rino

My Feedback: (121)

Does anyone know what happened to this business? The website has everything marked out of stock and they don't answer emails. I need some Funtana 40 carbon gear badly.

8KCABrett

My Feedback: (1)

I could use a set myself. . .

tetherite

We can provide you with a glass-filled nylon version!
E-mail direct for details.
Ray

Quickie

My Feedback: (4)

These guys make carbon gear for the Funtana. I'm using them next as my Fiber Lite gear delaminated and I've been using Graphtech's profile gear without incident and I treat it MUCH worse then I did my Fiber Lite.

http://www.graphtechrc.com/

rino

My Feedback: (121)

The only problem is that graphtec's gear is an ounce heavier - 3 oz - which doesn't save me much weight over the aluminum gear on a Funtana.

IowaSilvia

My Feedback: (97)

Fiber Lite is the guy from Osborn, MO right? If so I bought some gear from him for my funtana a while back. They were really nice, but after 4 flights they delaminated on me. No hard landings at all. I emailed him and asked if I could get a replacement and he said that I had to send them to him before he'd replace mine. For inspection. He said he was having problems with them. I said that I needed them asap and didn't feel I needed to send back a $24 landing gear that was junk. Why waste my time and money on his mistakes. So he said NO REFUND OR EXCHANGE FOR YOU.

WHAT A NICE GUY. Just put the stock ones on and don't worry about it.

Needless to say the Fly-in I went to the following week didn't have the CF gear. And I made sure everyone new why. But if he would have sent a replacement ASAP so I could have had it for the Fly-in, he would have had some extra customers.

You can't keep customers with poor customer care. Now if it was a $200 wing set that they needed to look at. that is fine to send back and inspect. But for $20. give me a break. Shipping would be more the 4 times it is shipped.

Quickie

My Feedback: (4)

Yeah, I tried to contact them to send my gear back after they delaminated with no answer. Another guy at our field had the extra tall Fiber-Lite gear and his did the exact same thing as mine. My Graphtech gear has actually bent the bolts and not broken OR delaminated. Yes the Graphtech are heavier then fiberlite but they stand up to the stress.

antman450

Does graphtech make gear that is a bit taller than stock? I am in need of somthing that is an inch taller for clearance.

I also agree, they are probably out of business by now and that is why everything says out of stock. In the days of the internet bad customer service goes around a heck of a lot faster than good. I would have bought fiberlite had I not read this post.

rino

My Feedback: (121)

I would still buy from them it they were available. I bought some gear for my Funtana that never delaminated and it was really lite.

Thunderhead

I got a pair for my Sig Somethin Extra, and like everyone else...........DELAMINATED!!!! I never had a chance to get a hard landing. I had about three flights and all were text book landings. Granted I am flying off grass, but our field is one of the smoothest you'll find. I thought it was just luck of the draw or something. Glad to know I'm not the only one.

antman450

I would not go with them not because of the the delam problems, but rather because of the seemingly apathetic way they handled the issues. Products will have problems, but it is the business's responsibilty to address those problems and replace faulty products.

Issuing a product to the public is in a sense, R&D, because no product is perfect and as people use it flaws do come out. Replace the products, fix the flaws, and ultimately your business will increase. Apparatly fiberlite does not adhere to this fundamental principal of good business. I run my businesses in this way and have made a lot of money like this.

spratrbo

My Feedback: (28)

I also ordered these for my 90-Funtana and they delamed the first landing. Sent them back immediately and I have had several conversations with the guy. At the time he offered to refund the money but also led me to believe he would have product within a month. That was back in August. Another comment which may or may not be true is he said with the war going on getting carbon fiber was difficult as well. But apparently he was also experimenting with a different epoxy as well. The guy at least SEEMED to be honest and knew what he was talking about, but as in all things we make mistakes.

At this point I am not holding my breath and I will be ordering the Graph-tech gear or possibly another gear from a company called Troy Built models

www.troybuiltmodels.com

I will have to do a dimentional comparison between the two but Troy Built might be another option. I can't chastise the guy cause I thought the way he treated me was fair. Then again I am not about to get bent out of shape over a $30 loss either. Sometimes engineers are engineers cause they lack the social skills it takes to deal with public. To me it's no big deal and I move on, but sorry to hear other people have had such crappy experience.

Good luck!

JP
www.jpmediainc.net/ultimate3d.html

rino

My Feedback: (121)

I hear ya. It's hard to say what's up. Anyways, I called Graphtec today and ordered my Funtana 40 gear. They were very easy to work with.

seanychen

My Feedback: (4)

I think I found the cure for Fiber-lite's delamination. I bolted a piece of aluminum airfoiled extrusion across along the axis of wheel axles. The airfoiled aluminum extrusion is really light, and it does a good job preventing under-carriage spreading outward.

I am currently using 2 Fiber-lite gears for Funtata 40 to attach a pair of 90-cm floats onto my UCD3D60. With the aluminum extrusion supporting the bottom, it should not delaminate.

tande

My Feedback: (48)

Hi Guys!---Have you looked at this?--- www.rcsupergear.com ---

BobbyRichardson

Call Mike at Graph Tech

www.graphtechrc.com

kawasaki99

My Feedback: (48)

I have a set of supergear on my Funtana 90 , I can assure you they wont delaminate but in my opinion they ara way too stiff, they do not absorb the shock. I sanded my down, took off 1.5 oz theres a little flex now but still stiffer than the aluminum. I have the graph tech gear ordered for my other Funtana 90. Craig...

Rumple

I had the same delam problem with my Fiber-lite gear for the Funtana 40. Tom asked me to send it back to him for inspection, which I did back in July 2004. I had a new one in the mail a week later, which has been much more rugged. Tom admited that some of his gear didn't get enough epoxy during the layup and hence were failing. I guess I was one of the luck few to get a replacement.... sorry guys, for your bad experience.

Kurt

flasher2001

My Feedback: (30)

last week i ordered a set from Gene at TroyBuiltModels for my Funtana 90. he was a pleasure to deal with. he didnt have the gear in stock, but he sent them out to me the same day he received them. they ARE the Graph Tech gear - he's a reseller and is offering 10% off!!

about Fiber-Lite ... i emailed AND called the guy with NO response. i'm kinda glad now, if they were just gonna come apart.

spratrbo

My Feedback: (28)

SWEET!!! 10% off is certainly better than nada! Glad you found that out cause that takes all the work out of it for me. Going to order today so I can get this plane back in the air!

JP
www.jpmediainc.net/ultimate3d.html

flasher2001

My Feedback: (30)

JP,

just so you know - i actually ordered the gear for the Aeroworks Edge 540 60/90 size (its item #113). i did some searching here on RCU and found that's the gear F90 pilots were using before Graph Tech came out with an F90 gear. i chose it because its an inch shorter and an inch narrower than the F90 gear and it gave me sufficient clearance. they are both priced the same.

tim

spratrbo

My Feedback: (28)

HA HA HA... thing is I want it an inch taller and an inch wider! That's why I got the x-tra tall gear from Fiber-lite. It doesn't matter now cause I settled on an engine prop combo, but at one time I was considering the YS 1.40 with an 18x6 and the tall gear was great. Sticking with the YS 1.20 with an APC 16x6 now... would prefer the 1.10 for weight savings, but good luck finding one now. Plane still flies well with the 1.20. But I am redoing the entire plane now as well with different servos and the gear will be another add-on. Good ole reliable Funtana needs a little TLC right now. And I am also getting the 40 Funtana as I flew a friend's with a Saito 82 and I did the most insane blender with it bringing it into a flat spin 20 ft off the ground and it just kept rotating around itself not dropping. It flies like my Extreme Flight Yak with a slightly faster roll rate. Anyway I know this is all off topic, but I get all revved up thinking about all this... NOW I GOTTA GO OUT AND FLY!

JP

flasher2001

My Feedback: (30)

i know what you mean about the F40/Saito 82 combo. i built one for me and sold it before i even got the chance to fly it. now one of our club members is enjoying it and really puts it through its paces!!

i hope i didnt mislead you about the Graph Tech Aeroworks gear. what i meant was that the Aeroworks gear (#113) is an inch shorter and narrower than the Graph Tech Funtana 90 gear ... NOT the stock F90 gear. i'm have a Saito 150 spinning a 17x4w and have MORE than enough clearance with the Aeroworks gear.

the pix tell the story...

spratrbo

My Feedback: (28)

Yeah baby!!! Now that is what I am talking about. That is just about the same dimention as the Fiber-lite gear. You just sold me! The way you worded it I thought you were talking in comparison to stock, but thanks for the pics. That answers the question

JP

TTR

I can't see any sense on a carbon gear for the Funtana 40. With the troybuilt or the graphtech I can't save any weight, the stock alu is only 3 oz. Any CF gear lighter than that will delaminate some day. But replacing the stock wheels with some foam wheels an getting rid of those heavy axles and wheel pants makes sense.