Looking for opinions regarding the SIG Mayhem and Aerobatics learning.

I have been flying, high wing, low wing and Hog Bipe for a while. I have a problem pattern plane, wasn’t made well and plan to replace it. My goal is to learn more aerobatics. Maybe 3d in the future. The specs on the Mayhem look very good. I could fly at low rates and gradually increase as I perfect the maneuvers.


Thanks,

Gary

Actually the Great Planes U-CAN-DO 3D series planes will suit you better for 3D work and extreme aerobatics.

If you want a decent combination 3D/pattern ship then the Hangar 9 Showtime powered by the new Saito 125 or a YS110 will fit that bill as well

I actually did the exact thing you are thinking about doing. I thought of the U-Can-Do, but everyone that I asked locally about that plane had the same response.... it is flimsy and the landing gear breaks easy. Actually, every single U-Can-Do that was at my field broke the landing gear, so that pushed me away from that plane. Owning and now flying the Mayhem, I can say that it is a great plane, very aerobatic, 3D if you want, and floats nicely on landing.

Good luck in your choice.

I have to disagree with the statement that the UCD is a flimsy plane. Yes the landing gear and firewall area need some reinforcing but after that was done it's one of the toughest planes I've ever flown. I hit a tree with mine then had it fall 15 feet straight down from that tree and land on the landing gear and after some minor repairs it's still flying and still one of the best planes I've ever flown. The amount of fun that will be had far out weigh a little extra work when assembling the plane.

I'll also argue the point on the UCD being flimsy. Like every other ARF out there, you need to reinforce the landing gear block and the firewall (Easy to do). I've flown UCD's in all 3 sizes and all of them are very forgiving and do whatever you want to do nicely. If hovering is your bag then you could not ask for a better plane. Get the CG correct and stand it on it's nose and it will sit there all day long if you like with very little correction needed. blip the throttle and now you have a very nice, slow torque roll. With the right engine, punch it straight up for a couple of hundred feet then come straight down into a blender, get the wings level, get the power right and flat spin in one spot right where you just were hovering. That's just a few of the things I did with mine within the first flights. This plane instills confidence.

Yes, there are better planes out there but for the price and just starting out you cannot beat the UCD. Also, you'd be amazed at how slow they land. Mine became my favorite until I got a taste of Giant Scale and from that point there was no looking back. The only glow I own now is my Showtime and I just ordered the Giant UCD for the Fuji 43 I have. Can you say OVERPOWERED [X(]

I've also owned the Mayhem, sold it after a dozen flights. Flew well but after flying a mid-sized UCD right after flying my Mayhem, I knew the UCD was way better for me.

So take in all the advice you can, talk to people that have flown both and other planes then go from there. If you can, fly one of each and see what you think. That's what it's all about, what you are comfortable with.

I have a Sig Mayhem 3D with Saito 150. I love it!!! It is a secret treasure...a well kept secret. Not many people are flying them. Sport flies great, 3Ds great (for a 3D novice like me anyway), and can slow way down!

http://www.ourcampbellhome.com/mayhem.htm

Jason

Thanks for the vids Bugleboy. It inspires me to start on my Mayhem. Just need to get the Saito 125 for it.

Saito 125 should be the perfect match in the Saito line-up. It wasn't around when I built mine, though.

Get it built! You won't be disappointed. Gentle on low rates and crazy on 3D rates!

Would a 91 four stroke work for aerobatics or do I need to use a 1.20 ?

A .91 will fly it, but you won't be doing much in the way of 3D. The new Saito 125 is better than the 120 (weighs less and has more power). My friend and I both put our 5-cell receiver packs in the tail to offset the weight of the motor. I still added about an once of weight in the tail to balance on the recommend CG for 3D performance. If you have any question about it, let me know!

Jason

I have the Saito 125 in mine and it has unlimited verticle and a ton of power to get that thing moving. I am on a 15x6, but plan on going to 16.5x5w or 17x4w. I will let you know what I think.

I have a YS110 in my Mayhem. One of my favorite airplanes. Will land easier than any plane you'll ever fly. It will waterfall better than any plane also. The hover is harder than UCD but still pretty easy. It KE pretty poorly but slightly better than UCD. You can do it well but takes a lot of stick movement or mixes. Rolling stunts are slugish but fun. The wing span is so large that it takes a bit to respond. Fun though. I really like it.

I moved my rudder servo to the tail to make balance easier. Mine balances with no added weight right in the middle of recommended 3D CG. My plane weighs 7lbs 11ozs RTF less fuel. Which by the way gives me the best power to weight ratio of any plane I own. Amazing vertical.

The Saito should give the same performance and is 3 ozs lighter. A APC 16x6 would be the proper prop. And you may not have to move the servo to the rear wih the lighter nose weight.

As I mentioned, this is one great flying airplane. And very fun. I have more flights on this than any plane I own. For comparison, I have a Showtime, Funtana, UCD60, EF YAK, and other non 3D type planes. This one is not the best flyer but one of the best for having a great time.

Thanks
Barry

And Barry is the man to talk to. Just check out the large Mayhem 3D thread.

Mine actually hovers and KEs quite well. Not sure why mine does better than Barry's in those areas. I bet mine is heavier than Barry's, but I cannot imagine that affects hovers and KE. My servos are in the standard locations. I just moved my battery back into the tail. I needed something heavier than a rudder servo to offset the weight of my Saito 150.

Barry,

I have a 16x6 sitting at my house, but haven't tried it yet. I will put that on there and see what I think.

Well, I hope to start on mine soon. I just finished a Funtana and need to finish my Edge profile that I've been working on for a while. The Mayhem sounds like lots of fun though.......[8D] I thought about selling it and getting a Showtime. Maybe not though.

I don't mean to imply that the Mayhem is hard to hover or that it won't KE. I'm doing comparisons. It doesn't hover as easy as the UCD. But I can hover if for a complete tank of fuel if I want to. I can also KE it for the entire length of our runway (600') but when you compare it in KE to the Yak or the Showtime it's much harder to do. They hardly require ANY input to KE. Doesn't mean the Mayhem doesn't do them pretty good but you will have to input quite a bit on the sticks or use a mix.

I really, REALLY like my Mayhem. Just giving the positives and the negatives. That's what I'd want to know if I was asking the questions.

Thanks
Barry

Oh yeah....Almost forgot. My favorite maneuver with the Mayhem is the Blender or Flat Spin (Pinwheel) or Inverted rising flat spin. It's simply the best at that. Because of it's very light wing loading (15.1ozs), high horsepower (YS110), overall light weight (7lbs 11ozs) I can do a blender and stop at the bottom in a flat spin pinwheel and just hover it right there. If I want I can give a little down elevator and a little more aileron and start a fast rising inverted flat spin. By far the coolest maneuver I've ever seen. And they are super easy with the Mayhem. Never seen another plane even come close to doing that stunt as neat as the Mayhem. It's in a class by itself for those. And the crowd goes wild when I do them. Both of them.

Thanks
Barry

Hi Barry,

Thanks for your detailed reply. I have larger engines but want to keep the weight down if the added power isn't needed. I could use a Saito 1.20 or 1.80.

This sounds like the perfict plane to pratice and learn basic aerobatics with room to grow into 3D. I have a several SIG ARF's and BIY planes. I like the quality of there products and they all fly very well.


Gary

Thanks for all the advice on this site, I did all the mods everyone suggested.

I have been flying my Mayem for a couple of months. Great flying plane, would highly recommend it. I am using it to learn and improve my aerobatics, not using it for 3-D and it is working very well. Very forgiving if I make a mistake. I am running a Saito 91 with a 14x7 prop. I wanted to keep the plane light. Some people at the field thought the engine was to small, it works great for my type of flying.

Thanks again for the help.


Gary

I am interested in the Mayhem .40 and want to put a saito 65 4 stroke in it and do some hovering. Can some please tell me why all the threads on this .40 size plane are negative?? Please let me know what the deal is with this plane and does anyone know why it is hard to hover. Is their anything good about this size plane? It seems very compareable with the Twist and the Harrier .40 sizes that is in dimetions of course. These planes seem to get good reviews and their all around the same weight and size. Please can someone give me some real facts so I can make a good choice. Thanks

Ralph L.

I've had both Mayhems. I like the plane. My 40 size was very nice. I didn't like the covering very much. It was sooooooo easy to cut. I finally gave up patching it and just used clear packing tape.

It is a very easy/excellent quality build (except the covering). It flew very nice and very light. My weight 5lbs 1oz I believe. That's with the Saito 82. Few profiles will even be that light. I think the 65 would be a marginal engine. Heavier than the 82 and less power.

Mine flew pretty cool. Pulled pretty bad to the left. I think I needed to add a bit of RH thrust. It would flat spin beautifully and do a nice waterfall. Hover is about marginally average. But it would be similar to the Twist. Light plane, large wings, short tail moment, generally this planes are a little harder to hover. I was getting it down but it wasn't that easy. KE was poor, about like the Twist again. Rolling circles were harder than most planes. Part of this is it is effected by even the slightest breeze.

I liked the plane and was starting to trim it nicely but unfortunately I crashed it on the 19 flight. It was beyond repair. With so many nice planes out there and I'm tending to go larger, I won't replace it.

Thanks
Barry

HI Barry, I've been flying my Mayhem for a while and love it with the 110. I put my battery in the fuse a few inches behind the wing. Mine knife edges very well but hovers are tough. It wants to fall off to the left for some reason. I can't imagine needing a bigger engine than the 110 on it. I sold my G26 I had on my big boy and got another 110 but haven' t been able to get it up yet due to tuning problems. I seems to act differently every time I try to tune it. I'm gonna check the valves today and try tomorrow again at home before heading to the field. If I get it running well enough I'll fly take it and my mayhem. I just got a F 40S and a OS 61 FX (used) for it. I've got a bunch of mods to do to strengthen it before I fly it. Poorest quality I've seen on any ARF so far. Sig by far was the best hands down. I've owned four H9 models now the 40S, it's the worst. I bought some used HS 445MGs and HS5645MG digitals I may use them on the 40 is that overkill or what?