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I read until my eyes went blurry. Very interesting.
On the model that the elevator horn broke on, is that the recommended method for elevator servo installation? (shudder)
I haven't opened the box on my F-20 as yet, so I do not know what awaits me.
My first bunch of ideas for this ARF, after reading a bit, is to crop a wing panel from each wing and to not install the landing gear. Have a friend hand launch it for you. I used to hand launch a friend's Dirty Birdy .40 with a souped up K&B .40 on a pipe. It almost flew out of my hands.
Not having seen the ARF yet, my idea is to run a plastic shrouded and bushed metal pushrod to the elevator with the servo mounted above the wing inside of the fuselage. You don't really need rudder function on a speed plane, so I'd probably fix the rudder straight back and not bother with a servo (assuming it has a rudder servo). The nose is way too long on this model. I don't mind aesthetics, but when it hurts how a model balances and is just dead weight...
After looking at it, it might be easier to buy foam cores for a Patriot wing and make your own fuselage. Mine might be going up for sale on eBay.
If you want your engine to really scream, with a minimum of fuss, forget using a spinner of any kind and switch to an AMA safety nut. They are guaranteed to balance properly. I've seen even the best balanced spinners rob an engine of 500 rpm. Yeah, it is pretty, but we want to go fast, don't we? Fill in the gap around the nose with balsa and cover it up. Try to stream line it as much as possible. You could also add balasa sheeting in front of those fake airscoops and fair them into the fuselage sides. Wouldn't weigh much, but would probably make a noticable difference in the speed.
Does this model use torque rods to activate the ailerons? If so, they gotta go. Small mini (not micro) servos are enough for the ailerons, even at really high speeds. Installing these in close to the wing root is easy before the wing panels are joined.
A Webra .32 - .35 might actually fly the model faster through the traps than a larger displacement/much heavier engine. The larger displacement engine will provide more vertical, but if you are going fast enough in level flight with the lighter engine, the inertia will give you more than enough vertical. Sounds crazy, but sometimes lighter is faster than more powerful. Ultrathrust makes a nice muffler for the Webras.
Thanks for pointing me toward the thread. Much appreciated.