World's Cheapest ARF

Yea, I plan to put a dural LG on and make it a taildragger and put a S

40 on it. I hope to get it in the air this weekend

-- pbun

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pbunn
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I had to put a roll of paper towels under the wing (upside down) while the glue dried to give it just a bit of dihedral...otherwise it would have been straight.

Also remember to replace the 4 screws in the front landing gear where it mounts to the firewall...they don't go into the wood far enough.

I put a tower hobbies .46 on mine and it flew very well...landings were easier than my nexstar.

I used 5/16" dowels since the ones included were cut all jagged on the ends, and the black plastic hardware went in the trash..it seems likely to come apart in the air (bad news).

Reply to
jason w

I threw the dowels in the scrap heap and added some hardwood blocks inside the wing saddle area, drilled and tapped 1/4x20. I then drilled the wing and made ply reinforcement plates for the bolt hole areas. No more messing with rubber bands! I always loved to have a trainer to fly my first flights of the day with (nice, easy "warm up" flights) but hated the rubber band business.

I used all the hardware that came with the model. :-)

Good flying, desmobob

Reply to
Robert Scott

I finished assembling the ARF finally. My package was missing the aileron control rods and the fuel tank clunk. The stopper that came with the fuel tank was useless, but the tank itself seemed OK. I found a Sullivan fuel tank stopper that fit it pretty well, so I kept the tank.

The plane actually looks pretty nice once it's all together. I didn't think the hardware that came with it was unusable for the most part, either. I'm going to try to fly mine stock and see how long it takes to necessitate repairs. My nose gear may rip away the first time I land, but at least that will give me something new to work on.

Reply to
Ed Paasch

It will, if you do not replace them now. They are too short. Funny, but when we bought ours (4 of them), nothing was missing. OTOH, there was this very long bolt/screw that we could not figure out where it was supposed to go. But then, I picked ours up at their warehouse. I wonder if they are "cannibalizing" stuff ?

Reply to
Eye Indo

I too had a few weird leftover pieces including the two mysterious long machine screws. I ended up using the aileron control rods from my old Nexstar.

Reply to
Ed Paasch

Whatever works. However, lowering the engine fixed my problem. Now I can fly a full tank at a reasonable needle setting. Whereas before I had to take off so rich that I could barely get the plane airborne. Now I get good takeoff speed and a good flight with no deadsticks.

level, then

NOT level ?

it to be and

between the tank

inch above to 1 1/4 inch

behind the engine. No running

leans out, and at

and up about 20 degrees.

rotation CLOCKWISE of the spinner

Reply to
David

Well I received mine and while reviewing the contents, the right wing i

broken, some hardware is missing. The rest is ok, I just hope I don' get a hardtime from Raidentech for this broken wing. I ordered it o December 11 and just got it on the 30th. How do you add foam to th tank through that small whole?

Any one has pictures/videos of their maiden? Please post

Happy new yea

-- habutt

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I put some 1/2 foam in the fuselage before I slid the tank into place. It fits so snuggly into the fuselage formers though, that I doubt foam will be able to make much of a difference.

Mine originally showed up without a fuel tank clunk or aileron control rods. I ended up buying a new fuel tank stopper w/ clunk for mine and borrowing the control rods from an old Nexstar wing rather than contacting Raidentech. Please post and let us know how your customer service experience goes.

It's strange yours took so long to arrive, but you did order it at the height of the Christmas shipping season.

Good luck, and again, let us know how it goes.

Reply to
Ed Paasch

Well Raidentech gave me an RMA number they will replace the damage

wings and missing hardware. Guess I will have to wait another mont for the whole thing to go and get shipped and back to the east coast bummer

-- habutt

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habutti

Well got the trainer all set and ready for the maiden flight thi

weekend managed to get about 1.5" dihedral. I hope this OS 40 can dra this bunch of plywood, we will see this weekend. I replaced the fron landing gear screws as I read in the post. L8

-- habutt

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habutti

If the weather stays unseasonably warm, I may get a chance to maiden mine this weekend, too. What a lead-sled... I have a Magnum .52 four-stroke in mine; hope it gets her off the ground. ;-) Very little/no dihedral.

Good luck with your cheap trainer, desmobob

Reply to
desmobob

Well this weekend sucked here, winds gusted up to 54mph. Friday we were up in the 60 and the weekend went south 30 degrees and windy. Well next weekend hopefully I will be able to maiden it

Reply to
habutti

I'm in the same boat... we had temps in the 50's last week. Once the weekend arrived, the wind started howling and the temperatures dropped. We had rain on Saturday night that turned to snow on Sunday. It's calm this morning, but 2 degrees below zero F. :-(

Think Spring, desmobob

Reply to
desmobob

Why would anyone waist time and/or money on garbage like Raiden Tech ?

If you lucky enough to get it to fly (marginally at best)

Customer support is nonexistant..............

IVE ALWAYS HAD GOOD LUCK WITH: Mountian Models Tower Hobbies Hobby People Dymond Model Sports Hobby Lobby There are many other good E-Stores - but I know these are good

Its a great sport - but there are a few jerks you should avoid

Reply to
just_steve51

I'll answer your question. I can get a trainer in the air for cheap. I'll have to supply a few parts. If I'd paid more than $46 for it I'd be as mad as you are. I think I have enough skill to get it to fly. With the support from this group it'll be a cinch. Did you get "took"? What plane did you buy? mk

Reply to
Storm's Hamburgers

I've had three successful buying experiences with Raidentech so far.

The idea that the trainer is so cheap that it probably needs work to be airworthy might be part of the appeal.

If it is good enough as-is, it's a great deal... kind of like feeding $38 into a slot machine and getting $75 back. If it needs some handiwork to make it airworthy, it's a fun project at a low price.

If you expect top quality for such a ridiculously low price, you certainly have "waisted" your money. I don't think I wasted mine.

Good flying, desmobob

Reply to
desmobob

I recently saw a T-shirt with the following statement printed on it: "LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO BUILD UGLY AIRPLANES" Lyman

Reply to
Lyman Slack

For one thing, it gives us all something to chat about here in the newsgroup! :-)

Reply to
Ed Paasch

Well I got the Evolution II maiden today. She flew great a bit on the heavy side but she flew just well. Once I figure out my camera I will post some pictures. Thanks Raiden Tech for this US$38.95 trainer I've got my money's worth :D FYI if you stalled in buying your world cheapest trainer you are out of luck cause there are no longer in stock. Sorry guys/gals you missed the boat.

Reply to
habutti

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