Hello I have just recieved a Nitroplanes OV10 twin engine ARF kit and need your help with the basic "do this " advice that I need to do before flying and while building. I am an acomplished RC helicopter pilot and have built heli kits befor, but this is my first Plank. I have been busy researching the forums but I'm new to this forum and not very good at navigating it yet. I have heard of "fuel prooffing the bulkhead" but not sure how to or what to use for this. I know on a heli to go over EVERY nut and bolt even if it's ARF, so what should I do to my new plank kit? I have concerns over the joints being properly glued, should I go over them with CA or something else. And how, with a syrenge? One of the common grips about Nitroplanes is the crapy instructions. mine is no exception, they suck! So even the most basic help you can give me will prolly help,,,,,thanks very much for the help . I'm thinking aobut two AP 15 for power, will that be average performance or better than average? Maybe I should go with two 25"s?. Or is there an eletric "power house" set up that is better,,,,,

Fuel proofing amounts to mixing up a batch of 5 minute epoxy and once you have it mixed well, ad an equal amount of denatured alchol mixing it well. Then brush on like a paint. I use a 1" brush. Cover everyting in the engine compartment and all that you can reach in the compartment that the fuel tank will nest in. The alchol will slow down the kick time so you will have time to paint without it kicking off and hardening.

Before doing this though, epoxy some triangle stock in as re-enforcements around the firewall, main bulkhead and around the landing gear mounts. A little thin CA on the fuselage doubler is a good idea. The trouble is that you can't get to a lot of the places that need inspection. On the wings, get a heat gun and work out all the wrinkles you can. Where the covering is stuck to a rib or is puckered on the sheeting, I've use blue masking tape to lift the covering slightly while it is hot. Plan on a couple hours fixing the covering.

Take a long hard look at the hardware supplied. After my experience with my ARF, I would be inclined to replace everything on inital build. This includes hinges, landing gear wires, push rods etc. The horns were not to bad on my plane, and they were re-used on rebuilds after two crashes. I replaced the motor mount as soon as I got a good look at the stock one. It was glass filled and resembled a prezzel. I went with a Dubro Aluminum mount. The stock wheels lasted a couple weeks before they started to come apart. I replaced the lite ply servo trays with 1/16" aircraft ply with doublers under the screws and then re-inforced the tray with 1/4" sq balsa to prevent binding.

If you have the strip ailerons, cut out the linkage and build in individual servos in the wings. There was no bearing tubes and the linkage went very loose in the first few flights. I replaced the CA hinges with Dubro hinges. Just make sure you keep a minimum gap between the fixed and movable surfaces. I use wax for teeth braces on the hinge pin area to prevent epoxy from sealing the hinge. I understand vassiline works also. I like the wax because you can apply it heated to a liquid and it doesn't smear around once it is back to solid. I used an xacto knife heated on an alchol lamp to the point it would just melt the wax and used very small amounts by touching the blade to the hinge. You can get very good controll where the wax sticks that way.

Don't rely on the flying surfaces and engine mounts to be at the right angles. I had to fly my trainer with three popcicle sticks under the trailing edge of the wing and added washers on the motor mount to help straighten out the flying. Even then, it trimmed with a lot of down elevator and right aileron, and would still drop like a rock with the throttle cut and climb like a rocket under full power. After a major crash, wiping out the fuselage, I built a stick style fuselage and use the old wings and tail section. I added 2 inches in length ahead of the wing and 3" behind. I also built in my three popcicle sticks adjustment. I couild have use four or five to really get the incidences correct.

Make sure the push rods are the correct length and will not bind with twisting and movement. I ended up replacing all of mine with golden rods because the wire ends were bad and even after I replaced the ends, the rudder rod would lock on the rear bulkhead.

Don

Lot's of good stuff there... I bought a Tower Voyager one time and when I pulled it out of the box, a structural piece fell right off. Hence, the importance of inspecting and adding some CA anywhere you find a weak joint. They can be very skimpy with the glue at the sweatshops!

Excellent advice so far... I just recently built a Blackhorse Super Air, it was by far the best Artf that I have built sp far. Every fitting in the kit was way above the usual standard for ARF's. It even included two different aluminium mounts, 1 for 4 strokes and another for two strokes!! All the hinges, were proper hinges, not just a bit of hairy mylar. They were all pre-installed and PINNED. The only thing I changed was the throttle linkage. I used a sullivan golden rod instead of the wire in tube provided. That was only because I used a 4 stroke motor and needed to get the linkage round a few shallow bends. If I had been using a 2 stroke motor, I would have gone with the supplied linkage. Make sure that you use a bit of Loctite thread lock on all nuts and bolts, especially on the motor mount to firewall area and the motor to motor mount. Some on the wheel collets will prevent embarrasing moments when your wheels fall of just before landing Pay special attention to, and spend lots of time on making sure that ALL flying surfaces/ linkages are as slop free as you can get them. This will pay dividends when it comes to trimming out your new model.

MAKE SURE THAT YOU DOUBLE CHECK THE CG POSITION..... It will prevent your ARTF becoming a kit all over again.

If this is your 1st plane, I would suggest getting a high wing trainer. A twin engine 10 size plane is NOT a good first plane. JMO.

R/C Foolish

Right. Even though you've flown Heli's, this is a good suggestion. Oh, and get a trainer that comes with good directions. That would be good practice for putting together your Nitroplanes arf.

Learning first is always a good thing.

Now, a word about Nitroplanes. I have seen several of this company's planes, and so far, every one needed to have the Landing Gear replaced. They use soft wire that will bend much too easily (as in - 3 or 4 takeoffs and landings and your props are hitting the ground)

I suggest you read up here on Nitroplanes/Raidentech, Leave it in the box and return it. But on the other hand, the way they do business, your stuck with it. Let it be a lesson learned.

Thankyou all very much for the advice,,,I do have Realflight G2 and am thinking of breaking in a pair of .25's in a trainer before trying the Bronco.
A few newbie ????
How do you fill the tanks with fuel if you can't see them to stop when full?( on a heli you can see the tanks to know when it's full) Can you direct me to a diagram for running fuel lines for a twin (or do you just treat it like two singles?).
I want to "pin " my hinges,,,how?
Before I drive you all crazy with newb ????'s is there a better reference I can study and find answers to basic build ?????'s
THANKS for the help and Happy Holidays to all,,,,

To know when the tank is full just watch the line going to the vent on the tank. This is the line going to the muffler, when the tank is full, the gas will start coming out of this line. On my Hangar 9 Corsair, I just look through the cowling and the gas will come out of the line. If I am not paying attention the gas will also come out of the muffler but I tr not to have this happen. Good luck.

Tom

Got it thanks,,,I was thinking of 2 AP 15's for power. They have small enough mufflers that they remian hidden in the cowl,,,,now how do I do it???