I have a Thunder Tiger Piper J-3 Cub ARF that has a 82.7” wingspan. The two piece wing is meant to be glued together to make a one piece. But if I do this, it will be too long to fit into my small SUV. So I would like to keep it a two piece wing for transportation purposes. But not sure what’s the best way of modifying it and how to securely attach to two pieces together. I was thinking about using a aluminum or carbon tube but the wing does have a little dihedral built into it so I think a straight tube would be a problem, I have no problem removing the covering and modifying the wing to make it work, I just don’t know what the best method is. Thanks for any help!!! Mark

This is one of those classic moment when "You know your addicted to RC when you go car shopping and and look for one that can haul the most/ biggest airplanes." of course its a little to late for that now.

One suggestion that comes to mind is this. What if you cut a heavy duty peice of plywood that you can use as a joiner that has the same angle of your dihedral and make it long enough so it can give good support for each wing. Then you can make like a plywood channel in each wing half where the "joiner" would slide into. Then for attaching it to the plane you probably would need one indexing pin on the leading edge of both wings to hold it down in the front, and for the back you would need to secure it with one screw on each wing half. Then of course, your wing struts would definatly half to be more so functional then just for decoration so you might half to re-engineer them now as well.

I dont know exactly how that cub is built or how the wing attaches so this suggestion may or may not work, It would be a little chore to undertake what I discribed but it would work. There are many ways it can be done, you just need to do a little creative engineering.

How does the wing attach to the fuse and are the struts functional???

AND< does it have a thick ply wing joiner?

You know, I never gave it a thought when I bought it...I figured that the box fit, so the plane must fit too...lol This plane has the biggest wingspan that I've ever owned so I guess that's why I really didn't give it a thought. And as for the wing joiner, it's 3 pieces, two ply and one aluminum for a total of 5/16"x7/8"x12" long. The wing attaches with to studs on the leading edge that slides in the fuse and two hold down bolts on the trailing edge. Seams pretty much standard. As for the struts, I really don't think they are meant to be too functional...I guess not as much as I would be asking of them in a two piece design.

Leave the tail gate open. ENJOY !!! RED

I had a Great Planes 27% Cap232 and the same problem. I hope I get this all understandable. The wing was a pins in front bolt on in back like most wings are now days. So, I had a bolt and a pin on each side. I took the joiner and figured out which side it fit tighter in. Then went through the normal procedures of testing fit and alignment like you would if you are normally gluing it. Then, I got out the wax paper and tape and epoxy. I prepared the wing so when I glued the joiner into the side that was a loose fit, it wouldn't stick to the other side that was the tight fit. Then I slid the wing together and taped it and aligned it like normal. Then I mounted it on the plane like you would to fly, and used more wax paper and tape to keep things separate. The next day I took the wing off and removed all the tape and wax paper and the wing came apart in two pieces thanks to wax paper. So I had a wing half with a joiner sticking out and one half without. Test fitted again and it fit perfect and aligned perfect. Flew the heck out of it for about 9 months with no problems before a disgruntled club member decided it was time I got shot down.

hope that works any questions pm me..worked great on a 3D plane I think a cub can handle it especially with struts.

I was thinking about doing pretty much the same thing but since I've never had a plane with this long of a wing span, I wasn't sure if just depending on the front locater pins and the two rear screws would be enough to hold it. Even though this isn't going to be a 3d machine and I'll just be doing some gentle flying with some scale aerobatics, I just feel I need to do something more. I was thinking about adding a few straps or plates on the bottom that would be within the fuse so they wouldn't be seen.

mallen,

I have transported wings that actually rest on the dashboard, touching the windshield and then extend all the way to the back window of the vehicle.

Looks weird, but gets the job done!

If the wing wasn't originally designed and built to accomodate being dismantled for transportation, there is no way you can modify it without removing the covering and reinforcing everything appropriately. The wing takes one heck of a load, even while flying casual aerobatics.

My suggestion would be to sell your current model and buy a smaller version of the plane you want. There are quite a few available with a 52" wingspan than fly very well with a .25 two-stroke or .30 to .40 four-stroke.

To this day I cannot understand why anyone would buy an SUV. I drive vans and recently minivans. My Chrysler Town & Country has seats that fold down into the floor, providing the vehicle with a very large carrying space. It probably gets better gas mileage than an SUV and it sure didn't cost anywhere near as much.


Ed Cregger

Assuming fully functional struts (not just there for decoration), I think the area of the wing joiner is going to see compression loads only - the 2 wing halves will be pushed together. The dowels and bolts will handle torsional loads. If anything might need to be beefed it might be the area between the wing saddle and lower strut attach point, as well as the attach point itself? I would try it.... for the intended use of scale flight/aerobatics, nothing too violent?

I feel your pain. I hoping that I can squeeze my 81" Cessna into my 4 door Sentra.

The wing on my Sr Telemaster is eight feet long.
I open both rear windows and slide it in through the windows, add some foam and bring the windows up to hold the wing gently. Only about a foot extends out each window.
Works for me!
Bob

Figured I'd post what worked really good for me on a big 3D plane. Never once had a problem with it, and if he's going to fly his cub like a cub it will be fine especially with struts. But like I said I epoxied the joiner into the looser of the two sides. Also the reinforcement plate that you usually glue on, I never glued on, just used it like it was instead. Mind you I did a lot of stuff, and had a smoke system and all so the wing loading was a bit high.

http://www.chevrolet.com/pages/open/...ly/suburban.do

this will work

Place the wing on a car-top carrier/rack....Good place for other items...like a easy up for shade!

One of the things that I do to reduce a model's travel footprint is to fly biplanes. I like having the ability to leave the model assembled and transport it that way.


Ed Cregger

You could always make it a Clipped wing Cub. Then it would be aerobatic.

Off topic but.... To tow a large trailer, All wheel drive, V-8, Visibility, Windows that power down on the side(now they do on some) , launch a boat without drowning the vehicle..........[>:]

All things that a pickup truck would do better and for less money, I'll bet. At least they would in the past. A Suburban is not an SUV to me.


Ed Cregger

I got my Jeep Grand cherokee because the minivans just won't make it over the ruts and logs and rocks that one finds off the road out in the woods, or at a couple of the flying sites I fly at. Plus, you would just look wierd with a deer on top of minivan in the fall...if you could get to it in the first place...

Of course, my Caravan does o.k. for the more accessible sites and going to work. Of course, it has pretty poor traction and has had to be towed off grass parking areas twice at two different flying fields since they don't handle mud very well (understatement). [X(]


If one needs an inexpensive option for an extra plane hauler, I suggest looking for a good used fleet work van dealer in your area. I know several folks that have gotten these and they are a great option. If you are careful, you can usually find one that is pretty good shape, and they are usually maintained on set service schedules throughout their lives. My father in law gets these for his carpet laying business. The last one he got for $3K and put a 150,000 miles on it before he killed it (on top of the mileage it had when he got it). The current one he has cost him around $4K and he has been driving that one for the past 4 years.

One of my flying friends bought one for airplane only use. He used it for two or three years. He recently sold it because his son just got his license and a car that needed the vans parking space. He sold it for at least what he paid for it. Worth looking in to.



P.S. has anyone priced pick-up trucks lately...OMG [X(][X(][X(]

There's always a trailer too.

Or if you are up to pulling the covering and beefing up the internals, maybe consider a 3 piece wing instead. Lot easier to store and transport. You could even leave the center section bolted on. Use the joiner set up as posted before to add the outer sections, just inside the strut hard points.

That's what I did on my 76" span Corsair. Was the only way it would fit in the bed of the truck. Pair of screws into the joiner on the wing held the tips on with no problem. Even held up to my flying friend's full bore cartwheel of it on a take off, when he pulled up before reaching take off speed. [X(]

Yea....I'm thinking about doing a 3 part....I figured if I'm going to all that trouble and work I might as well go with the 3 part...still not sure...I keep going back and forth on the idea....lol

Mallen,

You're in luck. I have this same Cub, the Thunder Tiger 82" ARF, and I didn't glue the wing halves together, for the same reason as you. Just join the two wing panels together using the ply/aluminum/ply joiner blade they give you in the kit, and don't glue! The joiner blade is PLENTY strong enough for the job, believe me. I've been flying my TT Cub for probably four years now this way with no problems whatsoever. One suggestion I have for you is to glue the washer plate (for the wing hold-down bolts) to just one wing panel. When you bolt the wings down to the fuselage, the washer plate will keep the wing panels from separating at the trailing edge (like in an abrupt nose-first landing). With the washer plate installed, the nylon bolts are loaded in double-shear, rather than single shear, so they don't see a bending load under stress.

I always attach my wing struts, but not because they are needed. I just think a Cub as pretty as this one deserves to be flown with the struts on it, is all. I think Cubs look funny without the wing struts, personally. They add so much to the flavor of a Cub. As an added touch of scale, I tossed my landing gear in the scrap bin and bought a set of Hangar 9 Cub gear (available from Horizon Hobby as a spare part for the H9 80" ARF kit). The H9 gear includes the cross-struts and the bungee covers, for that added scale look.

Enjoy your TT Cub. Mine is still one of my favorite toys in my fleet.

Thanks Dgliderguy! I'm surprise I don't see nor hear more about the TT ARF Cub. I think it's one of the best ones out there. I guess maybe it's because Thunder Tiger doesn't really advertise it. I think I'll use your advice about gluing the washer plate on one wing and Cowboylifesaver suggestion about gluing the wing joiner in the other side. I too will use the struts because I agree, it just doesn't look like a cub without them.

I was also thinking about cutting the wing down a little because I think it's a little out of scale. The research I've done on the full-size Cub looks to be about a 63% ratio between the wingspan and the fuselage length. On the TT, it's about 60%....with a wingspan of 82", the fuselage should be a little over 51"....instead of 48". I just think that it looks a little off but I may just build/fly it the way it is first and then see what I think. If there's no need to modify the wing for a two piece setup now, then I can always shorten the wingspan down the road. Plus I really don't want to go shorter than 80" so it will still be IMAA legal.

By the way, which size engine are you using? I have a TT 54 and a TT 75 4 stroke and not sure which one I should go with.

PS. And I was also looking at the Hangar 9 gear because it looks more scale to me...and now that I know it will work on the TT Cub, I will order a set today!

Thanks!!!! Mark

The TT Piper cub is avaialbe for a limited time. We have 20 or so kits left but once their gone they will not be back in stock. It's a beautiful plane please call me here at Ace if you have any questions. Thank you.

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