gauravag

Hello all,
I just got home a GP Super Sportster 60 size kit.
Will this airplane be good for intermediate pattern flying ?
Right now i am flying a Goldber Tiger 40 and looking forward to flying this Sportster as my pattern ship. will it be ok ?

Also any comments or suggested mods while building this ?
Do i put in dual servos for ailerons or the single setup as in the manual ? any flutter problems with single servo ?
Thanks for all your comments here
Gaurav

JWN

My Feedback: (42)

Having flown pattern for 5 years some time ago, I would have to say the GP Sportster is not a good choice for Intermediate. It's a good Sportsman class model, but you really need a cleaner, smoother flying model to be competitive in Intermediate.

John

Kaos Rulz

gauravag,

As JWN stated, the GP SS is more of a sport plane, but it is capable of performing all the maneuvers of the pattern circuits. It's an excellent airplane to learn these maneuvers before progressing to a true pattern plane.

I would build the GP SS with two servos for the ailerons, placing them in the wing bay next to the end of the bottom center sheeting.

LSP972

My Feedback: (13)

I've built the 40 and the 60. They are great sport planes; dunno about being pattern-capable.

Several things that I would pay close attention to during the build:

1. Take the time to get the wing leading edge properly shaped. It DOES make a difference in how the model handles at low speeds. I made a template from the wing side view and took my time sanding to get it uniform all the way out.

2. This design has a bad habit of nosing over while taxiing if built stock. Do what you have to do to get the main gear axles directly under the leading edge; I fabricated slightly longer gear struts (to maintain prop clearance) and bent them forward a bit. If you plan to use wheel pants, adding a rear brace to each strut is a good idea. This prevents the strut from flexing back on a hard landing and allowing the rear of the pant to punch a hole in the wing.

3. Use 1/32 ply triplers on the wing rib cut-outs that hold the main gear blocks. Doublers are provided, but a hard landing can fracture this area, which is a major PITA to repair once it happens.

There is quite a bit of shaping/sanding on this model, but that's why we build, eh? Take your time on the nose and fair it all in to the spinner ring; it looks quite racy if done correctly.

One last thought; I would replace the supplied tail wheel assembly with one that bolts to the bottom of the fuse and is attached to the rudder with springs or rubber bands. The supplied unit glues directly into the rudder and is a beach to replace if/when it breaks.

smedsky

It sounds to me like you are in the learning mode, therefore it is probably better than a true pattern plane. A pattern plane is very sleek therefore fast, but smooth and steady. The sportster will be a little slower and give you a little more time to think. Good luck and have fun.

GarySS

My Feedback: (13)

To Steve Campbell's excellent list I would also add: Laminate some 1/16 or so plywood to the main's landing gear block sides to keep them from splitting during a hard landing. Their vertical grain is prone to do this when the torque from the LG wire acts on it.

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

There's no reason why you can't fly the SS in Intermediate. I agree with all the comments re: landing gear main & tail, dual aileron servos.

Somewhere down the line, I'd be more inclined to go with a tapered wing planform, thinner airfoil, fuselage mounted landing gear, longer tail... but you can get a lot of intermediate practice out of your SS, and it should be a rewarding building project.

gauravag

Thanks all !
I am just starting out for pattern flying, currently flying a Goldberg Tiger.
Hoping to get some practise with the SS and then would move out to something like CA Widebody.
Yes i will put the dual servos, and reinforce the landing gear ribs and the block sides.

For the spring/rubberband tail wheel assembly, please suggest me what to use... i tried searching Tower but they didnt have anything where i could mount my tailwheel on the fuse and link it to the rudder with springs.

Thanks for all your help !
Gaurav

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

Use the Dubro tailwheel--the only metal involved is a short length of wire that forms the axle/strut/then an extension that is bent over at 90Ëš to make a short tiller. The tiller is bent to run under the edge of the rudder, and coupled to the rudder by slipping a short length of fuel tubing over it, and gluing the tubing to the under-edge with fletching cement from the archery store, or E6000 as the best recommendations, or PFM or Goop also work well. The fuel tube coupling serves to cushion shock to the rudder servo. This is the lightest solution I have found for a durable, steerable, lightweight tailwheel.

The CA Widebody would be an excellent follow-on model. It's a good build, reasonably priced and flies beautifully. I recommend it highly to any pattern flyer, whether as a practice plane or for competition.

Fubar-One

My Feedback: (1)

The SS is a great flying plane. I have most kit versions of this plane stashed away for future builds but did build the 20 sized version. My only regret was my choice of a .25FP instead of a ball bearinged engine. Flies ok but could use more oomph. Retro-fitting a ball bearinged engine is gonna be a PITA if I decide to go for it. The Irvine .25 and GMS .32 engines I have on hand will not fit without re-building the front of the fuse. Would have used the Irvine originally but the plane was going to be done up in Steeler's colors from day one and the red Irvine engine would have stuck out like a sore thumb.
Recently acquired an OS .25F and will probably retro-fit that.

gauravag

I have started building the 60 size Super Sportster kit,
though one thing i notice is that the plane might turn out to be heavy, since the stab,elevator, fin and rudder are all full balsa...
plus i see a lot of balsa blocks, solid fuse to come up...
Any advantages to using such solid tail surfaces ?
Just my thoughts !
Gaurav

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

The only advantages are simplicity and convenience for the kitter and builder--to the detriment of flight characteristics. My preference is stick built stabs with balsa sheeting, stick built rudder & elevator with film covering. The tail is the absolute worst place to carry excess weight.

FlyingPilgrim

My Feedback: (26)

Don't hesitate to use the slab balsa provided for the tail feathers on this kit- you will need the weight back there to balance anyway. I built one (the 60 size) with a TT Pro 60 on the nose, and I still had to add about an ounce of lead in the tail to get her to balance. These are real easy planes to fly. Very smooth and predictable. If you haven't carved all the nose balsa yet, invest in one of those power planes from GP. They save time when there's a ton of carving to do is this kit has. I mounted my engine mount on the firewall prior to gluing on the balsa nose pieces to guarantee there was room for the mount. It was a tight fit using the supplied nylon GP mount.

Pilgrim