hobbyflyer09

im starting on building a 1/4 piper cub it is my first kit i have done many ARF but never a kit . I am looking for any tips or tricks with this plane and kit building in general

thanks for the help

hugger-4641

My Feedback: (6)

Pay special attention to getting the tail feathers and the tail section of the fusalage straight and squared with the wings. Also, reinforce the top fusalage area around the screws that attach to the wing dowls. This area is prone to damage if you ground loop and catch a wing on something.

hobbyflyer09

thanks for the tips i have a friend who has many years of build coming over next weekend to help me get started and show me the ropes. I got the kit in two days ago and idont see how people do this without help for there first time. When you open the box for the first time is a little scary.

hugger-4641

My Feedback: (6)

Yes it can be scary, especially if you start out like you are! The 1/4 cub is not really a good "first kit", there are a lot of small parts and pieces to fit . I normally recommend starting with something like an Uproar or Dazzler since they are pretty easy kits to start out building with. But these are not good "first planes" to fly, once you get them built you better have a little skill to be able to fly them. The 1/4 cub on the other hand, while not a good first kit, when built right is probably a better trainer than a lot of the so called "trainers" . You will find it easy to see, slow, gentle, and very easy to take off. Landing the 1/4 scale cub is where you will need some skill on the rudder, especially if there is much wind .

hobbyflyer09

well this is my 7th plane i have two tower hobbies trainers and two sturdy birdies a Gee Bee and a hobbico diablo asap series so any where from trainers to mid wing planes. they all were arfs no kits. i think i will be alright i do a lot of building at work  im a welder so i have experience reading and following blueprints

hugger-4641

My Feedback: (6)

That's good! You should be fine both building and flying then. I assume you have purchased or your friend has offered to supply some of the tools you will need. If not, then there are a few that I recommend. These would include, a razor plane, a razor saw and miter box, hinge slot tool, and of course, a good hobby knife set.

hobbyflyer09

all of those tools i have or he is letting me borrow

SunDevilPilot

Subscribed!

hobbyflyer09

well ill keep updating as i progress on the kit and put on some pics

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

I find it handy to have a cradle to hold the wing while screwing it in place at the field. You will really like this plane when you're done. I've had people comment that it looks and sounds like the real thing with a 1.20 4-stroke glow at just above 1/4 throttle. I have the busa 1/4 scale J-3 done in civilian colors. Building another J-3, its in the paint booth right now, using the NE-1 Navy paint scheme. Also have another busa Army L-4 thats framed up. I would suggest you take a look at cubmans web site, Cub Den. http://www.thecubden.org/cubmenu/cubmain.html Everything you want to know about cubs and cub kits. A very good read if you like cubs.
Edwin

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

I'm building a BUSA 1/4 scale cub also. It is not my first kit so I find myself scanning the instructions and missing a few points. In particular, for example, when the assembly instructions call for a 1/4 by 1/4 by 30" stringer for the fuselage, make sure you pick the correct piece of wood (30 inches long). If you grab just any piece of 1/4 square you may find that you used a piece intended for the wing spar and you'll be short material for the wing. In general, it's a great kit but the wood sizes supplied are sized for specific applications so pay close attention to what the plans and instructions indicate.

biam

since you have experience with prints, the same golden rule applys with kits, read "every word every where" on the prints and in the assembly guide. An owners rep told me that early in my career and it stuck with me.

hobbyflyer09

thanks every body edwin i was thinking of going with transparent yellow we have a lot of people that come up so i could show them all the things i had to do to build it. and i think it would be cool to see all the wing ribs and stuff.

one thing i have been debating on is using a four stroke or a gas engine i have other four stroke so it wouldn't be hard to get another but i didnt know if it would be better to run a gas engine but ive never used one before what is the best thing to use

Edwin

My Feedback: (2)

That would be your call. FYI - I did a direct engine comparison on my Rascal 110 with a saito 1.20 and a RCGF 20cc gasser. Power was the same. The only difference was the added weight. I went back to the saito 1.20 because I can thermal that plane with that power plant. With the gasser, it was just enough over the weight limit and couldnt thermal anymore. But a gasser isnt gonna sound anything like the lazy putt-putt tooling around in the air. Its a sound thing for me, just my opinion.
I covered my Rascal110 in dark yellow and transparent red. Very good visibility. Plus it looks pretty good seeing the inside structure. One suggestion, I put in a rear mount on mine to mount floats. Much easier to do it now, even if you dont use it. I used a 1.5" wide 1/4" ply with 1/8" ply triangles to support it, right at the back wall for the cabin. That measured out to be about the right spot for the rear mounts based on pictures I was using.
Edwin

GerKonig

Mine is over 20 years old now. I did re-cover it 2 years ago. At that time I replaced the bottom stringers that go from the fuselage to the tail by "pine" wood. Not sure what it was, but the original stringer were balsa and one was broken. I would suggest replacing those by pine.

Chages I made:

I changed the way you mount the wing. I have tubes, it allows me to mount the wing really fast alone

I had a small car (Nissan Sentra) and I did the tail section removable. I saw this at the field once, and I thought it was a great idea. You can carry the plane in any small car this way. The problem: I got a bigger car right after finishing the cub, so I did not have to remove the tail anymore.. When I re-did the Cub I moved the elevator servos (2) and the rudder servo (1) to the tail. 20 years ago I had installed those in the cockpit area, at the time nobody put servos in the tail because of fear of interference due to the long wires.

I have a Quadra 42 in it, and it is still pulling it along OK. Heavy but reliable almost a quarter of a century old. The cub glides like a glider even at the weight of mine...

If I would build one now, I would make it electric. Using the same motor, controller and batteries I have now in my Giant Stick:-)

Ah, I used a Super Cub fiberglass covering, so it looks like a Super Cub or a PA-11 I would say.

Due to the size it is very easy to build, the instructions are clear. If you know how to read, and follow instructions you will be OK...

Gerry

hobbyflyer09

well and when i fly i have many planes i take so that would be one more tank of fuel i would need to have. i really like the sound of a four stroke i havent heard a gas engine in person.

as for floats i haven't really thought of putting any in but we have a big pond where we race are boats that would work to take off a plane how hard is it to take off and land on water?

GerKonig

Since they are so much cleaner, I would not use a slimer, go with gas. A G26 would be my first choice, but any gas power plant that size will do great. Build the plane, mount the motor and cowling. TEHN decide where to put the servos, battery, etc. This way you do not have to add any unnecessary weight to you project.

Gerry

GerKonig

That is a very cool idea. Not scale, but cool:-) It would make t a one of a kind...

Gerry

hobbyflyer09

what extra things do you need when you have a gas engine as far as starting and keeping it running i also seen something about needing a kill switch at some fields or something i dont anything about the gas engines how do they keep getting there spark anything you could tell me would be helpfull

GerKonig

Well ideally you have to be able to kill the engine with the throttle. Also, you have a mechanical kill switch that grounds the magneto (in the case of the Zenoah). So you turn this switch off (installed in the airplane, in my case close to the cowling), and the Zenoah cannot start. I also have another gas engine with electronic ignition where I have an electronic kill switch. Really cool. It is a small device connected to a channel, that kills the ignition (in my case).

A electronic kill switch is great because if for any reason you loose throttle control, it allows you kill the power plant from the radio. I remember a friend had this happen to him. He lost throttle control had to fly around for 25 minutes to finish the gas he had in the tank, and then make a dead stick landing. I think it is a neat safety feature, easy to use, and not expensive... I recommend it.

Another thing I use (does not mean you will need it) is an electric starter. My Quadra 42 has a spring starter, no starter needed there, but for my two 26 size power plants I use an electric starter. I appreciate my fingers too much to flip big props by band. But that is just me. I know people that only hand flip. To each it's own.

You will need a gas container, and mine ha a pump attached. The fuel line has a filter, and I have a sump filter too for the gas... Gas can never be too filtered:-)

Gerry

archie05

Subscribed, I also got a Balsa USA 1/4 scale cub that I will be building this winter. Mine is going to be put on floats. I will watch with interest as this one gets built. Already picked up on a few nice suggestions. Thanks guys.

Archie

Top_Gunn

My Feedback: (6)

[quote]ORIGINAL: GerKonig


Since they are so much cleaner, I would not use a slimer, go with gas. A G26 would be my first choice, but any gas power plant that size will do great. Build the plane, mount the motor and cowling. TEHN decide where to put the servos, battery, etc. This way you do not have to add any unnecessary weight to you project.



Just a word of warning: A G-26 won't fit inside the cowl of a BUSA Cub. Maybe with a Pitts muffler you could get the muffler side in and perhaps you could rig it so the carb was inside a dummy engine cylinder on the other side. I think the BUSA Cub fuselage is a little wider than scale, but even so it's pretty narrow, which makes engine choice tougher.

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

When I was researching for a Cub kit, the people at BUSA suggested that I don't use use one of the physically larger gas engines like the G26 simply as mentioned, the engine will not fit inside the cowl. They suggested an Evolution 26GX gas engine. I got one from Horizon Hobby during a "damaged box sale" and it will be completely enclosed in the cowl. I also bought the radial mount specific for the 26GX. It makes a nice compact package.

lazyace

My Feedback: (126)

I have a OS 160 twin in mine flys it perfect

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

And how are things in Buffalo Charlie? I was born in Buffalo in 1939. Grew up in the north side of the city just off of Military Road. Lots of time on the river with the family, fishing and water skiing.
I considered the OS 160 for my Cub. Cost scared me away as well as all the oil mess on the fuselage. I think the Evo26 will do the job quite well. The plane will be wearing floats and I'm strongly considering retracts on the floats. Sort of a dual purpose plane.