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Old 08-18-2007 | 08:10 AM
  #272  
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Craig-RCU
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From: minneapolis, MN
Default RE: GP GEE BEE

TomCrump,
Hi, I noticed that you posted in my "Modified GP Gee Bee pants for Robart struts" thread. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_5615263/tm.htm I would advise either flying without the wheel pants until you get used to the Gee Bee, or find a way to stop the wheels from twisting and contacting the inside of the pants on a hard landing, or use the Robart Gee bee struts with telescoping pants. I see that you have a lot of posts and a nice war bird in your avatar so you may be a more capable flyer than I, and won't have any problems.

The GP GB is a pretty nice flyer capable of inside and outside loops, rolls and knife edges. Takeoffs are very simple with little or no right rudder needed because the built in right and down thrust "fixes" that typical problem of taildraggers. I can knife edge to the left at half throttle due to the large fuse side area and the right thrust. However, knife edge flight to the right is noticeably more difficult. I believe the right thrust is the culprit here as it counteracts left rudder input. Wings level, the plane flies nose-heavy meaning that if you trim the elevator for straight and level at half throttle, then put it into a dive at half throttle, as it speeds up, it also will pull up by itself because the trim setting for the slower speed is too much trim for the higher speed dive. You might say it tracks through the air like a trainer instead of a pattern plane. Although it flys nose heavy, don't try to move the C.G. back from the recommended spot. I tried that and found that it will snap-roll inverted, 45 degree nose-down attitude in the blink of an eye. There is no time to react with right rudder. I would recommend plenty of stall tests at high altitude to make sure that you haven't inadvertently set the C.G. too far back. If you find that the stall results in an abrupt snap roll at altitude, then just land it by flying it down to one or two feet altitude at a speed comfortably above stall speed then throttle back and set it down gently using elevator as it slows. A good 10mph headwind is ideal for this plane for landings, but avoid crosswinds because of all that fuse side area.