Anybody done one yet. I have a 46 LA laying around that needs a home an the Big Bee sounds like just the place to put it.

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXKSW8&P=0



Ronnie

My Father-in-Law has one. The quality was horrible. The wing ribs that glue the wing tips to were bowed. The balsa was very rough cut. I would not buy one.
Sorry,
John

Was this a kit or the arf?

Ronnie

The ARF. I do not believe you can get the kits anymore. I would love to have a kit.
John

I have that larger Lazy Bee kit, still in the box, ordered from Andy Clancy not long before he became affiliated with Hobby People. Just haven't gotten around to building, yet.

Since then, I picked up the little ARF Lazy Bee, gosh what a hoot! I'm flying that on electric, but I think I'll see what it does with a .15 next summer. Delightful little plane, great quality.

Good luck,
Dave Olson

Thats a dirty dang shame, thats what happens when you get involved with a big Co. Most big Co's motto is "Get The Buck, F*** the Customer.


Ronnie

Whoa guys....stop the boat!! I have one, the Big Bee ARF, and it was just fine, with arrow straight control surfaces and was a blast to fly with a Thunder Tiger .54 four stroke on it. Only required about 1/3 to 1/2 throttle at any time. Did some of the craziest looking loops and rolls seen by man! Well, that was my second one.....the first went in on the first loop due to the physical size of the control rod to the elevators---too small to do the job. It went over the top and the elevator straightened right out and down she went! Called and wrote and they replaced the plane for me once explained. I popped the second one together which was another arrow straight one by the way, and used 4-40 hardware on the elevator and a high torque servo and never looked back. Put some crazy loooking photos of passengers in the 10 or twelve windows and the kids loved it! Have since sold it and its still flying well.

That's the problem of only having one example to look at but I can assure you if you saw this Big Bee ARF you would not want it either. I've built Sig, Phoenix and Great Planes ARF's. I can only say this thing was a huge disappointment. If this had been my first ARF I never would have bought another one. It's two thirds built and likely will never be completed as my Father-in-Law's heath has deteriorated to the point where he is no longer capable of finishing it.

John

Is yours one of the ARF's (Big Bee) that Tower sells for $159.00? If so, let me ask you about the Hi torque servo and any other fixes you needed to do to make it a dependable flyer.

Thanx,
Ronnie

Yes, it is the Big Bee ARF version as previously stated. I went with a 4-40 pushrod for the elevator and used a high torque servo to drive it. Larger tires were installed as I fly from a grass strip. Those big Trexler tires would be perfect for this plane! The larger pushrod is a must in my opinion. Added cartoon character pics to each window and the kids loved that! I really believe you can fly this plane on a 30 sized four stroke. It needs no power and flys on the wing great! My .54 four stroke was plenty of power.

I bought the Big Bee ARF too, after many flights with my small lazy bee's I figured the big bee arf would be just as much fun. I had 3 of the small ones powered with a Magnum 15 and they were fast and flew great on rudder and elevator.

I have not had my big lazy bee in the air yet, but I have made a few beef-up's.
All of the frames under the wing - I added doublers so I could grab the fuselage without squeezing the sides together and breaking the frames.
Added tri stock to the firewall as best I could using epoxy.
Removed the stock landing gear and beefed up the flooring and added an aluminum landing gear with 3.5" wheels with a 14 wheel base and 6 inches tall.
Beefed up the tail lower skin with plywood and added a Goldberg/Klett tail wheel assy with a 3/4" wheel.
Added tri stock to the horizontal stab.
Installed a well running MDS 48FS PRO. Way more than what is required, but this is the single change that makes it fun!

Good luck with yours!......Brian

J-3, pay close attention to the mod on the elevator linkage....trust me on this one. My 2-56 stuff just bowed and let the elevator straighten right out on the down side of the first loop and down she went! The 4-40 stuff never let that happen. It's a huge elevator and needs the extra ridgidity to drive it and keep it in position.

Pappy, was you able to use the stock control horn for the elevator, or did you hafta change it also? What about the rudder servo, will it be alright with a standard servo and linkage?
I'm just wanting to know what extra I need to order from tower next week. I hate to have the plane all done except for one thing I forgot.


Ronnie

Used the stock control horn and drilled as necessary. Used a little CA in the holes to beef up the balsa. The rudder needed nothing and I used standard servos and a 2-56 rod. The rudder is incredible effective on this model. Remembering back to when I built it, I also added a couple of cross braces to the fuse area to keep it from collapsing when lifted. You will enjoy how the plane flies and handles. Its a breeze to land and do touch and go's with and does some crazy aerobatics. In a light breeze you can almost walk up to it and carry it off the feld instead of landing it! I routinely landed acrosss the runway in crosswinds and it only takes a couple feet to roll out. Same with take offs in a cross wind...blip the throttle and you are off the ground.

Thanks happypappy for the info. I just looked at mine again and the elevator rod goes through two frames on it's way back to the elevator and it is inside a plastic tube. Mine is pretty stiff and doesn't look like it could flex much at all. I am wondering if there was a change to the linkage once they found out??

I am glad to see a little activity on this airplane as I was begining to think I was the only person to buy one! I have had a blast with all of mine and hope to get the first flight on my Big Bee soon. Many thanks to Andy Clancy for a great design...Brian

One thing to remember, J-3.....mine went through the same two crossmembers and had the same plastic tube. Its a simple change...Up to you!

You was right!!!!!!! The one I got was really bad, covering terrible an etc. Sending it back today, told'em I didn't want another, just credit my CC an forget it.

Ronnie []

It's really a shame with all the good ARFs being built today to run into something like this. I was hoping based upon what the others posted, that the quality had got better. The design certainly deserves better!
John

I really believe my $69.99 World Models Skyraider Mach II has a better covering job and better looking wood and joints than the big bee arf.

Ronnie

Several years back World Models had a copy of the Big Bee they called it Crazy Panda. It only had rudder and elevator control, but if you split the elevator and programed in elevons it was a blast to fly. World Model had to suspend their sales due to copy write or patten infrignment, but if you look at Airborne Models website in their special's section they still have them listed for $109.00. I hope the one that Tower has now is up to snuff cause I just had my wife order one for me. Was giving thought to going electric on this one but will wait to see what it looks like when it gets here.

Hello, where can I buy the kit for this model?

Thank you.

-


Any standard 40 to 52 inch/oz. torque servo is more than adequate for this model. You do not need high torque servos.

A 2-56 pushrod is fine as long as you support it via tubing over the wire part as it goes to the elevator horn. However, other than the weight penalty, there are no real disadvantages to using a 4-40 pushrod, especially if it is unsupported (not captured in tubing to prevent bowing).

Let's not make this a bigger issue than it truly is, concerning servo torque, etc.


Ed Cregger

You need to slide a piece of brass or plastic tubing over the pushrod end before you put the clevis on. Then glue the tubing to the fuselage side at the exit point. This is usually done with tubing that is very thin and fits the wire very closely. This will prevent the problem you have described. If you're not up to doing all of this, then using the 4-40 wire ends was the correct decision. Even then I will using tubing fastened (anchored) to the fuselage as 4-40 will also bend if subjected to enough pressure.


Ed Cregger

I see this thread hasn't been active for about 6 years now. I hope someone can still answer my question...

I bought the Big Bee ARF from Tower probably 10 years ago. It arrived with lots of damage. The ribs in the center part of the wing were all broken and had to be reassembled like a jig saw puzzle. Thank goodness all the pieces were there. The bulkheads in the fuselage (under the wing saddle) were all broken and had to be reinforced. I'd given up on this airplane and it languished under my work bench for 10 years.

About a month ago, I repaired all the damaged pieces and assemble the whole airplane. I flew it for the first time today and was a bit disappointed. Apparently the CG location in the instructions is way off. The instructions say the CG should be between 5 1/2" to 6" from the leading edge. I balanced mine at 5 3/4" and it was way nose heavy. Even with full up trim I had to maintain back pressure on the stick to keep it from diving at the ground. I was able to land it without damage, but now I'm puzzled.

Does anyone know what the actual CG location is supposed to be?

P.S. I'm using a Magnum 52 four stroke for power and it had plenty of power to get it off the ground and keep it in the air even with the plane being so badly out of balance.

Documentation is long gone but try this CG calculator. http://adamone.rchomepage.com/design.htm#calculate
John