The
Piper PA-18 Super Cub is a two-seat, single-engine monoplane.
Introduced in 1949 by Piper Aircraft, it was developed
from the Piper PA-11, and traces its lineage back through
the J-3 to the Taylor E-2 Cub of the 1930's.
Super
Cubs are commonly found in roles such as bush flying,
banner and glider towing, and other situations in which
short field performance is required.
While
the Super Cub itself is not a new release from Hobbyzone,
the addition of a liPo battery and charger, and a new
decal set are. This review will focus on the Super Cub
and the float kit.
Channels Used: 3 total - Elevator, Rudder, Throttle
Items
Needed To Complete
Nothing-
everything is included to get you in the air!
The
Super Cub and floats arrived in two different nicely colored
boxes, both packed very well. The Super Cub was secured
in a foam insert that made shipping damage nearly impossible,
short of crushing the entire box. The floats came double
wrapped in bubble wrap, and the wire bracing bagged and
secured to the top lid of the box.
With
a low part count, this airplane and float set goes together
quickly and easily!
The
included transmitter is a single-stick style with a thumb
operated throttle. A push-button operates the X-Port feature,
and a toggle switch activates the Anti-Crash Technology
(ACT). I was very impressed to see that Hobbyzone even
includes the 8 AA batteries for the transmitter, an 11.1
V LiPo battery, and a LiPo charger. One item that was
a suprise was the included adapter to charge the LiPo
at home! One other thing I'd like to mention is that Hobbyzone
includes an instuctional DVD that walks you through basic
assembly, and your first flights. I definitely reccomend
spending a few minutes to watch the DVD!
Assembling
the Super Cub starts with installing the landing gear, if
you want to use the wheels. The landing gear wire snaps
into a molded pocket, and four screws hold the gear covers
in place.
The wing gets put on next, and is as easy as securing four
rubber bands to the wing dowels and using two more screws
to attach the lower end of the wing struts to the fuselage.
The
rudder and elevator come attached to their respective flying
surfaces, and are easy to install. The vertical stabilizer
and rudder assembly has two long pins that slide through
the horizontal stabilizer, and then the two pieces are attached
to the fusealge with two machine screws.
After
the tailfeathers are secure, the rudder and elevator push
rods are connected to the control horns, and the tailwheel
wire is secured in the tailwheel bracket.
Once
the Super Cub assembly was complete, it was time to start
the Floats. Float assembly consists of installing the front
and rear landing gear wires and spreader bars. This is the
only part of assembly I had a little trouble with. All four
wires have notches cut into them where a bolt locks them
in place on the floats. The spreader bars I received had
notches that were not cut equally, causing the complete
float assembly to warp when the bolts were tightened. This
was easily overcome by rotating the spreader bar and tightening
the bolts on the round part of the shaft. The float kit
also comes with a 10x8 prop that must be used for float
flying.
After
tightening all 8 of the bolts to secure the wire gear to
the floats, the assembly is attached to the fuselage. the
front and rear landing gear wires slide into brackets in
the bottom of the fuselage, and four machine screws hold
the rear gear wire in place. The front gear wire snaps in
place using the same slot as the wheeled gear. After the
floats are attached, assembly is complete!
With
the LiPo battery charged, let's take the Super Cub out into
the sunlight and see what she's got!
The
morning I chose for the maiden flight was
absolutely perfect. There was just a slight
breeze blowing directly in towards shore and
the sun was shining brightly! After a quick
pose for the camera, the Super Cub was pointed
into the wind, the throttle was opened, and
she was off the water and climbing out at
a very nice pace. Though the Super Cub was
a little squirrelly on the water before taking
off, it became apparent very quickly that
this was going to be a fun little floatplane!
Once at a safe altitude, I adjusted the trims
slightly, and the Super Cub was flying like
a trainer. It has no bad tendancies, stalls
are straight ahead, and the plane flys where
you point it. I would also like to add that
the Super Cub flies great fast and slow!
As
with most three channel airplanes, the Super
Cub is limited in aerobatics, but really,
how much aerobatic flying do you want to do
with a set of floats on a plane? With that
said, the Super Cub will do very nice loops
and stall turns!
After
I had had my fun, I brought the Super Cub
in to land. I was very pleased to see that
this plane came down nicely without feeling
like a sinking rock. I cut the power and it
floated in and landed very scale-like before
I had realized that almost 15 minutes had
gone by! The LiPo battery pack is definately
a great battery choice for the Super Cub.
One thing to note: in order to turn the plane
on the water, remember to keep some throttle
on. With no water rudder, you are turning
the airplane only by the air flowing over
the rudder.
Check
out the video to see her in action!
Hobby
Zone Super Cub on Floats
Or,
Download the Video (24meg) CLICK
HERE
I
really enjoyed reviewing the Hobbyzone Super
Cub LP, and the float kit. Together, they
make a great electric floatplane that is a
lot of fun to fly, while being easy to transport.
At $179.99 for the Super Cub LP and $24.99
for the floats, you just can't beat this winning
combination for electric float flying!
Hobbyzone Horizon Hobby, Inc.
4105 Fieldstone Road
Champaign, IL 61822
Phone: (800) 338-4639 www.horizonhobby.com
Comments on RCU Review: Hobby Zone Super Cub RTF on Floats
Is it true that there is a supercub that is bind and fly? I love the supercub I have now but it would be nice to get a new one that would bind and fly!
The comments, observations and conclusions made in this review are solely with respect to the particular item the editor reviewed and may not apply generally to similar products by the manufacturer. We cannot be responsible for any manufacturer defects in workmanship or other deficiencies in products like the one featured in the review.
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