gearcased

Hello, would anybody happen to know the measurements of the wire landing gear for the great planes (or tower hobbies) Piper Cub Arf 81" wing? I dug the kit out after 10 years of storage but its missing its landing gear. Parts are discontinued,So I have to bend a set of wire, but have nothing to reference. Any input would be appreciated.

52larry52

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gearcased, The wire dia. is .196", the vertical section going into the fuselage wooden blocks is about 1" to 1.125" (can't measure as my plane is assembled), the horz. section in the slot across the bottom of the fuselage is 4.5", the down angled section is 6", and the horz. section where the wheel mounts is about 1.250" (can't get accurate measurement with wheels on). Hope this helps. Just make the vert. section long enough to go all the way thru the mount blocks, and the horz. wheel section as needed for the wheels you are using. BTY, Tower lists replacement main gear for the Tower J-3 ARF (I believe to be the same as the Great Planes ARF) using part # LXFBMN or # TOWA4041 @ $5.99 with a stock status of "late Sept". The G.P. J-3 Cub ARF is a great flyer, enjoy.

52larry52

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gearcase, Just thinking about the main gear being "missing" from your kit.........It was like 12 years ago I bought and assembled mine, but I sort of remember the main gear wire being taped to cardboard hidden to protect the other parts from damage in shipment. Go back to your kit and empty the box completely and look under the cardboard box flaps (and if it has one of those inner spacer boxes, in there) and you may find it.

gearcased

Thanks very much. The landing gear is definitely missing so I ordered the wire and SK wire bender. I never bent wire like this before (will see how that goes), but the measurerments are very helpfull. Especially the 6" down angled section.

deanz406

My Feedback: (28)

gearcased-- A simple solution to making nice landing gear, is to bend a piece of aluminum stock. i was lucky enough to have an old "Stop Sign" that was given to me, and it is made from tempered aluminum, and is quite strong, as well as has nice flexibility. I've made several from this stop sign, and I love how well they follow the contour of our grassy field. The yellow Cub is the Great Planes 81" fabric covered Cub, so I think it's a lot easier than trying to bend wire, and looks a lot better than the original wire gear with the added wood covers. Here's what some of mine look like-- Dean

gearcased

Wow, very nice. You've caused me to reconsider, but can I purchase, or is there another source from which to get tempered aluminum.

52larry52

My Feedback: (1)

gearcased, The aluminum type landing gear as suggested by deanz406 are a good alternative to the stock wire type gear on a Cub. You can make your own as deanz has or purchase a premade gear that fits your plane. Hanger-9 used to offer a durel aluminum replacement landing for their older (not the current one) 40 size Cub ARF. It was part #HAN1508, BUT it had long been discontinued and you will only find one at swap meets or on Ebay. If you luck onto one it will fit your Cub and work well. Other ones from Tower that MIGHT fit your plane and budget are pt.#LXJ923 Great Planes dural small 60 landing gear @$15.99, pt.#LXFTUX Phoenix Model landing gear J-3 Cub @29.99, and the best one pt.#LXBDL5 Robart main landing gear set 1/5th scale Cub @$139.99. The Robart gear is a fully functional scale reproduction of a real Cub gear and yes they are "pricey" but are the top of the line for replacement Cub gear. If you can wait for the stock replacement gear (Tower is now saying "late Sept") @$5.99 that is the least costly option and for normal grass club field flying they function well. Research the ones I listed and let your wallet be your guide. They all will work.

deanz406

My Feedback: (28)

gearcased- I had a friend who worked for the city street dept in our town, and I got a couple old stop signs that were replaced, or taken down. You might check with a local city, or municipal maintenance dept to see if they would have one or 2 that u could purchase cheaply. It doesn't necessarily have to be a "Stop" sign, but every one of the signs(no parking- speed limit- arrows, etc) that are used for road signs are tempered aluminum, because they don't rust or rot. They are all around .062-.080 in thickness, and have a lot of strength. The red Cub weighs 11#, the green Vagabond 10.5#, and the red Cessna weighs 11.5#, and I never had an issue with them folding up. My brother has a small bending brake, so that's how i bend them. You can use a vise, but do as I do, and make a cardboard(manila folder) template first, mark out the outline, and cut. Just a suggestion- doesn't hurt to try checking with locals 1st. -- Good Luck-- Dean

captinjohn

What company makes this J3 for Great Planes ? Thanks

bikerbc

You can also purchase articulating gear that should fit from the replacement gear for the new Hanger 9 Carbon Cub .HAN506517 $29.99 , plus it appears you will also need to purchace the hardware pack to get the brackets that attach the gear to the plane , this gear is equivalent to Robarts gear . It is fantastic gear for the price . I am disappointed to see the mounting brackets in the hardware pack as you will end up with a bunch of stuff you don't need .I have purchased other sets of gear from them where the brackets were included . I have the GP Fabric Covered Cub and I put A set of articulating gear on it a few years ago and it has made the plane much more enjoyable for me to fly .I also upgraded my struts but not until an unfortunate incident occurred and the old ones broke themselves .

bikerbc

Oh by the way I forgot to mention you can pick up old highway signs from the highways maint. dept. . usually for free . The are often bent but you can easily pick one that will work .I have a metal cutting band saw that works fine for roughing them out .Grey Beard is the one that told me about using old signs and I don't think I have bought a landing gear since except the articulating gear . If you have a vice they are easy to bend .

captinjohn

How good of a camera airplane does this J3 81 inch size make, like for a camera the same size as a Go Pro Hero? I have a Saito 56 4 cycle or what do yo recommend. Also how good does J3 Thanks John

bikerbc

I think your J3 would make a good camera airplane but make sure you are comfortable flying it first . They can be a bit difficult until you are used to flying them especially on take off . I found my GP Cub to be real nasty until I put the Robart gear on it . They are wonderful flyers but if you aren't paying attention on takeoff they will jump in the air suddenly then stall , drop their nose onto the runway and cartwheel .. That could be tough on your camera unless you had it inside and protected .

Jester5000

Hello,
I have the same issue as gearcased! I inherited an old Tower Hobbies ARF Cub with an 81" wingspan with damaged floats. I'm converting to landing gear, but have no dimensions or anything. I like your aluminum gear idea. If your Cub is 81", would you be willing to share the dimensions of the aluminum sheet you cut? The width of my fuse is 5".
gearcased , did you complete yours? Could you share pics and/or dimensions?

Thanks in advance.