roknHS

Well.............I guess I'm the first one with a problem.........wouldn't it be my luck.
Mine has a cracked cowling (shipping damage) and a cracked strut fairing (probably didn't catch it at the factory)

Very nice finish job on the covering and the paint quality looks first rate. Cabin door is hinged with a door latch already installed..........looks pretty good too.

I've sent an e-mail to RCGUYS letting them know my problems......I'll let you all know how customer service is...............my bet is it will be excellant.

I like it a lot and it will turn heads at anybody's field...........guaranteed!

outacontrol41

My Feedback: (9)

Hey, Homer....I heard or read somewhere that they're sending all their replacement part orders to Dave Patrick Models to fill......Doah!![X(]

fisher1648

I ordered a Brillelli 46cc for my Decathlon. It's one of the lightest in it's class, should fit without hacking the cowl/firewall, customer service appears top-notch (already evidenced by Scott's patience and timely response to my e-mail bombardments), and uses familiar carb (walbro) and ignition (CH). The price is right as well. The RTF weight is a bit over 1lb more than a G-2300 but I'm willing to add some weight to go gas (economy/mess). I plan to do some beefing-up of the joints associated with the firewall, etc...

Once it's delivered I can sort out equipment placement to get the CG correct.

Probably a bit more power than I really need (for a Decathlon) but I'm at 5k' and I like extra power for streamer towing, smoke, etc....anyway.

Should be fun.

Eric

roknHS

Outacontrol............heaven forbid you should even mention DPM.........what a wreck that one was........I'm sure glad I didn't get mixed up with that disaster.

Well.........I sent the boys in Ontario an e-mail last night telling them what parts were damaged in my Decathlon and this morning I had a reply telling me the parts were shipping out today. That kind of customer service is what we all wish for........excellant and them some.

The Decathlon held some good surprises I didn't expect.........gear is painted white--nice touch.......pull-pull cables--nice touch........really nice tail wheel.........no wrinkled covering anywhere...........good quality hinges (like Dubro pin hinges) on all control surfaces and the cabin door. All the hardware is in labeled plastic bags--nice touch. All the hardware I looked at was top quality stuff.

It is a very nice ARF. My only concerns at this point is the fit of the windshield on the hood (may need some Fourmost window flange) and the 4" foam tires just don't seem like they belong in a $400 dollar ARF.

I think RCGUYS has a winner here. I'm glad I made the decision to get it.........now I just have to finish some other projects I have started so I can get it in the shop and start working.

fisher1648

Here are some pics...keep in mind some of the pic quality makes the paint look funny...it's not.

Also, I just sat the tailfeathers and such on the fuse - nothing is attached......

fisher1648

Better resolution pic....but the paint still comes across looking funny...trust me it's not

outacontrol41

My Feedback: (9)

I was checking out these pictures and drooling violently over my keyboard causing a short circuit! Very impressive! Even that door is sharp looking...never seen one built up like that before on an ARF. Very tempting to buy but I'll hold of for the next model coming up. It looks like it's built extremely light...mostly laser cut light ply and possibly some balsa in there somewhere. The wheel pants seem slightly oversized, though. Overall, beautiful.
By the way, fisher, the paint looks funny.

outacontrol41

My Feedback: (9)

BTW fisher, I hope for your sake you beef up your firewall for that 46cc gasser you plan to install. This plane is advertised as 13-15 lbs....not much wood there to handle such a big gasser. That is assuming that the weight advertised is correct...a lot of companies fib in this department and it actually comes out 15% to 25% heavier after everything is installed.

jaycam

Very nice airplane, would the cowl be able to accomodate an OS 1.60 twin?

Thanks,
Mike

fisher1648

Outacontrol,

I plan to do all I can to reinforce the firewall connections. I'm a pretty gentle flyer - not big on 3D and such but like extra power to goof-off a little. Now that you mention it the pants might be a bit big looking....



Jay - the cowling is approx 8" wide and firewall-to-spinner backplate needs to be approx 6.25"-6.5".

fisher1648

Another nice thing: The wings have nice rounded fiberglass tip caps. They are covered not painted and will resist denting (hangar rash) much better !

dubflyer

My Feedback: (1)

Fisher,

I received my Decathalon last week also. Nice work all round. Not sure if the door will close correctly.

I am ordering the same engine. It looks like the side dump muffler will also fit inside the 8" cowl

Did you purchase the engine mounts also . Xoar 21x8 prop seems to be the ticket for this engine.

With CH Ign and Walbro Carb and a smooth idle this may be a nice combo.

Let me know how you will beef up the firewall.?

Good luck with the build and keep posting pics............I was unable to get any of mine to upload........first time doing it..must be some size limitation.?

[img][/img]

fisher1648

Yep - I ordered the beam style engine mounts.

At this point my basic plan is to epoxy tri-stock balsa everywhere I can. It looks like the existing tri-stock is well glued but there is room for more. Might be tricky accessing some areas but I'll try. I'll also add it horizontally along the sides of the tank shelf and such to help keep it all tied together. Hopefully that will be sufficient.

sebo

I don't know if this will help anyone but it may.
The antenna on the vertical fin is the old style. The new version is behind the trailing edge of the wing and is short and stubby.
There are no wheel pants because the tires are the baloon type. They are used for landing in grassy fields. They are softer and absorb some of the shock of bumps and holes.
Notice the black reinforcing tubes in the cockpit.

Taildragger726

Uhh, thats' a 7GCBC. Not a Decathalon. (or Super D)

outacontrol41

My Feedback: (9)

The cowl in front reads 'Citabria'....didn't Bellanca make those or was it American Champion??...Confused[&:]

sebo

I was coming back from Montana and saw a small hanger from the highway at a place called
WALLS in South Dakota. I parked in the parking lot and a friendly gentleman invited me in to look at and take pictures of his plane. He asked a couple of questions about getting into R/C and we talked about that a little. I didn't ask too many questions; just took a couple of pictures, shook hands and left. I didn't ask if it was a Decathalon or not.
I thought that tail braces, strut attachment, door hinges, radiator, lights, step on the landing gear, oversized tires, and the like might be useful.
Like I said in an earlier post, they all look alike to me.
Taildragger helped me a lot with his explaination. Again, I thank him.

Taildragger726

"I thought that tail braces, strut attachment, door hinges, radiator, lights, step on the landing gear, oversized tires, and the like might be useful.
Like I said in an earlier post, they all look alike to me. "

Yeah, they all look alike, but a Decathalon has a totally different wing, semi-semetrical airfoil, shorter span, more chord., no dihedrial. Also inverted oil and fuel systems. A Super-D adds 20-30 more HP with 40 more cubic inches and a constant speed prop. Stock wheel pants do not work with 8.00X 6 tires ( stock is 6.00X6), a popular option with the grass field flyiers. The black tubes in the cabin are actually part of the fusalage structure, oh and a Decathalon has a center reinforcement strip down the center of the windshield.

http://www.amerchampionaircraft.com/

outacontrol41

My Feedback: (9)

Taildragger,
You seem to know your stuff about the decathlons. So, in your opinion, why does Model Airplane News call the RC Guys decathlon 'semi-scale' in their review (latest issue)?? I see that there is a servo visible on the side ( not tasteful for any 'scale' model in my opinion) and wheel pants look a bit oversized but the rest looks scale to me. What do you think?

Taildragger726

It looks as if RC Guys have taken subtle liberties with the outline, not very noticeable. The wheel pants are oversized but not enough to offend the eye.

sebo

This photo (from above) appears to indicate that the model has dihedral.
Lay a strait edge along the leading edge of the left wing and it should contine straight along the leading edge of the right wing. It doesn't.

Taildragger726

Wow, good eye Sebo, the RC Guys Super D actually has a degree or two of dihedrial. Semi Scale for sure!

fisher1648

Yes - there is dihedral... looks like a degree or two. I plugged-in the wing tube to both wings (without the fuse) to confirm.

Is there a downside to the dihedral ? Opinions ?

Briallen

My Feedback: (1)

Hi Guys... I've been following this thread for some time. A full size Super Decathlon has 1 degree of dihedral. Here's a photo of my own aircraft so that you can compare it to the RC guys model. I fly RC as well and look forward to hearing how this model performs.

Taildragger726

Cool, thanks for that info!