rare_bear

My Feedback: (1)

i was going to buy one of these planes but then when all of the failure reports started coming out... i ended up buying a world models 60 sized mustang.

heck, with all the time and money put into this 60 sized rarebear, might as well just spend another thousand and get something that looks even more scale:

http://www.cactusaviation.com/Produc...Reno/reno.html

someday.

in the mean time, i'm enjoying my mustang.

a guy at our field just wrecked his 2'cd TT rare bear. he had a rudder failure a couple of days ago (ca hinges broke) but he came in and landed alright. went home and put in some hinged dave brown hinges. brought the plane out the next day and it flew like it was tailheavy. fought it all the way trying to get it back to the runweay and ended up with a belly flop just shy of pavement. cracked the fusalage where there is no internal support structure/cage just behind the canopy and messed up a wingtip. he had strengthened the elevator and landing gear.... upon inspection, the elevator throw seemed normal and was simply tossing his hands in the air trying to figure why it went unstable like that whereas the day before, it flew alright. he's gonna strip it and chuck the rest of it in the trash.

High Nitro

I received a World Models Midget Mustang for Christmas last year and I’ll have to tell you that it is one of the best flying planes I have ever had. I bolted on an OS Max .91 with the muffler restrictor out and a 12-10 prop and WOW it’s fast. It feels like it is on a rail. I have flown it 15 or 20 flights and the tail is still working like it is suppose to. By the way, did I mention that I have flown my Piper Cub faster than when my Thunder Tiger Rare Bear tail fell off and I still have the Cub. I had to add a pound of lead to the Bear to balance it with the Saito 150, which is a pound heavier than the tt90. I don’t think a tt90 is big enough to get that much weight into the air looking like an “UNLIMITED PYLON RACER” Ha!

rare_bear

My Feedback: (1)

there's a positive side to the TT rarebear story - it sure is a nice looking airplane

the folks (herein) who took the time to fix all of the problems in their planes represent the minority. just think of all of the crash and burns that don't get reported on the RCUniverse TT rarebear forum.

most people are going to build an "unlimited pylon racer" with over-power. why thunder tiger didn't start out with this "common knowledge" is mind boggling. it's almost like these guys (TT & Ace Hobbydesigners) never fly planes with speed in mind. if they did their homework properly, this plane should have been able to fly with an OS160 or YS140DZ with no problems and the weight should have been in the 9-10 pound range.

because there is basically no reinforcement between the rear of the frontal wood cage and thge rear stabilizer cage (the design relies on the integrity of the thin fiberglass fusalage), i wonder if the engine vibration can induce resonance in this region that makes the tail shake harder than it should.... thus putting extra stress on the tail feathers. hard to say.

the guy i mentioned who wrecked 2 of these planes is a good builder. he's got 20-some war birds in his collection and he said to me that this is the worst ARF he ever got his hands on. he followed many peoples recommendations on this thread after his first one crashed: he reinforced the gear, tore into the horizontal stabilizer and reinforced the glu joints, etc... and still the sucker blew apart in the air.

the kit looks great but no thanks, i'll keep my mustang until someone comes along and does a better job designing a 60 size bearcat. i don't wish to risk other peoples safety on the flightline and waste my money on a plane that's got a 50/50 chance of lasting more than a dozen flights even with no pilot error.

High Nitro

I couldn'thave said it better.

Jugmaker

Has anyone installed a twin in the RB,is this feasible?
jugmaker

AndreasE

Hi guys!

I´m a new member here, I found this place when I was searching for some info about the TT Rare Bear.

I thought that this plane look awesome and I dicided to build me one.
Due to my lack of time, I payed a guy to build it for me. This guy has flown RC airplane about 30 years, and is a very good builder.

He found that the stab was a bit funny, it was also quite wierd that there was a extra paper that told "Glue this part well" or else could serius crash happen.

He did all the building as he supposed to, and at the first flight, at 3/4 throttle, the stab fell apart. Serius crash, nothing left to repair.


One more thing, the stab on my model is in negative degree (perhaps I´m explaining myself very bad). I mean, if you look at the wing, then the stab is pointed up in the rear?
This error made it very hard to fly, I had to trim the elevator to max.

I have told our importer here in Sweden about the problem, and he says that no one else ever had any problems with the stab on Rare Bear.

After I found this, I know he is just full of crap. Total bull****.
I have told the hobby shop that I want my money back, lets see what happens.

Thanks everyone for the good information!

Regards

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

I would give the importer the URL to this thread and let him read all about it.

Don

HighSierra

My Feedback: (2)

That's interesting that TT has put an adendum in with the intrsructions with regards to the horiz. stab.... perhaps it should say "remove covering, remove balsa skin, install horiz. stab with liberal amounts of epoxy, then glue the living sh*t out of the inside of the stab....ribs, rods, everything, re-skin, and re-cover" and perhaps another one talking about making the retract mounts more substantial, so they don't fold out on the smoothest, softest of landings. Then they should put in a certificate for $100 mail in rebate for having to do all said work!!

I've yet to get mine back out in the air after said mods.....It's still an awsome looking plane......but not for the modeler that wants to slap it together without re-enginering the stab and LG mounts!!

I hope to get mine back out in the next week or so....just re-going thru everything as it's been sitting all winter..... I 've re-done the LG mounts, and re-done the horiz.stab (it was tough cutting into it....but I was damn glad I did.....pretty much had the smae thing going on in there as most have reported (they must have been in glue ration mode at the factory when they where assembling the horiz.stabs!!)

pjohnmack

OK, I just think I'll throw my RB in the dumpster. It's NOT worth it. The Distributor won't even return my call and has insulted my 40+ years of modeling experience with a phony E-Mail. There are much better planes out there than the RB. I won't ever purchase anything with their name on it again. They could have easily fixed the problem but they chose the low road. What a disgrace to a great hobby. I have now seen three of these planes crash, with a broken stab. I think they are dangerous. If you plan on flying yours just fix the faults before and attempt to fly....Good Luck

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

If you're serious about tossing it, I'll take it.

I'll pay shipping to California.

Let me know

Don

AndreasE

This URL has been send to our importer here in Sweden, no answer yet.

I´ll keep you updated...

frank39

My Feedback: (1)

i got my rare bear on the web and payed 175.00 for it the only things i need to know is the cg line and the control throws retracts are ttr3808 but i am going to put in air retracts

JWORTNER

Frank39,

You need more infor than that. I hope you have read this thread. There is a serious flaw in the rear stab of the RB. This forum is flooded with crashes, all from this flaw.

You can fix it but there is some effort involved. Read back and review the various mod's that have been made. I strongly recommend you look at the ones I suggest.

equip

My Feedback: (64)

HI rare bear lovers this may sound a bit out there but, any of you who have crashed one and have a wing and stab in salvageable condition dont throw it away ill pay a reasonable salvage price and postage.

warp65

Im just in the middle of the B progress, lucky me found this link, just opened upp the stab
anf found the ribbs (3 of them on each side) not to be glued on both sides, reinforced it with scrap ply and mucho epoxy, this is a shame for TT and for a such beatiful plane, wonder what the owner to the real one should think if he read this thread, TT claims in big that they have "licensed" it from the real, not good for real one that the model doesnt
stand up to the expectations it should have from the factory!

/Jack

ACP Engineering

My Feedback: (1)

WORTNER,

I ripped the left gear out of my RB a couple weeks ago and have called TT for a replacement. The gear block it self is laminated 1/8!QUOT! ply and it appers that the lamination has failed.

My conclusion is that the gear block is under designed. I've been building ARF's for many years and have not seen anything so whimpy. What did you do to reinforce the gear block. I went back in the thread and didn't find any thing i.e. that hadn'd already done myself?

JWORTNER

I took pics and everthing of my gear mods and I guess I never posted them. I justed looked and can't find them.

What I did was very simple but a little hard to explain without pics.

I took some squaure stock about 3/8 inch and cut them to fit under the gear mounting area snugly between the ribs. There are 2 of them, one parralel to the leading edge and the other parallel to the trailing edge. I glued a stick onto them so I could lower them down into the opening, and pull them back between the ribs up under the gear mounting area. Again, one on each side. When they were fit just right, I removed them and covered with epoxy and then reinserted them back into place. Once set up, you can snap the sticks off.

I have had many HARD landings any have never had a problem. Best of all, I did not have to cut into the wing.

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

Well, TT may make a big deal about it being a licensed copy but they had to do that in order to sell the plane. "Rare Bear" is a trademarked name. TT actually had to delay the intro of the kit until they signed a deal with the Rare Bear race team. The crappy construction of the stabilizer doesn't have any impact at all on how I feel about the real race plane or race team.

Don
Rare Bear Fan Sponsor 2002-2005

rare_bear

My Feedback: (1)

hay Don,

ya hear anything about the state of health of the RareBear engine?
a fella who flew up at PRS a few weeks back (T6 bronze class whom I spoke with) said it was running pretty darn rough.
you heard about elliot white, correct?

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

I heard they burnt a cylinder at PRS (that's nothing new) but it has been repaired and they are ready for September. When I renewed my Fan Sponsor membership (just after PRS) I was sent an email that they are looking at some aerodynamic mods and should have a few done for September if they pan out. Obviously they are keeping the mods secret for now.

Any mod that will make it faster on less power will be good for the engine so they can go as fast on a lower power setting. They hired a new mechanic who fixed the carb problem they have had for so long (he posts on AAFO.com as "Rare Bear FNG") so that is a plus, too!

Yeah, I was saddened to hear about Elliot. What a strange accident. He will be missed.

Don

zooflyer

First time here. well anyhow here goes . i'm from OK,like everyone else we have gravity.
on a visit to family in in Utica. i stopped at by their local field with my stinger. when a gentleman pulls up with this Sleek white Rare Bear. yep 369.00 boxed w/ys120 i'm kinda getting the picture how much that first taxi on the field cost with air retacts. me and my little
60. ha. Love the looks of that plane RB, anyhow to get to the point , he lost it on the second round.
As all the people scattered in the pits. he let it get behind him' and as it was doing cart wheels and coming apart with every roll. Now he was pretty calm at the time. turned his radio off and walked back to the pits and sat down ,course his plane already beat him there. then he got up and started pickin' up the pieces. as i stood their and pondered the outcome i noticed that everything had come off the plane. body was still in tact few cracks fiberglas and plastic. but each wing that was in a different location was still intact . retracts were history ,never saw broken metal before on landing gear canopy and canopy cover still good. ys history , carb snapped from housing. everything on the inside of plane was toast. probably because he had
a 1/2 pound of steel with a hole drill in the middle tucked in the back of the plane. so as he was picking it up and throwing it in the trash cans i asked if he didn't mind me picking it out of the trash. anyhow with a little sanding she's almost ready. os91fx don't need all that 4s power if you've never flown one got a 61 on my dago red. just got one problem. that carbon fiber tube that holds the wings in line cost 140. for 36" and their two of them , one inner one outter. thats the cost of the plane. 120.00. keep the wheels down.

Itzdzworld

My Feedback: (-1)

Without a Doubt the Rare Bear from Thunder Tiger is the worst ARF on the market. those of you who are thinking of buying this groundcraft (Where it should be). "DON'T" ....... Take in consideration that if you know the plane is unsafe and your going to fly it anyway. Will AMA Cover you when the aircraft crashes and hurts someone. The answer is no!

I spoke to a Thunder Tiger Rep today who blew me off, saying call someone named Steve Clem (He's out of town) on monday at the same number. They have displayed an unprofessional take on the matter they didn't even bother to take my name or number to call me back. I believe if they were intrested this would have been a step in the right direction. They are still selling this unsafe aircraft and know it is unsafe. I have spent 520.00 on 2 "ScareBears" not mention the parts that were lost in the first crash. All Thunder Tiger products are all suspect in my eyes if they can not back this one.

No I did not cut the Carbon fiber tube, I did not break the ribs in the stab, no it was not over powered nor did it even reach half throttle on any flights.

17 years of flying just about everything there is, I say these are design flaws that a full refund of everyone's money who wasted a dime on the Scarebear would be a nice start.

Here is a note for Thunder Tiger, IF YOU PUT OUT A SUPERIOR PRODUCT YOU REAP THE REWARDS, IF YOU PUT OUT A INFERIOR PRODUCT and deny its short comings you eventually wind up in a court of law.

See the attached photos for reference, the stab has been fixed and reglued back to fuselage........

We can't thank you enough, for the Company of Thunder Tiger for giving a great hobby another black eye, for no other reason than greed.

Ad Clark III

My Feedback: (8)

BEST ARF EVER!!!!! just kidding. Definately the worst ARF I have ever assembled for all the reasons previously mentioned. Having said that, I am getting ready to maiden mine this weekend. Any advice on control throws or CG? or any other mods I might have overlooked. Mine has the 160 in it and all the modifications and then some to the airframe. So far the only thing I have not had to modify are the decals. Great looking plane, just a pain in the arss to modify everything so it will work.
Some of the mods include
1. I went to an archery shop and bought several carbon fiber arrowshafts to make the ones in the stab twice as long.
2. Replaced the rib on the stab at the root with one that was approx 1" thick that was made out of 1/4 ply and 3/4 balsa
3. Elev pushrod made out of carbon fiber arrowshaft.
4. Added extra 1/2 ply to firewall.
5. Installed BVM pneumatic retracts. Basically cut out all the factory mounts, wasnt real hard since they didnt use any glue. Installed new longer plywood mounts that I tied into 5 ribs with BVM aeropoxy I then used carbon fiber cloth all the bays between the ribs.
Couple of questions to those who have flown with the 160.
1. Did you open up the cowling around the head for extra cooling even though the head does not protrude through the side of the cowling? Or did you just make a hole big enough for the glow plug? I am concerned about cooling because of that big spinner.
2. Tailwheel springs? thought I remember someone saying they might be too weak.
Other than that Ill let you know how the first flights go.......later

High Nitro

If you’re asking for advice on this ARF...

1. Open the Thunder Tiger Rare Bear canopy.

2. Completely fill the entire fuselage with fiberglass resin.

3. Before it hardens insert one end of 150 ft nylon rope.

4. Use it for a boat anchor!

Itzdzworld

My Feedback: (-1)

I modified, reinforced, and changed the aircraft to make it air worthy.

Nothing helped, I mean nothing,

Heres a question, how much does your aircraft weight after all the mods 13 1/2 pounds is what mine did. This is without fuel.

So much for the aircraft being a racer and representing the Rare Bear Racing Legend.


Here's what I suggest " Don't fly the damn thing " then make a call to World Models and get one of the Midget Mustangs take all the parts out of the Scare Bear put them in the Midget Mustang and enjoy flying a real Air Worthy Aircraft.

Thunder Tiger Products and Motor Cycles " Going to go down or its been down already "......................