Conference vmszoo::rc

>	Exactly what  kit  is  the  Yeller  Peril?

* Anker, the Yeller Peril is the ~ 60" span] PICA Bucker Jungmeister which I
reconstructed from a "basket" after my brother rolled it into a ball and quit 
the hobby about 4 years ago.  (The bird [designed by Dave Platt] is 1/5 scale.) 
I've heard a lot of negative comments about PICA kits and my brother had lotsa'
bad things to say about them as well while he originally built the Yeller Peril.
He replaced 1/3 of the balsa as it was rock-hard, wormy-soft, twisted, warped,
or any combination of the foregoing.  In addition, the silver-gray nylon hard-
ware [horns, bellcranks, strut attach points, etc.] provided was absolute junk! 
It was extremely brittle [would break if you breathed on it wrong] so, obvious-
ly, this was all replaced as well.  Unless kit quality has improved considerably
since mine, I, frankly, wouldn't recommend it except that it and the 1/4-scale 
Platt kit are just about the only Jungmeisters around.  By all means look the 
kit over carefully, wood and hardware especially, before laying out yer' $$$$ 
or resign yer'self to replacing bad kit materials.  They may [hopefully] have
improved the quality of the PICA kits, just be forewarned.

>       The Jungmeister seems to be a great plane.  

* It is, indeed, a geat ship...finest bipe I've ever flown [once I found the 
takeoff/landing handle].  The design/engineering of the model is fine and, like
the full-scale counterpart, it's a real pilots' airplane; very positive/respon-
sive on the controls...flies much like an Aeromaster only slower/smoother owing
to its larger size.  I liked it well enough to build the larger Platt Jungmeis-
ter but, receiving an offer I just couldn't refuse, I sold it last August and
now wish I hadn't as I still haven't built something new for the O.S. .90 and
1.08 I used in it.  BTW, the big Jungmeister [at a more reasonable wing-loading
and power/weight ratio] was a pussycat on the ground as opposed to the Peril.

>        Also, since yours in underpowered, what  whould  it need to be properly
>        powered?

* Actually, the Yeller Peril isn't as underpowered as it is overweight [which is
"the" primary reason it's still treacherous around the ground. When he built it,
my brother stubbed his toe somethin' awful on the primer/finish and the repairs 
I had to make after acquiring it from him didn't help either.  The ship weighs
over 12-lbs. [wet] and, with all that inherent biplane drag, it requires the
strongest .61 I have to make it perform. I have an O.S. .61 FSR/ABC [that thinks
it's a .90] that hauls the Peril admirably but I have to get peak R's out of it 
to do so...anything less and performance suffers noticeably.

If built to a reasonable weight [10-lbs. or less], the PICA Jungmeister is a 
brilliant performer on any contemporary, schneurle-ported .60 and nothing larger
need be considered.  If you build heavy, it might be a good plan to consider a
Super-Tigre .75, bearing in mind that the tank compartment will have to be modi-
fied to accomodate a larger fuel tank...the stock configuration only allows a
10-oz. tank.  I get 12-15 minutes out of the .61 FSR/ABC on 10-oz. [believe it 
or not] but you'd want at least 16-oz for a larger mill.  If I'd built the Peril
originally, I'd have put in at least a 12-oz. tank for .60 operation.

I hope this doesn't come off too awfully negative as the Bucker is a truly fine
flying model in any size and is well worth a modeler's efforts to build.  It 
also has one of the nicest, absolutely unique in-flight profiles of any bipe go-
ing, scale or otherwise.  It's simply that the PICA kit "may" not be all you ex-
pected of it.

Adios amigo,	Al

    
    	Try the 1/4 scale SIG Spacewalker.  Looks nice and I get it
    flies real nicely.

    re .0,.1 - First off, can you please use mixed cases in your notes,
    all caps in Notes is usually understood as shouting.  Thanks...
    
    I can't say that I recognize your name..  Have you been in the hobby
    long??  
    
    1/4 or 1/3 scale ships will be pretty expensive.  I don't think
    I have ever seen a "low cost 1/4 scale" ship.  If you are on a 
    tight budget, you may be better off selling the engine and using
    the money to buy a more reasonably priced (and sized) plane.
    
    The Eagle you saw was probably Byron's.  It is not completly
    pre-build, but is foam and fiberglass.  As I understand it you
    need to join wing halves and tail feathers and cover it, as well
    as install the radio and engine, ect.  Yes, it is pricey, but I
    have heard good things about it.
    
    hope this helps!
    jeff
    

    Art,
    
    Just to clarify things re: the Byron Pitt's Special and Christen
    Eagle kits.  None, I repeat _NONE_ of Byron's kits can be construed
    to be ARF's by the farthest stretch of the imagination.  The glitz
    and color of his ads have a tendency to promote this impression
    but please believe me, IT ISN'T TRUE!
    
    This doesn't make Byron kits bad; as a matter of fact, they're quite
    good but know going in that there's nearly as much work to building
    them as there is to a conventional balsa kit, particularly if you
    opt to cover the foam wing/stab cores with .6-.75 oz. glass cloth
    which, to me, is the only way to go if one desires some structural
    integrity to the flying surfaces.
    
    My personal preference would be to build a wood kit but, should
    you go the Byron route, just be forewarned that these are _not_
    E-Z kits and are quite labor intensive, especially if one is not
    familiar with working with glass and foam.   

      |
      | |      00	 Adios,      Al
    |_|_|      ( >o
      |    Z__(O_\_	(The Desert Rat)

    Also, look into recomended (eg safety) installations for control
    surfaces (heavy duty servos, push-pull linkage, etc). You don't
    want these big suckers to end as a pile of toothpicks.
    
    md

    ok, i can contribute but am certainly no expert on 1/4 scale.
    
    my 1/6 scale p47 probably counts as quarter scale at 80" wingspan
    and 24 lbs.  see note 438 although its cost/complexity was more
    dominated by scale issues rather than size issues.
    
    however, i am currently building a 1/4 scale balsa usa cub.  the
    building part has been easy and enjoyable.  i think this is a great
    first 1/4 scale kit - no expensive retracts, only 5 or maybe 6
    standard servos required, can be powered by a .60 though i'd go
    bigger than that (up to 2.2 ci according to ads).  the kit costs
    under $90 and is pretty complete including tires, can be covered with
    a single big roll of coverite.  if you already have a .60 or bigger
    engine and radio with 4 servos, you should be able to get this bird
    in the air for under $200.
    
    i havent flown mine yet (its partially covered) but expect it to
    be easy to fly (low low wing loading) and reliable (no retracts,
    simple 2-cycle glo engine, big wheels to harmlessly roll over rough
    runways).  also plan to have fun towing kay's gliders (did i tell
    you about that part, kay?) and launching various cameras into space...
    
    kevin
                                                      

    One kit I seem always to go back to look at is the Bud Nosen
    p-51 mustang. It has a 102" wing, and a 13" spinner. I have had
    some experience with Bud nosen, my first trainer was the Bud Nosen
    Rookie fourty. I thought the kit was one of the better beginer kits
    in that it had extensive photos, well written instructions, and
    color coded wood ( ex. take the 36"x 1/4"x 1/4" piece of wood (red))
    the end of each piece was dyed with a color. Does anyone else have
    experience with Bud Nosen?

    Boy I don't know where I get my information, but it's not a thirteen
    inch spinner, it's only 6".

    I figured I'd give this note a slight kick.  With my Christmas gift
    coming in Jan. I'm about to built that Flybaby I've always been talking
    about.  This plane has had a soft spot in my heart ever since Balsa USA
    came out with their 1/3 scale offering back in the early 80's.  That's
    when I started RC and I guess I was impressionable.  Anyways...
    
    The Walt Mocha kit is a 1/4 scale offering ob the Pete Bower FlyBaby
    monoplane.  It sports a 84" wing with app. 1100 sq" of wing area. With
    a 56" fuse is should be big enough to handle some scale detailing while
    still manageable for my minivan.
    
    I do plan to do some alterations to the plane as kitted.  To start the
    fuse sides will be changed to make it a plug in wing configuration.
    This will also lend itself to a sheeted fuse side, sheeted with 1/16
    plywood.  As the full sized airplane was sheeted with 1/4" mahogany
    the 1/16 is scale.  The tail feathers will be plug-in's as on the real
    airplane which will also necessitate functional rigging.	I plan
    to use sheet aluminum for the front, turtle deck and head rest area.
    The cowl will be changed from the J3 (stock) set-up to a PA11 type.
    This supports the pictures I have for a fully enclosed engine.  Power
    will be the OS108 with a Davis Deisel pitts style muffler I'm presently
    flying on my DragonLady.  Presently this swings a 16/6 prop but unloads
    in the air.  I think it will handle a 16/8.  It should be able to haul
    the 12-15 lbs of flybaby around the sky.  One major purchase exists.  
    that of the materials and such to rig the plane with functional flying
    wires.  This has been priced from Proctor kits and will run about 90.00
    + shipping.  Hopefully it will be the only plane I build starting
    Jan.  We'll see if I can get it finished by the Nat's.
    
    
    						Tom