mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

Gabarger,

If your referring to the 91 Size that Seagull has out over in Europe and the Far East, I think you'll find that a 91 would be appropriate to power a plane with 70 inch wingspan. If and when we ever get a look at these new Seagull Decathlons, you'll see that the planes are wider and significantly bigger than the "40" size Decathlons, like the Phoenix/Black Horse and current Seagull offerings.

NorfolkSouthern

I would say that the light wingloading would mitigate the need for excessive power. I currently have the Lanier, and it needs very little runway to get off the ground with my .46 AX. Now I'm wondering if I should think about building a Sig kit, in light of what Tower might do to their Phoenix Decathlon. Midwest is done, you can stick a fork in it.

Everybody wants a Mustang....

NorfolkSouthern

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

Well, I got for sale! A P-51 for sale!


I just want a nice scale looking airplane that is aerobatic and I can do touch and goes all day long. Right now I have a Midget Mustang, great plane, but sometimes it would be nice to slow down and watch the plane, instead of concentrating all the time! I've been flying the plane since 2001. I think I'm getting old. All the planes I'm building now are STOL (KMP Husky and Super Cub) or General Aviation, like Cessna 182's.

NorfolkSouthern

Except me, of course. Oops [sm=52_52.gif] !

NorfolkSouthern

mydartswinger

I'd rather have an ME-109 if I was to go the WWII route. Mustangs are sweet birds, and I wouldn't mind one. I'd just prefer a 109, but for now I'm happy with my Tiger Moth as my "warbird" (even though it's in flight school trim). For the record, Tiger Moths were more like the AT-6 Texan series of airplanes, used primarily as basic flight trainers. The real ones can do aerobatics though. Enough of my rambling, back to the Decathlons.

NorfolkSouthern

Speaking of warbirds, how about a nice, BLACK JU87 Stuka with REAL miniature Jerico trumpet sirens? I bet that would go together nicely with my locomotive airhorn collection [>:] .

NorfolkSouthern

mydartswinger

Sweet!!! The German birds don't get near as much attention as they should (barring the Fokkers of WWI). I know, they get some, but not near as much as the American and British birds. I also know that part of that is because we were allied with the British, but what about the Russian Yaks (not the aerobatic 54s and 55s we all know so well in the RC world). Heck, down the line I'd like to build an ME-262 EDF jet (found the kit, just got to find a reason and the means to buy it, and build the skill needed to fly a twin. It's not a foamie jet either, it's a balsa and fiberglass constructed plane, roughly equivalent to a .60 size nitro).

Desertlakesflying

My Feedback: (28)

I have this KMP Christen Husky. It is powered by a 120 4 stroke. 15X7 3 blade prop

Wing Span.: 80in/2035mm
Wing Area.: 946sq in/61sq dm
Fuselage Length.: 53in/1350mm
Flying Weight.: 7-8 lbs.
Engine Spec.: .60 2 cycle or .91 4 cycle
Servo's Required.: 5 channels 8 servos

It's a perfect match. I don't know about scale, for all of you have to be scale people, but this thing flies like a dream.

So, I'm not sure why a 78" wouldn't use a 120 4 stroke. OF course before the floats it was very aerobatic and flew great. Now it's even better.

mydartswinger

Nice scale looking photo. Looks like it's landing on a lake in the mountains of Alaska, delivering food and supplies to villagers.

NorfolkSouthern

Scale is one thing, Cowboylifesaver. But by nature, I'm actually a kiter and that's essentially where my "aviation" interest started. From the old diamonds and boxes all the way up to the Top Of The Line Hawaiians and Revolution four-lines. The trouble was in finding enough wind to fly them, along with the limited choice of fields. What I have discovered in RC, is that in some cases a model can fly as good, if not better than its full-scale counterpart. And it's all in the overall design of the airframe; the shape remains the same.

Color and appearance have a heavy influence on a kiter's choice of wares. The Cheveron Hawaiians from back in the day were very attractive with their rainbow of colors, and how they would contrast with the sky on a pleasant afternoon with moderate winds. A Decathlon makes for an optimum choice here, as it indeed bursts with color in contrast to the blue sky; much like the kite dancing to the controls of the operator. The overall shape of these planes make them easier to see at higher altitudes, and this adds greatly to the flight latitude. Yes, you can achieve similar results with some of the variations of the Mojo, but those have to be kept closer and just aren't as smooth at the sticks.

NorfolkSouthern

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

Cowboy, I agree the 120 is obviously the right size for the 78" version of the Decathlon, but I think the Gentleman, earlier was inquiring about the 70" model.

I have the KMP Husky, still in the box, I was contemplating either a 91 Surpass or the 120????? The husky seems likes it's well built! Did you think it was a little heavy???? Your Husky looks sweet on those floats! I live at a lake, I think mine will end up on floats some day!

The problem, I've seen in many of these threads/forums, is that people try to shove absurdly large engines in models, only to have the model either shake itself apart or require extra weight to balance properly. Now, we also have the saying, "They all have a throttle!" pull it back!

Desertlakesflying

My Feedback: (28)

70" here I'd be using the 91. Had the 80" Great Planes 27% Cap 232 with the OS 160 that it called for, and it was barely enough.

The Husky actually balanced perfect with the 120, and here at 4600 feet altitude it works wonders having a little bigger motor. Not to mention prop size changes. Can't run the 14X7 3 blade on the 120, have to run the 15X7 for the same RPMs as I would get with a 14X7 at sea level. Now having the floats on the Husky, a 120 on the front is even better. I'm sure near sea level a 91 would work great. I went ahead and sprung for the more costly Sea Commander floats, and they have been well worth it.

Before you get to building yours, if you are thinking floats down the road, go ahead and build yourself a nice hardwood block the bulkhead behind the one the servo tray connects to. Saves a lot of hassles. I've seen more and flown a few on floats and I am more than impressed with the Husky. Have the step right on the CG and it takes a tiny touch of the elevator to get her off the water after shes up on step. Landings are unbeatable hands down. The second pic is how it comes down the entire glide slope.

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

Yes, on an 80" CAP, you would want a 2.4 gasser or 1.6 2-cycle, plus at your altittude there's no substitution for horsepower. I fly a Cessna 150 here at 1,000 I can imagine the lack of performance I would have hot humid days out your way! It's bad enough here in the summer. It's like, "okay" climb now!

Back to the Decathlons! So, I'm guessing we'll see these planes in the spring! Probably at Toledo, which is my Christmas!

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

So, has anyone seen our heard anything on these new Decathlon's??? Thought I would revive this thread!

NorfolkSouthern

I guess it's not going to materialize. Everybody wants a Mustang.

NorfolkSouthern

playntraffic

Any info on these being shipped to the US?

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

I keep waiting FOR SOMEBODY over at HORIZON to say if they are going to import these planes!!![:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@]

NorfolkSouthern

Still waiting, while this thread gets 265 pages :

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_3102050/tm.htm

NorfolkSouthern

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

We'll see, probably just a matter of time!

NorfolkSouthern

If it's any consolation, I can start putting up some pics of my HOB Decathlon progress to help keep the thread going while we wait...

NorfolkSouthern

steve2972

My Feedback: (2)

I`m currently putting the 120 size Seagull Decathlon together,doing an electric conversion - Turnigy 50-65 270kv+Turnigy 100 esc /6s 5300 Mah lipo.Nice kit,everything fits very well.

Will post some pictures soon.


Steve

mimoore67

My Feedback: (51)

Thanks Steve! Lots of pictures would be appreciated.

playntraffic

Look forward to it Steve. Please post lots of info since it may be awhile before the US gets this model

apalsson

My Feedback: (1)

I have been looking for a suitable candidate for my Zenoah G26 engine. I wonder how it would go in the Decathlon 120
It was last in a H9 Taylorcraft that had a bit of an encounter with a tree

What do you guys think?
How is the quality of Seagull models?

Mr67Stang

I have the Seagull 75 size Extra 300s and as per typical for a lot of ARFs the landing gear block broke out far to easilly and came apart at the glue joint not taking any of the collateral wood with it. If it's bad glue or just not enough glue I could not tell. The landing gear block (plywood) was very light and snapped in half on impact and seemed very flakey (Not flakey like an unrelyable freind but flakey like a buttermilk buiskit). After I constructed my own LG block out of some Sig 1/4 inch ply and epoxied it into place with balsa reinforced joints, I have not had a problem. Also as per typical the plane is misrepresented in advertizing. It is said to be a "3D" plane when in fact its a sport scale aerobatic. I new this going in but I still hate the misrepresentation for the sake of those who believe everything they read. My final opinion if Seagul Models is that they make a decent plane for less money than other manufactures. Just be ready to modify it to suit your wants and needs.