Finally got round to putting my KMP Glastar kit togther.I did an electric converstion on 6 s.Test flew at the weekend and wow,this is one of the most stable and pleasant flying models that I`ve flown for a while.Beautifully balanced,no nasty tip stalling,sedate but also nice rolls and loops.Landings are a breeze,no pitch change with flaps ,just floats in rock solid.Nice!

I can`t believe there is virtually no coverage/reviews of this ARTF!

Here`s a couple of pics taken before the maiden flight.The nose leg is from Sierra Giant scale which is the only modification I made.

That's one nice looking bird. Are you going to try and modify a wheel pant for the nose gear?

David

Hi Dave,
Yes,looking into that at the moment!

Steve

Oh she looks pretty ...

Dave are you now tempted to move into big EP planes? Heheheehehehee ... no more 47"planes but at least 74"!!!

Honestly I did not even notice it was electric powered. I just thought it was a great looking plane. I know EP is the wave of the future but I still just own the one 47"[].

david

I just bought the Glastar from Kondor and as it arrived it was beautifully packed but has no instructions. I am having difficulty, for instance, locating the wing anchor for the struts. It was rolling around inside the wing as a small wooden block with a blind nut in it. In addition there are numerous small pieces of wood (about 1 inch square) that I have no idea of what to do with them. Kondor was suggested they were inserts for a foam core wing to anchor hinges, however this model is not sheeted foam, it is a built up wing from balsa. Kondor so far has not been much help in locating a instruction book for me. How did you locate the strut anchor on the wing? If anyone has the assembly instructions and could scan and email to be I would be most grateful.

Steve, Don't know if its the pic or not, but I think you mounted your main gear backwards.

sj3cub,

The gear is actually correct as shown for the trike version. The fuse has two gear locations molded in - the rear for the trike and the forward for the tail dragger. I built mine as a trike, but did not like the ground handling. Even with the gear raked rearward, the whole thing was short coupled, leading to nose overs on landing and "tippy" ground handling. In disgust I converted mine to a tail dragger config. When the tail dragger version is built, the gear is turned around so that it has a forward rake.

My plane was one of the earliest built from 2003. The following comments are for that older version only, and may have changed on later builds:

1. The ply structure on the floor MUST be reinforced with gussets at the front if the taildragger version is built. As from the factory the front gear plate is 1/8" and cantilevered from the structure with no gussets. The gear will flex about 2" until stiffener gussets are added. One marginally bad landing would have ripped the gear off easily. After gussets added, it is fine.

2. The strut locations in Steve2972's pix are not to scale where they attach to the fuse. Correct is near the rear window, with a forward rake resulting.

3. I was flying my plane this afternoon, and had an emergency landing after the thing suddenly needed 10 clicks of right aileron to be in trim!! I thought I had lost an ail servo or something, but the real cause was easy to see upon landing. The aluminum fitting on the lower end of the right strut had pulled out during a roll, and the strut was no longer taking the load. This plane MUST have struts for flight - the thin wing and minimal spar demand FUNCTIONAL struts!! I was lucky to get it down in one piece.

I thought these struts were sheet aluminum plated on either side with wood. Wrong. They are solid wood with aluminum tabs at the end, BARELY GLUED IN WITH CA!! NOT THE WAY THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED. BE FOREWARNED!! CHECK YOURS OUT.

4. This is one of my favorite models. It flies with grace, is very smooth, and lands if it is on rails.

5. A few clicks of down elevator are needed to counteract pitch up with the flaps deployed. I mixed this in with the couputer radio. Neat.

6. My plane has a foam wing from the factory. This may have been changed on newer models.

7. Some spider cracks from age, vibration, and lots of flying have appeared at stressed points on the fuse, notably where the vertical stab fairs into the fuse, and at the strut mounting points. Hopefully these will not cause a disaster some day!

8. I use an OS Surpass 91 with pump. GREAT engine. I mounted with the anti-vibe DuBro mounts and use onboard glow from Electrodynamics. The engine is more than enough, and I typically fly at about 3/4 throttle. An .80 four stroke would be perfect too. Not sure the DuBro mounts are very effective, but have no scientific evidence that they are or are not.

gjlazar,

I may have the instructions. I will look, and if I can find, will PM you about them. I can say however, that the blind nuts were factory installed into my foam wing. They were a bit difficult to locate, but I did find them. No blocks for them were to be installed by the buyer. If yours are rattling around, you have a problem that will require some wing surgery.

Regards,

Randy Little

sj3cub,

After checking, I take it back! As shown, you are correct, it is backwards. After the short coupling handling problems I had with my plane as a trike, I would advise leaving it as shown, raked rearward. I bet it will handle better.

Regards,

Randy L

PS: You shop at KC Hobbies?? I do. What club are you in? I am in W-S R/C.

http://www.kmp.ca/images/instruction...structions.pdf