I've just started this hobby and like all guys, I'm already thinking about a
next plane. Thats what we do, isn't it? My mind was kind of set on the Lazy Bee
as it seems to be a gentle flyer and perhaps a good step before going on to an
aileron plane. So anyway, I went the to local store to check out what they had
and they have a Great Planes Slow Poke hanging from the ceiling. It has an OS 32
on it. I asked the guy to bring it down and to my inexperienced eye, it looked
very well made and practically new. I asked the fella in the store what he
thought, as he seemed to be very knowledgable and he told me while the plane was
beautifully built, it seemed to him that the engine had pretty low compression
and that a rebuild would be in the neighborhood of $50.00 or so....and he made a
comment that the plane was pretty overpowered with a .32 The owner wants $75.00
for it which seems like a good buy when you consider the kit alone is around
$90.00 My thought was to buy it, hang it up for awhile, eventually buy the
radio gear for it, and give it a try...is this a sound plan or am I barking up
the wrong tree? I'll appreciate any advice..thanks!!

I think that your question can be answered only if we (I) had a bit more info on your flying experience and what type of flying you like doing. If you are transitioning from an electric trainner then yes most defintaly you will have your hands full. A 25 size plane such as the one you are refering to I can only guess thats its a .25 size if a .32 is over powering it. Is going to be a handful, they are not as forgiving as electrics are and can get quite squirrley on the ground as well as in the air due to there size. To me a 3 channel glow that small just seems like lot of plane for a beginner as well as an intermediate. Without alerions there isnt a whole lot of trouble you can get into with a plane that small and recover in enough time to save it. I think even I would have an issue with it and I have been flying for 10 years IMO. Just some advice the more steps you take to getting into a full function 4 channel plane the longer it will take you to get there. Go get a nice 40 size trainner with a .46 size glow engine in it semi semetrical wing foil, hook up with a buddy box and a person to help you train and learn that way, you will be much more satisfied in the end. IMHO thats the way to go. Good luck.

if the price is $75 and the kit is higher, and you get an engine with it and it looks well built, its a no brainer. Buy it, fly it when your ready, and if the engine doesn't work well, pitch it and get a new one. You can get a new engine for $50. Don't waste time trying to re-build it. I think you will find that the engine will run just fine. They don't always have a lot of compression. Just depends on the engine. I bought one at a shop one time like that and it was the best plane I ever owned. The engine was almost worn out, but boy did it run good!

Thas good advice to someone who is experienced in glow flying and is not trying to transition into a second plane from what ever he flew before. If you have no knowledge of glow or at best minimal knowledge and this is indeed a second plane, I'd stick to my opionion and say its too much. When you are ready for that type of plane there are tons of deals out there either at your LHS or right here on RCU that you can take advantage of later and spend your money on something you can benifit from right away. Hey but if money isnt a factor then by all means buy it and fly it when you feel as though you are ready. Used engines to a newbie can be more than there worth weather or not they have been rebuilt.

Hey, I do appreciate the advice...thats what makes these forums valuable. As for my experience, I've been flying control line for about 30 years. While I'm no expert with glow engines, I know my way around them. I recently bought a Park Zone Slow V and have been having the time of my life.....lets see.....13 flights, 5 crashes, with only one crash being signifigant...I probably won't buy the plane, but for a reason I only just discovered. When I looked at the plane, I noticed that the vertically mounted engine was about 2degrees to the port side. I thought that odd but assumed that the builder knew what he was doing, given the quality of the construction. So, when I got back to my office, I looked at the Great Planes site and there is a big notice about a glaring mistake in the plans. The plans say for the engine to be 2 degrees to the left when in actuality they want it 2 degrees to the right. So thats a 4 degree mistake. I'll betcha that the builder built it to the plan specs, couldn't get it to fly right, and is now wanting to unload it. I may take another look at it but I'm guessing I can't fix it withouit major surgery, something I'm not wanting to do.....anyway, thanks for responding..

Actually it depends, it may be something pretty easy to fix... If it uses any sort of standard engine mounts that bolt to the firewall you can put a couple of washers on the left mount to give it a little right thrust....

Well, unfortunately, I found the plans online and it shows the engine being bolted to a piece of plywood, using T nuts. The plywood base is then glued into the nose area.......

I always get a little irritated when someone just blindly tells beginners that .25 size airplanes are "quite squirrley on the ground as well as in the air due to there size" and then goes on to enlighten them that the only "proper" way to learn is with a .45 size trainer. I also disagree with the implication that a 3 channel this size is going to be troublesome on the ground and in the air.

I learned to fly on a .15 sized 3 channel plane. While it was a bit squirley on the ground, due to poorly designed landing gear, it was extremely easy to fly and very forgiving. The controls were more than adequate to get in trouble, and then get out of it. My second and 3rd planes were both .25 size. My flying progress did not suffer at all even though I did not choose the widely advocated .45 size. To this day, I still fly mostly .15 to .25 size planes. I love the fact that I was able to get 3 planes into my Sebring Convertable last weekend. Even better is the fact that two of them had the wings attached. While I'm flying I often hear people behind me expressing surprise at how well my .25 size planes fly. I'm not trying to flame, I'm just offering a counter opinion, based on my experience, to those who feel that the .45 size is the only acceptable one for learning.

The .32 size engine is not significantly overpowering a .25 size plane, especially if the plane was built a bit on the heavy side, or the engine is old and tired. In fact, after doing some reading about this plane, many people recommend larger engines to help it fly better, and to overcome the tendency for the plane to be tail heavy.

So, to dsk I would say that if you like the way the plane is finished and everything looks ok, other than the left thrust, buy it. Moving the engine to have the proper thrust should be an easy fix. As has been said, you can shim the mount, or you can replace the mount and offset the engine slightly when you drill the holes in the mount.

This hobby is not about marching toward someone else's predetermined goals, unless you're into competition. It's about buying and flying the type of planes that give you pleasure. I've always thought the SlowPoke looked fun. Perhaps one day I'll build one. I've got several spare .25-.32 engines available. I think an OS .30 4 stroke would be a great match.

Firstly there was an opionion asked for, so thats what I gave. In response to piper I would say to each his own. Never once did I say that it wasnt possible to learn on a 25 size plane or that it isnt flyable. however I do think I speak for the majority when I say although possible and given the right plane eaiser than some that a 3 channel .25 size plane opposed to a 4 channel 40 size is much more difficult to learn on and it adds one more step in the trainning process by not having the use of alerions and needing to be trainned when that aspect is sought out by the modler at a later time. But again its all personal prefrence and again everything in here is based on opionions. So theres another opionon I am sure there will be more. And lastly I must say that in a given situation where the aircraft is stalled or stalling which all do a plane with alerions is eaiser to recover than a plane with just rudder and elevator. Or maybe I need an explanation on how you would recover a plane that has tip stalled to the left on a low and slow pass with no way to right the wing. Again as mentioned in my original post it depends on what type of flyer you are. You may never get that close to the ground except to land. And I never used the word "proper". I am not bashing but merely defending my opioinon that someone feels is not valid we are all accostomed to what we are used to and to some if thats all they know then it never is a big deal to them. I dont only speak from an opionion stand point even though I have never flown that particular 3 channel plane I have flown 3 channels before. And my comparson was based on going from a 4 channel trainner to flying a 3 channel trainner. And IMO its harder with the 3 channel.

I appreciate all opinions.....The plane is finished exquisitely and I may purchase the darn thing if nothing more to hang it from the garage ceiling......the dollar amount is low enough that I wouldn't fret if I crashed it early on.....The engine and assorted parts might be worth close to the asking price, who knows?

For what its worth, this particular plane has a well mounted steerable tail wheel......the store owner tells me with the wheel and use of the rudder, it should handle reasonably well on the ground......he also says I'll probably lose interest as its stunt capabilities are very limited.....see? More opinions......and thats what I'm looking for.....thanks, all!

Hey guys lighten up. The package is cheap enough that there is very little financial risk if he does buy it & fly it now -- ready or not. It is also easy to fix the thrust line problem, & the whole shebang can be put on the shelf for a month or so while he gets more practice from his park flier -- which it sounds like he may need.

Sounds too good to pass up.

Yep, you're right...I DO need more practice on the slow v.....the question of the slow poke is academic as I just went over and bought it......apparently the builder likes to build planes and then sell them.....the shop owner told me that its a ringed engine and the compression is just fine, that its a fairly new engine....Looks pretty easy to fix the engine thrust problem. I'll take it home and mess with it.....probably buy a radio in a month or two. I found a local experienced fella that said he'd help me set it up and teach me to fly it....I think it'll be a cheap way to go forward....and its so damn beautiful its worth the money. Thanks all!

Cool, hope you enjoy it. I look forward to reading your flight reports.

I think you will like it. The engine thrust problem should be pretty easy to fix. Put a picture of it on here if you want some ideas on how to fix it.

good idea Flyboy, I'll do it in the next day or so. Doesn't look too difficult but I'll know more when I remove the engine.

Don't tease us... post some pics!

Andy

Well, I'm at work now and my girlfriend took some pics last night. I'll post them when I get home. Let me explain my engine thrust problem and lets see if you folks agree with my solution. I'll do my best to describe it.

The engine mount is a piece of 1/4" plywood, obviously mounted horizontically and level. There is a rectangle cut into it to take the engine. The hole is cut at a 2 degree angle to the left , with T nuts inserted in the bottom of the mount. My first thought was to just cut the hole larger at an opposite angle but it occurred to me that the hole would be too large and there wouldn't be any wood for the mounting holes. Sooooooo, I think the best way is to epoxy a piece of plywood on the bottom side of the existing mount which will close up the existing hole. I will then cut a small piece of plywood and patch the resulting gap, or hole, created. I'll sand that smooth and then cut a new mount out of 1/8" plywood. Cut an engine hole in the new plywood to take the engine, glue it on top of the existing mount and cut a new hole in the existing mount. Reach underneath and insert T nuts and screw the engine down. I apologize if my description isn't clear, but what do you think?

Sounds busy. Is there enough play in the existing setup tp twist the engine back into alignment? Can you push the T-nuts out, plug the holes with dowel (CA'd or epoxied in place) & re-drill the bolt holes?

britbrat, that was my first thought, but when you think about it......I plug the holes and then I'd have to trim the existing hole to take the engine at a 4 degree right angle. The hole after I trim it would be too large and there wouldn't be any "meat" for the new mounting holes.....I did get the T nuts out and the engine fits in the existing hole very snugly...

So, you have a 1/4 inch ply mount protruding from the firewall. That is what the engine was originally mounted to? Now, you're going to put another piece of 1/4 inch ply under that mount, and then place a piece of 1/4 inch ply into the original hole where the engine sat? That makes a 1/2 inch mount. Am I correct so far? Then, you're going to make another mount of 1/8 inch thickness, and glue it on top of the already 1/2 inch thick mount? That would make the mount 5/8 inch thick. That's too much added weight to the front of that airplane. Maybe I misunderstood. Why the extra 1/8 inch? You alread have a solid mount after you add the ply underneath the existing mount, and fill in the hole, why not just make your mount from that? If you need a pattern, then use the 1/8, make it into the mount that you want, then set it on top of the airplane mount and trace the pattern over to the mount. No need to permanently attach it to the plane.

I would suggest something lighter than 1/4 inch under the existing mount. Something like, say, 1/8 at the most. Before you glue that into place, you might want to hold a piece of 1/4 inch up underneath it to trace out your existing hole. Then, cut that out on a scroll saw or something similar, and you'll have your "patch." Then, glue the lighter ply to the bottom, and fill the hole with the patch you created. Epoxy it all together and it will be stronger than ever. Re-align the engine and re-drill. Of course, one other possible solution (if you can get behind the firewall) is to just replace the wooden mount with an adjustable nylon mount. That's only if you can get behind the firewall to mount blind nuts, though!

Good luck!!

Here's what I would do if I were in your position.. I would first look at how the plywood is mounted. If it's possible I'd remove it and just flip the darn thing upside down and reglue it in place... That would change your 2 degrees left thrust to 2 degree right thrust...

If that won't work, or doesn't look possible, then just cut the whole plywood mount out entirely... Make a shim out of some light ply to glue to the face of the firewall, then install some standard plastic engine mounting rails on her. Should be good to go.

I have appreciated so many people stepping forward with suggestions.....

2 slow.......good ideas.......no, I was planning on an underpiece of 1/8 and a new mount of 1/8, for a total mount thickness of 1/2, and the underneath piece would not be the full size of the mount, just sufficient to support the patch....the new mount would of course be full size. I like your idea of just using the original mount, installing a patch, and cutting a new hole. Might just be the ticket......yes, I think it might.....have to look at the plane a bit closer with your idea in mind.....

Dontcha love the little challenges of modeling? I'm gonna go buy some plywood but will check this forum before I do any cutting, in case somebody has any better ideas......thanks all!!

Ok, heres the plane......I hope the upload works.....I've never done it here......and repairs have started. My plans are to purchase a radio over the next month or two and then seek instruction sometime in the Spring. I figure my Slow v will be treashed by then...or have become very boring.

dsk, great planes have a replacement kit they give for free if you built the kit wrong (per plans I mean). contact them. I read that on their site.

red

PS: I found the info while reading about this kit cause I have a pretty good magnum 28 to spare and want to buy a slow poke for it

dsk - I would recommend that you try to find someone with a trainer (friend, instructor or fellow club member) to take you up on a buddy box a few times. Those few times will be priceless. After you guage your own performance, you can decide if you want to start flying that slow poke.

If it come naturally to you, you may use that slow poke as a first plane... but if you find it difficult to adjust to, I'd recommend a low cost trainer to start out with. It will definitely be worth your money!

That slow poke is a nice plane done up with PT-19 colors and stickers. I'd rather see it fly than die. Spend a few bucks on a trashed trainer to bash around... I'd cry if that slow poke met an untimely death regardless of what you paid for it!