I have a confession to make.

I'm not as handy as I thought I was, and my Avistar is, um, unique.

For starters, there are the fingerprints. If this plane is ever stolen, or used as a murder weapon, it won't take CSI long to trace it back to me. It has my fingerprints all over it. Permanently. In epoxy resin.

Then, the wings. The little instruction book says that once the wings are joined, there shouldn't be any gaps. Well I think 'shouldn't be' is pretty strong language from a guy who writes instruction books for a living, and there's about half a mm gap on the leading edge, where the two halves join. I think it adds character, but hey.

The aileron servo cradle under the wing is also no longer original equipment. Who knew that balsa was THAT flimsy?!! It has since been reconstructed and it now fits perfectly. Bespoke coachwork on my very first plane - how posh is that?

Now, all we need to see is what happens when it goes up into the air.

Anyone else had difficulty with a '90% complete' ARF? They're much more complicated (to me at least) than the box makes them out to be.

I am lazy and inexperienced so at first I tried to get RTF kits. You just glue the wings, charge the battery and fly. Doh! I did this until I discovered that most RTF kits are rubbish. Most of them give you brush motors or low quality radio systems. So I realized that most factories use rubbish equipment for the RTF kits.

Then I turned to ARF kits, where I faced other issues, especially with the instructions. They were scarce, even non-existent for some building procedures. Also it used to be a very big problem for me deciding what to buy (prop/motor/esc/battery).

I think that you get what you pay for. Planes I've bought from chinese online shops tend to require a lot more work than the ones I've bought from local hobby shops. You save money, but have to spend more time making 'fixes'.

It will definitely get easier over the next couple of planes! You can clean up the epoxy (if it's thin) with acetone - just be careful since it can take the color off the covering if used too much. Also, when putting one together next time, keep a spray bottle of Isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol handy as it will dissolve uncured epoxy so you can get it off right away. Good luck on your maiden!

May be too late after the epoxy cures but to wipe off excess epoxy alcohol works real well.
1/2 gap at the leading edge? shouldn't cause you any problems but I would cover the gap with a piece of clear packing tape.
Broken and repaired parts of an airplane are all too common, we all go through it.
Best of luck.

It usually takes me about 3 to 4 times as long to assemble an ARF as what is claimed. I'm not that good, but at least I'm slow

Overheard in our LHS more than once:

"Obviously, the RC industry has some definition of "almost" with which I was previously unfamiliar."

My first plane is the Hobbico Nexstar; same manufacturer as the Avistar. My plane is supposed to be even more ARF, and it took me 3X the suggested 15hrs to install (there's not even any gluing involved!!!) You probably have learned a ton about assembling planes, at the expense of a few (coverable) gaps, etc. I'm sure you will be that much better at making repairs not, too! I learned that I'm not ready for a kit yet, but I would like to try an ARF that requires a little more assembly. The point of my story is that ARF, 'almost ready to fly' is an overstatement, especially if you are working on your first plane. Hobbico told me my plane should just 'snap together'; ask around and see if anyone's first plane (ARF) just 'snapped together'. I imagine your plane will fly just fine; I'm sure you would notice something detrimental (your instructor definitely will), and anything that's a little out of alignment will be accounted for with trim settings when you're in flight. When you get it in the air, just be proud that you assembled something that actually flies! That's pretty cool, and your second plane will be even cooler [8D]

Half of one mm (milli-meter)? That's only 0.01969 inches, less than 2 hundredths. That IS no gap IMO.

Well, you've certainly learned some while putting this one together. You're next one will be that much easier. It's called On the Job Training!! In my not so humble opinion, one of the best ways of learning (almost) anything!!


Tom

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm[&:]

Bill, AMA 4720
WACO Brotherhood #1

Hey, I like that line! I'm going to borrow it if you don't mind...