Hi all,

I was going to design and build an F3A plane for next year but I believe that's going to take longer to make everything and fly it competitively, especially in pattern. Not being a great pilot like some folks here, I've decided to build a 'classic' plane worthy of having its own thread. This plane is Naruke's Silent ST. While I know that this is rather rare and definitely an older plane but I've heard many good things about this plane and I think that a nice classic build would be fun as well as making some sort of diary of the build to share.

To start off, this is not from the very beginning of the build. A good friend of mine, Jim Hubbard and I started this plane about 4 maybe 5 years ago and then I ended up moving and working farther and finally lost interest in flying for a few years. The kit is from Pattern Tek so when I bought it from Elmer Helfer about 8, maybe 10 years ago, the wings and stab were already sheeted. With Jim helping me become a better pilot and builder, I cut out the ailerons and elevator. Since then, Jim put in the firewall and a Hyde mount for the YS 120. Thanks, Jim. Now, after more than 12 years, I'll get finish this plane and compete with it next year hopefully. I only have 1 hour to spare each night on this plane so while every minute counts, I really don't want to just bash it together. This plane deserves a good build which I intend to do.

I'll post some pictures of the build as it progresses. So far, here are the preliminary pictures of the Kit.