I know this airplane is relatively new, but was wondering if anyone has one already. I'm interested in what engines will fit inside the cowl. Such as small gassers, inline twins etc. Mine arrives Wed but I'm actively searching for engines. Thanks!

Im inthe process of building mine. The zdz 40 rear exhaust with inverted pitts muffler was one of my choices. I am however using a Moki 2.10 since I have a new one sitting in the shop. The prototype had a zdz 40 side exhaust ,the muffler required some minor grinding to fit. Hope this helps Apparently the zdz 40 was excellent power match for full acrobatics.

I just bought one today when I was at the WRAM show. The reps for Kangke USA had one set up at the show with a ZDZ 50 installed. The cowling had plenty of room to spare.

I'm planning to power mine with a DA-50 as it will fit with no problem and the rep said this would not be overpowering the plane.

The quality of this kit is outstanding especially for the price.

Pictures???? Please!!!!!!

I was there too. That is a beautiful plane!

I'm starting to build mine on Sunday. I'm going with the ZDZ 40. In my oppinion the DA 50 will be a bit too much. They are very powerful and this plane won't need that much. I agree the quality is excellent. Not one wrinkle. Should be a quality flyer.

AirbearMA got any photos? I'd use the DA 50 if I get one, and that stick that moves up and down on the left!~) lol!

Joe

UP!!!!
Joe

I started construction on mine today and am using a Roto 35 in mine. The engine has been sitting in my shop for a while now and should be a good match for the plane. The folks at Kangke USA said that up to a 50 can be used but that the 35 I am using should be just fine. I'll try and give a report when I fly it. Gotta say, the fit and finish of this kit is excellent and covering was flawless. All the control rods were included and quality stuff too. They are already made up for you and suprise suprise, they Fit! (so far any way) I'll try to get some pictures tonight and post 'em for Ya.

Thanks cstevec, got any pictures? Let us know how it goes.

Joe

Well, lets see how this works out. The Last one is the Roto 35 inside the cowl!

Awesome!!!! nice pictures. Do you think you will even have to cut the cowl for the spark plug? Looks awesome. What is the total weight of the Roto 35? What servos are you going with ? That thing is huge!!!

Joe !~)

Ooops, here is a stoopid question, is that a 2 piece wing?

Joe

I have mine about 95% done. I went with the ZDZ 40. If anyone uses this engine on this plane, the BCM muffler is too big for the cowl to fit over so I ordered a slimline. If you use the ZDZ mount it must be cut to the the size of the firewall. Also, I snapped two clevises, and good luck finding one to replace it. It's metric. I replaced mine with all 440 stuff. I also went with all JR 8231 digital servos except for throttle (It's what I had lying around). The wheels that came with it were crappy and small so I changed them with Du Bro 4.5 inch. I tried 5 inch but they were too big. In any event, the engine does fit inside the cowl and the only cuttin needed will be for cooling. Overall, the plane is awesome and look forward to flying her this weekend weather permitting.

The only cuts I will have to make in the cowl will be for cooling. Everything else will fit with room to spare. I have Hitec Servos for the plane, 5475's for all surfaces except for the rudder which is a 5975. Thats exactly what Kangke recomends in the ass'y manual and I already have them so.......... The wing is two piece with a HUGE wing tube to connect them. There is a hatch in the top of the cabin area that you remove to attach the wings and each wing is secured with one allen head bolt. the ailerons are about 36" long and two inches wide, the horizontal stab. is 35" wide and the elevators are as large as the stab. I CA'd them in place with the supplied hinges and it appears that I will wind up with about 45 degrees of throw. The only complaint I have is the Vert. stab doesn't fit tight to the fuse. When the covering was shrunk to fit it pulled the center of the stab into a small bow. I think you can see it in the pic. The flying wires will probably hold it but I will add some epoxy just to be safe. I think you can fit almost a 5" wheel in the pants. Those things are huge! One other complaint, the tail wheel supplied with the kit is kinda weak. The assembly is good quality, but the wire used just doesn't appear to bew strong enough for the weight of the plane.

I can't wait for the flight report John. It sounds like you both went through a lot to get these planes together. Thanks for all the info and such. Now that your planes are almost ready, do you think that this plane was worth the money? It is a bit more money then some of the plane like it out there. Well, maybe you could tell after you fly it.

Joe

I agree the tailwheel is junk. I had a new one around for a "Extra" that I used. I also cut my own decals using vinyl sheets. The ones supplied are black and will peel off. The vinyl one's are navy blue which will look nice against the cream white Oracover.

I ran into a snag, need some 3" 10X32 bolts to attach the engine using the engine mount that came with it. Other then that and a few little things like balancing and installing the windows/pilot, etc. the plane is finished. I am going to change the tail wheel and replace the factory wheels with the Sullivans at 4.5" before I fly it though. My wife thinks it is a really "pretty" plane and her first comment was "That thing is HUGE!"

Have you ever tried the large kavan wheels? They are super light and pretty rugged. What pilot are you using? Did it come with one?

Joe

Not looking for light so much as function and appearance. I like the Sullivan skylites. They come with an aluminum hub that looks suprisingly realistic, and a rubber tire. Work very well and last a long time. As to the pilot, I usually use Williams Bros. pilots. They are pretty cheap and SWMBO (she who must be obeyed) paints them up for me. I am going to put a floor in the cockpit to hide the radio stuff and sit the pilot on top of the floor. It will have a hinge so I can lift it up for checks/maintenance, and a seat back and dash board as well.

I am kinda considering taking this plane to the Joe Nall this year so I want it to look pretty good. That kinda hinges on wether or not I can find floats for it that look right and are sized correctly.

Well, a little update. I fired up the Roto 35 today. Nice engine. Straight out of the box the thing ran excellent and idles very nice. I ran it with an 18-10 prop and I am not so sure it won't need a 20 once it is broken in. Kinda bummed me out though as I am going to have to cut a hole in the side of the cowl for the front of the muffler to clear. The cowl on that plane is big enough to swallow a DA 75 but the Roto's muffler misses clearing at the leading edge by about 1/4 inch.

Another question for those of you that are building this bird. I have had 0 luck finding the blind nuts that the wing struts attach to. Any one else having this problem? More to the point, anyone able to tell me where they are located? The point in the assy. manual is wrong, at least on my model.

I didn't have any problems finding the holes for the wing struts. They were right where the directions said they would be or should I say close to where the measurement said they would be. You can actually feel the holes in the covering. I'm waiting for my muffler to come in and then the plane is done. I also used Vinyl for the decals. The decals supplied are junk. What a difference. I used navy blue which looks awesome on the creamy white. Hopefully the muffler will be here and I can fly her this weekend. John

Thanks John, I guess I'll haul the wings out in the sunlight today and search for 'em a little harder. I took a cue from you and dumped the lettering as well. I had Trish cut out letters and numbers for me using Ultracote, the same stuff the plane is stiped with. Looks real good, much better then the stick on numbers would have. She was doing a little swearing by the time she was done though! I think my honey-do list grew about a page & a half over those decals! I'll try and post some pics of it when I finally finish this rascal.

I'm thinking about this plane as a home for my Homelite 45cc. Can you guys that are flying it, give a report on how it flies and its aerobatic abilities?

Flies well, lands well, with the engine I have in it, the plane flies about like the Flying Farmers cub. I would say that an ideal engine for the plane would swing a 22X10 at about 7500 rpm. Anything less is going to be very "scale"