Hi gjmjoe017
I totally agree as an ARF assembler I expect that all of thrust and wing incidence variables should be done for us, so we can just bolt it together and fly. Maybe I'm asking for too much, but that is my expectation, and as you said, it's what we pay for. In the end every thing turned out great, it just took a lot longer than it should have with an ARF.
BTW I did contact RC Guys on this problem, both by phone and by e-mail. Dan is a great guy to deal with and he also said that he would make a change to the assembly manual and include a check for the wing incidence, so this kind of trouble could be caught when assembling. The problems with my kit I believe all stems from the bottom wing saddle, as that is where I needed to sand and shim to make the wings fit correctly. Other than giving me a new fuse, there is nothing that RC Guys could have done better. I did not expect a new fuse, and I never asked for warranty.
I have a friend who has bought the Super Decathlon and the AG Wagon kits from RC Guys and both of those kits had no problems. Although, he has complained about the quality of the covering.
I'm sure that my kit is not the norm for RC Guys. My intension for starting this tread was/is to alert other ARF assemblers like me that there could be a problem, so they would not have a hard time on the maiden flight like I did. To trim the Pitts on the maiden I had 11 clicks of down elevator and 8 clicks of right ruder. The first few flights and landings were iffy at best.
The story I have told here is my experience and review if you will. Not intended to bash RC Guys. My final thoughts......
The Pitts is now flying superbly, and the question to ask is; WOULD I BUY ANOTHER PITTS from RC Guys..... The answer is YES..... For those of you that are sitting on the fence JUST DO IT, in the end the Pitts turned out to be a real good flyer and a crowd pleaser. I take it every time I go to the field now.
Here is my new video with the RC Guys Pitts Special and DL50 doing some knife edging, through the setting sun at Humber Valley Flying Club. There was not a cloud in the sky that evening, the spectacular red hue in the video is from the smog in Toronto.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cb0ym4Hw9E