lleach1

My Feedback: (6)

Does anyone have any feedback to offer on the quarter scale Piper PA-12 from Pilot? I downloaded a PDF manual from Hobby Lobby Intnl. I would appreciate hearing good and bad information and comments about his ARF and on converting this kit to glow or gas. Thanks, LEL

SkyPilot101

At a price point above 500 bucks, I think there are better choices out there, the landing gear is simple wire & not artuclating like Hanger 9's for example.

builttocrash

I bought it during the crash sale. It showed up quick and the box looked to be in excellent shape, however, after opening it, the ribs in both halves of the main wing were all cracked. Icalled Hobby-Lobby and spoke to a lady. (super nice) and she said that she would ship off a new set of wings for me right away. Less than 1 working week, the replacement wings showed up wrapped up with tons of bubble wrap and very secure. They were super nice about the whole thing. Everything looks great. The only thing thats a little disappointing is the landing gear and wheels. That was an area that was lacking in my opinion. My build is going to start tomorrow.

yellerchamp

My Feedback: (42)

I would love to have the champ but the price is to steep, I have never talked to anyone who has one also , strange for a arf thats been out for so long.....the cub and champ look good though

builttocrash

I've never seen the Champ on the crash sale though. Just this PA-12.

roknHS

I bought it last fall during the sale. It arrived with broken wing ribs and a cracked cowl.
Hobby Lobby sent me another one and the same parts were crushed and broken. I asked them about sending out a set of wings but they wanted to send me another plane.
I couldn't see any future in shipping broken planes back and forth so they refunded the purchase. The wings are packed right under the top box lid with no padding. There is little chance to get it shipped without damage. Very poor packaging from China. I agree the gear and wheels are cheap. The plane is really meant to be electric. It does not come with a fuel tank and the construction is good quality but, very light. The firewall would have to be reinforced to support even a light gas motor. The wing struts are wood....not metal. The covering job was good. The wing is a 3 piece. I think it is over priced at normal retail. I paid $325 with shipping........thats about what it's worth.

builttocrash

Ithink its worth more than that. That fuselage is a work of beauty. It has double wall technology to strengthen the fuselage whichI like. For the $500+ Istill think its a deal. I mean, they could have upgraded the wheels and landing gear and maybe enlarged the box by a couple of inches all around and added extra packaging. I'm not sure why you decided or agreed to shipping the plane back. Ihad them just ship me a new set of wings. Wings that they went over before shipping them out. Wings that they triple wrapped in bubbles and put in an oversized box.

I read your comments on the other thread. Was it over on flyinggiants or was it here? I can't remember. The oracover that they use is just as nice as monocote and the other nicer coverings.

The plane was specifically meant for electric, ergo the lack of a fuel tank. And anyone buying this size of plane should already have a good knowledge on flight, therefore there really shouldn't be any complaining of the firewall as they should know that they are now converting an electric plane into a fuel plane. Electric planes are almost always created lighter, therefore that should be understood as well. I've owned a number of electric planes from a80" supercub thats extremely light and not built as strong as this by any means, to many E-Flite planes that don't get this craftsmanship that this plane got.

Again, Ithink for the crash sale price, it was a steal. For the full price, I still think its a bargain.

I wonder if the landing gear from theHangar9 1/4 scale cub would fit on this plane? If so, that might be a nice upgrade for it.

Roknhs, I'm not attacking you or disagreeing completely with what your saying and enjoyed your review on the other thead a lot, but there is no information out there at all on this plane and those that have it need to give their input on it like you did to help others decide whether or not to buy it.

If they ever put the Stinson on sale like this, that will be my next 1/4 scale plane. Yippie!

BEAR-AvHistory

I have built mine (crash sale unit) & it went together quickly & easily. All the parts fit well & it seems very solid, with double wall construction, especially for an e-power plane. I added a gyro for takeoff assistance & am waiting for a 100amp ESC to come in to get it in the air. Agree the gear is fugly & might look into "Built To Crash's" idea of swapping in the H9 Cubs' gear.

Like the look of the Champ a little better but as was mentioned in the thread I have never seen it on crash sale. Also agree that I would buy the 27% Stinson in a heartbeat if it went on crash sale.

canadian8apilot

I had the chance to make the test flight of a fellows Pilot-1 PA12 this weekend, powered by an ASP160 twin cyl.
The plane looked great and flew fantastic! this power-plane combo is perfect, and sounds great.
Here's a link to a bit of a write up and some pic's.

http://www.rccanada.ca/rccforum/showthread.php?t=123975

Bill

Kostas1

Kevin,

hi...Do you have the plans from your scratch built Piper ;

Yak18

My Feedback: (11)

The extra shipping cost is what killed it for me.

Kostas1

BEAR-AvHistory

No Plans, just assembly instructions - the whole series are ARF's

lleach1

My Feedback: (6)

I really appreciate all the replies to this question which I posted in February. It amazes me how much good information is available from members of RCU. Thanks guys, your input has made my decision to try one of these P!-12s an easy decision.

rtn9105

My Feedback: (35)

Can anyone tell me what kind of covering is used on this plane?

builttocrash

Nothing like reading.

Just 8 posts above yours...... ORACOVER.

rtn9105

My Feedback: (35)

Well I read this thread a couple weeks ago after I picked up a used PA-12, sorry I didn't remember seeing your reference to oracover.
Thank you for the info and I'll try harder in the future.