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whats the ARF that started it all ????
In your opinion what is the ARf that started the trend that took the typical modeler /builder over to the ARf side because the looks and quality was so much better then anything they had seen in the past ???
Example --for me the VQ P40 , when I opened to box , I just thought I cant build the TopFlight P40 for $199 , ect ect the quality was excellant , the sheeting , the split flaps , it was a new generation of ARFs . .Remember this post is for fun , please no long soap boxes on why build or why ARf , or just plane crap :D, just have fun and if your an ARf guy/girl please tell about the plane that started it for you in the terms of quality vs what you would have probably built in the past .Thanks Lou |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
getting into the hobby about 7 years ago any ARF looked better than my early skills or lack of building skills heck i would beat up building an ARF :D so for me they all have looked good until i got my stuff up to par:D
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
For me it was a Seagull Boomerang (high wing trainer) for my boys to learn to fly on.
I had built them high wing trainer from a kit (Hustler Mk3) and they destroyed it on the first day (the instructor didn't believe in buddy boxes). So to get them airborne again quickly I bought this plane as an ARTF set. It lasted them both until they had their wings and we still have it (albeit a lot worse off for wear and tear). |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Seagull was one of the first to have a half decent looking P51 , distributed by Hobby People in the early 90ties . They make some nice planes
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
The old EZ arf's from Hobby Shack.
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
EZ started their ARFs as far back as the late 70's to very early 80's. Then later on came the Pilot QB series for easy to build kits ... somewhere after that came World Models!!!
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Was this the same line that MRC launched in wood frame but foam sheeting ?
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
I seem to remember a Lanier product back in the late 60's- early 70's called a Jester, that for the time was a fairly completed ARF type product...............[8D]
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Yes , they "Lanier" introduced there as they called it "second generation" ARFs when the market really took off
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
I had a Lanier Bronco in 1969 or 70. Then Don Brown and his demo crew came to our field and flew with us for a day using their new line of ARFs. That won me over. I sold the Bronco and bought a DB Beta low wing, sixty sized model. I flew the dickens out of that thing for about a year before moving on. It was my second low wing model and was powered by a venerable Enya .60 II (thanks Bruce).
Over the years, I have seen lots of ARFs, but didn't own many of them. I mostly flew kits, then later my own designs. Today I have about two thirds to three quarters ARFs and the rest old kits or originals. It is nice building kits when you don't have to hurry just to get something flying again after a mishap. ARFs let me relax in my building, plus they let me fly models that I'm just not interested in building, but love flying (biplanes, deltas, canards, etc.). Ed Cregger |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Back in the late 60'd I had Lanier ARF called a Comet I believe... It was a 60 size red and white mid wing, plastic covered plane as I remember it.. Back when Super Tigers were the engines of choice I had a 60 size ST on it and a Kraft sport series radio.... Plane didn't look that great but flew real nice... Had a lot of fun with it. Still have the engine and radio :D
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
This is amazing , thanks for the post , keep them coming , I was thinking that ARfs did not come into play until the late 90ties !!!!![X(]
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
"ARF" models started out in the late 1960's or so. I remember the DeeBee Stinger around 1967...foam wing and stab, molded plastic fuselage, ply and hardwood firewall and engine mount, and faster to put together than any kit. The Lanier airplanes were similar and also out at about the same time. Today, they'd not be called "ARF" because they take more work than most modern ARF models...however they are MUCH faster than building a kit. A friend of mine used to call them "reddi-fli" airplanes because you could get them into the air much, much faster than building a kit.
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
The old Lanier ARFs were just awful! No hardware, tank, wheels, etc. and nothing fit. The wing covering was hard plastic that would dent if you touched it and the fuselages started cracking before the first flight. They flew well though. (1960's and 70's)
The EZ line was very high quality, with reasonable scale looks, but the price was high and they were unrepairable. The cowls and wheel pants and many other parts were colored plastic that almost never matched. (1970's and 80's) Neither of these types were particularly easy or quick to assemble compared with modern ARFs. The wooden ARFs covered with shelf paper that dominated the 1990's were generally considered disposable alternatives to a kit built model. They were cheap and you could have one in the air in a day or two, but they seldom lasted more than a season. I think there were two important developments that brought ARF's to the level of acceptability they have today: 1) The use of iron-on covering and 2) Painted fiberglass cowls and wheel pants. Looking back, I would say that the first modern ARFs came from World Models in the late 90's. My first one was a Rambler 30, followed soon after by a P-51. And they keep getting better every year! Jim |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
ORIGINAL: jrf The old Lanier ARFs were just awful! No hardware, tank, wheels, etc. and nothing fit. The wing covering was hard plastic that would dent if you touched it and the fuselages started cracking before the first flight. They flew well though. (1960's and 70's) The EZ line was very high quality, with reasonable scale looks, but the price was high and they were unrepairable. The cowls and wheel pants were colored plastic that almost never matched. (1970's and 80's) Neither of these types were particularly easy or quick to assemble compared with modern ARFs. The wooden ARFs covered with shelf paper that dominated the 1990's were generally considered disposable alternatives to a kit built model. They were cheap and you could have one in the air in a day or two, but they seldom lasted more than a season. I think there were two important developments that brought ARF's to the level of acceptability they have today: 1) The use of iron-on covering and 2) Painted fiberglass cowls and wheel pants. Looking back, I would say that the first modern ARFs came from World Models in the late 90's. My first one was a Rambler 30, followed soon after by a P-51. And they keep getting better every year! Jim |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
To answer the question in the first post I think the Sig Kadet LT 40 ARF did it for me. Virtually the same cost, and often better quality than a built version of the same plane.
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
I would agree that sig was one of the first with real quality ARfs . part of the new wave transition in the hobby .
I remember Royal also had some good trainers , I had one , nice parts and covering , look like a goldberg kit . |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Back in late 60's had a Jester and Comet by Lanier, but the one I flew the most was a biplane called the Rebel. With a 60 Webra it would haul the mail.-----------Revver Bro #164
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
Sounds like Lanier was around and first to maket Arfs ??
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
[8D]Lanier Comet shoulder wing was my first ARF and I got fifty flights before the cumulative damage of many dings made me give up on it. Flew well enough, but was not real durable. World was an eyeopener when I came back to the hobby in the late 90's. Entirely different level of quality than the 70's ARFs. ARFs need to be checked over, but the good ones are about as good as my typical kit build. Since they a jig built, the wings and fuselages tend to be straight and uaually only need a click or two of trim. Still build both kits and ARFS, but most kits are things not available as ARFs. Have Bridi Dirty Birdy on bench now along with World Super Chipmonk.
Mike H. |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
My first was a Kyosho eletric zero , what a brick , it was a nice solide foam plane but e-flight was in the stone ages , I sold the plane last year to someone who converted it to brushless and said it was a joy to fly .
There is definitly a new wave and more to come with all composite warbirds ect , the prices will only come down with more competition . |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
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How funny,I just started to build my Lanier Colt F-45 yesterday.I'm going to run a K&B 61 and my Bicentenial series76 Kraft radio.The packaging they used back then was newspaper,so now I have a couple of pages of the Daily News from Gainesville Georgia dated Aug.15 1971.The intructions say to use silicone to glue the hinges in the foam core.What do they use now?
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
wow that is a classic and in great shape , today I guess you would use expoxy , there is foam safe CA but I would not suggest in this applacation .
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RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
ORIGINAL: 70s Flyer How funny,I just started to build my Lanier Colt F-45 yesterday.I'm going to run a K&B 61 and my Bicentenial series76 Kraft radio.The packaging they used back then was newspaper,so now I have a couple of pages of the Daily News from Gainesville Georgia dated Aug.15 1971.The intructions say to use silicone to glue the hinges in the foam core.What do they use now? ------------- I used RC-56, when it was still available. The canopy glue. It didn't attack the foam, or form into a hard ball inside the hinge pocket. I'm sure there is a similar glue available today, but I don't know its name. Ed Cregger |
RE: whats the ARF that started it all ????
My first ARF was called an EZ Box Fly 25, was back in the early eighties maybe 83?
Great flying airplane, was built up but had a thick foamboard covering with us flags on it. |
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