I was wondering, anybody here ever fly the towers trainer mkII 40?.. just got done building mine and I wanted to know other peoples opinion on the plane....thanks


shaun

nexstar22,
I learned to fly on the Tower Trainer 40 ten years ago. Now I am an instructor so I get to see a lot of trainers. I think that the Tower trainer is up towards the top of the list of good trainers, I don't think you can go wrong with it. I still have my trainer and it has close to 500 flight on it and it's still going strong.

Hope this helps

Ken

cool!!! Im glad to here its a good trainer. Im gonna take it up for its first flight this sunday...wish me luck....

Good luck. Make sure we get a full report after you fly!!!!

Ken

no problem...I'll be glad to keep you updated!!!! this time I wont fly it passed its limit like I did the nexstar

What happened to the Nexstar? Inquirying minds want to know!

Does this mean you're going to have to change your screen name here?

I've flown a few of these and they were all good flyers.........how did your flights go?

I learned on a Tower Trainer 40. Ditto the good comments above.

I would make two mods if I were to do it again. First is to put some foam around the fuel tank - my fuel tank was hard mounted in the fuse. Second is to replace the stock nosewheel gear with something sturdier. Mine was too flexible and too loose in the plastic bushings, which made directional control on takeoff difficult.

Maybe Tower (Great Planes?) has already fixed these on the Mark 2.

ITS THE PERFECT TRAINER, except for the landing gear. I changed it to an aluminum one and its perfect.

Interesting question because I just completed the first two maiden flights on mine last Wednesday. First impression, once in the air, I got a nice little "Aerobat" on my hands. It's going to be fun plane once trimmed out and some things corrected. I have a GMS 47 on mine, and let me tell ya, no lack a power in this "Aerobat". I did come home thinking I have to try to desensitize the nosewheel steering. A little squirly on takeoff. I already used every mechanical advantage servo/control arm, now implementing maximum throw on the rudder with EPA. I also sealed all the hinge gaps. One thing I am wrestling with is the stock wheels. I didn't change them out thinking I got plenty of power to blast through the grass field we have, and in way, I was correct. But I have a slightly nose high attitude and would rather have a more neutral attitude. Maybe go up a size on the main. Other than that, seems like a fine trainer to sport fly with. If you're absolutely new, have experinced help the first time out. It may be a trainer, but like any good plane, you can get into trouble in no time. I do look forward to sport flying mine. Tom

I am in the process of learning to fly on the Tower Trainer. The maiden flight only took a couple of clicks & he had it trimmed out for hands free flight. The second flight was a little different. I have the RTF version and the tail feathers are held together by two long threaded studs that come out the bottom of the vertical stab, through the fuse, and horizontal stab with nylocks on the bottom. I was a little gun-shy of tightening them too much thinking I might crush the balsa wood. The second flight was very squirrely and the guy who had taken me up with the buddy box had a real hard time with it, I had an even harder time![&:]. Closer inspection after that flight revealed that I hadn't tightened the tail feathers down well enough & the horizontal stab was pretty crooked. I snugged them back up & now it seems to be fine. I'm thinking that for it to be able to slide out of sqare with the rest of the plane that the holes in the horizontal stab must have got wallowed out a bit though. So I will take it apart & check that, then fill & re-drill the holes if need be. So ya might wanna watch for that. It was strictly pilot error on my part, so no complaints here. The Tower Pro .46 that came with it purrs like a kitten at low idle & has absolutely no hesitation at all when the throttle is cobbed from an idle, and it isn't even completely broke in yet. Seems to have more than plenty of enough power. So check your tail feathers and have a ball with it!

Mark

Pretty mucuh, tower hobbies rocks, and i would do business with their planes again, such as the kaos.

as to the nexstar crash. I made a slow low flyby, then throttled up and started gaining altitude. when I got to an altitude that I thought was high enough I stalled the plane and let it fall back.. then I proceeded to do two vetical roles..well when I went to pull out of it I ran out of elevator...and altitude....well we all know what happens next[&o]...anyway, in memory of my first plane I ever soloed on, I will not be changing my screen name...hahaha...

Tower Hobbies trainer is faster than a lt-40 when the two have similar engines and is more accrobatic. A friend of mine has a th trainer and he can do lots of high speed acrobatics and run faster than most of the 4* at our field. for a trainer its quite squerely compared to my lt. but its a good plane. wish I bought one instead.

I dislike my Tower Hobbies Trainer 40. It came with severe wrinkles and took over 4 hours to iron them out.
the main landing gear squats so much that the tail almost drags in the grass. I've tried to bend it into shape but the rods refuse to adjust correctly.

It also seems to be a bit unstable. Of course I'm a beginner but I can tell that it is flying strange compared to my sons solo sport trainer.

I've checked the balance and it is a little nose heavy. It pulls hard to the left which I think I can correct by adjusting the engine in its mount. Could account for the slip like flying qualities.

So far, I would have to say I'm not much of a fan.

Covering is an issue, I had to send the first two back before I got one that I could iron out with a few hours work, but it does seem to fly well.


Mark

My Tower Trainer 40 MK needed some work with the iron, but compared to my Avistar, I thought it was pretty minimal. Squirely in taxiing, I'm working on that. Closest hole on the rudder, farthest hole on nose gear, nose gear closest hole at the servo, rudder furthest hole, with EPA set down to give just enough rudder travel. For the most part should make taxiing less squirely. I had to do the same thing on my Avistar. My maiden flights were in winds of 15 mph+, not the greatest for a maiden, but I thought it flew just fine with the GMS 47. Looking forward to lighter winds for better trim sessions. I have all the flying surface gaps sealed, with the CG exactly as specified, and laterally balanced. It flies quite nimbly and is going to be fun to fly it as a sport plane. I am considering swapping out the main wheels for maybe the next size or +2 to get it to sit at level. I fly off of grass and larger wheels just make more sense. I've only flown two times now, but with the right trim procedures, I think it will be a great little Aerobat.

Winterhawk, do check the engine thrust angle and your balance (both axis). Also check ailerons for neutral, both should be flat when you put a straightedge on the bottom of the wing. I bet at least one of these is off. If unsure, have an experienced modeler check it for you.

I think its a great bargain at $70, just needs the correct setup. Even though I'm not really a new flier, probably more intermediate, I think its a fine plane for training or even sport flying.

Good flying to all.

Tom

Tom,
You're right about the taxiing issues. I'm having all sorts of problems with it.
I'll take it to a pro for advice rather than trying to figure it all out myself.

It is a great deal. I just want it to handle well on the ground and in the air. Seems I have to really be on the rudder during take offs. I do know that the thrust line is definately off because of the hard left pulls during full throttle. Just need to scoot it to the right a bit I think.

r/hank

That engine mount is an interesting design. The engineers/designers were up with the problem of designing a mount that would hold all engines in that class range, so they came up with a clamping system on both sides that clamp down and hold each engine mounting lug. Ingenious except for the fact that it’s pretty easy to mount it pointing to either side. Out of plywood the thickness of my engine mounting lugs, I made two plates that go around and capture the mounting lugs and are held in place by the bolts and the clamps for the clamping mounts. Easy way to make those is just put some cardstock underneath your engine mount lugs and trace around it. Those plates when in place keep my engine pointing straight ahead. The manual addresses the problem by describing a measuring process from the spinner backplate back to the firewall; measurement should be equal on both sides. Good luck in the trimming process. Most models I’ve flown have always needed something. You will have a great little flyer as you make the adjustments. Good flying to you.

Tom

Hate to keep this thread going; however, besides the landing gear the covering on the plane stinks. When I was flying it, every time I landed a new piece of covering would be comming off. Personally, I would never buy another tower plane again. I'll spend another $10 and get a better plane. They're not that cheap. My twist was comparable in price to the uproar but I'm sure the quality is much better.

Well if you just slap it together, I'm sure the covering comes off while you're flying it among other things that aren't right. Right out of the box is always a good time to go over any loose MonoKote and wrinkles that occur during transit. I thought mine arrived with the covering in pretty good condition, but I still went over it. Also, it might be a Tower ARF, guess what, the same people who make it also make the Hobbico ARFs. In fact I used the salvaged tank and engine mount from my Avistar, because they were the same pieces and undamaged. My guess the same people make the Great Planes ARFs. So I guess all those ARFs are just not worth it. Although, I did fly the heck out of my Avistar for four years. I believe its all a matter of preparation. A few wrinkles that will not come out, has no affect on the flight characteristics. If you've only flown ARFs and never built a kit, you're at a disadvantage. The actual people building these ARFs aren't modelers, they're factory workers. Made in China, I think, and I'm told the quality has improved greatly from the first ARFs that came out. I still think I build a model better than any ARF I'd buy, but ARFs can be fun. So what the heck.

is there anything I can do to make the landing gear sit higher?..the plane looks like a taildragger...hahahahaha

I think I'm going to get a carb spring that is used on large cars and solder it between the two landing gear rods together to see if I can shore up the gear.

Was also thinking of replacing the gear all together. Would like gear like the NEXTSTAR has.

Nextar, consider replacing the wheels on the mains. I've got the same problem, and took a close look at it. The Tower Trainer comes with 2 3/4" wheels (all three). It definitely sits nose high/tail low, even with the nose gear mounted up as far as it will go. I have a set of wheels from an old airplane that are 3 1/4 that I'm going to put on the mains, and tweak (bend) the main gear so that I can get a stance that is level and not looking like a taildragger that you describe. Good observation on your part, I'm surprised I missed it. If you are going out to buy larger wheels, I might suggest you even look at some foam 3 1/2". I'm sure this positively affects the taxiing ability. Good call Nextar. It's obvious the people who put these together for Tower aren't up to speed about this problem. But that's not too unusual. It's not uncommon to swap out wheels for something more appropriate on an ARF. I fly off of grass, and larger wheels are always a better idea. Just don't go too large, nose low is bad, the plane wants to stay on the ground with that kind of configuration. Good call Nextar. Thanks for pointing it out.
Tom