Hi All,

Since I have been somewhat busy to keep up with the news here I was hoping to ask for your valued opinions. If you have bought and are flying a P51 ARF can you tell me which brand is the best and why you think so? With my building time at a minimum I am leaning more towards ARF and hoped you would like to contribute information. If it's easier to send email please send it to:

[email protected]

Thank you!

H9's P51 is tops all around, hands down that I've personally seen There are several threads going with tips to make it even better. Check them out.

Thanks for your reply Robotech. That's more information than I had before! I should have also included in my post that I am interested in a 40 size P51. I think the H9 P51 is a 60 size if I'm not mistaken?

Also....I did use the search feature here and found some input to this question by another modeler. It appears that in the 40 size the popular one is the World Models P51. I'm curious to know also if anyone has knowledge of the Model Tech P51 ARF? Are they good or bad and why?

Thanks all.

No first hand knowledge here, but our club president has the World Models .40 size Miss America, and it flies great, not appearing to have any of the scary warbird traits at low speed. As with most WM planes, you may want to swap out the retracts for Robarts if you plan to fly off grass.

I did a little bit of research before buying mine so here's the lowdown...

OK/EZ Mustang 45, Dago Red, or Voodoo - Great flyers with an absolutely amazingly wide performance envelope. MAN did a review and gave it quite high marks. The included Supra gear are supposedly very good. Very expensive though.

World Models Mustang, Miss America, or Dago Red - Very good flyers, no bad tendencies. A little less scale with wing length ailerons, but that's made up for by excellent lightweight construction and great iron-on covering. I've had the priv to see this model fly and it's quite nice. Isn't able to slow down (well without stalling) as well as the EZ or Kyosho, but then again you woulda bought a fun fly if you wanted to go slow. The included WM retracts are good to adequate depending on whether or not you fly off grass. Reasonably priced.

Great Planes Mustang ARF - How in the world did GP, who makes an excellent kit with a wing based on the same airfoil as the Kaos, screw the ARF up? Well they put on a bunch of weight and a completely different wing. I've handled this plane and even with fixed gear it's heavy. It's also pretty non-scale looking, the fuselage looks way fat, and the plastic cowl/spinner look giant sized. Flies OK with a 46 2C, better with a 70 4C, and best with a 60 2C. Keep the speed up, it likes to dip a wing when it stalls. No retracts included. Same price as others that come with retracts.

Kyosho Mustang - Light is the best word to describe this model (and all the Kyosho warbirds from what I've read). I bought this plane. Equipped with a 46 2C, 6 servos, and DBP mechanical retracts, it weighs in at 5.5lbs dry. Without the retracts, this model could easily have been 5.25lbs or lighter, which probably makes it the lightest 40 sized Mustang around. Semi-symmetrical airfoil and light wing loading means that this model is probably second only to the EZ in terms of flight characteristic. Mine can knife without loosing altitude! Flies a lot like a pattern, but slows down very nice. Looks awesome with the retracts up. Major problem with this model is that the covering is sticky backed and in the sun/heat begins to resemble a bulldog wrinkle and all. Doesn't seem to effect the performance, but looks like absolute sh*t. For $169, we should get iron on. No retracts included. Wait for this model to go on Tower's inventory reduction again, they went down to $124 the last time around.

VQ Mustang both B and D models - Big yipee for B admirers. I believe the only manufacturer to offer a B ARF. VQ is made in Vietnam and had questionable quality in the past, but I've read that they've overcome some of the their past shortcomings. I believe that they are covered with sticky backed film and retract quality (probably Supra clones) will not be as good as the others.

VMAR Mustang - If their measurements are right, I'd stick a 60 in this model. A bit too big and heavy for a 46. Not too much feedback to be found about this model.

Modeltech Mustang - Wildcard of the group, not too many people have posted feedback regarding this model. I'm guessing that it's still just a bit too early (all the others have been out for over a year). Looks good and covered with real iron on film. The included retracts and aluminum spinner are a plus.

As you've already read, I wound up with the Kyosho. I got it during one of Tower's inventory reduction sales and wound up getting the model for $124 - $15 coupon (yes I did buy a couple of other things to break $150), so it was more a $$$ thing than anything else. But I'm happy with my purchase. I've got 5 flights on mine and the plane performs very well. Landings are about as slow as my Avistar (not quite as slow as my Uproar), and the DBP retracts (designed for up to 60 sized planes), have held up very well even though I fly off of grass. But if I had to do it all over again, I probably would pick up a WM Miss America. The color scheme on any warbird paint scheme Mustang is not all that good in the air, which isn't so good when you have a 40 sized model capable of 80+ mph...

Hope this helps!

Thank you Rex and f2racer

I asked for and got a boat load of great information on the P51 ARF topic. You guys are awesome!!!

It appears that the World Models might be the one I am leaning towards. With so many others offering good info on this brand it's hard to ignore. Word of mouth gets a high vote from me!

If anyone has any input on the Great Planes Corsair ARF 40 I'd appreciate hearing from you. Are their any reviews out their on this model? Also.....I have a Global Skyraider ARF 40 that would be good to hear about if anyone has put one together and flown one....or seen one fly?

Thanks again guys for your excellent advice and help!

I have a WM Miss America and really like it. Assembly was a breeze, and it balanced perfectly with an OS .70 4C and all gear mounted in stock locations. Very smooth in flight... it 'grooves' well. The wire used in the landing gear is on the weak side and will bend if you're flying from a rough surface... either be prepared to rebend the gear every so often or add some Robo-struts and modify the wheel wells to fit.

I know with their price the OK Models EZ P-51 ARF is usually out of the ballpark for what anyone is looking for, but as they say, you get what you pay for! I have one with a Saito .72 up front with the supplied Supra retracts and a McDaniel on board glow driver. Haven't weighed it, but I guess it weighs around 6-7 lbs. Performance is unbelievable. It will go vertical until I can't see it anymore! The roll rate is impressive on low rates, and spectacular on high. Quite fast, but slows down pretty good, still get a little nervous flying it too slow. I land it fairly fast, but haven't had any problems with the gear bending at all, it's smooth on landing. The only complaint I have, it with it's beautiful "chrome" finish, the sky reflects off of it sometimes making the plane hard to see in the air!!! When (not if, cause I know I will) I eventually run her into the ground, I'll probably fork out the money for another since it flies so well.

Crash,

I have the ModelTech P-51 ARF with an OS 46fx in the nose and I really don't have any "bad things" to say about it. I picked mine up on sale for $169 a few months ago.

I am somewhat of a "newbe" in that I have been out of the hobby for 15+ years and decided to get back in, and chose this plane as my first to return with.

It assembles well and quite easily. I was impressed with the plane as soon as I opend the box. The covering was in perfect shape, everything was straight and true. One thing that I was not to enthused about was ALL of the hardware is metric. I lost some parts in my basement and had a little trouble finding replacements at the LHS but finally found what I needed. One other thing that I don't particularly like is that they used wood engine mount rails. At one point, all of the glue joints broke free and needed to be re-glued.

As for the flying of the plane, it is GREAT!! My first flight was not very succesful as I tired to tackle it on my own. After 15 years of rust to nock off, it was quite hir raising. I ended up ripping the left gear out on "landing". I call it a landing but it was more of a crash! Anyway, after repairs were made, I enlisted the help of an instructor and have had nothing but success since.

This plane has no bad tendancies as some other warbirds may have. Tha tail does lift off well before the plane is ready to fly, so you have to keep it on the runway to build up speed. Everyone at the field that has flown it has remarked how well it tracks and "goes where you point it". I have had no problems with the included retracts, however I did need to bend them as far forward as I could, and bend the tailwheel up to help reduce the tendancy to nose over on landing in the grass. I have not tried a grass take off yet.

Landings are faster than a trainer but nothing you can't handle. All in all, I love the way this plane flys and looks

There is a solution to mechanical retracts and their wire bending tendancies.
Look in the Tips & Techniques forum.

I have the WM .40 P-51 with a Pro 46. After three or four years it still flies great! 9 out of 10 from me!

Flew my Kyosho again today (after a month hiatus from it), and I'm gonna say it again, what an absolutely sweet flyin' plane. Outta all my planes, my Mustang flies knife edge the best, believe it or not. The plane handles like it's on rails. Fast or slow, the plane really doesn't care too much. Stall characteristics are awesome, it just dips its nose, letting go of the elevator and adding throttle are all that's needed to recover. My Dave Brown Products retracts have held up very well even though I fly off grass and tons of people have told me that I'd regret having retracts on the plane. In a dozen or so flights, I haven't had to touch them yet... The only problem to date is the Mustang's tendency to nose over on landings. It always happens when the plane is slowing, not when it first touches down. Not a big deal, I'll just use MAS props

I sure agree with you, f2racer. The Kyosho P-51D ARF flies like a dream and lands like a trainer. If only they had covered it with Ultracote or Monokote!

Thanks F2Racer, you are indeed very knowlegable on Mustangs. You hit the nail on the head! I wanted to put in my 2 cents on the OK/Altech P-51. I am now on my third in the last ten years. I'm not sure how they do it, but the OK P-51 flies much better than it should. OK must be hiding some secret airfoil. I think it is the most "scale" of the P-51's. I do say that loosely, as none are anywhere near true scale. The Chrome finish is stunning when new, but can scratch easily. The foam board is actually very forgiving of hanger rash and holds up well with a lot of use. Being a true "ARF" guy, repairs consist of ordering replacement parts it if needed. It also uses "metric" hardware, but I replace all with quality stuff from the local hobby store anyway. All of my OK Mustangs have been powered by .60 and .75 two-stroke motors, and one had dual batteries, seven servos and handled the weight w/o developing any bad habits. The servo driven sliding canopy "Dallas Doll" version was my pride and joy back in '94. My current OK P-51 is powered by an OS .61 and flies just as good as the older ones. It have it trimmed to match "Wee Willie II" out of Chino Ca. I havent flown it much because I don't have access to a paved runway. The gravel was damaging the finish, so it is hangered for now. For those looking for a high quality (pricey!)alternative, the OK/Altech P-51 is a nice choice.

Another flyer came to the field with a (this is the second I've seen now) GP Mustang ARF. What a pig. Even with fixed gear, it probably weighed about 1/4-1/2lb heavier than my retract equipped Kyosho. It was equipped with a OS 46FX and struggled to get off the ground. In fact it took probably 200+ feet of rollout to get enough speed to lift off! For comparison purposes, my Kyosho gets airborne in about 50-75 feet every takeoff. And the GP needed to be landed on the hot side. It seemed to want to drop a wingtip when stalled, and it stalls earlier than any plane I've ever seen.

I've got a friend who flies a kit buit GP Mustang and it couldn't be more different. It flies like a classic pattern plane (probably because it shares its airfoil with the chaos and ultra sport) much like my Kyosho. The kit and ARF are 2 completely different designs, don't really know why GP decided to make the 2 different.

I've heard that some people have had good results with the GP ARF putting in a 61 2C or 70+ 4C, but this is probably one ARF you want to stay clear of...

Well, as bad as I wanted the P-51B from VQ, I put it back after close examination of the thin plastic wing seats and tips. I determined that all those would have to be replaced soon. Sniff, Sniff, It is one SWEET looking p-51 in warbird green with battle scars and everything.

If anyone has a better review of the VQ-p-51 please let me know, I would love one.

THanks
Kirby

In a .40 size...the World Models Dago Red is tops.

Reasons....price...214.95...Sound high ?
It has all fiber-glass fuse...
Fiber-glass cowling...with a clear plastic "practice" over-lay cowling for cut-outs, and holes, ect...
Fiber-glass wing tips...
Fiber-glass Radiator scoop...
Comes with alum. spinner ( $20.00 )
Comes with painted pilot...
Retracts...already installed....

The world Models planes are absolutely Top-Notch, there are none better on the market...everything fits...all the hardware is usable...and they are beautiful.

Flight is wonderful, with nothing "bad"...no tip stalling, no snapping...flies on rails.

Forget about puttin' a .40, or a .46 in it. Use a .61 2-stroke, or a .72 or so 4-stroke. I had an O.S. .90 4-stroke in mine...no problem.

They are fast...and come in fast...but trying to float any War-Bird in....is lookin' for trouble.

The 4-stroke sounds like too much, at first...but with a big Cermark battery pack it balanced perfectly.

The Dago Red is easier to see than the silver ones...and the fire-wall is good and strong.

There is a way to get rid of all the sags and wrinkles on the Kyosho Mustang. Just let it sit out in the sun for a couple of hours, then bring it in and use a heat gun on the covering. Keep moving the heat gun over the sags and wrinkles, and the covering will tighten up. I used the heat gun on my Kyosho Spitfire and ME-109, and the sags and wrinkles have yet to return.

I hate to admit this, but a freind just gave me a new voodoo in the box. I was thinking 46 or maybe a 50 for power. What do you think? Does the kit have any traps I should look out for?

I own the WM .40 size P51 (58") and the GSP P-51 (68"). Both are good planes. The Wm is now my regular flyer along with hit and misses on the other planes. I saw the Hangar 9 over the summer. Although the pilots were idiots and crashed them I was impressed with the plane and bought one. It will be my project this winter. Wiil stuff a Saito 120 up front. I do believe this Hangar 9 is the best one around at the moment of this size. WM's larger ones are also very good.

....I just got my "replacement" WM Dago Red last
week. The O.S. .90 ( old style ) 4-popper is
goin' back in it. This time I will fit a remote glow
system. Gettin' that glow starter off the motor,
under-side....1/2 inch from the prop was a real
challange.

kingwoodbarney.....

Hate to sound like a dummy....what the heck is
that Voo Doo your talkin' about ? Can you post
a pic ?

Well personally I don't see how you can beat the WM 80" ARFs. They fly great!

Voodoo is a mustang modified for Reno air racing. It competes in the unlimited or "Gold" race. It is comparable to Dago Red or Straga. But if you and your buddy wnat to chase one another around. Dago red and Straga are both Red. Voodoo is purple and yellow and green with a little bit of black and white checkers here and there. So, we all don't look the same.
Ez makes it. Essentially it is the same as Dago Red. They are fairly fast, maybe the 115mph range. They won't win at real pylon race. I've seen others turn speeds in the 160 to 170 range. How ever, if you just want to kick around your home field, they are plenty fast. The only thing is, the box says it comes in between 6 and 7 pounds. I believe the model is supposed to be designed for a 46. But that weight sounds kind of high for a forty size model.

As far as the durability of EZ's. I have had three over the years. They aren't that durable. If you accordion the fuselage, your done. However, I have given them a pretty good lick without any consequences as well. Generally, the damage is extensive enough, although usually not that apparent at first, that the repair will add enough weight to kill the magic. Energy from an impact tends to radiate a long way thru an EZ model.

As for there price: When I was in my twenties, I wouldn't dream of spending that kind of money on a model. Now in my forties, with "time" being the precious commodity, they are a bargain! They always fly very well, they always look good, and they save me months of building time. For a hundred bucks more than a kit, its more than worth it to me. I don't expect them to last as long as a kit. In five or six years, they really start to show there age and maintenance goes way up.

So much for comments, tell me what engine I should use. I am thinking the new OS50 or a 46. I love Os. I have had real good luck with them. What are you guys running on the EZ dago reds.

Ok...( DUH )....the VooDoo Mustang....sorry, had
a little brain-fade there.

I'll get right to the point....forget the .46 or .50 !
Most guy's ( including myself ) put .90 four strokes
in 'em. I had a O.S. .90 in mine, and it was
perfect. You could use an O.S. .60 two stroke if
you wanted, but the 4-poppers are just really cool.

I used a big battery in mine, because of the 6 servos
and the retracts, and it balanced OK.

BTW, I drove mine straight in full throttle from about
500 feet, and the fiberglass fuse on the WM Dago
Red didn't break. I had her propped up to only turn
about 9500, and it was only going in the 100 MPH
range. Finally got a new one last week, they were
on B.O. for a time.

Dave.

WHOOPS....but I wasn't kidding about the fuse !
The plane hit, and bounced back up 3 feet in the
air !

Wow, I wasn't expecting to hear a .90. I don't know if I could cram one of those into the Voodoo. I have seen them with the .70 surpass in them. Very fast. And it did fit.
Is your WM Dago Red the same size and weight as the EZ or maybe a little larger.
Also, I have only owned one four stroke. It was on a great big Extra 300. The motor wasn't quite enough for the plane. I tried to peak it out, but it kept dying on me. After about thirty or forty dead stick landings, I sold it. It had other problems too. I bought it used. Anyway, the experience left me doubting my ability to tune a four stroke. I just don't get the same feed-back. They seem to sound the same lean or rich.
Having said that. Hum! A four stroke. You have me thinking. :idea: