oldbassard

Hey Gang

I for sometime have been considering buying a Great Planes J3 cub and converting it to a super cub. I am wondering about the barn door ailerons on the J3, would they have to be altered for the flaps on the Super cub?

Truckracer

My Feedback: (19)

First let me say I am a CUB lover. Great airplane in model form ..... can be flown from mild and scale to as wild as you might care for. With that said, the Great Planes 60 CUB or any of that series, (40, 20) for that matter are not my favorite versions of a CUB. They certainly fly OK but nothing like many others that are available. Any of the SIG CUBs, Balsa USA, any of the Hanger 9 ARFs, plus several others feel better in the air and handle better on the ground .... in my opinion than the Great Planes! They just didn't get the Great Planes CUB right with an overly thick wing and too small tail. They can chase their tail on the ground which any CUB can be prone to do but the Great Planes design is worse than average here. The GP doesn't snap or spin crisply like most CUBs, etc. Just not my favorite CUB design.

I wanted to change my GP 60 CUB to a sort of scale Super Cub but could only find one fiberglass cowl in the right size and it was not at all scale looking. If I wanted a Super Cub, I wouldn't start with the GP CUB kit. The GP also builds heavier than I would prefer.

oldbassard

HEY thanks for the advice, You are so right, after spending a while looking it up online, The Sig also has the advantage of the two piece wings. BUT you still didn't answer my original question. Will the ailerons need to be altered for length to put flaps on the J3 for it to be a super cub? I do see I will want a fiberglass cowl, and I found one company that offers them. I was wondering if there is one available that you know of for a super cub that does look correct?

Again thanks for you advice and input

Truckracer

My Feedback: (19)

Sorry for not addressing your original question. I realized that point after I posted the response but wasn't able to get back to the computer to add to the response.

This answer will also be not quite on target! None of the 1/4 or 1/5 CUB kits that I am aware of really have scale ailerons. Not scale size, shape or hinging. To build a Super Cub from a J-3 kit you'll be adding flaps anyway. This will mean the whole TE of the wing will require redesign so any aileron modifications would just be part of that process. Get a good 3-view and have at it.

Rethinking my original post regarding the GP kit, I didn't mean to imply that the airplane flies poorly as it actually flies quite well. My point is that there are better flying and closer to scale kits on the market.

Overall, I believe my favorite 1/4 J-3 kit would be SIG's but the kit is getting a bit dated. The finished product flies very well but the construction is tedious. I consider the kit a good starting place and quite open for builder modifications. There are several excellent SIG CUB build threads here on RCU. I'd suggest reading all of these before proceeding with this kit.

The Balsa USA J-3 builds into a nice airplane but like the SIG kit, is likewise a bit dated. Interestingly, the BUSA J-3 is a bit larger than the SIG J-3 in just about every dimension and they are both called 1/4 scale. I'll leave it to the builder to decide which one, if either, is really 1/4 scale.

Super Cub cowls are available for both the SIG and BUSA kits though once again neither is quite scale, though close enough for most purposes.

While I don't have any personal experience with this, the SIG 1/5 J-3 always looked like a very nice kit. Much more modern construction than the older 1/4 size and it looks to be a better overall deal than the 1/4. You might want to check that out if the size is acceptable.

TomCrump

I believe that you can leave the ailerons as they are, if you want to add flaps to your GP Cub.

As stated above, the wing structure will take some modification to add the flaps.

dadragon

your answer is yes they need to be shortend,I did a 1/4 sig its not that hard to layout and reconfig the wing plans for flaps.

dadragon

go to kit builders than page 4 cub brotherhood then page 35 to post 862 you can a real clean supercub and check out the elevater.

dadragon

sig is true scale 105" wing 67"long Busa is 108"wing and 68"long.and I shortend the ailarons by 1 wing rib at 30% full flaps it will almost hover in 10 mph headwind,went to the 6"turf tires my landing feild is not groomed.have fun with your build.Geo.

TomCrump

I assume that you mean the ailerons must be shortened in order to be "scale". If a builder wanted to just add flaps, with no regard to scale outline, would there be a need to alter the ailerons.

dadragon

Tom; I wanted a little more flap because I fly off the water it helps with the extra weight the bird is carrying and is not a clipped wing. and its on a 3 postion switch 0-15-30 degrease I dont have to come as fast to make a smooth landing on water.you are rite you can keep it as is and add your flaps and they should be funtional.Geo.

bikerbc

I don't think so .. I went out to the shop and measured mine and my Hanger 9 1/4 Scale PA 18 Ailerons are 25 5/8" long with 15 1/2" Flaps , My Sig 1/4 Scale Cub Has 25 1/2" Ailerons with 17" of room for flaps , My B.U.S.A. J3 has 261/2" Ailerons with 19" of room for flaps . So as near as I can tell the ailerons are pretty much standard and you should be able to work the flaps in to the space that is left . Remember the flaps hinge a little differently than the ailerons ..