RE: *New Bravata 30cc Gasser*
Wow...successful maiden. Awesome plane. We maidened in 15 - 20mph winds & the plane flew beautifully. DLE 30 has ample power for what I intend do do. We will be putting this on floats next week. I plan on flying a lot on Saturday / Sunday in efforts to get DLE 30 dialed in. Plane talks off in about 10 feet (if wanted), and we opted for this since we flew off of a rough runway today. My friend dialed in the flaps, and she slows down to a crawl. We mixed some elevator in with the flaps / awesome now. We did need to add some right aileron on the trim flight as others have noted, but it is dialed in now. Landings were a breeze, and wind was gusty. My friend did most of the flying today, and I can not wait for the weekend. I have the red / creme version, and it looks awesome in the air. Stall is almost non existent, and you have to try to stall it. We did this on purpose with full elevator, and it breaks to the right. Once you ease off the elevator just stalls hently forward. This plane is large & easily visible in the air. It really is a beauty. CG was spot on with batterys all the way forward. If someone opts for DLE 55 (which I may in the future) the batts could be pushed back. DLE 30 is definitely enough power. We put some struts from rudder to elevator each side just to reinforce the are, but I do not think we needed it. This was in anticipation of a larger engine at some point. Plane is awesome!!
Posted on: 5/10/2012 9:23 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "Aero-Works Support"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11076541

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
"Down & Locked" did the conversion....they are awesome!!! I did not have "retract" on the tailwheel.....
Posted on: 10/19/2011 7:51 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10774000

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
No. I spoke with Sierra, and modifications would be needed. They did say nothing major. I use the robarts.....had them modified to electric. I don't see that the robart gear is heavy duty. It's beefy.....but they use cheap flimsy parts where it is truly needed (i.e. lock mechanism)....
Posted on: 10/17/2011 9:01 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10770612

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Re: Ground Handling. It can be "touchy", but it is good. The plane is responsive on the ground, but there is one thing I am working on. Landing can be "slower", and approaches are nice. Once the plane touches down it is very easy to scrape a wing tip on the ground (the very tips). Try to keep the plane straight until speed bleeds off. I've had a very experienced warbird pilot fly the plane, and he even dropped one. You can see an example of this "wing" drop on youtube.com. Type in "cottonlaneflyers", and you will see a P-40 video. I'd be very interested if others have a way to stop this wing drop....aside from what I mentioned. I put some of the chassis protector (RC cares) on the wing tips, and this should work awesome........it is clear, and you really can not even tell it is there. After a quick spray of auto primer I can not even tell the tip ever scraped. Plane is awesome in the air.....my favorite plane by far. It does not even feel heavy (once off ground). It is fast w/ the DA-50. Very easy to fly at 1/2 throttle....although low passes done w/ high throttle. A page back a couple people asked me where I got pilot / how weathering was done (see pics). 1) Pilot is the Pearl Harbor WWII P-40 Pilot (George Taylor), and it is a Dragon action figure. I was able to find on Amazon (very limited supplies. 2) Weathering - the panel lines were done by a friend with Top Flite panel line pen. Weathering was done with air brush (black) & water. Plane was hung from celing & black paint is mixed with water. The water causes the paint to run / makes it look true to life. He also painted all hardware with grey auto primer to match underside of wing. I consider this friend a professional builder. Such an awesome plane.
Posted on: 2/27/2011 5:29 AM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10366770

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Serge - if question was for me....answer is Yes.. They are 5 inch Skylite wheels with aluminum hubs......
Posted on: 2/23/2011 6:01 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10358992

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
One more - before I can make a video......
Posted on: 2/21/2011 6:38 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10354115

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Above is the pilot that I used...works well. I also wanted to show a picture where the panel lines are obvious. I wish everyone luck on their maidens.
Posted on: 2/21/2011 6:33 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10354097

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
A couple more shots....
Posted on: 2/21/2011 6:32 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10354087

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Here's a pic
Posted on: 2/21/2011 6:23 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10354052

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Trying to post some pics....
Posted on: 2/21/2011 6:11 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10354028

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Maiden Report: Set Up: DA 50-R with a 22X10 Xoar Warbird prop. Servos: 645MG & 5645MGs.... Retracts: Robarts for this plane (but the heavy duty version) - ordered directly from Robart.....converted to electric by Down & Locked (awesome!!!!!)..... Redundant Systems on certain things (i.e. elevator) Smart Fly system installed....... BECs from Castle.... Maiden was awesome.......lifts off ground in 20 feet or so. I had a very seasoned friend fly it on first flight. Landed with 1/2 flaps, and she slows right down. We did an experiment and made final approach w/o flaps. Plane likes flaps....without flaps P-40 was coming in hot. Be very careful to now get too slow on final approach.......you will see the plane start to wallow (up & down).....add some power. We also tested stalls at a higher altitude.......gets kind of mushy, but she will roll over on you....add power & pull out of it......I personally do not see that I will ever go this slow (except landing). The "rollover", however, would take the plane out if it were to happen on final approach. We just added speed when it would start wallowing. I will say that this plane will land quite slow....just not too slow. This is one awesome bird. Pics to follow.......friend did an absolutely awesome job of weathering this plane. Looks fantastic. More to come!!
Posted on: 2/21/2011 1:27 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10353314

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Serge - awesome. That gets my blood pumpin.....how does she fly?
Posted on: 1/24/2011 5:34 AM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10284371

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Robarts Question. I ordered the recommended Robarts via Tower. Robart has 2 sets of retracts on their website: 1) Item # 150B (Lg. Rotating Retract (Byron / Iron Bay ) 2) Item #150HD8 (Heavy Duty Rotating Retracts 8" Struts) I am not a tech guy (at all), but I was looking at the dimensional drawings on the Robart website. The heavy duty retracts look like they have pretty much the same dimensions as the ones I bought. My preference would be to have “heavy duty” if they would fit. Any help would be appreciated big time. Thank you!
Posted on: 1/22/2011 4:53 AM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10279853

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Robarts - thank you for all the information re: the Robarts (made for this model). Very much appreciated. Robarts it is, and I have ordered them.......
Posted on: 1/19/2011 6:08 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10275036

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Robart retracts (the ones built for this plane).......has anyone used them..... The guys at the field share horror stories. My ? - are the robart retracts reliable? & are there other options for this plane......retracts are a must IMHO. I have done a lot of research.....it would appear that electric retracts are not an option yet for this giant P-40. Any help is greatly appreciated....
Posted on: 1/17/2011 10:48 AM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10269811

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Thanks for the help guys.......................anyone have a cockpit (nice & detailed) that they have used successfully?
Posted on: 1/10/2011 6:14 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10254049

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Prop Chief - If you could get the measurement once you open I would REALLY appreciate it. I do not have plane till' mid next week. I want to order the DA-50-R so I need to make sure....... Use the 2.5" stand offs if the distance from the firewall to the back of the spinner (front of cowl) is 6.7" or less. If the measurement is over 6.7" use the 3" stand offs.
Posted on: 1/9/2011 7:41 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10251731

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
DA - 50 - R: Dose anyone that uses this engine know which "length standoff" I need....there are 3 of them......1.25"....2.5".....& 3"? Thank you very much....
Posted on: 1/8/2011 7:58 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10249375

RE: NEW Top Flight P-40??? 1/5 scale
Cock Pit Kit - I have this beautiful bird on the way. I really want to go all the way here. Does anyone know of a "custom cockpit" that one could find? I did post a link to a site that might work. Looks like these are custom for Yellow & Ziroli P-40s....1/5 scale http://www.dbalsa.com/cockpits/p40.htm Do you think this would fit? On a side note - If any of you do this type of work & / or know someone who does I'd be more than happy to pay for this. I am not the "artistic" type.
Posted on: 1/8/2011 4:31 AM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10247579

RE: P-6E Curtis hawk (build thread)
Hello all - just bought one of these...could use some advice. It has a magnum 120 on it.....my problem is the 12V starter......what must I do to get an adapter for the bolt.......I am used to starters on planes with spinners...
Posted on: 12/5/2010 7:45 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "RC Warbirds and Warplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10179121

RE: DeNight Special 50 ARF by Hangar 9
Very cool video by the way. Today was the day for "my" maiden of my Denight......had a friend that flew mine a few weeks ago & got her all trimmed out. I have to say that this thing flys just awesome. Takeoff was uneventful......little bit of right rudder, and it tracked like an arrow. I got up speed & she lifted right off the ground. The air handling was fantastic. Hands off it was perfect...stable at "slower" speeds & high sppeds. I have not truly tested "slower" yet. I landed hotter than was probably necessary, but it is better safe than sorry. Very impressive plane. Just wanted to let people know.
Posted on: 6/27/2010 6:34 PM by Author "akleader" in the forum "Electric Aerobatic & Sport Planes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9830271