 size engine. The size of the model will fit in any car. The model is constructed of balsa and plywood. The wing was made removable for ease of handling.

Flying the Model:

This model has not flown yet.

Construction Highlights:

10/15/05: It has been a while.... I have added the engine and servos in the tail. See how the servos control only one surface. A "Y" harness is used to connect the servos together. The rudder servos are also linked to a separate servo used to control the nose gear.

9/4/04: The finished airframe. All that is left is to install the tank, radio, and engine.

8/17/03: Plans are done, and previews revised to reflect final drawings.

8/11/03: Painting has reached that point where the model starts coming alive. There is still a lot more trim work. The rudder tail flash needs the blue highlight, and the big X-35C letters. The whole airframe will get panel lines, emblems, some surface detail, and then a final coat of clear to set the final finish.

8/7/03: I am actively working the construction drawings. As usual, this is a labor intensive process. I added preliminary copies of sheet 1 and 2. Please remember, these are preliminary. The general layout is fixed, but content is still being added. Once the drawings are finalized, I will update the views on the website. What you see here has most of the detailed views. I need to clarify formers, and the fuselage construction. The drawings will show both X-35C and F-35C. The biggest difference is the cut-down fuselage and bubble canopy of the F-35C. A more subtle change is the nose-gear placement, and even more subtle is the slight dihedral of the stabilizers.

8/3/03: It has been a long time since I could find time to work on the plane. Here is a picture of the cockpit. Note the Williams Brothers pilot was used however it needed a base that raised it about 3/8" higher. The ejection seat is made from .02 plastic. So is the instrument panel. The main canopy was cut from a Sig 13" military style canopy, and the forward wind screen was .02 sheet. I would recommend a smaller Sig canopy, probably a 11" would work better. You can see I am still priming the plane. I had to finish the cockpit, so that I could mask the canopy, and spray the whole plane.

7/26/03: The plane is covered and the first primer coat has been applied via brush. The control surfaces are hinged and installed. The final finish will be light grey and dark blue dope. The tail insignia will be a combination of yellow dope and blue Monokote. It should look great when done. You can see the black nozzle. This is a dummy nozzle cut from pink foam, and covered in epoxy/fiberglass cloth. The black cockpit area shows how big the plane is relative to the pilot. The pilot is the right size. The inlet surface is painted black to give the illusion of internal ductwork.

6/18/03: The construction instructions have been updated. Note it is a big 542K Word Document. It is my first draft, and will be revised without notice!!

6/2/03:Construction continues, but at a much less noticeable rate. The big changes are over until I start to paint.

I have made the nozzle, finished installing the wing LEX sheeting and fairings on the stabilizers, and started working on the cockpit detail. I will have more pictures soon. I have been ignoring the "Construction Plan and Instructions" web page for a long time. Sorry, but I am focused on the building, not updating the website. I have many pictures of the construction that will be added to the web page.

The 1/12" scale William's Brothers pilot looks too small for the cockpit, but closer examination of pictures of the X-35 confirm it is the right size. The X-35 is not a small airplane! The William's Brothers 1/12 scale pilot seems smaller than 1/12. I think I saw an article a few years back that said it was closer to 1/14th scale. Since my F-35C is ~1/15 scale this works out fine. The pilot looks small in there, but anything larger would be wrong.

Good news on the CG situation. I have reviewed the preliminary CG, and have revised the location FORWARD. This is great news. The long nose, and short tail make this plane a challenge. But the end is in sight. I placed the radio on the back of the plane where it belongs and I only needed 2 oz of tail weight to get the plane in balance. I used a old heavy receiver, and a 450mAh battery pack mounted inside the nozzle. This is before the plane is covered, which will add additional tail weight.

As for covering, I have elected to cover the prototype in silkspan and dope. I really like this method for fully sheeted models. The ability to paint any color you want, combined with adding India ink panel lines swayed me. I think this will be the lightest combination. As for weight, the plane feels pretty light. I look forward to a weigh in soon.

5/22/03:The basic airframe is complete! The two pictures do not do the plane justice. The lens tends to exaggerate the features closest to the camera. The engine has been fitted and the fairing of the fuselage to the spinner is almost complete. You can see the inlets are blocked off with 1/16" balsa. Note the wedge angle. When they are painted black, they will be impossible to see. The rear view highlights the configuration of the tail surfaces. The two large fins combined with the wide spread stabilizers characterize the X-35 look. Note how far forward the nozzle will be. The nozzle will only project another 2.5" form the last bulkhead.

4/28/03:More work complete this past weekend. Thank goodness it rained. Plenty of guilt-free building time! Finished the top sheeting, and it looks great. The best part was making and installing the twin fins. With them installed, I have spent more time looking at the plane than working on it. In this picture you can really see it come together. The engine mount is installed. The next step it to finish the hatch region on the bottom of the fuselage, and box-in the inlets. Once that is done, I will install the engine and finish fairing it into the nose with blocks of balsa and a 2" spinner.

4/22/03: A lot has happened over the past month. The fuselage has been built and the stabilizers have been glued on. As you can see, the wing is bolted to the fuselage, and is used to keep everything straight while the sheeting and the stabilizers are added. The complex shape is evident. The top view shows off the blended fuselage and wing. The bottom view shows the complex angular surfaces. Note the external carbon fiber spars on the stabilizers. The CF spars really add a lot of strength.

I am getting concerned about weight. The CG of the bare frame is a little ahead of the final CG. There is still quite a bit more balsa to be added to the front, including the fairing around the engine itself. When the engine is added, the plane will be nose heavy. I am thinking of a MACS semi-tuned pipe because it should be lighter than the stock OS-25LA muffler. I am increasing the sheet thickness of the twin fins to 1/8". Since I will need tail weight to balance the model, heavier fins will be a benefit both for added weight and strength.

3/30/03: Wing and stabilizer are working. Here is a glimpse of the progress. Construction note: Remember to install the aileron torque tube in the ribs before gluing the ribs to the bottom sheeting. The wing is one piece. The bottom sheeting is 1/16" contest balsa, and runs from wing tip to wing tip. Spars are 1/8" x 1/4" spruce. Stabilizer is 3/32" balsa with .007" thick carbon fiber strips added, top and bottom, for strength.

3/8/03: The construction drawings are finally done! That took a long time. The flat, angular surfaces are very hard to layout in 3D. I now have flat patterns for all of these odd surfaces. Construction copies of the former and wing ribs have been printed. I am starting to cut wood on the prototype.

2/15/03: The construction drawings are almost done. Construction drawings are not full drawings suitable for sale. They consist of the detailed parts, without formatting or instructions. Stealth aircraft typically have lots of flat surfaces at odd angles. The X-35 is no exception. It has taken a lot of time to figure out how to cut the flat pieces of balsa wood, and get them to fit after they have been bent into shape. I am doing this electronically. The true test is when the parts are cut out, and the first model is built. SOON!

This model is currently being designed. I have selected the Carrier Variant (CV) because of the large wing area. This model can be built as the X-35C, or the F-35C. Color schemes range from the X-35C, front line Navy fighter, and the future Blue Angels. Here are a few images of the model. This airplane is being designed for a .25 tractor engine which makes it very economical.

Background on X-35C and F-35C:

Lockheed-Martin designed the experimental X-35 as part of the "Joint Strike Fighter" Program. The X-35 won the completion between Lockheed-Martin and Boeing's X-32. The production aircraft was designated the F-35.

Three models of the F-35 will be produced. The F-35A will be a small wing version for the USAF and will replace the F-16.. The F-35C will be a large wing version for the US Navy and will replace the F/A-18. The last variant is the most exciting. The F-35B will be a Short Takeoff and Vertical Landing (STOVL) replacement for the AV-8 Harrier. The F-35B has a single engine driving a lift-fan in the front, and a pivoting nozzle in the rear. The thrust of the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine with lift-fan is in the 40,000 lb class, easily making this the most powerful single engine airplane in the world!

The USA, Great Britain, Italy, Canada, Norway, Australia, Germany, and other countries have joined forces to develop and manufacture the F-35. What this means to the modeler is there will be a tremendous number of color schemes in the next few years. One can imagine the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels flying the F-35. Who knows how many countries will use this aircraft in their air forces, and demonstration teams.