[font="Courier New"]OK, I am looking for opinions here, so anything goes!

Seagull ARFs.

I am a retailer, and my local customers have snubbed them thoroughly. [&o]

I would like to get some feedback from the rest of the world. (so to speak...)

Let's hear it!

(I KNOW that there must be an opinionated modeler out there SOMEWHERE! )




Many thanks in advance!

IMHO I have never had a bad Seagull ARF....and I've had 4-5 of them. Some people have not had the same experience but I think I am in the majority.

I think they are made good ...as arf's go. I understand they have improved since 2000. They have some interesting models and a few are very detailed as well. They fly well and are decently priced. Maybe it's the selection of models, finishing, or ...who knows that turn some people off?
I will say that their art department needs improvement. The literature and box art is somewhat cartoonish and some of the planes finished detail is questionable somaybe that is a turnoff for some. My LHS still has a plane from a few years ago , can't remember what model but it had clowns and balloons all over it. No wonder that didn't sell !

bought a seagull sportman very impressed now the manual could be better when thay talk about the bolts going into the wing tube. Servos in the wing do not line up with the slots but all can be fixed. Just one of the many plane that need to be finished

I have built both sizes of the engine-powered Seagull Sparrowhawk. They are well built, strong and straight. They fly well. I think Seagull sells a quality product at a good price. My review on the larger version is on the Horizon Website.

I have built two Seagull 120 Spacewalkers .. I think they are a reasonably priced middle of the road ARF...They fly well .. The manual is a bit confusing in places but if you take your time you can think it out...I have also built the seagull Arising Star trainer and it fly's great . For a trainer it is a lot of fun...I think Seagull puts out some quality stuff at a reasonable price...

Hopefully, nobody at Horizon will read this and raise the prices........

I think the are a good plane for a good price if you are a sport flyer. If you want to do high level aerobatics and/or 3D they are just to heavy. You do get a good looking plane with decent covering and paint. With 50% of the hardware usable. In this price point I have not seen anything better. IMHO



David

Me, too. I have had 5 of them plus 2 more still in the box. They are a "best buy" in ARFs.

My personal experience mirrors all of your's.

Nice looking and flying planes, reasonably priced.

Questionable instructions & sometimes junk hardware.

I guess my locals just aren't interested in something "different". [&o]

Frankshh,

Same problem here. It seems like most never try anything different.

I've built three; Spacewalker 1.20, AT-6 1.20, and Funfly 3D (. 46-.55) and have a Decathlon 1.20 in box. I'd echo others who say they are good models and priced reasonable. They fly well.

Need any spare parts for the AT-6? I have a 'few'

Tailskid... do you recognize the cowl on this?

[link=http://pages.suddenlink.net/arlyn/kids%20282.jpg]Sport 35[/link]

no I don't....but you sure did a beautiful job painting it!

It is a Seagull AT-6 cowl on a self design so no painting was necessary. The dummy engine is a Great Planes from their Super Stearman... perfect fit, with some dowel push rods added.

N/A

AA5BY, what engine do you have on that scratch built?

I have a Decathlon with a Magnum 91 and it is awesome.  This is by far the best $124.00 plane i have ever seen.

A MLD-35.

Hesitant to side track the thread any further so will simply provide link to the build

[link=http://pages.suddenlink.net/arlyn/30cc_ss.html]Sport 35[/link]

I got a Seagull Laser 200 and read where it was made (in Vietnam). Don't know if that would have an impact, but it got my attention. The ship is very well made.

Seagull Models are made in Viet Nam. As well as many other ARF's today.

http://www.seagullmodels.com/AboutUs.asp

Old wounds sometime heal slow or if at all. My dad would turn over in his grave if he knew I was driving a Japanese car. I guess thefruit doesn't fall far from the tree. I can't bring myself to spend my money on anything made in Vietnam. Will that everchange ... I don't know.

Jim

You shouldn't judge a country based on what they did in history. If that'd be the case then nobody would buy any German or Japanese cars, even though they make excellent cars. I make my purchase decision based on quality and price, or best bang for the buck. To me Seagull is a great bang for the buck. But like somebody mentioned above, most of their kits are over built, which makes them heavier than they need to be. That might be good for durability of scale models, but for aerobatic performance the weight can be a factor.

Quality wise they are generally good, but once a while you find an issue. This is when a good distributor like Horizon is important. They took care of the issue in my PC9 kit right away. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_91...m.htm#11452949

Another good brand from VietNam is BH Models (Black Horse). Their planes incorporate some of the more modern frame structure design found in those light 3D planes, making the planes much lighter than equivalent sized Seagull models.