I just saw the new VMAR RV-4 in my LHS. Looks really cool and the graphics are great. The hobby shop owner is going to stuff a Saito 100 in one and see how it does. I know VMAR has gotten a lot of flak for being weakly built but this one looks really good, it even has flaps. I'm gonna pull the trigger and get one. They cost $149.95.

Has anyone else seen one?

Seen the add, its a cutie. Nice that you get a chance to check it out in person. Not many flyers have good things to say about Vmars but i had reasonably good luck with mine. I had the Apache, and an Arrow. both flew fine, but i didn't keep them long. (Sold them). They fly, but from what ive seen, the quality and performance is better at every other company.

I will have an RV4 Next week that I will be reviewing for RCU Magazine. I am hoping to have it ready in 3-4 weeks. I will keep you posted.

Erick

I'm thinking a Saito 91 would be a good choice of engine.

Just received my VMAR RV4 and I must say I am very Impressed. Previous posts pretty much slammed the VMAR Products. It seems there new Ultratough POLYCOTE ECS Enhanced Covering System is great. NO sags or blemishes on mine. The decals are made into the covering and will not come off.
One word says it all : "SWEET"

RCFalconFlyer,
How does the construction look below the covering? I saw that RV-4 advertised and it's a looker....but I've heard so much negative about VMAR that I'm skeptical.

Mike

Hi Mike
I am pretty new to the ARF planes and I just received the RV4 from Richmond RC. I have read alot of negative posts about VMAR, but they seem to finally have their company on the right track. The planes covering is almost flawless. The contruction under it from what I can see seems to be very neatly done. I've often heard that the balsa is of poor quality. Again, I've never scratch built a plane before, so my knowledge there is very limited. The decals being made into the covering is a great idea, they will never lift off. The plane is just beautiful. The only thing was..........boy did the box it came in have a terrible smell to it ???
For the $$$$ , it comes with a pilot with a fabric coat ect, pretty cheesey seat belt, Dashboard decal ect., again for $149, I don't think you can go wrong. Also. I only paid $49. for the GMS engine which with the regular muffler and the Pitts Muffler, was a super deal. The instructions are also VERY good. Alot of pictures in Color will make the assembly very easy. I give it a big thumbs up !!!!

Another thing I noticed was the balsa sheeting the fuse is thin. I could see through it very easily while holding it up to a light.

Just picked up the VMR RV-4 on Sunday....had to sneak it into the basement because I'm already sitting on a Kyosho GeeBee ARF,a GP ARF 1/3 Pitts kit and am awaiting a GP ARF 1/4 scale Patty Wagstaff 300S.

At first glance it is an awesome ARF, but I'll have to dig deeper to confirm.

Question for all......I plan on putting an O.S. 61 in the RV4. The instructions appear to "recommend" a 45 deg CCW mounting of the engine, or straight up, with the stock muffler sticking out like a sore thumb. Anybody see any reason not to invert the engine and stick a Pitts style muffler on this baby (insufficient cowl remaining or ?) ???

Also, is it just me or did anybody else do a double take and shudder on the use of collars to hold together the split control rods for flap and elevator?

Hinckley Bill
I just received my RV4 and I went with the GMS pro 47 engine so that I could keep it inside the cowl for a more scale like appearance.I will be using a "remote" glow plug adapter with it.
"Kelsey" at Richmond assured me that the 47 would have more than enough power to fly it. I too was concerned about the angle of the engine from the instruction manuals photo's considering I was going to use the pitts muffler.
I wrote "Kelsey" at Richmond RC and this is what he wrote back to me : ..............
("The Engine can be mounted pretty much any way that works for you. The manual is an illustration of a typical installation only. For your engine and specs you can change it around pretty much any way you like... thats the beauty of the power module system. Generally for Pitts Mufflers... mount so that the muffler output tubes are pointing downwards.")
I will be using the Pitts style muffler on mine and I'm pointing the pipes downward. Let me know how your assembly goes and if you run into problems. I've never assembled an ARF before or scratch build a plane, so my knowledge is very limited. Any help would be appreciated. Also, were your decals on the Rudder and Fuselage a bit "Off Center" from one side to the other and did your box it come in have a really bad smell to it? My wife said "GET it out of the House" Overall I'm very happy with the planes appearance and for the $149., I don't think you can go wrong. Looks like similar planes like it with the pilot ect. go for well over $200. I hope it flies as well as it looks.
Mike

Hurry up and mount those engines so we can get a flight report

Mike

I just test flew on Sunday the V-Mar RV-4 with flaps and an OS46fx. The 46 is more than enough power for this aircraft.
Be careful with the flaps, make sure you use enough throttle to compensate for the flaps, they are very effective. AS for the construction, I too was reluctant to purchase one of these ARF's because of the bad puiblicity. After looking it over I think that they have come along way in a short time. There are a few weak places, but the only place that was of concern to me was before and after the main landing gear, a bit flimsy, but the main gear blocks are solid. This plane flies very well and at lower speeds,
(not slower) it did not appear to have any bad habits. I like it and I am glad that I purchased it.

Ted Zaborski

What kind of speed did you get out of your 46. I'm now thinking of putting a YS 45 in one.

Ted:
Great news on the RV4 , I'm down to installing the engine.
I purchased the GMS Pro 47 from Richmond with my RV4 and it came with a Pitts Muffler. Did you use a Pitts or go with the O.S. Muffler? I'm still trying to figure out how to install the engine to try to keep a scale like appearance without overheating the engine.
I was really impressed with the covering. Amazing having all the detail already made into it. I had a hard time getting the decals to fit good on the wheel pants with out the edges starting to lift.
Some of my covering started to sag a bit on the flaps and the fuselage, but Kelsey at Richmond said that was pretty much the norm until the balsa becomes use to the high Humidity here in Indiana. I just used the heat gun and a soft cloth and it went right back to it's normal fit again. If you have any suggestions for me, they would be very much appreciated.
Thanks
Mike O.
[email protected]

Post some photos....
drdoom

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