Hey Hutch! First, my hearty congrats (from a 61 yr old to a 65 yr old) on getting back into CL flying! [sm=teeth_smile.gif] Understood about the ARF problems - you're not the only one that's had them. Personally, I don't totally trust them, although I'm from the old school - I like to build what I fly so I know what's in it. That applies to both my CL and my RC planes.

Your .40-powered 46 oz plane - my first question would be "what's the wingspan"? Is it supposed to be .40 powered or maybe something less? Personally, I've been flying the old Sterling Skylarks the most, almost since they first came out, and have never put anything larger than a .40 in them - actually, all but 1 of them has used .35's, usually Enya or Fox, and they have a 52" wing. My latest Skylark weighs a whopping 57 oz, uses an old NIB K&B .35 and she flies just as well as any of the others, so if your .40 plane is anywhere even close to that 48-52" wing you might be just a bit overpowered, which can lengthen out maneuvers - she's simply going too fast.

One other item I noticed as I re-read your note for the empteenth time - you said your ST.40-powered plane is a "homemade stunt plane". Sure wish you'd included a pic of her, but in the meantime, is the wing thick enough to lift her around in loops? If she's a "home-built" kit she's probably fine, but if she's someone's home-design she might simply have too thin a wing for tighter loops.

Flapped/non-flapped, doesn't make a whole lot of difference to most plane designs as long as the plane is balanced decently, unless you're actually trying some of the tighter maneuvers where flaps CAN make a difference. I've been flying CL since I was 7 (a lot of decades ago) and in my experience the biggest difference flaps make is actually in landing - but then, maybe I've had so many flapped planes that I just don't notice the actual flying differences anymore. Some of my lighter flapped planes have had a tendency to float a bit and then actually "balloon" if I pulled up too much, too quick, in the final flare to land - makes for some interesting touchdowns on occasion.

Handles - I'm still using my 30+ yr old EZ-just handles too, with full spread and standard 3" bellcrank in the wing with control rods to the innermost point on the control horns (LOADS of control input), but then, I'm used to that set-up so I don't have much problems from it. One problem I've noticed new fliers having with similar set-ups is that they hold the handle too tight and they're too "jittery" with it - but that's what being new to CL is all about, getting used to what's more comfy and smoother for each pilot. MY handle technique (I'm left-handed, by the way) is that I actually hold the handle more with my finger-tips (2 center fingers) and control with my index and pinky finger - a VERY) light and loose touch. Yeah, I know, that's just plain WRONG according to every book I've read, every flier I've flown with, etc etc - but it works for me and always has. I also don't control with my elbow, but with my wrist, which is even more wrong to 99% of CL fliers. BUT, between wrist and finger-tip control, I can (and frequently do) fly nearly any plane right down onto the ground with full power and keep her there until I'm ready to lift off again (that little stunt gets lots of comments on the flying field every time), usually 2 or 3 complete turns around the circle.

For the life of me I can't remember what "PIO" means (that's old age setting in) but I'm going to assume it's "porpoising", plane simply won't steady-up enough to fly smoothly. My first "gut" feel for your particular plane is that you're CG is off - probably too far back. My PERSONAL rule-of-thumb is to put it just at or ahead of the main wing spar (or thickest point of the wing if the spars don't show), never behind that point. If your CG is near that point and your control throws are enough to put your elevator up/down 45 degrees you're going to get the best loops that any particular plane is capable of putting out. If your plane is flapped, the flaps and elevator should move about the same amount (elevator up - flaps down, or elevator down - flaps up).

I added that last paren part just as a reminder - I HAVE seen people set a plane up so both the flaps and elevator went in the same direction. Doesn't work so good.

Hey man, practice, practice, practice. You've been out of it for 55 years, gonna take awhile to get the feel again. Just relax, spend time getting the smell of nitro back into your system, and enjoy yourself. Yeah, your reaction times aren't the same as a guy who's 18, but who cares? Mine aren't either, but I can still fly well enough to have a ball on a Sunday afternoon (or whenever). And don't try my "touchdown at full power" trick until you're back in the groove!! It CAN be a plane-killer.

Keep us posted on how you're making out, and WELCOME BACK TO FLYING!!

Dave
(Pics below; some of my more "fun" CL planes - 2 Skylarks, 2 SIG Banshees, an old MidWest Biplane, my old TF P-63 and Cosmic Wind. Sorry about the quality, some of those pics are OLD!!!!)