Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong (updated!)

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong (updated!)

Follow along as Charlie Hynes builds the latest kit version of this classic airplane!

As you know, the Telemaster is one of the few designs that has stood the test of time, with the name dating back to the early days of modeling. This latest version has come a long way from the lumber yard it once was now with over 7 hours of laser cutting done for you. A popular choice for air drops, it comes with a plywood cargo box for dropping anything that fits … water balloons, parachutes, candy? Also the standard for aerotowing gliders and banners or flags, this plane can handle it all.  This 91-inch version is electric and comes with the right sized motor mount battery hatch and has plug in wings and stabs, flaps and even optional floats for seaplane practice.

Hobby Lobby

The first look out of the box no fancy package just what you need.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

The parts are all laser cut with rolled plans and full set of hardware.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

The wing taking shape built over the full size plans.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong
A 2×4 ceiling tile over flat bench top makes it easy to pin down and move around to look from other sides before the glue sets.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

With the sheer webs going on the front of the main spars a couple of them needed trim around the bottom sheeting.

Trailing Edge
Planing the trailing edge to match the wing ribs before the top sheeting can fit. The size of the shavings gives me a good idea how close it is.

Sanding Wood

Sanding the wood after planing the majority of it I had to watch the color of the ribs to tell when to change angles or stop. This sanding block is not ideal as it holds the paper sort of flat; a sanding bar or block with the paper glued on is preferred.

Not shown: I’m building both wing halves at the same time so I can skip the last step on the wing where it says “repeat steps 1 to 39 for the second panel.”

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

 wing servo mounting plates
Here are the wing servo mounting plates using hardwood strips for screw backing and triangle gussets along the laser cut keys.

 lock pin extended

Here is a spring that replaced the rubber band to hold the lock pin extended.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong
The lock pin handle is beefy plywood that moves in the slot to pivot to one of the side slots to hold it open for wing installation or removal.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

With the lock pin extended in the locked position it should move freely in the hole before gluing the parts to it.

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main spar inserted hardwood guide rails

With the main spar inserted. It holds the hardwood guide rails in place while the glue sets.

Shaping the leading edge

Shaping the leading edge same as the trailing edge to accept the top sheeting the razor plane does a quick job just not against the root rib that was sanded down as was the final shaping and the wing tip block.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

After gluing only the top aft part of the leading edge sheet on it is held in place with tape until its dry before gluing the rest down.

 Senior Telemaster Buildalong
The tip is rough cut to the shape of the wing tip underneath before trying to bend the top sheeting over the ribs and onto the leading edge.

 Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Here the flaps and ailerons are set up in pairs making the left and right sides mirror opposites to ensure they will fit later.

 flaps and ailerons

Once the ribs are glued the leading edge parts are also glued on. These are already cut and only fit in one direction.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Watch for the flap hinge slots when gluing on these leading edge parts if your using white glue keep it out of those slots they are a slight step on the bottom it could make installing the hinges difficult later.

 flap hinge slots

With a razor plane the tops of the aileron and flaps are shaved down to match the ribs to prepair for the top sheets.

aileron and flaps

Now they are pined down and the top sheets are glued in place. I marked them as right and left parts for now.

hinge-slot cutting tool

This is the hinge-slot cutting tool they provided and just a few passes with a new blade has them ready to accept those. One slot is ailerons and the other is flaps. Just use
this on the wing only since the control surfaces already have those slots cut.

 flap and ailerons

With the hinge lines being different so are the trim requirements on the flap and ailerons. On the right is the flap its just a chamfer on the bottom sheet and the aileron is
beveled on top and bottom meeting on the hinge line.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

I have installed the hinges for this next step as the flap drops it exposes the hinge a little but these will get glued later on.

wing tip and the triangle stock

Here is the wing tip and the triangle stock used to shape the aileron tip to match.

RC Plane Part

After shaping the tip the parts can be removed and final sanded getting them ready to cover. Just fine sand paper 150 or 220 grit on these a little at a time.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

This is the base plate for one of the stabilizers with a plate that the servo cover attaches to. It also gets the 4 40 blind nuts installed at this time.

bottom main spar leading

Here the bottom main spar leading and trailing edge parts. Once they are pinned down the ribs can be located.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

With all the ribs in place the shear webs and top main spar can be located and glued. Then it can be removed from the board sand the ends and install the tips same procedure as the wing.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

RC Plane Part

Here the elevators are built up over the bottom sheeting and the joiner is installed along with the ribs.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

With the razor plane and sanding bar the top leading and trailing edges are trimmed down to the height of the ribs.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

There is a step down between the top sheeting that is filled with a 1/8 sq and pre cut balsa cap.

Vertical stab and rudder

This is the vertical stab and rudder built at the same time using 1/4 square balsa stick for ribs between the leading and trailing edge.

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Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Making some side walls is the fuselage beginning with inboard and outboard sides. The one with the extra slots goes inboard the upper and lower halves get edge glued together first.

Vertical stab and rudder

Making up a left and right side mirror opposites before gluing them together the sides are cross grain to add strength and warp resistance these were cured under heavy books.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

The aft section was attached to the forward parts once they were dry. That center piece was cut to fit everything else so far was pre cut and a perfect fit.

firewall, battery tray and second bulkhead

Here are the firewall, battery tray and second bulkhead all being glued at once on one half.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

This is the third bulkhead it is attached freestanding so the square was used again while the glue cured on the same side.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

After a trial fit and some glue applied the other side was stacked on the frames and weight was used to hold it down tight while the glue cured.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

The bottom of f2 needed to be sanded down so the landing gear plate sat flush before gluing.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

After building up the gear base plate, latch and cargo opening these parts are glued onto the bottom.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Here some 1/4 sheet was cut down and glued on cross grain due to the bowed shape rubber bands hold them down while the glue cures then the over hanging sides can be sanded flush.

 

 

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

In the rear these lateral braces were tacked in place using a pin through the center holding them down across all 3 glue points then f4 thru f7 are located to ensure the tips have clearances before gluing. The right side used the drawing with the other side being mirror opposite.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

There are blind nuts that go inside the wing root with them being longer than the disc I used a scrap of balsa to hammer them down instead if trying to draw them thru with the bolts, then they pushed into the soft balsa inside the fuse with glue on the disc and a spring clamp held each one in place while the glue cured before putting the next one on.

Hobby Lobby Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Here the main spar is fitted into the slot to hold the three sticks in there slots while that glue sets up removing the spar before it is cured in place and cleaning off any squeezed out glue.

 rear of the fuselage

With the rear of the fuselage taking final shape the stab plate is glued on and the tail wheel brace under that then each former ahead of that can be glued in place with little effort.

Ten equal length sticks

Ten equal length sticks are glued onto this gap giving it more of a boxed in look and additional strength.
Coming up is the motor mount and final assembly getting it ready to cover.

 

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

 

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

 

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Here is the motor mount as it goes together without cutting or sanding everything keys together well and using 6/32 screws it gets attached for now.

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

This is the top of the fuselage after adding the sheeting, windshield and test fitting the wing. It is a tight fit first time so don’t force anything check holes for glue and anything else that causes binding.

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

 

Senior Telemaster Buildalong

Stepping back with the wing installed the first time It looks bigger now on top of my 4×8-foot bench. Just a few more things to do now and it will be ready to cover.

BL60 brushless motor

Here I have installed the BL60 brushless motor with 6/32 screws and the 65A ESC with zip ties against the mount plate provided. It has a Deans connector and very short wires that just reach the firewall.

BL60 brushless motor

 

 

BL60 brushless motor

Here is the finished motor mounted on the nose. Again the 6/32 screws attach to the blind nuts previously installed on the firewall.

BL60 brushless motor

Now is the last chance to smooth out the seams and gaps. Also building over wax paper leaves excess glue that will show through the covering. With light finger tip feel the areas to do additional sanding since the covering will only cover so much and what looks good enough may look worse once the covering is attached.  Peeling it back to fix something that can be found and fixed now.

 

Updated: July 20, 2015 — 10:34 AM

27 Comments

  1. excellent! the Hobby Lobby Telemaster is a classic! Laser-cutting looks great too. should really speed construction!

  2. The ribs always were the nicest looking part of the plane innards. Great pictures 🙂

  3. Wow, we certainly have come on a long way since those days. I imagine you have to be in your seventies to like this sort of thing. I’m in my middle sixties, so it doesn’t appeal to me one little bit. It would be like having a sixties haircut and being drafted. Who needs all that?

    Give me pusher jets, all moulded gliders and helicopters any day.

    1. My parents taught me to contribute in a positive manner. If not, SHUT UP

    2. Michael, I’m also in my sixties but I love the slow flying characteristics. Why do you denigrate something that isn’t to your liking? People like all sorts of different things. For me, your statements were offensive. You can keep your moulded (sic) gliders, jets and helicopters. I build and fly for relaxation, not for exhilaration. Please try to keep an open mind and if you don’t like something please don’t comment. Or you could ask why we like them. You might just learn something that way.

      1. I have 33% IMAC planes, and these are fun, amazing airplanes. I”m 76 and enjoy anything that flys. I have the 8′ version and a 6′ version. I”ve had the 8′ one to 1400′ AGL and glided down for 15 minutes. They’re great for tow planes, great trainers, great for just fun stuff, candy droppers, easy to fly. I can fly the 6′ within a small park. In at 10mph wind they will hover in place. Lots of people don’t like them till they’ve tried them. The is a relaxing plane to just float around or do some towing work if you want. Mine are both electric. I use the big fatsy dubro air tires on the 8′ one and I’ve flown off uncut grass that was one foot deep and started that flight from 8000′ elevation field. With the 6′ one, you can do chandelles(lazy 8’s) in 100′ or less.
        If you dont’ want it, send it over, I’ll fly it.
        If you want to learn about flight, this is a great place to start

    3. Middle 60s, middle 70s….. same thing lmao

  4. I love Telemasters! One of my favorite memories is a gentleman in our club making high approaches and slipping his Telemaster so gracefully it was as if the plane was suspended by string. He would slip to within 3 feet of the ground then straighten out and touch down so lightly he wouldn’t leave a ripple in a puddle. Quite a pilot; quite an airplane!

  5. Tank you for a very informative build log.

  6. I just finished building this model and now waiting for the snow to melt to fly it. I have installed an OS 110 four stroke in this airplane instead of electric. I already have an electric Senior Telemaster. The new laser cut Senior Telemaster V2 was not a joy to build. The instruction manual has errors all through it, and there are parts missing from the kit. It will leave you scratching your head and saying to yourself, HUH? If you are not an experienced builder stay away from this kit until a newer version of the instruction manual is included. Check out YouTube and do a search for Senior Telemaster V2. Not many videos out there should tell you something. I speak from experience. I have built and sold 3 older Senior Telemasters and a 12 foot Telemaster. I still own and fly a Senior and 12 foot Telemaster. All great flying and fun airplanes to fly. Very relaxing to fly.

  7. Nice pictures, your lay out of the project was easy to follow along. Hope to see a first time flight posted as well. Keep up the good work.

  8. I considered building the 8 foot kit, but!! I had this 4foot sq x 6″ foam board. I never built from foam but gave it a try. 1 week later i had a beautiful econokote covered telemaster ready to fly.
    I took my 6 ft. telemasters measurements and multiplyed them by 1.3 and made a pencil sketch.
    Far quicker than balsa and it fly’s beautiful.
    Good pictures and a nice build log, I was going to buy this kit, glad I did not. plane cost was $0.00,, just electrics were purchased, spars and bulkhead material is poplar and ply i had in the shop already.

  9. In response to michaelpowell.
    Fatuity reigning supreme.

    1. VERY NICE BUILD AND PICS SHOWING THE BUILD.WOULD LIKE TO SEE COVERING AND POSSIBLE FLIGHTS IF POSSIBLE ,HAVE FUN FLYING HER.

  10. How much Monocoat was required for the whole plane?

  11. Love the motor mount- ingenious!

  12. This brings back memories of before ARF’s when you had to buy a plane kit OR a plan and assemble the craft piece by piece. There is nothing more satisfying than building an airplane, knowing each part, and seeing the completed plane. IF there is an accident, you know how to repair the plane so she can take to the skies another day.

    Very nice build with a kit that has laser cut parts, a sight better than my hand cut parts, but mine worked very well too, and still do some 45 years later, although I haven’t flown for several years.

  13. Where can I find the ERCBL60 – eRC BL60 motor? I have searced the wewb and hove not found this motor.

    I did notice the same motor was used on the “Hobby Express Deluxe Telemaster 40 Kit” in 2015. Very frustrating when I can’t find the right motor to put on this plane.

    Bob

    1. The motor and esc in this electric conversion package will work. I used an eflite power 60 in mine. Have fun it’s a lot of fun.

      http://www.btemodels.com/fk-elec-pkg.html

  14. My Commercial pilot brother , and a pilot friend of his were flying a smaller @ 72″ Telemaster . That friend of my brother , noticed that there was no longer any pitch control ( elevator ineffective ) So being a PILOT , used his throttle control to adjust flightpath of aircraft ! … On landing it was discovered that the elevator control push rod had popped off , and it’s ball joint connection was thus having NO effect on control surface (elevator) Movement 🙂 What an AEROPLANE ! (:

  15. An Ex RAF Lancaster Pilot friend of mine taught me to fly R/C aircraft back in the mid 1980’s . It was on a Keil Kraft NEW SUPER SIXTY .( My father at the time flew a Cessna 172 privately at the Southland Aero Club ) I went on to become a RNZAF Aircraft Engineer Under Training …, BUT following a Closed Head Injury OFF a Damned motorcycle , I had to relive/LEARN AGAIN a lot of my life . My brother got me back into R/C Aircraft ( around initial balance problems )… The Telemaster 72″ was an awesome aircraft . That Super 60 that I initially trained on did prepare me though ! Because I went on to fly a BIG STICK @ 9′ span (30 cc Quadra) designed and built by the late Great Des Rillstone (Hospital Photographer) A Terrific Fun Aircraft !

  16. How much has the 8 foot Telemaster changed, I have the older kit that didn’t come with the manual, the full size plans are there however,

  17. What size battery did you use on your Sr Telemaster V2?

  18. I have just seen this web site. Bought my 92-inch kit about 4 years ago. Then there were different YouTubes and the company was Hobby Lobby. I have the exact
    red motor that is in the build that is shown. The manual was easy to follow with just a few errors, just typos. I still have to cover the wings and fuselage and install the motor, ESC, and battery. This my first build so my covering is not perfect. Hopefully, I’ll finally have it done in the next few weeks and I’ll be able to take it out to the airfield. It was fun to build.

  19. Back in 2017 i bought a senior Telemaster 94” from Hobby Lobby in Tenn a ARF

    It still flys grate with a BL60 Brushless power, Now i have ordered a

    Telemaster 96” from Carolina Custom Kits This one is a “Build” I am in south

    Al. Has anybody ever use them

    1. Building the senior telemaster 96” V3 from CCK out of Carolina,its ok had some missing sticks, but like the old V2 from Hobby Lobby better. on the new kit turns out flight weight is 11.9 lbs, with drop box. i had to extend the the Fire wall about 2” to set C. G. that makes from the Leading Eg to the prop nut 15”Like a Turbine setup looks good , Any builders out there building this kit? Sky Hobby…

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