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Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

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Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

Old 04-23-2008, 01:13 PM
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Clay Walters
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Default Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

Just wanted to comment on the trainer I recently purchased, assembled, and have now flown. I fooled around with kit planes as a boy and then in the late 1980's built a few RC planes from kits. But, never flew much and after about a year, sold all my stuff.

This year I purchased my first ARF, the Hobbico Hobbistar 60 after doing some online research. I selected an ARF because I knew I wanted to select my own radio and engine. I also wanted a semi-symentrical airfoil with the belief I wouldn't feel an urgent need to get a second plane so fast and I wanted it larger this time around. With a cataract still in one eye, and older eyes in general I wanted something I could see.

I stumbled upon a series of articles illustrating modifications to this ARF but also discussed modifications to ARF's in general. In most instances the Hobbico Hobbistar already included these mods - fuel proofed engine compartment, reinforced servo mounting areas, and reinforced firewall.

The modifications illustrated included a dual-strut nosegear, bolt-on wings, and independent wing servos for the ailerons. Because my first plane years ago (Midwest Aerostar) also included the bolt-on wing option with the plans I'd done it before and liked it. Infact, I still had the tap from back then and used it on this one. However, I'd never done the separate aileron servos and thought it would be fun to try. And the improved nose strut made more sense to me once I saw that the longer 14"prop (for my Magnum XL 91 RFS) wouldn't leave much ground clearance.

And, I pretty well followed the directions in the article except I mounted my wing servos centered on the ailerons.

To say everything went smoothly would be unfair. Its been a long time since doing this and my eyesight and dexterity isn't what it used to be (not that it was all that good back then). The seemingly simple nose gear swap was challenging in getting a straight 3/16" enlarged hole thru the supplied mount and brackets. A long drill bit made this much better but I still had to relieve some pressure points with a small file to get things turning smoothly. And the big 4-stroke fit the supplied mount just fine but the throttle routing didn't. I drilled a new hole in the firewall more inline with the throttle arm and used a throttle cable instead of wire to ease the process.

But now that its together and I've flown it solo 9 times now since a more experienced pilot took it up for its maiden I can say I'm very pleased to date. It flies nicely inverted, loops great, and rolls ok. I did change out the supplied 1 3/4" wheels for 3 1/2" ones and went to a 13" prop to obtain even more clearance. Still, any slight bump in the landing will kill the engine although I can detect no damage to the prop nor anything stressed in the mount. I used 18" servo extensions and a Y-harness to the wing servos and then a 6" extension off the receiver to make it easier to hookup/disconnect the wing.

I did not fuel proof the tank compartment since I'd already glued the retaining brace in and the wing mount block along with the cabin in general made access next to impossible. Should have done this first.

By removing the choke rod the only modification to the engine compartment was to drill a hole for the needle valve to poke thru (and the previously mentioned throttle cable hole in the firewall).

After reading any number of these "Trainer review and mod articles" (and there are a bunch of them to be read) I can't help but comment on things that seemed glaring to me. First they are actually helpful but clearly written in such a way as to encourage a person to give this hobby a try. Second, the mere few hours or minutes they mention to assemble one of these and/or make these modifications seems way off. Perhaps they have facility to all the tools, materiels, and gadgets one might need and clearly they've built plenty of models and know precisely what they wish
Old 04-23-2008, 01:18 PM
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Razor-RCU
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Default RE: Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

Good to have you back in the hobby! I have flown and trained someone on the Hobbico-60 you mention and it was a pleasure to fly. The gentleman I trained ahd already bought and installed an OS-60LA engine (I would have recommended a 61FX for future usage (or TT or others). But the LA ran perfectly.

Great to hear your success story- happy flying!
Old 04-24-2008, 01:20 AM
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Default RE: Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

It's my favorite ARF trainer. I recommend it to anyone who asks, although most folks already have a plane by the time I meet them.
Old 04-24-2008, 06:53 AM
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Clay Walters
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Default RE: Hobbico Hobbistar 60 Mk III

I just noticed the last part of my post was truncated. The essential content is there and I wholeheartedly suggest this as a trainer for a new person. An absolutely flat-bottom airfoil is not necessary to have a gentle flyer and had this model been available as a kit I would have likely proceeded that way. As it stands now, by doing these mods you still get to "connect" with it.

Regards,

Clay

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