Evan,

Good to have you in here. I have built several of these 20% Pica based, and Pica Kitted YMF's, and never had one come in under 14 pounds. Sure, you can eliminate some ribs, and perhaps even a former or so, and you can cut holes in the tail group. You will not eliminate that much weight and keep the structural integrity in this plane. The open framework in this one is also 1/4 square balsa. There is just a lot of wood in this one, and all formers ahead of the wing saddle are ply as well. The wings could be modified to a round leading edge rather than the D-tube wing that is called for, and that would eliminate some weight as well. You could substitute 1/16" sheeting for the heavier sheeting that is called for with the PICA. You could also go and purchase the COX ARF version that is significantly lighter (which tells me that the parts count is lower as is the balsa thickness) and have it residing in the trash bin much more quickly.

Bill, AMA 4720
WACO Brotherhood #1