I maiden-ed my H9 US 40 today and until an hour ago, I thought the day had gone well. I was re-checking the plane tonight when I noticed that the foam inserts which I had used to cover the receiver and battery were wet. On further inspection, I could see fuel spilled all down the servo quarters...major bummer.

I removed the fuel tank and found that the seal was leaking! It must have vibrated loose while I was breaking in a 4-stroke! Either that I hadn't fitted it correctly in the first place. I've removed the receiver and battery - seem fine and I have soaked up the excess fuel. The balsa is soaked but I have put the plane out to dry. Once it's dry I will use some K2R spot remover (ask me why I have this stuff - yes, this is the 2nd time the fuel tank leaked on me!). I think once the K2R has been dusted off, I'll re-epoxy the joints that I can get to then fuel proof the balsa by brushing around some thinned epoxy - am I going the right way about it?

Does anyone have suggestions for a leak proof tank (either a tank type or should I cover the fuel tank in a zip-lock bag?). I am building a H9 P51 and I DO NOT WANT this to happen to me on this one!

Steven

Trash your tank and buy a Sullivan tank. Got several that have been used for years and never experience a leak. I never use the tanks that come with the ARFs. Poor quality. If in doubt about your assembley pressurize them under a sink full of water by blowing on the fuel lines and looking for air bubbles. Good luck.

That was what I had bought - a Sullivan Seamless but I will certainly try that trick for checking for leaks!

Just had this happen to me this weekend as well. Check the seal, mine had a crack in it. I've been told the Sullivan 10 will fit, but I think I am going to route it out a bit and try to get a Sullivan14 to work. I love to fly the US, but am sick of fixing Hangar 9's obvious flaws. Don't these guys go to the field? I swear I have heard of 5 guys at our field having the front gear ripped off, another couple more with leaky tanks and one guy had the engine mount fail. I really want the Hangar 9 P-51 and have come close to buying it on many occasions, but after all the little flaws in my US I think I will let my pocket book be my voice and just not buy any more Hangar 9 products. Besides, I am really sick of the Hangar 9 / JR relationship. I ask you, how hard is it to make a standard size servo? It bugs me that Hangar 9 makes servo cavities for the slightly smaller JR servos forcing everyone else to spend time enlarging the darn things.

sthill,

I recently completed my US 60 and would agree that there were some minor issues. That said, I am very happy with the Hangar 9 kit and from what I have read on the boards there are a lot of happy hangar 9 users. As for the servo cavities, you can always make the holes a little larger as needed, but it is really hard to make them a little smaller!

Steven

I know there are a lot of happy hangar 9 US owners out there. Unfortunately, most of the happy ones have done many modifications to overcome the shortcomings of Hangar 9’s design or assembly team. I know this hobby is a lot about building and fixing, but I am a busy guy and I got into the hobby because of the great ARFs available. Each time a vendor tailors its product towards companion gear they should say ARF(if you have a JR radio and don’t mind re-purchasing $40-$50 worth of gear because we cheaped out on it), else you are going to have to spend an countless extra couple hours enlarging servo holes and fitting aftermarket necessities. I know people are happy with US but how many people are happy with US without doing ANY modifications? Like Tailgear $10, main gear + wheels $10, fuel tank $10, engine mount $10, and wing dowels $5?? I know this sounds petty, but if Hangar 9 charged $5 more for the kit (my guess on what it would cost THEM to do it right) we wouldn’t have to spend $45 on making it right by purchasing cost inflated aftermarket gear. I’m sorry for the rant but I think Hangar 9 needs to get their act together, as a consumer I am annoyed. Why aren’t more people annoyed when they get poor quality product? I’m not saying the whole thing is bad, but how would you like it if the fuel tank on your new car leaked after 500 miles and GM just told you to buy an aftermarket one because theirs sucks? Hangar 9 stand behind your product!

Just my $0.02

Two flights on this one fuel everywhere US 40 scratch this history However this may have been faulty installation.

I use Sullivan fuel tanks even it I have to modify the tank area,nearly all the hong kong phoey tanks are a disaster waiting to happen.
Have a goodun,John.

I Dig those Hayes tanks, man! No phoey! No bending of the little vent tubing. No leaky-phoey!

Craig.

I always use Sullivan or Dubro tanks.
If you have a pressurized system, tape the tank with packing tape.

sthill & N70R have it right;

H9 ARFs, like any manufacturer, need some items replaced. And Hayes tanks are simply the best. Unfortunately, 16 ounce is as big as they come.

I replaced the tank in my H9 73" CAP 232 with a 16 ounce DuBro (the largest that would fit without surgery to the tank compartment), but that ain't enough gas for a Saito 150. So I fitted a Hayes four-ouncer alongside as a "header" or "saddle" tank.

We do this all the time with helicopters, but this is the first time I've tried it on a plank. It works great, and is handy to have in the old trick bag when you have a capacity or plumbing problem. I understand that the jet guys routinely use multiple-tank systems too.

But I'm with Craig; if at all possible, I'll use a Hayes tank over all others. DuBro is my second choice. Sullivans are a bit flimsy for my tastes.

Steve

Sullivan or Dubro for me...

If you want to make some money, some one please come up with a good fuel cell stopper/cap assembly. You really need to crank on these things especially if using a Cline regulator or a YS system that pressurized the cell.