There are stories being spread about Hobbico Superstar wings folding up in high "G" maneuveres. This potential weakness causes me some concern. I fully understand that this plane is not intended to be an aerobatic plane...however...as a trainer, it will be put into unusual attitudes from time to time, and trainers should be designed to accomodate these stresses. When a student gets the plane into a dive...the instructor must step in and save the plane. This "save" will indeed constitute a very colorful high "G" maneuvre as the instructor pulls the plane sharply up and out of this heart stopping dive...just as the lovely little plane narrowly misses crashing into the earth. The plane comes from Hobbico with the wing in two panels, just as many ARFs of this size. The wing has a very substantial, very long steel rod ( approx 16 inches) fitting inside of each of the wing panels and joining them together. There are a couple of pilot holes in the surface of the wing panels, so that a small strap may be fastened to the wing panels with screws, and positioned so that the strap spans across the seam formed by the joining of the two panels. This strap appears to be the only thing that secures the two wing panels together. I have not seen the owners manual, and so I am not aware of any cautions to be observed or modifications to be made, prior to flying. An incident at our field involved this model, wherein the plane was being recovered from a dive, and under the resultant pressure, the steel rod ripped free of its supports within both wing panels allowing the panels to fold "up", much like a butterfly, and of course the plane was soon re-kitted as it pounded itself into the earth. The steel rod however, survived the devastation unscathed. The wing panels arrive fully covered with a monocote type of film, and I have not been able to determine if the manual instructs the owner to peel this off and glass the center section. Even with glassing...will the wing fail anyway under this sort of stress due to weak internal construction? I have been approached by a new student with this particular plane, and my hopes are to learn more of this potential disaster, and its elimination, before I unwittingly become another one of the awful statistics.
Thanks to all for your help.

Capt Jim
This plane was my first and I can say a very good trainer. It is solidly built and a great flier. Now, as to whether it can fail due to high G activities, I sure it is possible. I put mine through many acrobatic endeavors, not all of which were well done. It never experienced any kind of structural failure and survived three crashes to still fly today. It weighs quite a bit more now but I learned to repair as well as fly with it.
I would not hesitate to recommend it to a beginner or to assist someone in training with one.
Sunny_B

Thanks very much Sunny, for sharing your encouraging experiences with us. I will proceed with the flight training...although with a bit of extra caution.

I purchased a Hobbico Superstar for my son to train with.
I was told by several people that this plane needs to have a few things done to it
before it flies.

1. Glue the tail on with 30 min epoxy.
2. Glue the wing halves together again with 30 min epoxy.
3. Give the little OS la 40 a bit of right thrust.
4. Tighten up the steering travel.
5. Tighten everything that has fasteners and screws.
6. Ca all critical joints in the fuse where needed.

I've done all of this to the Superstar and have had no issues.
I've beat this thing silly in 15+ mile per hr wind and there have been no issues.
As far as trainers go, its the most bang for the buck and with a little attention there should be no problems with this little ARF.

I started on a superstar and it is a great trainer. Mine had the glued up ply wing joiner instead of the aluminum bar.

In my opinion I think some people do not glue up the wing properly and leave a gap between the two halves. I had to sand my joiner down so the wings would fit correctly, otherwise I would have had a big gap.

With a gap I think it would be easy for the wings to seperate in a hard manuever.

I put my superstar through the test, I crashed that thing so many times I lost count. Built it back up and it was in the air again like it was new.
After many crashes I did notice a small crack one day. The crack started at the leading edge right near the join of the wings and ran parralle with the join about 4 in. This was after a crash where I went off the runway and down a hill, the plane hit first on the right wing but did not break.

I glassed it with fiberglass wing tape and epoxy and it never became an issue. I flew the plane for quite a bit longer, but hit a tree with it on it's last flight. The plane tumbled from the top of the trees all the way down to the ground. I think it hit every branch that was in that tree on it's way down...lol

I can tell you that this plane will take a beating in the air and on the ground. Just make sure the wings are joined correctly and I dont think there will be an issue.

I would certainly pick this plane if I had to do it over, and have thought about getting another one just to have.

Goodluck

Dbow

The main "secret" is detailed in the manual: you must have both wing halves fit together with absolutely no gaps, and have it glued well. We've seen a number of wings that have folded in flight, and almost all of them were very-poorly glued together. You must get the spars glued together, the leading and trailing edges glued together, and the center ribs and sheeting. All of the pieces contribute to the wing's strength. Also use at least a 30-minute epoxy. Epoxies with longer cure times are good, too.

When you assemble the wings, you must trial-fit them so that there's no gap in the center section, and the apply enough glue so that it will ooze out of the spar pockets and from between the two wing halves. Wipe off the squeeze, and clean up the area with rubbing alcohol on a rag. You'll be find once the glue cures.