Last Wednesday my instructor took my GP piper cub 40 size up and handed me the sticks . Being my first time flying , I was very nervous He had me do some basic maneuvers, we tested how she acted when put in a stall so on and so forth.
I suppose i was doing OK because he had me bring it in for a landing, which i wasn't expecting to do so soon in my training. I didn't think i could get any more nervous than flying in a pattern, but i did. The landing was easier than i had expected, it just greased right in
Today my instructor took it up for me and had me fly around for a bit and land , we did this a few times and he tells me that I'm going to "Solo" today. I have to say that Taxiing and Take-offs are very squirrelly with the cub, it wants to ground loop. By now my legs feel like spaghetti and its time to practice taxiing which is harder than it looks. My instructor tells me its time to take-off on my own and we get the cub re-fueled and its ready to go.
After a couple failed attempts(ground looping), the cub goes airborne, I flew around for about 10 min or so and brought it in for a landing. This has to be the most wonderful feeling to have. I SOLOED!!! Everyone on the sidelines clapped and congratulated me on a job well done , a couple handshakes and a lot of thank you's from me to my instructor. I cant express my gratitude enough to all the club members that helped get this far!

Thanks to all the members of the Pikeland Sky Chiefs! and a special thanks to John, Daniel, and Chuck, you guys helped me achieve what i thought was nearly impossible..

and sorry for all the rambling and long post


Josh :thumbup:

Congrats!

It is nice to re-experience the enthusiasm a "former" student has, when they solo.

Keep learning...There is much to know in this hobby.

Great job!

Welcome to the solo club! From a guy who was self-taught at the age of 14 (my dad built 'em I crashed 'em..), you definitely did it right!

james

Practice all you can and get a simulator for Christmas or you birthday. You'll use it at all levels throughout your modeling career_bob

I've been flying a Goldburg Cub for about 14 yrs. Ground-looping was a problem ( quite funny ) till I learned the cure.

The whole problem lies in the "alighnment" of the main gear. This goes for any tail-dragger. If both main-wheels are set verticle ( straight up and down ), and are straight ( alighned with the fuse centerline ) the plane will ground-loop in either direction....whenever it feels like it.

Looking at the gear from the rear of the plane...bend the gear, so the tops of the wheels are 1/8 th, to 3/16 "out"...towards the wing-tips. Now, bend the gear so that the the "front" of the wheels are "in"....towards the centerline of the plane....1/8 th, to 3/16 ". This will cause the plane to "plow", and go straight.

When you taxi the Cub....always give "full-up" elevator, and a couple clicks throttle. This will keep the tail-wheel firmly on the ground, and will allow you to steer the plane....even in a slight breeze.

Try it....you'll like it....Dave.

YEP tow in makes a world of difference.

Thanks for the advice, I'll add some toe in and go from there.. thanks

Congratulations on the solo flight more fuel will make you a better flyer. Get your gallons in and don't try to progress to the next plane to fast.

Be careful because toe in can and will cause ground looping here why. If one wing tip lifts and you have toe in the plane will turn into the fuse. Also if the bird has toe in they will act as brakes and cause the bird to nose over.
Just remember to advance the motor slow and gain speed keeping it in a straight line and the tail down till its ready fly then let the tail come up and you will be airborne about that time.

Thanks for the support!

Its funny, the first plane i purchased was a Kyosho GeeBee Z. I think the looks pulled me in. I've never flown it myself though. Then i bought a Greatplanes Shoestring, never flown it myself. Then I decided i'de buy a plane i could at least learn on and that was the cub. I got some ribbing from the guys at the club because it wasnt a trainer but it works for me. Now im working on a Dave patrick Ultimate 40 but dont plan on flying that either anytime soon. I think im set now but i dont think you can ever have enough planes in this hobby.

Wait on the Ultimate until you get better with some of the others or you may end up with an Ultimate pile of sticks.

CONGRATS, On the flight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From here on it gets easier..

Wear the wings off of this CUB before you try THE ULTIMATE.

DESERT RATT