Trax540

My Feedback: (1)

I recieved a Top Flite P-51 Mustang 65" gold edition kit ( Not Giant scale ) for Christmas and i am wondering exactly what i need to get for the retract system. I saw Robart Robo struts, Century Jet retracts, air systems, ect. ect.. on tower hobbies

I have never installed a retract system on a plane so im abit confused on what exactly i should buy. Any help is appreciated.
Also i want to install a retractable tailwheel.

Also if there are any problems or issues that anyone who has built this kit knows of offhand that info would be helpfull.

Thanks again!

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

I prefer to use Spring Air retracts as they are spring loaded down, which means you will not have a wheels up landing if you loose air pressure. If you use Spring Air, order the set with the 3/16 inch strut wires as the 5/32 have a tendeancy to bend. The plumbing is a single air line to each retract unit that feeds back to the control valve and then from the control valve to the fill valve and air tank. It is really quite easy. Good Luck, Dave

mboland

What he said!

I use Spring Air in most planes (they don't have 90deg rotate for Corsairs) and you can buy a complete kit that includes retracts and struts, tank, air valve, filler valve, air line and T pieces. The deluxe kit even has a pressure gauge.

The instructions that come with them are clear and simple.

They are MUCH easier than mechanicals to install and require very little maintenance.

cold_reboot

My Feedback: (20)

Trax, Robart also makes air up/spring down systems and a lot are RoboStrut Ready. I have the Robart 701RS system for my Top Flite P47 kit and 7/16th robostruts. The 701's are air up/spring down 85degree retracts (no idea what the Mustang calls for degree wise). The Robart 511RS and 510RS are also air up/spring down retracts (511 is 85 degree, 510 90 degree) and accept 3/8ths inch struts out of the box.
The Robart 701RS' are 127.99 and currently out of stock at Tower Hobbies. The 511RS' and 510RS' are 126.99 and are in stock at TowerHobbies.com. If you look at the 500 series do yourself a favor and buy the 22 dollar Robart Variable Rate valve so you can control the retract speed, without it they'll just slam up and down possibly weakening the wing structure over time or liberating your rail mounts after a while. Or if your cheap you can just use some wheel collars on the air lines using the set screw to limit the amount of air getting to the unit. You can buy the 701's at Robart.com if you like those better but they are about $40 higher there. The 500 series would work just fine for your Mustang. Robostruts are sold separately and come in all kinds of configurations.

dhal22

i love spring airs!! but i build pattern planes so a scale look isn't a priority for me. but i think robostruts can be adapted to any strut. the spring air model # for this plane would be 202 hd. good luck.

Trax540

My Feedback: (1)

Let me make sure that i understand all this.

These are the components i would need? : Robart 510RS 90degree Mains robostrut ready, and Robart 653 Robostruts ( Left and Right)

Do i still need the 90degree Mains Wire? or is that what the Robostrut is replacing. OR does the 90deg Mains wire go inside the Robostrut?
Also il purchase the variable rate valve as suggested.

Sorry for all the misunderstanding i just want to order everything i need in 1 shot, and as i said ive never done a retract system =(

Cyberwolf

My Feedback: (4)

Here is what I used on my last TF P-51 build. http://www.robart.com/retracts/6-12lb510.aspx
6 - 12 lb. 510 Series SpringDown Pneumatic Retracts these are strut ready and you will have to buy them seperately. Its a very neat setup with a small air tank thats only used to pull the gear up, not down. Plus there CNC machined Alum instead of molded plastic that can and does break. I'm not sure if Spring Air is still around or not I thought I was told they went under several years back, but maybe not. In my book Robart has made a big hit with the new line of retracts they now offer, I see they now have the 90 Degree rotating ones too for the Corsairs and P-40. Those old 615's had there issues to say the least.

cold_reboot

My Feedback: (20)

All you need are the Retracts and the 3/8th Robostruts. The strut housing in the retract accepts the robostrut directly with no wire needed. Put the robostrut in the retract, tighten the set screw, thats it.

bigtim

My Feedback: (13)

good idea asking questions you can go any number of ways with your gear, they all have there advantages, and detractors, I would suggest reading through the 74 pages of the 60 size TF mustang thread there is a ton of ideas and suggestions there to help you on your way to a nice looking, and flying model.

as for gear I like the Century jet gear but the valves aren't the best and you can't adjust the speed unless you pay for a better one.

the 510 series of Robart's is nice but there spring down and air up,I like my gear to be retracted into the wing for storage and depending on how long you want the struts to be you end up with a short legged gear,robo struts are a little on the short side any way so you loose a little more if you have to insert the strut into the retract mech.

the 90o nylon ones work OK http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXES04&P=V I have a set in my TF Spitfire and after making sure the mounting rails are perfectly strait there pretty good and you can fit struts to them using 3/16 wire connectors,and there light weight.

then there is the LADO gear http://www.lado-tech.net/ there still a new company and there a bit slow to fill orders, but there getting better and the gear are electric actuated,the retract action is scale speed so there not snapping up into your wing like many air gear do unless you use air line restrictors.
I have a set in my Hangar-9 P-40, and another on order for my H-9 Mustang that should be delivered soon, these gear are nice,very sturdy and eleminates the need for air lines, just plug em in to your reciever and thats it no extra battery needed.
they have a 3/16 wire connector required for the struts to connect to the retract units which is a standard type connection,I used a piece of piano wire heat treated to harden it for my connecting pins works great.

so there are options,I have used all the gear but the 510 series, they all do the job well, and cost about the same + or - a few dollars, so far I am most impressed with my new LADO's for ease and sturdy construction, but the choice is yours of course keep doing your research like your doing its how I started learning about this stuff,still am.

Trax540

My Feedback: (1)

What would be a stronger set up, the systems that are air/spring Or i saw a air up air down on robart website. It was for a 8-18 lb, and the kit box has a flying weight for 10-12 so i should be good there. But are there advantages to having an air/spring system?

cold_reboot

My Feedback: (20)

Yes there is a definite advantage to Air Up/Spring Down. On an Air Up/Down system if you lose air pressure while flying and your gear is up...they aren't coming down. You can try to do some barrel rolls to get them down, but your guess is as good as anyones if they are locked, get ready for a belly landing. Worst case scenario, your out of air, do some barrel rolls and get one leg down, get ready to make some repairs depending on your flying skills. With a Spring down system, if you lose air pressure the gear automatically extends and locks.

The Robart 700's are 90 degree, Air Up/Spring down, rated for 8 to 18 lbs and accept 7/16 (larger and less likely to bend on a rough landing) and 3/8 Struts. Limited Quantity in stock at Tower 119.99.

bigtim

My Feedback: (13)

sure if your air system has a leak thats a contingency, having the spring down feature, but the idea is to install your gear, so it doesn't leak and do periodic pressure tests the hassle of warbirds .

at the start of each flying session you pump your gear up and cycle them until they don't work,I pump my gear up and let whatever plane thats going that day sit for a few min. fully pressurized then cycle the gear if they don't work,or cycle slowly, then they need to be fixed,checked for leaks.

leak checking is easy a little soapy water on the connections bubbles mean leaks simple as that.

it's part of the hobby and with planes with extra equipment like retracts they should work correctly or it doesn't need to be in the air simple as that.
one of the main reasons I am sold on electric retracts none of the air worries, leaks,bad lines,connectors all that goes into them.

Trax540

My Feedback: (1)

Bigtim, Im leaning toward those Lado retracts that you linked, What else would i need to purchase to have the complete retract setup ready to install?? Do i still need to purchase the Mains wire and Strut Covers? I want to have the scale P51 offset Gear.Or is that not possible with those retracts?

bigtim

My Feedback: (13)

I am going to use these for my Hangar-9 Mustang,and my TF build http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...9&I=LXMRN9&P=K and http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...9&I=LXMRP0&P=K for some reason I cant find the wire struts to use as a example for the Mustang you need one of each.

for a realistic gear get actual struts not the plastic covers there useless and just cover the gear wire struts.
if you wanted to use the wire struts you can purchase them separatly from Tower, there cheap you don't need to buy a full set of gear to get the wire's.

all you need to use the struts with the LADO's is some 3/16 wire and cut it to length about 2" or so, to fit into the struts and the gear for a connector, after I cut mine I heat treated them for hardness .

Cyberwolf

My Feedback: (4)

OPPS ,After looking the plane over I did use the 8-18 lb 700 series robarts. The spring air do have a slight prob if you store the wing with the gear up, you will need to keep air on the system. After looking at the Lado site, they have come down in price alot seems like when I looked before they was close to 400 bucks for a set for the mustang W/O struts.
Yellow air is another good source for retracts and although there air they work and act realistic.
Don't forget to get the correct tires since your going all out on the gear. BTW when you get the gear doors figured out lets us know how you did it ok *S*

fillopygeesi

My Feedback: (1)

Hey guys Im about to begin work on a Top Flite Sea Fury and had some concerns about retracts. I was going to go with the easy route and get the century jet 3/8 system comes with everything made for the sea fury but after reading around and seeing so many people bash on ho CJ is crap and brakes easy im kinda scared to go that route. Now Im looking into the Robart 510 series with 7/16 robostruts (if that would work?) but I like for the speed of up and down motion to be controled because i love scale looks witch is why I was concerned because the 510 retracts are sprind down. I could see how the the speed could be controled up because there air up but wasnt sure about down because spring? Either choice I made would be from Tower because as a member you seem to get some awsome deals through them. Any help would be great, thanks

Cyberwolf

My Feedback: (4)

I have 2 sets of the robart spring down retracts and they do operate a little faster than what I would call scale, however they work very well and are very strong. The air valve can be adjusted to change the speed to an extent . I couldn't find the URL I was looking for but I did come across this which is close, you can't get much closer to scale than these, but I think there on the spendy side.
http://www.downandlocked.com/