Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Hi everyone,
I am new to RC flying (well, have had the couple of small cheap electric airplanes from the local toy store) but i recently went to my local model shop with the intention of starting, i loved the look of the Seagull Decatholon, I know by reading everyones posts that this airplane is not for a beginer, im afraid to fly in case i make total scrap of the thing. One more thing, the guy at the shop told me that the wings had to be stuck on permantly to the airframe, but i cant see any sort of spar to glue it too, There is 2 large nylon screw in the packet, is this the only method of securing the wing to the airframe,

Please let me know,

Andrew.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Yes, those two nylon screws are to bolt the wing to the fuselage.

And yes, you will totally destroy that plane in about 10 seconds without a qualified instructor. It is NOT a beginner's plane

PS, even WITH a beginner's plane you'll need help. Find your local club!

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

there is no model flying club in my area, I know of a guy who used to fly RC planes and he told me to launch it into a glide into a field with very long grass to get the feel of it, Is it extremely difficult? Is there any other way i could fly with ease?

All your info is much appreciated.!!

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I had this model myself. As stated the wing is bolted to the fuse with the nylon bolts. I flew mine about 10 times but it was so unruly on the ground that I eventually totaled the plane. Sounds like you already bought it so if it is in one piece still... sell it; and get a nice trainer. Just my thoughts. I won't buy another one. By the way I fly other tail draggers and do not have the problems that plane gave me including a Goldber Piper Cub. Good luck.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

This is not a beginners airplane. You are not strong enough to hand launch it into tall grass to get the feel of it. We used to do this back in the 50s when RC planes were basically free flight planes with radio. The Decathlon will just fall out of the sky, not matter how hard you or someone else throws it!

Put it on the shelf and get a a real trainer like Tower or Hanger 9 sells. They are complete with eninge and radio with everything installed and require only moderate assembly to get ready to fly. And they do fly! If you have to start alone, then you have to have a trainer with as much done for you as possible.

Before you start, make sure there isn't a club near you! Check the AMA's website for clubs (www.modelaircraft.org). Even if you have to drive 50 miles to a club, you'll be ahead in the long run.

And don't buy used RC equipment, especially if you are starting by yourself!! There is no better time to get into this wonderful hobby, but some things must be done right and work right. Brand new radios are not much more expensive than used ones and you'll get new batteries (about $40 alone if you have to replace them). A worn out used engine will keep you on the ground and discourage you to no end!

Good luch and welcome to RC!!

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Have to agree with the previous replies and also commend you on your purchase! That is one fine airplane! Get an instructor to help you in the very least if you don't go out and get a good trainer plane first. The Cubs and Decathlons will bite you quickly on the take-off rolls and tip stall in a heartbeat if horsed off the ground before they are ready to fly. They fly beaufifully and land just as well but the take offs will humble you!

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I flew mine for the first time in two years today - I consider myself an expert flier, and yet when I powered up to do a touch-and-go, it almost got away from me just because I got a little complacent.

This is NOT a beginner's airplane. To the untrained eye, it LOOKS like it will be easy to fly - IT IS NOT!!!

Sell it and get a trainer type airplane. Look into a Sig LT-40

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I will have to agree with everyone that has posted so far. I purchased a Phoenix Decathlon ( the brother of the Seagull ) and it is a handful. I have a six channel programmable radio and have used the mixing and coupling functions to finally get this aircraft flying. It is extremely sensitive on the ground ( sometimes referred to as squirrelly) and hare to handle. If the mixing is not done correctly and with caution you will find you have a runaway missile on your hands. Get a trainer such as the Avistar or Eagle 2 and find you someone to help you fly. My neighbors have finally learned to fly and are having a great time. I have helped with the lessons and repair of the aircraft during this time of learning and that is what you need at this point. Later you can fly the Decathlon when yo get enough experience .

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Hi everyone, thanks for all of your replys, I really like the look of the Decatholon, so i have decided to keep it, I have found a local model club (never knew existed) and an instructor that hopefully will be able to teach me, Have i made a good decsision?

AP!

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

You have indeed! Some (like myself) have learnt succesfully without an instructor, but trust me, it is a very painful experience.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

i would not have thought it is incredibly difficult to fly, but maybe im wrong

Will inform you of my first "Voyage"

AP

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I think you have made an excellent choice and I wish you Lots of luck. I hope your instructor is acquainted already with the Decathlon or he is in for a rude awakening. I was able to get our best pilot to fly mine and help me set it up again to get it flying properly. Like it a lot better now. It is a beautiful plane in flight.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I have the Phoenix Decathlon and have replaced the original landing gear with a fiber glass unit and the tail wheel with a Sullivan unit. Will this help the squirrly ground handling?? I believe the fiber glass unit is wider than the original aluminum mounts. I went to 3" Treaded Light weight tires and a 1" tail wheel. [8D]

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I have both the Seagull and the Pheonix Decathlon... The Seagull I found to be one "squirrly" plane when it comes to ground handling.. Being a mere mortal I put a gyro in it to tame it down... The Pheonix on the other hand seems pretty tame.. Never have
had much of a problem getting it off the ground... Once in the air both planes fly nice... I did replace the tail gear on both planes with a Sullivan unit... Both planes come with the same tail gear and the wire portion is way to soft... As for the main gear I don't know why anyone would want to replace them... Mine work great... Never any problem there...

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

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No one knows everything, even very experienced veteran flyers.

A specialist in WWI type landing gear set up could have tamed that Decathlon. However, one also has to lead these models a bit by anticipating the needed inputs and applying small corrective amounts of surface input "before" they are obviously needed. By the time you see it, it is too late to apply the corrections.

I learned a bit about this with my first biplane, but I stuck it out until I figured it out. Believe me, that took a while too.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Thankx for the response IronCross. I probably would not have replaced the main landing gear except I thought the supplied gear was a bit too stiff and I just happened to have a fiber glass gear not being used. With any kind of luck I will be able to maiden the plane this weekend. :D

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Fastsky
Your right about the main gear... The same main gear is used on both the Seagull and Pheonix... And it is stiff as you say... However the rubber tires on mine seem to be more then enough to absorb the "shock" of landing... Unless you really mess up these planes land rather gently.:D I kind of like the strong gear though after getting so many soft landing gears on ARF's that I have to reform every time I land... The glass one ought to work great too.. Let us know how the maiden goes...

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Will give flight report after. [8D]

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

I bought this plane after selling a pitts. That was a tough plane to takeoff. Now I have A seagull Decathalon, GP Learjet, Cermark F16, and an EJF A-10. This plane I just can't get to do a nice landing on a paved field, on a grass one no problem, but paved it always has a little bump. The best trainer for yopu if you want to buy one, I think is a telemaster. I'm instructing someone on it now and it is awsome. What are you guys putting in the Seagull I have a saito-72 not enough power.
Matt

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

if i get this airplane off the ground, is it tough to land and fly?

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

smirniotisice
I am flying a .61 2 stroke. Plenty of power. It won't climb vertical but that wouldn't be scale anyways.


appowerap
Keep the decathlon but definatly get a trainer to learn on. It will be a fun plane to fly when you have mastered the basics.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Got a Saito .72 in mine also... Seems like plenty of power for me but then I am not trying to fly 3D with it :D It will do nice size loops etc and flys pretty scale like... All depends on what you like I guess..

appowerap
As above, save it for later... The plane will do what you tell it to... No more, no less... Once off the ground I have not experienced any bad charecteristics with it... I find it relaxing to fly... As for landing I land on a asphalt runway with no problems... I keep a couple clicks on the throttle till the last minuet and it does just fine... This is not a biginners plane...

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Well stated!
Not a beginner plane at all when it comes to takeoff's and landings....Get a tricycle gear plane and centerline takeoff rolls will be much more pleasent...I can't even start explaining to you how many cartwheels and nose overs i did with mine before finally getting used to keeping it on the ground till airspeed is safe to rotate...
Today happens to be the day my seagull decathlon bit the dust for good due to a servo !QUOT!glitch!QUOT! probably caused by a faulty 10 dollar radio switch on the plane which is still under NTSB investigation...
Another contributing factor to my loss was the fact that all my takeoff wrecks added so much weight in adhesives the plane became severely underpowered with my fa-65 saito.
Check the crash section for photos i'll be uploading during the weekend....Very tragic, but i got my money's worth of it for the last year...
Now its time to move on...
Good luck with the SD, you'll be fine as long as you receive the proper instruction.

Dave

PS: The wing is not only held by the 2 nylon screws, but 2 wood dowels glued to the leading edge center section (which like to break when you cartwheel your tip stalls BTW) and those dowels are inserted into the fuselage before installing the nylon screws.
The struts are all show...I used a safety clip to hold them to the fuselage for a quicker release than the nut and screw supplied.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

Yeah the saito is def scale power on my lear I can do a good vertical. But this not as much, I think that I'm asking for to much out of it.

RE: Seagull Decatholon - Please Help
 

i fly a real airplane like this, if this is the way you descibe it, its called a Beechcraft Skipper, its not a model, Take off s are dreadfull, the plane veers off the centreline a lot!! and the second you try to correct it with the rudder, the wing starts lifting off the ground.