Regarding the Robo strut. I have a TF Cessna which is about the same general size as yours. (more wing area). I have through trial and error found the ideal set up. Robart makes 2 kinds. Fork & Offset. The fork is fragile. Offset one is very strong. The blades that make ukp the fork will bend if you land anyway but perfectly straight. I have a tendency to hold on to the rudder too long on a cross wind landing. The nose gear is of course going to be at an angel to the force of the plane.....and bendo she goes. There is no repairing (rebending) possible. You can buy only the lower unit for this, but it's still costly and it will only bend again. The offset one is tubular and I have not been able to bend it on my landings. Call Robart and ask for the offset nose strut made for the Top Flight Cessna. I don't see it on their web site, but they have it.....The downside to this is that you probably won't be able to use your wheel pant with this. However, it is very rare to see a full size Cessna with a nose gear pant. I have flown the full size Cessna and I can tell you that most of us bang the heck out of the nose gear (and firewall) now and then. I fly off grass and just use the pants on the mains.

Cheers......Rich

There is another nose strut available on the market. www.sierraprecision.com

I have bought nose struts for my GP Lancair and my H9 Cessna 182.

There more money, but a lot more durable. I figure, if it saves ware and tare on my model, it's worth it!

http://www.sierragiant.com/prod19.html

Those look really good!

Any updates guys? This thread kind of died out

hi Airplaneman04,

Ill be happy to give the updates shortly. i am still awaiting the delivery of my aircraft..... the hobby shop ordered it 2 weeks ago and i still havn't seen it. Apparently their delivery dates are on monday and wednesday. so hopefully i should see it tommorow.

Kinda frustrating.

my club has a large display on this weekend and i had been hoping to get it airborne for then, however i dont think 3 days is enough for this girl to get airborne but ill see what happens, might take a day of work and really get stuck into it.

hope i can help soon.
Michael

Thanks Michael. I would love to take more time off myself from work,
to build airplanes. Unfortunately i have to work to get them in the first
place LOL . Well for your sake i hope u get yours soon.

Hi Folks,

Please,let me join to the club.Yesterday I"ve bought this beauty.Honestly,its my christmas present.Its awsome,beeeeautiful.In the shipping box everything is nice and neatly packed,not a single scratch.As for the engine I put a Moki 180 gasser on her nose.8 pieces Hs 475 hb servo will move the control surfaces and the towing hook.I"ll use it as a tow plane and for sunday flying.I hardly can wait for its maiden flight.

http://shop.lindinger.at/product_inf...ducts_id=61633

Georgee

Any other updates? Has anyone worked on theirs yet at all? Really wanting
to find someone here who will put a small gasser on this plane without
having to cut up the nice scale cowl.
Georgee, the moki 1.8 i think would be way too much engine!
You will have to add much weight to the nose. This bird is tail heavy !

Airplaneman04,

How do you mean that is a way too much engine?By power or by weight?Its weight is 1390 gr+ muffler125gr+igition+akkus ? gr.I"ve heard an other guy who uses a Moki 140 glow on its nose.He said its perfect for this plane.Personally,I"m not gonna thinkering with glow any more, at least in this size of engines.
This engine will be perfect.My other Moki 180. gas engine"s already proved to be a perfect choice in a Cmpro Ch Eagle which was extremely tail heavy when I tried to balance it.The power?Awsome.

George

Hey all ,

Well finally a month later my kit has finally arrived. I got a call from the hobby shop this morning. Ill be picking it up tommrow morning and the building shall commence.

Cant wait to see the girl leave the ground ( hopefully retun in one piece aswell)


Will keep you all informed

Michael

Michael, thats great ! Keep us posted of the progress.
What engine do you plan on running? I really hope to find
someone that will put a gas engine in this thing.

can i get any updates on this plane thank you

Hi pilots,

I`ve ordered one kit of the Cessna in October. I have to agree that everything was wrapped very well and looked excellent. But I started building this kit and to be honest I´m really wondering HOW this airplane will return to ground after it`s maiden flight [&o] The hinge of the rudder e.g. is a crime! Has anyone of you already fixed it??? The rudder is connected to the servo (Graupner / metal gear) and I can MOVE THE RUDDER of the whole range with my fingers FREELY! What`s that? The same with the elevator... The wood of the wing centre seems to be very weak.

As engine I chose a Saito 150 GK. Hope this was not wasting my money...

Any one of you with other experiences???

Regards Quax4412 [8D]

Connect the servo and a fully charged Rx battery pack to your receiver. Turn switch on. Now try to move the rudder.

Any of you guys got one in the air yet?
I've just picked one up to review for a UK magazine (RCM&E). Trying to decide powerplant. Toss up between my Moki 1.35 and a nice new ASP 1.60 twin four stroke.......

Andy

Hi Old Dutch,

that`s exactly what I did! And it moved!

It sounds like your pushrods are too flexible or not secured in the fuselage. Use some carbon fibre push rods or if they are snakes, you will have to secure them every 5-6 inches.

Yak

i just purchased this plane last night and had it next day aired....lol...to my dismay they wont ship it till monday and wont arrive till tuesday...some next day air huh..lol..anyways. did anyone find out about the 1/5 cockpit kit fitting or not, i purchased that and a 1.20 surpass w/ pump the new black top valve cover suprass.


DOES ANYONE THINK THAT MOTOR IS GOOD ENOUGH???? 1.20 surpass III w/ pump it should hold up right???????

let me know, im at the office working and really thinking about it more than work..lol

Stop worrying. You made a good choice for an engine. I don't know that the pump was needed, but it won't hurt anything. Just plan on putting that engine in there with a Pitts style muffler. I built a Top Flite Cessna 182 some years ago and it weighed in 12.5-13 lb. range. I powered it with an O.S. Surpass .91. In the years that I had it I never wished for more power. More than enough for scale like flight and then some. The TF had 100 more sq. inches than yours which possibly helped with the lift. However, a 1.20 Surpass would have been a lot more than necessary. I flew off thick grass.

Don't bother to install your nose gear. There are helpful suggestions in this thread. Get the best you can afford. Full size and model alike.....nosegear takes beating on a Cessna. Replacing it now will avoid a bad day at the flying field and possibly damage to your new bird. Bite the bullet and get a proper nose gear. And.......don't be caught flying this without a nice pilot sitting in the office. This isn't a drone!..........

has anyone made the 1/5 scale cockpit work for this plane I ordered this and am hoping for the best...

dutch: why do you think its too much engine. according to the specs its the lower end of engine it requires, thank god i didnt get the saito 180 i was darn close to getting that one instead. I heard the pump keeps it running really good and I dont want any engine or dead stick probs...

You just know this plane would be awesome with the 1.60 twin!

I'm sorry if I made it sound like your 1.20FS was too much. I started out by saying that you made a good choice. I'll stand by that! I just continued on to relate my own experiences with a similar plane. Your's is heavier and has less wing area. If you haven't a lot of stick time with a scale plane, flown in a scale manner, then this is yet another good reason for having a bit more power than actually needed. As your skill level develops you will find that you need less power to fly it like it really should be flown. I have flown the full size and I enjoyed it very much. Not once did I entertain the notion that I could fly aerobatics with it. And, no......not once did I ever see any pilot fly the full size inverted. I believe that the pumped engine will give you comfort. Especially as this plane has a rather high wing loading and is not known as a glider.

I have a friend who flys a 1/4 scale Super Club with an O.S. 1.20. It flys extremely well and he does loops and sloppy rolls with it. I think that it weighs every bit as much as your 182, and just as big. The engine is a good choice here too.

So, relax and enjoy!!

thanks for the re-assurance dutch. I look forward to flying this plane. I currently have a midwest superstearman with a os .91 surpass chrome top, and a carl goldberg kit extra 300 with a os 1.20 surpass chrome top w/o pump, they both fly extremely well. The stearman took a lil work but I got the incidence and balance right and now it flies great. The extra flies like its on rails, I just started rolling turns and it was cg'd and leteral balanced as well. I love to fly but I have a kid on the way now, and I dont think ill have the time to build the top flight kit, so I decided on a relaxing arf sunday flier. I think this is going to look nice once its finished. Im installing a slimline pitts muffler for my 1.20 for this cessna, there local in scottsdale,AZ in fact down the street. I will try to post pics of my cessna soon as its finished.

Does anyone know about the top-flight cockpit kit yet?? was there any modifications on the cockpit to make it fit or was it a drop in install?

Hello All,

I have been following this forum with great interest and am now wondering if anybody out there has put a Zenoah G26 gasser up front on this Cessna ?? I have seen the G20EI being fitted to this model , but being an old timer, I still fancy the Magneto Ignition, as it will also save carrying another battery.
My only concern is that it will be a bit much ( power wise) for this cessna??

Any opinions will be appreciated - many thanks -Bob.

Hi guys,

I'm Sorry i havn't been on here in awhile ( been to busy building). I am happy to say its coming along nicely. The left hand wing is completed and servoes installed and set up on the transmitter. As i am also a full size pilot and have many hours on a C182 Skylane, i have replicated all the throws and flap deflection and timing to make the girl as scale as i can. I am also fitting it with a complete lighting system ( landing lights, Taxi light, Strobe, Nav light, Rotating beacon etc) .

I have found only one problem with the kit as far being the ailerons dind't sit exactly in the recess as they were pre drilled holes, the aileron sat 1 or 2 mm higher then it should have. I didn't bother correcting it as its not visible unless your close up.

I was impressed with the hinges that double as a control horn. I havn't seen them before. Made for a quick and easy installation. I Found that due to the large distance from the control horn on the servo to the opening on the cover plates i had to use the adjustable servo horns from hitec and glued them together in the right place ( dont trust them alot for flight controls but its all i had on me at the time ).

I have also fitted all the landing gear ( i skipped a few instructions ) as i had to see the girl on her wheels . Still trying to sort out what i should do with the nose gear readng about others experience. Our field is a 150m concrete runway with no groves or bumps so i should be able to escape with the supplied nose leg. we will see.

What did everyone do for accessing the wheel axle nut in the spat to get it tight?? i gave up with pliers and grabbed a scrap piece of mild steel and cut out an opening and turned it into a 9/16 spanner with a nice bend on it so that it can get into the spat and between the wheel comfortably. Works really well!!!!!

Quax4122 what were you saying about the rudder hinge?? is it the input rod? i havn't touched the fin/rudder yet its all just sticky taped in place for looks atm. What am i to expect??? Also i received an admendment in my kit with some extra parts for the tail section to act as guides for the elevator and rudder control rods ( they must flex or something in flight or perhaps this is what your experienceing Quax4122) The extra plywood plates seem to prevent any sideways movements on the rods ( torque rods) . Did the rest of you get this admendment sheet? As i only just got the kit it may be a late revision and more then happy to post dimensions and pics for the modification parts.....

Do to my turbine Jet costing as much as it is to be built i couldn't justify purchasing a new engine so i am going to run with my saito 120 4 stroke turning either a 16-6 or a 14-8 depending on ground clearance etc etc etc.

I will endevour to post some pics of my progress as i have taken many, however i am at work atm and dont have them with me. But keep looking at this thread they will appear!

Many happy landings to you all
and merry xmas !!!!!

Michael