FUZZ

I been considering on moving up to speed plane. I have been flying for a few years now. I have flown a couple of 40 size pattern planes that would move at around 100mph +, and I have built many 40 and 60 size planes and even a few giant scale planes. I Think I have finally narrowed my selection to one of the Great Planes Patriot kits.
Now,... My question is this... What is the most popular setup for this plane? I will be flying on a paved runway and was also looking into retracts. I was kinda leaning to a mechanical set. What retracts would be best and what engine combo? I saw that several people were using a YS45 and several different types of Jett engines and have even read posts of people using a .46FX. I am leaning to one of the sport Jett engines,.... What would be the best size for the Patriot? I would like the best possible setup that can get me in the 150mph range for the lowest amount of $$$. I need to hurry and get the info sent to Mrs. Claus aka "The Wife",...lol

Thanks,
FUZZ

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Good question!

I have a KIT built Patriot with a SJ-50 (Sport-Jett) with a 9x9 apc, Spring-Air Retracts, and inboard split-flaps.... I do not claim any speed in particular, but can say it is quicker than a Ram-500 powered Hotspot (And anything Fly-Boy Dave flies!) The Jett-50 has the same mounting dimensions as the OS-46FX/SF Magnum etc. it easily fits in the cramped nose of a Patriot and is fairly light for the power- Yes some guy put a Jett-90 in a Patriot ARF but it took alot of work- (Jett-60 may be good too...?)

RC Myth Destroyed: You CAN USE STANDARD SERVOS IN A HIGH PERFORMANCE PATRIOT! I use 148's or 3003's but use a 6V RX pack to get around 60 oz. torque- About 50 flights--- no problems!

I recommend air retracts since mechanicals would require 2 ret. servos, and the possibility that your battery could forfeit its' ability to power the rest of your flight pack should a problem with the linkage arise-[X(] (I have heard of a few folks having great luck with mechanicals- so it is just preference I guess)

That should get you started- there are a ton of good threads on Patriot set-ups so grab a cup of coffee and enjoy!

Also, here is my typical engine list for a Patriot: (In the 40-50 size roughly..)

Jett-50
YS-45
Rossi-53
Rossi-45
Webra-50
OS-50SX
K&B-48
MVVS-49

Bucshot

My Feedback: (16)

I'm building one right now. I have a YS installed....no problems fitting so far. I also used Robart pneumatic retracts. I'm using the bottom of the line standard nose wheel and it is way too big. I mounted the tank floor per the plans and nose wheel is going to stick out the bottom of the fuselage. I plan to make a glass fairing to cover it up. Try to find a low profile type.'

One last thing, since the YS is a pumped engine, I installed a bigger fuel tank in the giant empty bay over the front of the wing. The YS drinks fuel and with a 12 oz tank expect less than 6 min. A hayes 16 oz tank fits perfectly! I used the space above the nose wheel for the retract reservoir. Works nice.

Good luck!

FUZZ

Hey Razor,

What brand of retracts are you using? I have read alot about folks saying the Springair units are really great in the Patriot. If so what model numbers for the front and rear and since this will be my 1st retract model. Is there any special info that ya can pass along that may help me avoid the normal screw ups?,.....


BTW Your Patriot looks great.
I was thinking of doing mine up in the Blue Angels markings.

Thanks,
FUZZ

vasek

My Feedback: (4)

fuzz, i have B&D retracts (mechanical) installed in mine (as per plans w 2 servos) and its fine
had the two retract servos already so the cost was minimal (50$ or so for the trike)

next time i will use sring airs to eliminate the hassle of the pushrod setup [8D]

do a search, this topic comes up fairly often in here

FUZZ

vasek,

what is the website for B&D for the retracts? or the distributor?

Thanks,
FUZZ

Flyboy Dave

My Feedback: (21)

I saw that Razor [X(]....just wait till El Mirage III....

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Fuzz: I will have to get under the hood this weekend and look for the #'s on the Spring-Airs (Someone else might know also-) Mine came assembled, which is lucky for me since I build like a 5 year old child! [X(] They are great units...

Super-Dave: I was hoping you'd see that! Bring that DC F-20 next time so we can drag race- (You just know that Gary will put a Jett-50 or something in that F3D just for El Mirage III and smoke the both of us! [X(])

I sure had fun with you folks! Tim got some good video but he apparently does not know how to post it on the net, I don't either...

I love all these Patriot threads!

Here was a picture of a few planes for anybody wondering what the heck El Mirage II was-

james

FUZZ

Does anyone have any experience with B&D pneumatic retracts? I am planning on ordering a set of them since Tower has the complete set-up for around $75.00.

Thanks,
FUZZ

AirGar

My Feedback: (7)

[sm=idea.gif]

FUZZ

Hey Razor,

Could you send some pics of your entire setup on your patriot? I like the idea of the split flaps and was also adding pneumatic retracts and even though I've built many planes this will be the first time ive used retracts or custom made flaps, but I feel the looks will be great with both. I am also gonna add a Jett .50. Also could you include any tips with this plane that may be helpful. I have learned after 8 years of modeling, there is no shame in asking for tips.

PS MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL !!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks,
FUZZ

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Sure- I will have to go out to the shop and take some pics... Someone else wanted to see the flaps so I'll get them listed here-


WARNING: I DID NOT build this Patriot! (I have flown it though ) So I can't explain the split-flaps but I am sure the pics will help-

Merry Christmas!

FUZZ

Hey Razor,

Ive already started my Patriot kit, can ya tell me where ya put your air tank for your retracts. And I'll hold off on the rest of the wing so I can see the pics of yours.

Thanks,
FUZZ

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Fuzz- Happy new year!

The air tank in my Patriot is just in front of the servo tray...In other words between the wing and servo hatch- You can use velcro, sticky servo tape, or just silicone it in

Lemme go take a few pics and i'll be back in a few-

FUZZ

Ok,...Thanks

FUZZ

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Here are a couple.... low quality tho-

FUZZ

Razor,
Thanks for the pics,......... but have a couple of questions,.... do you use pull-pull cable setup for the nose wheel steering? and do you use seperate aileron servos? I was thinking of putting high torgue mini servos on each aileron,.. and then hooking up the flaps like you did. ...what do you think?

thanks,
FUZZ

FUZZ

I have a few questions,.....I now have my wing about 80% complete. I was gonna add flaps by just cutting down the aileron and having the flaps on the inboard area controlled by one servo and i was adding concelled hatches in the wing for high torque mini servos. My question is this: The total area of the aileron on the plan is 17in. i had planned on making the flaps 6in and the ailerons 11in. Will the flaps be large enough to slow the plane down and will the 11 inch ailerons be large enough for sufficient control? I figured that the ailerons would be adequate but was unsure if the flaps would be helpful or not. Any comments would be apperciated.

Thanks,
FUZZ

racer-RCU

My Feedback: (14)

would a os 46fx be good for this plane, how fast do u think it would go, not sure if i'm putting in retracts yet

Razor-RCU

My Feedback: (50)

Fuzz: I am not sure how much flap area will be needed but at the speeds the Patriot travels, you do not need much aileron movement- maybe half and half?

I do not have a pull-pull setup on the nose-whel... I wish I did tho! I have too much slop up front, not enough to cause any problems but not rock solid as I would prefer-

The pic is not very clear but the servo you see (where the Ail. usually goes-) is the flap servo, there is also a standard servo laying on its' side under the flap servo, the linkage goes out to a bell-crank for aileron control- (Yup! 1 STD. servo for ailerons [X(])

racer-RCU: Many folks have flown a Patriot with a 46FX or similar.. It will fly, but not great- I flew mine with an ASP-46 (Similar to 46FX) and an Irvine-53 (Little better-) it flew very predictable, tracked well, and was an attention getter, but nothing near its' POTENTIAL! In other words, you can get used to the plane with that engine then swap out for something better later on---

Hope this helps at least a little-

FUZZ

Hey Razor,
Do you know the website for the spring air retracts? I bought a set of the B&D pneumatic retracts and they worked great in the wing but the nose gear unit is just too big. I want a nose gear unit that will fit correctly.

Thanks,
FUZZ

FUZZ

Hey guys,....
Got a question for you guys with springair retracts. I purchased a set of B&D pneumatic retracts but the nose gear unit is too large. The B&D units mounted perfectly in the wing, but the nose unit is way to large. My question is this: will spring air just sell the nose unit?, and if so, are spring air retracts one or two air line units, becaus ethe B&D units are two line units. So, I would either need for the Spring air units to be two line units or to just purchase a whole new spring air set, which I really dont want to have to do if not necessary. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,
FUZZ