After many attempts to tame this beast, it's time to hang it up.
Plane is a Modeltech Giles 202 (60), originally outfitted with an ENYA 120 up front, two elevator servos aft with a match box, an on-board glow (Enya plugs face forward). The Enya weighs 12 oz more than a Saito 100, but I still needed 7 oz of lead in the front. It balances at the manufacturers balance points.

First few flights proved ugly - it snaps left on any type of hard inside maneuver, and requires SIGNIFICANT elevator to fly inverted. I could just barely turn an outside loop.

After checking all incidence and adjusting to 0-0 (3 degrees engine down thrust built in), and removing the on-board glow and extra elevator servo, I moved all the electronics up front to get rid of the 7 oz of lead. It STILL comes out to 10 lbs 4 oz!!! And it STILL snaps at low and high speed. I had to fly it on pins and needles!

Left rudder works fine with just a hint of down pitch coupling, but right rudder rolls the plane hard left (significant adverse yaw) and hard down. Yes, the plane was balanced axially.

In the end, a touch-and-go attempt found three snaps into a cartwheel on the ground. While the damage is repairable, I found a disconcerting problem - one aileron and one elevator half came out with NO DAMAGE TO THE WOOD!! The hinges either simply pulled out or broke at the hing line. I wonder how long this plane would have lasted in the air!

I'm sorry, but no matter how sensitive we want our planes, these snaps were rediculous! And the weight is built into the ARF - a lighter engine would required lead in the nose.

Sorry guys - don't get into this ARF -- too heavy and very unstable... IMHO.