i bought a guillow's 32" hellcat the other day. it's supposed to be for rubber power, contol line 049, or static display. i was considering speed 400 power, as it is pretty lightly built and even with sheeted wings and fuse would be fairly light weight. my question is this...what motor do i use? i've never done an electric before, so i don't have the foggiest idea where to start with power and such.
the model's got a lot of scale accessories, so i thought it'd be awfully neat to do it up really nice and fly it, and electric sounds like a simple way to do it because small engines can be tempermental at times (also because it means i don't have to drag a field box around with me... )

I saw one of the Guillow's Spitefires fly with a speed 400 and that thing really moved. Great flying plane and great performance. Best of luck to ya and let us know how it goes.

Sung

yeah i was thinking about doing the same thing with the hellcat let us know how it works out ?

My consern is why put a speed 400 in an airplane that looks like a 180 or 280 is way more than power enough. I thing a lot of guys are saying "Put a speed 400 in it" and the end results may be more power and torque than you really want. Please respond with your comments as I'm at that point of building this size and would like to know what you think.

If built properly, meaning using some better balsa, adding strength where needed, and doing clean work, etc., use a Astro 010 brushless, with proper cell count.The new version comes with a ESC.

Saw a Guillows model fly at an event Washougal, Wa. this last year with the 010 setup..very nice.

Jim Ryan's speed 400 Hellcat has similar dimensions. Ready-to-fly weight is about 21 ounces, iirc. It is a superb design and flies with very well on 7 600AE cells. The Guillow's should make a very good flier on speed 400 at that ws. Get a 6 volt speed 400 motor, a 7 or 8 cell 600AE or 500AR battery pack and a 15 amp controller (miy setup draws 9 amps on 7 cells). You can also buy ply motor mounts that glue to the front end of the plane that use the 2mm? threaded connections on the spped 400 motor front plate. All this can be ordered online at Hobby Lobby, http://www.hobby-lobby.com/. Good luck. Try E-zone http://www.ezonemag.com/ for other info on the guillows conversion.

sorry, but the Guillows will be much lighter and not real close to performance to one or Jim Ryans plane built the way he suggests, with glass on the fuse and wings.
Being into much larger and faster planes, (F5B) I would get advice on the e-zone or even , yes, Kirk at New Creations.
A speed 400 and the battery size that has been recomended will put the wing loading up too high for sucessfull flights.

Try the Scale forum on E-zone.

Recently finished My 10th Guillow Hellcat. My first one flew in the late 70's w/enya 15. Sheeted wings 1/32 balsa. Used 3/32 fill between formers & stringers. This led to a series of hellcats, and all of the larger Guillow's. The hellcats the best out of the box design, airfoil, incidences, area's. Some of the other's have flat bottom wings and incidences that are more akin to rubber.
My new hellcat is 10oz.GWS-DC-A,9/7 prop,Lightening holes everywhere, ailerons-elevator- throt., covered w/blu& yellow coverlite. Fly's as great as the others!
Speed 400, size mtrs.would be ideal. The added wt. would allow You to fly in some wind, like My old slimers did. 7-500ar or 7-600ae would do the trick. My heaviest cat was 32oz, w/a then micro- radio of 6oz. Flew for two yrs. Good luck, the design is on your side. Steve

STEVE,

I sure would like to see some pics of your 'Cat. My next guillow's conversion will be the Dauntless. Have you attempted this one?

Sproose.......Go with your gut, and let's see some pics as you progress!

Todd

Hi todd, I have built several dautless's. they are also good flyers with no mods to the air foil. Hopefully I will get my othr comp. hooked up this weekend then I can post pics. I at present have a old packard bell from h*ll, and cannot download MSpaintexe program. That makes my cam. useless.
I have been building Guillows since I was a kid, and alwas prayed for the day when they would make a multi-prop. radio that was small enough for them. My prayer was answered in 1978 when litco came out w/their small reciever & the bantam miget servo's.
My first Dauntless had robart 1/2A retracs and auw was around 22oz. The plane still resides in my friens house in W.P.B. Fla. If I can be of any assistance Let me know! Glad to help!
Steve

Hi todd, Have the ability to post pics now. Here is my latest Hellcat
My favorite thing to do to awe the flyers at the field, is to set the trans. down give it a toss, and ask someone for a match, while the Cat climbs gracefully away! Sorry if the pics aren't to clear, cheap cam. Steve

wow i am new to rc but ive built guillows before and just yesterday i thought about trying to put an electrin in one. does anyone know if u can make the guillows 400 series RC

Sorry guy's looks like I bought the wrong cam. The images are to big for the forum. AARRGGG!!
Spudnick, If the 400 series are the ones that are approx. 16" W.S. then you would definetly have to go to a specialized radio,
Real small. Steve

Steve.....if you want to send me a pic, try [email protected]

thanks

Hi todd, What a day. I had another comp given to me with windows 98. It keeps locking up so I'm back on the old one now. It's frustrating to say the least. But tommorrow I will hook the tower up and try to send you some pics of my Guillows air force.
Can't afford a better comp right now. Can't even veiw pics from my friends But I'll try again for a fellow Guillows nut like myself Steve

I am flying a Guillow's PT17 with GWS EPS300C geardrive, GWS 9X7prop,8-cell 720mahAAA pack Hitec 555 and 2-HS-55 servos,Pixie14 esc. I beefed up wings and added dihedral, top wing is at zero incidence. Total weight 17.4oz. ROG take-offs, 10 minute max duration at average 3/4 throttle. I think that the above power system would be about right compromise of power versus weight for the Dauntless, Hellcat, etc. I plan to use the above for my Dauntless kit. You could use a lighter 300mah 8-cell Nimh pack for 5-minute flights.

I think that a geared or direct S400 with eight 500AR nicads would result in a heavy/fast/short-lived Guillows conversion that may need bungee launch and belly landings with no landing gear.

Whatever you do, thimk, plan ahead, modify as needed, build it strong but light, and use the lightest motor/geardrive/battery pack, covering and R/Cgear that you can get. ROG take offs are a lot safer than first hand-launch if you have landing gear. There's a lot more on this subject in the E-Zone Scale Modelling column.

Hi, I have been going to the lighter power systems, as of late. But dont sell the guillows series short. I still have a P-47 that has over 200 flights on it, WT. 28oz w/ enya 15, tank drop. Last engine used was a cox .09 w/sleeve. If you use a 400 you have to do sheeting of the wings w/1/32"...and do insert planking between bulkheads and stringers w/ 3/32 and 1/16" balsa. I do back to behind the wing area. Even at this increase in structure the WT. should be in the low to mid 20'soz. Planes at this wt. and more I have never had to catapult, I don't own one. They handal wind much better than my GWS powered Guillows. Build for the power, altho it might be a lot easier to build one of the lazer cut kits avail. But then it's not a Guillows. Lite for one typ syst., Heavier for another. Steve