Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Well a few years back I recieved a Great Planes Cub for my birthday. Just the kit pretty much, no real hardware to go with it. I started to build it and stopped having one side of the wing done and the fuselage partly done. I picked the building back up recently, as I got a second wind in RC flying because of a delay in my real flight training.

I'm having fun building it, but the thing is, I don't want to fly it! I'm working on being proficient with my Goldberg Eagle 2, and I'm getting there. I can do greasers every time, I'm just working on precision. Anyways, my eventual hope is to get into warbirds, so what I really want for my second plane is something with a low wing and some maneuverability. Reason being, I need to work on my skills so that one day I can build and fly a warbird.

This brings up a serious problem for me, as I am at a stage in the building of my Piper Cub where I NEED the engine and radio gear to continue. But I'm just not willing to spend the money on a plane I don't really feel like flying. I have been seriously considering storing it away and purchasing a more suitable plane for my needs, such as a Goldberg Tiger 60 or a Top Flite Contender. But I also feel the need to finish this plane, just because it's there. So, now for your opinions... Do you think I can benefit any from building and finishing the Cub now? Or should I purchase a different plane, finish that, and save the Cub for a time when I really want to fly it?

Thanks for your help!

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

my second plane was a goldberg clipped wing cub w/saito 80. i now have a glodberg clipped wing w/barn door ailerons and full flaps, pull/pull rudder and split elev pushrod. has an os 70 fs. a cub is a great aircraft to enjoy flying, practice take offs and landings, you can learn a lot from a cub, i like slipping it in at landing. can be a squirrel on asphalt. you didn't say if it's .40 or .60. i have the .60 covered, but not assembled yet. a cub is a great float plane too, something you can do at a later date. on the .40 size i'd put an os 70fs on it w/13x6. the equipment you use can be reused in another aircraft at a later date, but why, who doesn't love a cub. on all mine i use coverite cub yellow, looks great. don't right off the cub so soon, it's a good stepping stone, you can do a lot with them and the os 70fs has lots of power for it. if you've got it so far along, finish it

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Yeah that makes sense, it's the .40 size. Doesn't have the clipped wing though, I built it with the full wing because my original plan for the aircraft was a float flyer. How does it handle off long grass fields? My flying field happens to be a flooded soccer field at a nearby school.

If I do finish the Cub, I plan on putting big wheels on it and making it into a "bush plane".

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

I hear your dilemma. Be advised that the longer you stay away from a once-started building project, the harder it is to pick it up again.

The long-wing Cub won't really do what you want; i.e., give you more spirited performance in preparation for a warbird, etc.

Here's my suggestion; continue to work on the Cub, but get an ARF to throw together and fly to continue the progression of your training. You would probably want to get something that can use the same gear as the Cub; so that would be a 40-size ARF.

The field is wide open here. The one caveat is that whatever you get should be a tail-dragger; but there is a ton of stuff to choose from out there. If aesthetics don't matter to you for this particular model, since it is nothing more than a "time-builder", look at the World Model's Skyraider II (I think that's right). For less than a hundred bucks, this is a real value if all you want is something that will fly. They are ugly, boxy, and very cheaply made; but they fly, and seem to hold up well.

Keep in mind the other advantage to having a "beater" plane (one you don't care much about). Your willingness to push the envelope is inversely proportional to the EDF (Emotional Debt Factor) of the model in question. IOW, if it is one you really like, you will NOT be inclined to try new things with it. And trying new things is how we learn & progress.

Anyway, that's my .02 on the subject. Good luck, and enjoy this wonderful hobby.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Get the Tiger, It's an easier build than the Cub, so it shouldn't take too long. Or, get a Sig 4*.

Both the Tiger and 4* come in ARF version, so you could have them ready ASAP and still finish the Cub.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

The 40 cub was my second plane. Acually I build 2 of them years ago. lost the first to a radio double[:@] Right now I'm building the 60 cub 10 yrs later, will be a float flier.Build it. It is an exellent second plane and about the best first scale kit out there. If you get bored of it they look awsome hung from the ceiling:D I put a saito 80 in mine if worked great. really scale at 1/3 throttle. One note: dump the tail wheel and get like a goldberg scale tailwheel. the ground tracking improves by leaps and bounds. I now fly war birds too. A top flite sea fury since war bird are so laborouse to fly its also nice to get something really laid back like a cub. AS mentioned before get a cheap ARF to contiue progression on your flying. I'd say get a Sonic 500. 89 bucks from hobby people and goes preatty good on a cheap 40. really screams with a mild 46 and you gain tail dragger/low wing experiance. looks better without the goofy conopy
[link=http://www.hobbypeople.net/gallery/127515.asp]sonic 500[/link]

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

i prefer to fly a clipped wing (would fly more like your trainer). just be sure to compensate for the adverse yaw w/some rudder, best to do it manually, when mixed in the radio % there's no compensation for airspeed, and this gets you used to using a rudder (just give it a light touch of rudder w/the aileron in turn). a full length cub wing takes a little getting used to, fly gentle manuvers (plenty high); loops, stall turns. rolls; pitch the nose up (to about 45 degree) before rolling, the nose will drop (alot) when you roll it. i spun one in last year; flying only about 30' i looped it and rolled out at the top, not enough airspeed, the wing dropped, not enough altitude to recover, in it went. it's not a 3d, keep the airspeed up for lift. allow to build airspeed before taking off, and fly it off the runway. landing is a breeze, just float it in, hold just a couple clicks of power, fly it down, when over the runway chop to an idle. i like the 13x6, @ 2200 rpm idle, the large prop @ low rpm slows the airplane down nice for landing. i have a ucando w/os70fs w/14x4 from several hundred feet @ full speed i chop to an idle, i push it into a straight down dive, level off at 10' and land. the large props act as a brake when idling (not when dead stick)
big wheels could be heavy. i fly w/3 1/4" treaded lite tires and handles grass just above the tires, but more than that the prop goes in the grass.
if you're not used to tail draggers, any time taxi ing, hold full up elevator (you fly a cub from the time it leaves the hangar till it's back). be ready for right rudder when you power up, especially on asphalt, it's a totally different airplane on asphalt (ground loop). a cub is a great first tail dragger. hold full up to the runway, release slowly as adding power for take off, the tail will come up, build up airspeed, and add a little up to lift off.
it would be best to find a "cub flyer" in your club to help you at first for some pointers. a cub is a great airplane to hhave in your hangar.
jon b

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

I have had two J3-Cubs and loved them. Could do just about any maneuver but also gracefully fly slow. Known to also snap roll in a heart beat during a landing.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

i see your in wilson. i am moving there in april, to start building my home. do you fly at the field in wilson or the tarheel club? i've went to a meeting of the tarheel flyers and i will join this spring, maybe also the wilson club.
jon b

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

the Tiger 60 builds quickly.....

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Hm, well I'm still having a dilemma. I went out and flew again today, and I've decided that I want something more maneuverable than my Eagle 2. I mean, if I want a floater why not just use my trainer? I have a Zagi 400 that I fly around, but it doesn't feel the same as having to take off and land. I'm real pressed for money, so I can't just buy another plane to use while I build the Cub, especially since the Cub's building is so fast. And sharing the gear wouldn't work either since I'm at the point where I need to install the gear in the aircraft. Yikes!

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

I'd get a 4*60 or a Venture 60 (www.btemodels.com) and store or sell the Cub. You could finish it in the future when you're more interested in it or when finances allow you to have the additional equipment.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

What do you guys think of a sport scale warbird like the Great Planes P-51?

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

I’ve read on RCU that the P-51 is more like a Kaos than a warbird. If that’s correct, it could be a good choice.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Build the CUB, it will train you an a lot of the needed skills for a warbird. It will teach how handle a taildragger, and it will also help you learn to coodinate you aileron and rudder in the turns. It will be a good tool for learning to rudder at all times in a flight. When you build a "real" warbird, you will need all those skills and more.

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Hm, good point on the tail dragger experience, although I'm very proficient with the rudder. All my turns are coordinated and I frequently slip my plane, just because it's fun. MAN! This is such a hard choice haha, I'm having so much fun building the Cub but because I'm spending so much money on real flight training I can't afford to rig two aircraft. I could build another but I wouldn't be able to afford a motor or radio gear. Yikes!

I'm thinking about maybe doing a Super Cub conversion, not a full conversion but something like a new cowl and flaps (which would be usefull for a warbird no?). That would make the basic Cub a little more interesting don't you think?

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

You have answered your own question. Read your statements above from your first post The answer is obvious. There are plenty of fun build projects out there that are ones you truly want to fly. And as you stated save the Cub for the time you really want to fly it and that time will come.

John

RE: Should I drop a GP Cub 40 for a different plane?
 

Thanks everyone, I have decided to delay the Cub for a time when I have a little more money to throw at it. I weighed the pros and cons of finishing it right now, and I just wouldn't be pleased either way. Even if I did finish it, I would be putting a two stroke motor in it instead of a four stroke, and that alone would take some of the fun out of it.

As my eventual goal is also to build and fly a scale warbird, the cub isn't really a good step for me to take towards that goal either. So, I'm going to buy a low wing plane that has some pep to it, and fit that out and fly it. The Cub will see it's day, it just wont be the next plane I finish. I am enjoying the building aspect of it so much though, that I have decided to continue building until I just can't possibly go any farther. It was nice seeing everyone's opinions on the matter, and both sides were presented well. I just don't have the money to be throwing into a plane that I don't want to fly yet.

:D