ASM F-7F Tigercat

ASM F-7F Tigercat (Full Version)

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Brad330l -> ASM F-7F Tigercat (9/15/2009 7:56 AM)
The new ASM Tigercat!!! There has been a bit of discussion here, http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_7876035/tm.htm I just wanted to get an (un) official thread going as I do believe this model is going to very popular and it may well be my first twin. I have been making enquiries as to avaliability here in Australia and required accessories but could use all the info you twin flyers might have. At the moment it looks like the whole set up could cost me roughly $2200AU running OS61 two strokes and retracts, if I can get the retracts from the US. Prices range from $599 to $670 for the model with postage on top of that. Model Engines are the Australian distributors. Over to you guys. Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (9/15/2009 11:50 AM)
Well guys, typical of me I just couldnt wait so have ordered the retracts and scale struts from Tomas at VQ warbids in the US http://www.vqwarbirds.com/products/aircraft/ASMTIGERCAT.html giving me about $120AU saving over anything I can get in OZ. I got a great deal on 2x OS 75 engines from Perth RC down south http://www.perthrc.com.au/ so will go with them seeing though they are about the same physical size as the OS61's and I can run a couple of desent sized three bladed props. Dont need full throttle all the time right? Got all my JR ES579 servos from Perth RC as well. The actual model I am awaiting some postage quotes before I decide on who to go with. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (9/16/2009 2:54 PM)
Ordered the actual kit today. I ended up getting from Col Taylor models http://www.coltaylormodels.com.au/ as they had a great price and were able to deliver it to my door right accross this huge land of mine/ours. The postage added $109AU but this was still cheaper than anything I could get from Perth with postage up to my town. (untill Dave from Discount Hobbies http://www.discounthobbies.com.au/catalog/ told me he could get it delivered for $18 direct from the distributors but with a bigger initial price) Oh well lost out on $45 there. Not to worry, I saved a lot on the engins and servos and retracts.[:D] With the larger engines I will be able to swing 13x8 three bladed props. I have also ordered some 14x6 APC's to run the engines in on. This will be the first model I run 6v RX batteries in as well. Untill now it has all been 4.8v. So, anyone else expecting a new Tigercat? Got one? Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (9/24/2009 12:37 PM)
Hi Guys, This is the second time I have tried to post this today as the site timed out on me so this attempt will be a lot shorter. I picked up my engines and servos today from the post office and when I got home I hade a card from my trucking company I use to say go pick up my model. Man wha a squeeze into the old 'Jackaroo' At home it was straght into the shed and unpacked. It was very well packed and secured by the crew at Col's Models,,,, thanks guys, and all looked as it should. The OS75'5 easily fit inside the huge cowls. Man this thig is a beauty and the ABS shell looks great!!!!!!! It is light and looks really well put together. Pretty excited guys so enough for now. Just look at the pictures. More soon, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/6/2009 7:34 AM)
Got my order from Towers yesterday including the two blade props, switch, aluninium prop nuts, fuel fillers and tubing for fuel and air. Just awaiting the arrival of some extention leads and 'Y' leads from my mate down south and then I will start putting things together. Anyone else got one yet or even looking???????? Cheers, Brad

thonnor -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/9/2009 5:46 AM)
Hi Brad Picked up mine yesterday, massive box which I could only just get through the front door! Couldn't resist opening it up which was a challenge in itself...the kit was double boxed, both boxes being rugged and heavy weight. Inside, the model was packaged very well, each major component individually wrapped and plenty of foam protection where needed First impressions of the model are very good. No damaged components and an instruction manual printed on glossy paper with colour build sequence photos. WOW this machine is a monster, a dammm good looking monster at that! Finish is just great, construction looks sound and it's very light. The 'fuse' is ply and balsa main frame, skinned with a moulded ABS skin (with panel lines) and sprayed to a very high quality finish. Plenty of glue apparent between formers and outer shells. Wings, tailplane and fin are tradtionally built with balsa skins and covered in what I think is profilm/ultracote...nice to see care has been taken to keep the back end light with light grade balsa and open structure rudder and elevators. No wrinkles or blemishes on any of the covering or paint. Fiberglass cowls are well laid up, strong and well sprayed. Shame there are no dummy engines included though. The Hangar 9 Corsair dummy radials are approximately the same size so should fit. Retract units and struts look great, all ally, steal and brass with no plastic in sight! So far this model is looking like something quite special and good value for money. I haven't been able to find any reviews so lets hope first impressions will hold true. Unfortunaly I'm in the middle of another build at the mo so I can't actually start yet .... certainly looking forward to it though!!!! Have you started building yet Brad? Cheers Tony

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/9/2009 11:34 AM)
Hi Tony and welcome to RCU, Happy some one else has a Tigercat!!!!! Mate you are spot on about the quality. My retracts have just arrived today and they are so nice and with what it all comes with looks like great value too. In the pictures you see all the extra goodies included. 'T' pieces, tubing collets and axles door actuating gear and all the rest. Great stuff. Also today my extention leads and 'Y' leads arrived so I can start putting things together. For now, more pictures to enjoy,(for every one else,,,,, Tony has his) Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/10/2009 11:41 AM)
Hey it's not much but it's a start OK????????????[:)] As soon as I saw this beast of a model in the box and had a quick look at it I decided I would NOT be using the kit supplied pin type hinges as in my (very humble) opinion they looked a bit cheap and nasty. They may be perfectly ok and out last the rest of the model but I had to go and order som 308 sized Robart pin hinges and will be using them. I have had a couple of broken hinges on my models before and think I lost a trainer with a big engine in it many years ago because of a broken hinge/flutter type situation. Anyway I am changing them. Also I received my extention leads and tied them to the awaiting servos. I am using JR 597 MG's on all the control surfaces and JR507's for the throttles. After I finish looking after my little daughter I can go back to the shed and start glueing hinges in. Cheers, Brad

thonnor -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/10/2009 8:34 PM)
Good choice to replace those hinges Brad! The originals look a tad to small for the job and as you said....feel a bit cheap and brittle.I feel envious that you've started the build, unfortunately, as I'm in the middle of another build, it's gonna be a couple of weeks before I can start mine! I did however surrender to temptation and started plugging bits together to see what it would look like. Unfortunately the only place I had enough space was the bedroom. Before I knew it I'd put the whole thing together and boy does it look nice. Pictures just don't do it justice!! Viewing pictures of the model before seeing it in the flesh I was unsure if I liked the chosen colour scheme with the green and whilte stripes. But seeing it all together I must admit it looks stunning and I wouldn't change it. Plus its gonna aid good vis when flying [;)] Have attached a couple of pics of the assembled Tigercat, once again I do apologize for the location LOL. .

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/11/2009 7:36 AM)
I agree on all accounts Tony although I am in the middle of a Yellow Aircraft Spitty build but just cant help myself to start the Cat. No worries too about the bed location for the pictures ,,,, my old full size flying instructor called his bed "The Workbench"!!!!!!![;)] Got the ailerons glued in and servos mounted. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/11/2009 1:54 PM)
Tony, and all you others[:)], Today I did the aluminium tube wing joiner and wing servos and conected the aileron linkages. The instructions state that the tube is marked for orientation and predrilled. This is not the case. With my kit any way but no biggy to sort. Please note that the instructions also state to locate the wing tube into the outer panel and locate the predrilled holes. With no holes one might think " I'll just push it in till it stops and drill there" If you position it like that then you will only end up with about 2 to 3" of tube to insert into the center section. This did not look right to me at all so I went the other way. Into the center section first giving me a good 6" or so to go into the tip/outer section. I taped the sections together and marked the required hole position on the tube with a drill that just fitted into the predrilled wing panel. I used hex head bolts I had in stock and had a tap for so drilled on my press the tapping size hole into the tube. The predrilled hole in the wing panel was slightly enlarged so the bolt didnt need to be screwed through that. Done! This is a big wing.[:D] Just so you know,,, I am going to hinge and mount the flaps last so they dont get in the way as I build (put together) the rest. Cheers, Brad

thonnor -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/15/2009 1:04 AM)
How's the build going Brad? That big wing certainly looks impressive! My patrner was with me as I was looking at the various pictures in this thread and when she saw this one she said....... "Wow that looks impressive ... but shouldn't it say 'OUT' on the other wing?" Don't you just luv em!!! [:D][:)][:D]

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/15/2009 4:46 PM)
HA! Arn't they so precious.[:)] I have been in shutdown mode at work so doing some long days/weeks so no progress on 'The Cat' I hope to put a couple of hours in over the weekend. Cheers Tony, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/18/2009 9:21 AM)
Got a bit done over the week end. Having another look at the center section of the wing I went ahead and glued in and completed the flaps. Thinking all I will need to do is bolt on the necelles I wont be bashing the wing and flaps around too much as I previously thought. The biggest problem I had was programming with the radio. I was going to use a 'Y' lead for the flaps so mounted the control horns as the instruction suggested but for some reason one flap fluttered around a bit under the slightest load. I changed servos and 'Y' lead but it pesisted to pi$$ me off so I reread the instruction booklet for my JR 9x and got a program mix going well. As it stands I have two flap settings. One of about 20 deg and the other for landing at about 75 to 80 deg. I could get a full 90 if I turned the control horn around but I dont think this will be required and may even need to reduce full flap throw. The tail fin is installed in the fuselage. After sanding the mating surfaces and trimming a bit here and there I went ahead and glued in the top of the fin leaving the rest of the fin post until later. This was to reduce mess with inserting the unit into the fuz (epoxy everywhere) and allowing me to make sure I got a good initial glue joint with all being nice and square. After this had cured I applied epoxy with a thin bit of ply between the fin post and fuselage side. Make sure you remove the film covering from the side of the fin post. So wing is basicly done, fuz is getting worked on and necelles are to get stuff bolted into them this afternoon. I must order a couple of upright/inverted pitts mufflers from Towers, http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXVNG7&P=0 They are not even in store yet so will pre-order. Cheers guys, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/20/2009 4:17 PM)
The nose wheel retract assembly is a straight forward install. I simply held mine in place nice and straight and drilled the first hole for the kit supplied cap head screw. After double checking the alignment the other holes were drilled and screws screwed in with a ratchet and hex bit. One good thing I noted was the absence of any rocking of the unit as it sat on the retract rails. This means no twist or warp of the unit and possible binding when operating. More shutdown work for my day job so will be a bit light on for a couple of days. Cheers, Brad

miklos -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/20/2009 5:06 PM)
Couple of things I would like to point out from experience building the ASM P-61 kit. This kit and retracts look very similar to the P-61 setup. First, don't trust the screws into the wing tube to hold..... they will strip out after a while and you don't want to risk your wing falling off in flight. Some fellas had the screws strip out on first flight. I like may others, cut some pieces of wooden dowel and glued them into the aluminum wing tubes for the screw to have something to bite into. I also put a piece of tape over the screw when I'm flying just in case so it doesn't fall out even if it does come loose. Second, with regards the retracts, I found the mechanism to be very sturdy. It has held up to quite a few less than perfect landings. The one weak point though is in the struts. There is a small metal pieces more like a dab of welded "gob" of metal underneath the top scissor joint that is prone to breaking right at the weld. This weld is what keeps the scissors from separateing too far. Not sure what can be done about that though. Myself and a few others have had the struts replaced by the retailer after experienceing this failure. There is a lengthy thread on the P-61 in twins forum. You may find some of the info in there useful. Good Luck.

thonnor -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/20/2009 9:32 PM)
Good to see your coming along nicely with your build Brad. Unfortunately mine is still sat in the bedroom waiting for me to finish off a couple of other builds...my will power must be at it's strongest this time of the year eh!! Thanks for posting in some great advice Miklos, I shall certainly take all this info into account when I start on mine. I've just taken a look at the struts and the welds look reasonably substantial. I did suffer a problem on my Hangar 9 P51 Ferocious Frankie which had very similar struts. Theyv'e proved to be very tough and durable except for one weld which broke during a cross wind landing. I ended up re-doing the welds on both struts with silver solder, building up a nice full deposit of weld. They've been fine ever since in the year or so of regular flying. As far as the wing attachment on the Tigercat goes, I've seen this method used a lot with larger models and it makes me shudder a bit! Besides from the screw falling out I would also fear cross threading it or slipping with the screwdriver and sticking it through the wing. I wonder if it would be feasable to epoxy some wooden dowel into the ally tube in the area of the screw hole (as you stated). Drill and tap right through the tube with M4 or M5, then attach the wing by using a cap head bolt right through with washers top and bottom and finally a nilock nut on the bottom for safe keeping? ....at least I'd know it aint gonna come out LOL. Best Rgds Tony

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (10/22/2009 10:15 AM)
Hi Fellas, Re the wing bolts I did not use the kit supplied ones (didnt know which ones they were meant to be) and opted for a course thread imperial hex head bolt (no screwdriver slippage) and used a length that goes quite a way through the tube. On the outer wing panel where the tube will forever live I also Loctited the screw in place. I have used this method on my Comp ARF Extra to hold the tail plane on and never had a problem although the tube/spar is quite a bit thicker. I will however put a couple inches of sticky tape over the wing leading edge join for added security. This is how I hold the outer wing panels together on my 3.1 meter glider and they have never even looked like coming apart. This is with no provision for screws at all. My retracts look very sturdy. If I do snap a weld I think I will be doing more repairs to the model than anything else. I dont think this thing will stand up to much of a crash being ABS plastic. A good heads up, thanks Miklos cheers thonnor, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/4/2009 12:05 PM)
I have been very busy over the last couple of weeks but unfortunatly not on my models.[:'(] I have however put the throttle servos in position and mounted one engine. Be prepared to drill or file out the engine mounts to allow lining up to the preset blind nuts in the fire wall. Mine were at least a half hole too close so I got a small round file out and corrected that. Also I did not use the kit supplied flat washers to mount the engine to the mount as they are cheap soft cr@p and not suitable.[:'(] Steady steady. Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/5/2009 4:35 PM)
Got the other engine mounted and fitted out one nacelle with a larger than kit supplied fuel tank (DuBro 16oz), fuel filler and throttle pushrod. The pushrod is a twisted piece of art and works a treat. I have fitted the nacelle to the wing and once again had to adjust the holes for the mounting screws a bit but all worked out well. When the model is finished I'll cover the holes with tape or film to hide them. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/7/2009 4:47 PM)
Both nacelles are pretty much done now with engines, tanks, plumbing, servos and retracts. Here is the first picture if the Tigercat on it's feet. The second nacelle's mounting holes were further out of alingnment than the first one I did but the Dremel took care of that. The trailing edge of the nacelle helps locate it to the wing so as long as the wing bolts are firm it wont move around at all with the slightly larger holes. Next is tail plane to be glued in and get tail control surfaces working. This is now officially a big model!!!!![:D] Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/8/2009 4:26 PM)
Tail is on. Well almost. It is glued in position but only the bottom surface to the inner ply skeleton. I only went this far as I thought I had more control of the outcome and was not rushed this way. You have to slide the tail right the way through the fuselage with glue applied so it could potentially get very messy so a bit of prep is needed to make the rest of the chore easier. I wrapped one side of the tail with 'Cling Wrap' (food wrap) and only applied 30 minute epoxy to the lower surface and held the tail up as high as I could in the slot as I slid it in to position. Still wiped a fair bit off as it slid through and that ended up on the protective covering so once dry I'll go back and lift the fuselage fairings and add glue all the way around those. Just dont know how else I could have done it. As it is now it is at least well tacked in position. I had a look at the gear door hinging as well tonight and I have some grave concerns with what the instructions state. The doors are curved along the hinge line so I cant see how they will work if the hinge point is right on the edge of the door with the spacing stated. I'll take some pictures of them and post tomorrow. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/11/2009 4:55 PM)
I'm still trying to work out the gear doors and have posted a question in the 'Scratch build and design' section here on RCU. The tail section of the Cat is now done. (except for the rudder pull-pull control) Every thing is glued on and in and the elevators are all hooked up and working from the radio. I have pictured the tail cone that I had to sand down on the top balsa. It was going to hit the bottom of the rudder as it was hinged/positioned in the factory so a bit of a sand was needed and then covered with 'Monocote'. Also you'll see the upright engines in the cowls. This will have to go a long way to ensure more reliable engine running. The build is very simple and apart from a few measurements from the factory that have been off a bit all is good. Some things of note are,, hinges not drilled at 90 degrees to hinge line, holes in elevators for control wire not at right spacing (had to elongate hole about 5mm) and holes for wing and nacelle mounting a bit off. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/19/2009 5:08 PM)
I've been working steadily on the Tigercat and now have all the control surfaces working off the radio. Tonight I finished off the nose wheel retract including steering, shortening the axle (and grinding flats for the grub screws) and running the air lines. The steering is very direct and I am very happy so far with the set up but once I start retracting I'll see if anything gets caught up. I still have to put the door on but this will be last I think. I also mounted and partly plumbed up the retract system. The actuating rod from the servo has a ball link at either end to alow for the servo and valve block being at different angles sitting on the wing surface. This eliminates any tendency to bind while actuating. The kit has the bulk of every thing mounted on the top of the wing including retract gear RX and switch so field set up is nice and easy and it looks like it will be. Just have to make it all nice and neat so when I take the saddle cover off it doesnt look like a mess. All the extentions from the servos come up through the center of the wing. Hopefully I will be able to transport the Cat with just the outer wing panels removed making it even easier to get ready/pack away. I am pretty much just following the instructions and having fun. Getting close now but I am still waiting on my exhausts. They are the last things to arrive to finish off required running gear for the model. Cheers, Brad

Brad330l -> RE: ASM F-7F Tigercat (11/21/2009 3:42 AM)
The retracts are now hooked up and they work very well.[sm=thumbs_up.gif] They actuate nice and smoothly and lock positively. The nose retract doesnt even look like getting tangled in the pull-pull stearing system but I shall still get some light rubber bands and set them up so they pull the wires out the way as the retract come up. My mate Wayne had this set up in his jet and it worked well. The switch I mounted in the cockpit facing backwards into the wing saddle area so it sits just over the front of the wing. It will be accessed by lifting off the wing saddle cover and is nicely hidden away. The fuselage is really quite bare of equipment housing only the rudder and elevator servo, battery and switch (and nose leg) the rest is housed in or on the wing. Cheers, Brad

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