Villa

No doubt about it, a Canard is "different". Sometimes, due to high gusting winds, my Canard was the only one in the air. I would do 10 or more touch and goes each flight. I have wondered why I don't see more Canards at our field. Mine was exceptionally rugged because it was a SPAD. The 1" square aluminum fuselage was extremely rugged. Ugly? Yes, but I never thought that. I concluded that my Canard could not do a conventional snap-roll. It would knife edge all day long. Another characteristic I woulds like to warn others about is the tendancy for the nose to bounce into the air during a bad landing. The end result could be a total dissaster. But it is also a challenge. My plane once ended up with the nose in the soggy ground and the rest of the plane sticking up in the air, with the engine still running. It was hillarious. I learned that if a landing starts to be difficult, then at the instance that the mains touch the ground, I go to full down elevator. Since down elevator moves the elevator up on a Canard, the nose gets glued to the ground to prevent any nose bouncing. I flew mine for about 8 years. A Canard is different, and a challenge. I'm guessing that this nose bouncing during a poor landing has destroyed many balsa Canards, and may be the reason I see almost no Canards at our field. Now that you have the secret to prevent the nose bounce, try a Canard. I need a push to rebuild mine. At my current age of 77 it is more difficult to start a heavy project. Think of it; if I can fly a Canard it could not be all that difficult. Plus I have told you all of the bad habits.