Has any one flown this plane? Wondering what the finished weight is ? And how is flys.

Thanks,

You couldn't ask for a better "beat around the sky" plane. I have fun fly planes, scale planes and giants, but for windy days, low ceilings, fog, all around goofing off, my Joss Stick is my plane.

My Joss was one of the older ARC kits and it is covered in yellow Monokote. The weight came in just over 10 lbs with my modifications.

I sawed the wing apart and put in 3 inches of anhedral and fiberglasses the wing back together. I split the ailerons into separate ailerons and flaps, each with its own servo (4 in the wings) and I use the Hangar 9 Ultra Stick program for flaps, crow, etc.

The power is a Magnum 1.08 with a 16-6 APC prop and I can't say enough about this engine. It's fairly light, turns a big prop, starts in 1 or 2 backwards flips and screams through inside and outside maneuvers, snaps and flat spins without a hickup. I have read that some guys don't like Magnums, but my buddy Flaps and I must have good ones because they sure do run for us.

If you do build one, I recommend installing the dihedral brace upside down to get anhedral. This cures the roll due to yaw when you use rudder, making knife edge and point rolls much easier. Built with stock dihedral, the plane rolls every time you touch rudder. I would also cut flaps 8 inches long. Cut the servo mount pockets and the holes for the flap & aileron servo leads before joining the wings. I also used a larger tail wheel assembly off a giant so mine sits nearly level.

If you need to know anything else, please e-mail.

I've owned 2 of these great planes. The first one, like the previous post, was the ARC version. I don't have the weight on it but assume it was close to the second one, the ARF version. I built both to specs, the 1st one with dual airlon servos, the second with a single servo using the torque rods included with the kit.

1) I liked the ARC version the best because it gave me the option to dual-servo the wing without having to modify it. I flew it with a Magnum XL 1.20 2-stroke. When that engine was running decent (rare) it ran like a bat-out-of-hell and was my excellent 2nd airplane after the trainer. However, my improving flight prowess overtook my brain and I ended up Spit-SSSing it into a tree at full throttle. We found the undamaged engine over 75' away from the tree base -- half of the wing, with servo, remained in the tree.

2) The second version was the ARF -- I assembled it according to instructions. I also started using the Magnum XL 1.20 (weight was 9.5lbs with this configuration). I switched out the Magnum for an OS FXR 1.08 (BX-1) and fell in love with that engine immediately. Airlon response was farely robust but the 3" dihedral really put a damper on the roll and loop tendencies. It actually became a chore to do a simple precision airlon roll and a simple loop required a lot of rudder assistance. Unfortunately my flying prowess (lack of) again failed me -- this time my 50-year old eyes saw a tree 40' behind its actuall location. Alas the plane disintegrated into the side of the tree -- thankfully my prized engine was undamaged.

Recommendations: Dual-servo the wing and remove the dihedral by sanding down the roots of both wing halves. You'll have to carve a channel for the servo wires in the foam wing but you can easily cover that with film or balsa. Go with the upper end of the power requirements. This plane, regardless of what Model Tech says, will not fly with a measly 60. It needs at least a 90 and gives much pleasure with a l.08. If you want performance comparable with an Ultra Stick I would increase the width of both the airlons and elevator. If you want to knife edge think about replacing the horizontal stabilizer and rudder with a design similar to the Ultra Stick.

Possibilities are unlimited with this airplane.

To: Ed Mooreman,

Thank you very much for your reply and additional information.

I have been following your column in RC Report, which has interested me into aerobatic flying. The field reference cards are great, I have them laminated and in my field box.

I’m still at the learning stage, logged a lot of hours on a trainer and progressing to simple aerobatics. The Joss Stick should make an inexpensive aircraft to learn some of the maneuvers in your articles.

Thanks again,

Gary

Jim Hilley,

Thank you for the additional tips. They will come in very handy.

Gary