I'm nearly finished putting together my stick with a Saito 72 ready as the power unit. The layout in the firewall (the holes) for the mounting block means that the block and the engine has to lie on their side. However the pre-drilled hole for the the pushrod is only suitable for a vertical mounted engine (well it wont suit the Saito 72 on it's side) so I will have to drill another hole at the top of the firewall for the pushrod - has anyone else had to do this? Or did you get another mount such that a Saito 72 engine sits vertical?

If you remove the two screws holding the carb on and turn it 180 degrees it may cure your problem.
Ed M.

I wish I had thought of that. I will give it a try...

Thanks!

That's what I did.

You'll have to put an extra bend in the throttle pushrod after it exits the firewall so it hits the engine's throttle arm.

If you search RCU for "UltraStick 40 engine mount" you will find a lot of information. In particular you will learn that many had mounts that broke after a few flights. Everyone I know, me included, has replaced the metal mount with a nylon mount.

Another mod this model needs is more wood behind the holes in the former that the wing dowels go through. Mine were wallowing out pretty quickly.

The US 40 fuel tank has also split on quite a few of us and you may want to replace it. I have a Sullivan 10 oz tank that is a perfect fit.

The last item on mine is that the firewall pulled out in flight last week. Nothing too serious, but the 1/4" sqaure stock in the corners was little help. The glue on mine was most likely weakened by fuel (see split tank above ), but you may want to think about pinning your firewall through the lite ply on that runs down the middle of the fuse where it goes into notches on the firewall.

One other tip you might want to consider is using nylon 1/4" screws for the landing gear. I have been a victim and have seen just toooooo many minor landing incidents that rip the whole thing apart.

This was probably a placebo for me because since I switched to nylon's, I have only made perfect 3 point landings. Prior to that, I managed to break the hard-wood block a couple of times (mostly because I use a grass runway which is full of mole holes).

BTW, I've had over 70 flights in my US 40 and the engine mount has been cracked for as long as I remember.

I almost have my ultrastick .40 completed. I bought a 0s .46 engine for it. When i was mounting the engine the mount didnt fit right. What mount can i use that fits the firewall bolt pattern but uses the enginre mount holes instead of clamps.

I used a TT 46 pro in mine. I just used the clamps for mounting my engine. I have about 50 flights on mine so far. I have not made a single mod or replaced anything. My plane has flown great and I have had no problems. Actually come to think of it I made one mod. I put 3 steel bolts in my landing gear. I did this after it almost feel off on the maiden. My landing gear came loose in flight. One bolt left the gear completly the other was about 3 turns into the blind nut. I landed the plane without incident even though the landing gear was 90 degrees from where it should have been. Remember to locktite the mount in and to locktite the gear bolts in. Other than that enjoy, this plane flies great.
James

So whats the best position for the engine? (saito that is) should it be 90 deg. ? So the muffler is pointing straight down?