RE: Great Planes Escapade .40 ARF
I received the Escapade on 5Jan09 and as of the end of 8Jan09 the plane is about ready for her maiden. I decided to pretty well follow the stock build with single aileron servo. With hinges already installed, no epoxy to join wings and bolt on tail assembly It was a quick build. The first evening was spent with the covering iron. There were very few wrinkles, so this phase consisted primarily of sealing seams and trim.
The hinges seemed to be attached securely with gaps so small that I didn’t bother to seal them. After attaching the wing and tail assembly, measurements turned out to be right on. The tail wheel and mains went together with one minor problem. The collars furnished for the mains proved to be a little too wide. After sliding the wheel and collars on the axle, there wasn’t enough space left on the axle to file a flat and still leave a little axle outside the flat. I found collars in my stash slightly narrower that solved that problem.
The fuel tank when centered in the tank compartment left sharp bends in the fuel lines to get from the tank through the fuel line holes in the firewall. Marking the tank top per instructions left the tank cap offset from the firewall holes. The tank was too tall to turn it the other way so that it would be centered, so i just installed the tank at an angle to align the tank cap with the holes.
Servos and controls went in without problems. After everything was installed except the engine and throttle control rod, I tested for balance. I found I had to move the engine out to the end of the mounts to get balanced without weights. Engine is a HB40 weighing around 19 oz. No cutting was required to clear the muffler or needle valve.
The canopy section doesn’t seem to latch just right, but seems secure after seating it and then moving it slightly to the rear to lock it in. It seems it should slide back more, maybe with the rear of the canopy sliding over the front of the turtle back. The fit seems a little off in that area, since the canopy hits the edge of the turtle back instead of sliding over it, giving the canopy locking device more backward movement.
So, depending on the weather, I should get a maiden in between high winds over the next few days. after giving everything a check tomorrow. Bob T.