RE: Lanier 94" Yak help
I quess I feel the way I do about it, because of the slab side fuse, non socketed wings, and the fact someone called it a Yak.
Value priced , yes. I am glad I didn't pay full price. Well, I never would have.
So, irregardless of my dislikes, maybe a few weeks of flying it will make me "Slab Blind".
I mean come-on.....plastic blind nuts holding the elevators, same on the canopy, but that is lighter duty. Cowl blocks that are not flush with the fuse, making it "pinch" when tightnened....is it like that on yours?? Geometery that allows the rudder linkage to hit the elevators at max 3D down elevator?? Loose wing bolts....have you noticed how loosey goosey the threads are? You better drill those Anti-rotation pins, and clevis at least the back ones....unless you trust the wing bolts. Don't forget to check the Anti-rotation pins to make sure they are glued in well...LOL.
Did ANYONE notice the lack of bracing on the firewall?? Anyone? Put any 80cc class motor there without bracing it, and you will have a bad day ,eventually.
The original owner , a modeler for a few years, even noticed the poor quality pin hinges , chucked them and used Robarts. The Chinese ones will get sloppy , so sloppy it is scary, after a season. Look at one compared to a Robart. The pin is what wears and fails.
I don;t like the fact that, if they used a commonly available rear mounted carb motor to design this plane....why did they not close off the fuse from the carb? or at least provide an air exit hole to open up at the rear to de-pressurize the fuse? You better open yours up in back....bad things have been known to happen without proper ventilation. There is NOWHERE for the pressure to leave the cowl....except into your fuse or around your exhaust holes. Nice tight fitting cowl, though. LOL.
Oh yeah, don't forget to seal the wood inside from oil or gas blowback. I am at least going to put a screen in mine, so no loose bits gets sucked into the carb.
All this aside , yeah it is worth 400 bucks...not ever the original price. Want to see what a 700 plane looks like.....go look at an EF. Don't get me wrong, you can't compare coal to diamonds, but with time and muscle you can turn coal into one....I think.
So, if I had to rate this plane....I would say it is a good cheap solid starting point, after applying known gasser modeling tenets to it, throwing the hardware as from the plane as possible, it will last a few seasons. It rates a high 6 to low 7....not really a POS....OK.
But SLAB Sides.....man, it is going to take a long time for me to warm up to it.....Yaks are supposed to round. So, lets call it Yak-54ish.... 'cus it is close , but no cigar.
At least Non-flyers at the field think it is cool looking, and everyone says it is pretty.