From my Cermark F-16 Instruction CD-Rom:

The CG should be 8 ½” to 9” behind the leading edge of the wing at the side of the fuselage. It may be easier just to measure along the leading edge of both wings and make a mark 15” out from the root.

Assemble the airplane completely, with the fuel tank empty and the landing gear extended. Stand over the nose of the airplane and lift it with you fingers on the marks on the leading edges of the wings. The airplane should hang level from your fingertips.

To balance the airplane side-to side, turn it upside down, set the fin on the ground and hold the nose up by one blade of the prop. Add weight to the higher wingtip until the airplane will remain level.

SETTING THE CONTROL THROWS

 Use the following control travels as a starting point

 Ailerons: LOW RATE = 5/8” up and down, HIGH = 7/8”
 Stabilators (elevators): LOW RATE = 3/4” up and down (at the trailing edge), HIGH = 1”
 Rudder: 1” left and right

FLYING

NOTE: Because of the unique aerodynamics of the F-16, it will require some up trim for level flight. The amount of up trim depends on your CG. Start with the trailing edge of the stabilator 1/8” above neutral and flight trim from there.

Use the 8 ½” CG and the recommended control travels and there will be nothing to worry about on the first flight. The F-16 Propjet flies and lands just like a normal sport plane. It will slow way down for landings as long as your prop pitch is 9 or less. (We tried an 11-pitch prop and had to kill the engine to get the F-16 to come down.) The F-16 will do all of the usual sport aerobatics including spins without problems, but of course its coolest maneuver is the high-speed low pass