CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hello RC Universe family and co-builders and Flyers:

Today, I have the pleasure of introducing to you a beautiful new scale ARF airplane by CMP (China Model Products). I just recieved this plane on Monday, December 18th,2006 in the Northern New England state of Connecticut.

I have always been an fan of Cessna 182's and I believe that I may have found the perfect model to start a building thread on. Hanger 9 came out with a beautiful Cessna 182 a few years ago. I still have my eye on that 1.50 sized ARF. Top Flite also has a 1/5 scale kit that many modelers have had the pleasure of building and successfully flying. After all, it is a Top Flite model, you cannot go wrong there. Great Planes also came out with a beautiful .40 sized Cessna 182 arf. I have almost hit the "order" button several times at Tower Hobbies for this beautiful airplane.

I had to larger displacement glow engines, the Saito 1.80 and the Webra 1.20 pumped motors and I was looking for a nice civilian scale ARF to put one of these motors into. Along came the CMP Giant Scale Cessna 182 1.20 sized ARF! When I saw it, and considered all the positive write ups here in RCUniverse about this beautiful model, I thought, I will definitely buy this plane!

Well, the plane has arrived, and it is time to dig into the box. I will begin my post of pictures and assembly. I WELCOME ALL QUESTIONS and INSIGHT THAT YOU HAVE. This is one plane that is on the top of my building list.

Here are some of the goodies that will go into this beautiful bird:

1. RAM lighting system-->rotating beacon, navigation lights, and landing lights
2. Large displacement 2 or 4-stroke motor (nitro)
3. Futaba 9C radio
4. Hi-Tec Hi-torque servos throughout the plane on all surfaces, except the throttle.
5. Scale detailing from pictures that I have found on the actual Cessna 182 Skylane aircraft (from a Cessna Aircraft Company brochure)

Enjoy the building/assembly thread and post your comments, positive and negative. I love feedback!!!

CMP has put out a good one this time.

***Just an insider secret-->if you want one of these aircraft, either go to Nitro Models.com, A-K Models.com or find a local hobby shop that has connections with CMP aircraft distributor/manufacturing.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Looking forward to your build thread! [sm=thumbup.gif]

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Twm09,

Congrat. to your beauty.

I hardly can wait for your building infos.

Georgee

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

i can not find the 2mmX150mm push rods. anyone remember where they were in the kit. i guess i will have to drive 30 miles. thanks

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Thanks for your reply. Keep your eyes on this link and pass the word to the other guys. You will like the photos and build strategy. Thanks for visiting again!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Thanks for your reply. Yes, it is a beauty. I am still shocked that it only cost $229 for this bird. What a steal!!!!!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

I will look for the screws for you. Maybe they are taped inside the box somewhere. My plane came with extremely good packaging!

When I first received the box from UPS, I was hoping that there was no damage, because I went UPS ground instead of the 2nd day or 3rd air. No damage at all! In fact, the airplane was double boxed. TALK ABOUT QUALITY! I work in the aviation industry, and careful shipping of parts is one big thing that can make or break the reputation of a company. Well, UPS has my business for life. Even when they slightly damaged a package, I was promptly notified and was compensated for the damage. That is quality customer service.

Well, back to the plane. I am looking forward to getting off from work today and taking some pictures of all the parts that are packaged in individual plastic bags. JUST WAIT FOR THE PHOTOS! YOU WILL LOVE THIS PLANE.

****If you haven't bought one already, get on the waiting list at A-K MODELS. THEY ARE EXPECTING A SHIPMENT IN JANUARY 2007. JUST A HEADS UP FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT FIND THIS PLANE ELSEWHERE.****

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

The pushrods should be on the inside of the box near the landing gear in clear plastic bags (I think that they are carbon fiber). Look near or inside the wing tubes. I will check to see where they packaged mine.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Subscribing to this thread since I know I will have to have one in the future.
Tommy

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

there are 5 200mm pushrods. they are for the rudder and elevator.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

This is going to be a useful thread. Thanks for sharing your building experience with this model. I have already come up with a question. What is the rationale for using "high tec-high torque" servos in this type of plane? For years I flew my Top Flite 182 with an O.S. .91 Surpass and all standard servos. It flies just great. Your CMP has 100 less sq. in. of wing, so perhaps the 1.20 FS would be recommended. But I wouldn't go overboard on the servos. However......no harm done using the best of everything....right?

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

did you see the rubber dampened engine mount?, pretty cool.. I'm making mine electric so I will save about 1lb by not using that mount and gas tank. The wings struts are molded fiberglass, I wonder if they are load bearing and if they have any metal in them? Would not be hard to reinforce them where the screws go thru, perhaps with brass strips from the hobby shop. Also plan to use bigger wheels since I fly from a grass field.

I estimate mine will be about 12lbs and 12oz RTF electric, using 10 cell dewalt A123 lipos..

This plane is a bargain..

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

It is a great question that you have. Primarily because I like the hi-torgue servos on anything above .90 sized aircraft. Also, because the servos were available.

I know that I can use regular ball bearing servos, and set up the linkages for maximum mechanical advantage, however, I will just have the extra security of the additional "built in" torque of the hi-torque servo with the stronger gears and more sturdy control arms. After all, you cannot beat the price and reliability of the Hi-Tech product line. I primarily fly all Futaba gear, however, Hi-Tec has convinced me of its exceptional products that this company puts out.

Simple anwser: The servos were on the table at the time of construction.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

tmw09 - Many thanks for starting this thread and Seasons Greetings from the UK.

I am hoping to fit a Zenoah petrol engine in my CMP Cessna 182-140, when it arrives, and would be very grateful if you could let me know the dimensions of the firewall available for the engine mount - I am not too sure that there will be room for the engine I have in mind.

I shall find your build log very helpful I am sure , so keep up the good wo

Bob.


________________________________________________


' Praise the Lord'

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

has anyone started building yet? you will want to paint the servo holder. they have a purple tint. hitec servos fit the holders, futaba will have to enlarged. for ram lights i drilled a hole at 45 degrees thru the webbing at the wing tip which brings everything thru the same path. any ideas and help appreciated.

bob

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

I will look at it tonight and get back with you. I have been away for about 5 days and missing the opportunity to build this beauty!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

I will get back with you tonight. I have been out of the state for 5 days and missing this beauty!!!!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hurry,hurry tmw09,

We are eager for new informations, as for the building is concerned.

Georgee

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

with regards to the center wing panel, ___consider_____ leave the 2 nylon rings off the lower surface. they hit the cross member of the fuse
drill the holes for the pins a little large. put he nylon guides in the fuse and test fit. epoxy the guides in. then epoxy pins and insert the wing. tape the trailing edge in position. this should give you a perfect fit.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

georgee,

Are you building the Cessna at the momoent and if so have you come across the hinge on the rudder yet?

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi tmw09,

Great to hear that you have started building this plane have recently bought a cessna and im having troiuble with the hinge on the rudder it seems to be to flexible just wondering if you were up to that part yet?

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

I wish that I could say that I am at that point. No. I will see if I am having problems with this area. I heard someone mention the same thing (only 1 person) in another thread that was started a few months ago.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi Matto,

Unfortunately, my Cessna"s still sitting in her box.The assembly will be started in the next month.Do you think that the hinges are crappy for this plane?As far I remember the hinges are the same as on my Cmpro Extra 330L/2m/ and there wasn"t any problems with them.I"m waiting for further infos.

Georgee

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

HELLO ALL....THE WAITING CONTINUES.....

I will follow up on the build of the Cessna. It is still sitting brand new in the box. I had another plane on the building board, that I have to clear off to make room for this monster of a plane. It is nice. I would like to buy another one as a backup. It is just that nice. Buy two if you get your hands on some. They will not stay at that price for long when more people start ordering them.

Happy new year to all!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi tmw09,

Well, it"s not that cheap here in Europe.Just look at this:
http://www.der-schweighofer.at/web/p...5475&prodID=99
As a matter of fact,its about 390 Usd.So we"re not that spoiled as you are in the states.

Georgee

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

There is an update on the kit to improve the elevator and rudder rigidity.. two pieces of plywood were added to take the play out of the linkages, plus an addendum sheet to the instructions... I did replace the hinges with Robarts in mine, I dont think the original hinges would have caused any provlems.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi guys,

After building one of these beauty's about two months ago, i discovered that the hinge on the rudder is far to flexible and instead of pushing the rudder left and right, all it does is the hinge flexes and the rudder strugles to work. I had the new part sent to me from China and after installing that it helped a little bit but was still very average. I finally finished my model a month ago but was still concerned about the rudder,i got the courage up to take it on its maiden flight about 4 weeks ago. Lets just say im now on my second cessna and carefully listening to others who are in the process of building this great model,i also had trouble with the moulded piece that covers all the hinges on the bottom of the fuse,it didnt fit due to that rudder hinge that kept hitting so i left it off not a good idea and certainly a major factor in my maiden flight going so horribly wrong.

Cheers Matto

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Ah yes, and then add in the cost of a fuel tank ( you wouldn't really use the included), some connectors, perhaps wheels, and then there is the need for a proper nose gear (think Sierra), and what about the landing gear legs themselves? One cannot attest to the "great value" until it has not only been succesfully built, but .........the flying. Not the maiden, but how does what hold up after a good portion of the flying season. So, you will be adding in approx. $ 100- $ 125 USD to the kit cost to come up with the final. Think not???.....well I hope it flys as good as it looks for you...and for more than a short while.....Cheers!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Cheers, it is even more expensive for me.. since mine will be electric I have no use for the gas tank and fancy shock absorved engine mount.. I also plan to change the wheels since I fly from grass.. I would say this arf ( in the States) is a great bargain, very high quality.. excellent hardware. I probably will also change some of the pushrods to 4-40 size to prevent some complaints at the field from old-fuddy-duddies. May also reinforce the firewall where the nose gear attaches.

Batteries, motor and radio will cost more than the plane.. and that is amazing!.. a similar topflite kit would take probably 100 hours to build/cover, at least most of the hardware would be usable.
Of course it would take several rolls of monokote..

Herm

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi Folks,

Happy New Year for everyone of us!

Georgee

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi pilots, hi tmw09,

I think you are talking about me. I`ve written that I the rudder connection of the rudder and the elevator to the servos is to weak. And I still think so! I`ve made some things to stabilize the function but I think I won`t do a maiden flight with this beauty because these changes did not make the expected success! Look at the pictures: I glued in two wooden stabilizers: one close to the rudder and another one in the middel of the fuselage.

Therefore I`ll do these changes:

- Connection of rudder servo and rudder with a cable-wire to both sides of the rudder.
- Move the elvator servo to the tail of the plane, one servo for each elevator-rudder.
- in addition to that I`ll move the throttle servo towards the engine

With these changes I`ll loose the "scale-look" of the aircraft`s tail but this will make flying safe! And I`ll have enough space to create a real cockpit look!

Look at my nose wheel. I ordered one at www.ezfw.de - wonderful work!

I wish you much success in building that beauty and many happy landings!

Quax4412[8D]

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Quax......I would consider going to carbon fibre push rods before I'd move the servos. I'd also use Sullivan golden clevis instead of those plastic ones. Apparently the "snakes" that came with the kit are not up to the task. (Yah, I know, I keep reading that the hardware is just fantastic in this kit)

As for the nose gear wire. While it looks strong, and I'm sure that it is, please know that it will bend easily upon landing on anything but a smooth hard surface. And even then, the nose takes a beating. This is true of the full size as well as the model. Believe me, I have been there many times. This model really needs a nose gear strut such as made by Sierra. Yes, it is expensive. But it will save you several times its cost. When the nose gear takes a wallop is when you are cross wind landing, and hang onto the rudder too long. This puts the wheel at an angle and strikes ground with a lot of force with the wheel unable to roll out straight ahead. The force causes the wire to bend. It's strange that one's hand cannot readily bend the wire, but the model has absolutely no problem in doing so on even a not so bad of a landing! I know that you don't believe me now.....but you will after you have a few flights on it.

Right now the push rods are your main concern, and if carbon fibre is not in the picture, I highly recommend the proper selection of one of Sullivans pushrods. I have successfully used these in my Top Flite Cessna with no problems whatever.

It looks like you are an experienced builder and I hope that you will continue to feed us your comments....and great photos!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

my arf came with dave brown style carbon fiber pushrods (probably black fiberglass, dont know), no snakes at all.. gotta get my camera ready so I can post a picture.. so apparently they are trying to improve the kit. Will have to inspect that hardware and make sure it is up to par. Sheez it is only a trainer with regular servos.

Dont really like all that weight back there, electric will be hard enough to balance since the motor only weighs 8oz. The more I think about it, I may as well upgrade to the robart nose gear (or sierra), I will need the nose weight for sure.. dont really want to have to install the lipos (10s dewalt A123 cells, 25oz) in the cowling, along with the motor/esc.

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi Old Dutch,

thanks for your information but I think the play is not only due to the pushrods, because they are carbon made! The hinges of the rudders are made of very thin metal-wires which should be glued in the balsa-rudders. The hinge of the steering-rudder is about approx. 5 cm long -without any stabilization in the fuse /therefore I glued one in / pic. no. 3) But in fact it is an "indirect" connection. I think it`s o.k. in a 60,-- EUR ARF that has a weight of approx. 1,5 - 2,0 kg but not in an aircraft with the weight of 5,0 to 6,5 kg!

Believe if if that plane woult be a 60,-- EUR ARF, I would already have taken off! But it is to beautiful to crash it AND: in Germany the price is about EUR 390,--[&o] I`ve ordered mine in Austria, therefore I saved about EUR 100,-- :D

So you`ve built TF`s Skylane?! I think this kit is the real "Queen" of all 182`s! But it`s a hard work - once I`ve downloaded the manual... Congratulations to you for doing this work. But therefore you fly the original - mine is just a copy ;)

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

I guess that I have misinterpreted the problem regarding the hinging of the rudder. I used brass, pinned hinges. Oh yes, building the TF kit was a lot of work. I can' tell you how many hours it took, but it was something that kept me from noticing that it was winter out there! It took me about 8 hrs. just to go through the procedures involving with sanding, filling, sanding, sanding, etc. prior to covering. All the while taking a lot of flak from the wife. You see, I was doing this in my shop, aka bedroom! At the end of this project I agreed to no more building. ARF models are cheaper ( they tell me that a divorce would be more expensive than an entire house full of ARF models!)

You mentioned detailing the cabin. That is a must. I laid in a light ply floor in 3 sections. The mid section had a pilot (must have a pilot) fastened to it. Fore and aft pieces were glued but the center one was screwed into tri stock that I installed along the sides. The pilot became my "handle" with which to pull up this section. Servos were just below. The floor covered the entire area and I painted it med/dark gray. It really worked out well. The molded cabin that TF has is extremely fragile and other builders warned me that I really didn't have the necessary patience to paint it and install it. With the wing in place you really can't see much of the interior anyway. But the floor & pilot looks very nice.

Best of the New Year to all!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Where did you get this info from? I purchased my kit from AK-Models in October. Are they supposed to send me the update parts and addendum sheet?

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Yes Old Dutch, you`re right! Planes of that size must have a cockpit and pilots inside! That`s the only reason why I´m not unhappy to move the elevator servo to the tail:DI`ll use plywood and styro to create the cabin! My "pilot" is a puppet that I bought very cheap at toys`r`us!:)
It`s sad that no stickers of instruments were provided in the kit but I´ve already copied out the 182-panel of flight sim.

Three years ago I`ve built Aviomodelli`s Piper Arrow. The fuse was also made of balsa and plywood - al lot of work. But no comparison with TF kits. My absolute favorite is TF`s Stinson Reliant. Only advantage of the Piper Arrow was that the wings of this kit are nearly ARF-like made of styro with a white gelcoat!

Tomorrow I`m going to fix the throttle servo of the skylane in front, close to the engine. I`ve seen that a standard Graupner 507 fits very well - Thats great!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Hi pilots,

some pics of today`s work! I`ve fixed the wodden servo box of the throttle servo close to the engine. It fits perfectly with the Saito S 150 GK! I`ve attached pictures of the unpainted box & servo. I would suggest to do that to everyone of you because you`ll have a direct connection. I think it`s also possible to use a smaller serco like the C 261 but when moving the elevator servo to the tail some weight in front won`t be a mistake!

Next step is improving the rudder connection... But first I`ve to go to the builders shop and look out for some hardware...

OldDutch: Pics 3 & 4 show the "lucky guy" who`ll take a seat when the plane is ready!

Have fun when building this beauty![8D]

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Nice work. Ah yes.....that is one cool dude sitting there in the office! I know that it will be awhile, but I just can't wait to hear what you have to say after you fly it. That engine will pull this thing to the MOON. I do hope that you don't tear the wings off! By the way, one of the reasons that your pilot looks so darn good is that he is not looking straight ahead. As a former full size pilot I can tell you that a pilot is not looking straight ahead very much. One's head is on a swivel. It's quite boring to see pilot mfrs. all having the heads facing straight ahead. Someone here mentioned that they bent the pilots head to look down (straight ahead) as if he was taxiing the plane. Let me suggest that this never happens! When that airplane is moving you do not want to be out of touch as to your surroundings. So........congrats!

RE: CMP Cessna 182 Building Thread-->the best scale Cessna 1.20 size ARF that is on the market!!!
 

Quax: That servo mount is brilliant! Thanks for posting the idea!