After waiting two weeks for a break in the weather, family and work schedules I managed to get out to the field to testfly my RV-4 yesterday.

I spent some time getting the TT54 4C needle setting correct. I then removed the needle to install the cowl only to find the hole was about an eighth of an inch out. I decided to fly without the cowl. The wind was between 10 to 15mph right down the runway. The takeoff was fine, requiring little rudder. I needed 4 clicks of down trim and three click of right and I was flying hands off. Most of the flight was at 3/4 or less throttle.

After a few minutes the first roll was executed. It was too slow for my liking. I am used to my Extra 300 and Uproar. I changed to high rates and the roll rate was acceptable. I did a bunch of loops, stall turns and Cuban Eights before some extended inverted flight. Almost no down elevator was required. It will knife edge for a while, the 54 is not enough power for the legnth of the field knife edge.

The first landing was aborted as the plane floated and floated. I had read somewhere that this plane falls like a brick when powered back. It is not true with my plane. The next landing I slowed down and the results were great.

The second flight went well. It's a fun stable plane. I enjoyed goofing around flying close in. I did not try the flaps (simply forgot they were there). It lands at a crawl without the flaps.

I am looking forward to flying this bird with the cowl and landing with the flaps extended.

I love the way this plane looks in the air. I think the 54 is a perfect match for the airframe. It flys scale-like.

The model got lots of favorable remarks at the field. I was surprised how few folk know what a RV-4 is.

Thanks Great Planes. How about the RV-6, 8 and 9 to complete the hanger?

Got the RV-4. Haven't built it yet. If G.P. comes out with an RV-6 I'm there!

And while they are at it how 'bout a Whittman Tailwind, a Zodiac and a Falco

Be careful when you fly with flaps - one) they slow the plane down a LOT - with full flaps you have to add power ! and two) flaps will attempt to raise the nose up and I mean UP!

In fact, I can do a perfect loop - with only deploying the flaps (a bit more than recommended)...

My flaps are connected to a slider switch, so I have complete control over them...the trouble is, THEY have complete control over the plane

I don't know where you read/heard this plane drops w/o power, but my experience has been the same as yours (concerning landing) - it will float and float, and of course float (unless you are short of the runway).

I have a .52 FS in mine and love the way it sounds!

Keep us posted as to your experiences...

Jerry

Well I managed to get out to the field again. The RV is a joy to fly. It snap-rolls as quick as my Extra. Outside loops and snaps are a breeze. I can fly inverted until the tank runs dry using very little down elevator.
It does not hold knife-edge very long, but I did not build it for that purpose. The flaps are very effective. I don't feel comfortable landing a plane so slow. In time I will get used to it. I dialed in some down elevator to compensate for the extra lift.

We now have some club members who are going to build this little gem after seeing the flights.

I must say it is not the easiest plane in my fleet to land without a bounce. It sits very close to the ground. I think there is extra ground effect coming into play. I now let is slow right down before three pointing.

I have been flying my RV-4 for about two weeks now with an O.S. 52 4 stroke. Instead of flaps, I built it with full ailerons. Great rolls, spins, and snaps and very peppy with the 4 stroke. I was surprised. Do have a problem sometimes, with bounce on landing. I just switched from rubber to foam wheels. Will that help, or do I need to do 3 point landings always?

Radiocontrol

RadioControl I has the same problem for the first 12 or so landings. I hate slowing a plane down too much on landing because of the snap factor and I was landing too fast.

I finally managed to land my R4 without bouncing by doing long flat approaches on long runway and holding it a few inches above the ground to determine how slow it would fly. I was amazed how slow the plane flew in ground effect without stalling. Using flaps helps a steeper the approach, but do most of the landings without them.

Good luck.

I just got my RV-4 kit and am trying to decide to put an OS 70 or a Saito 56 in the nose.

Any suggestions ??

Thanks,
Bob

OS 70 would be perfect. I replaced the TT 54 4C with the TT 46 Pro. It flys great but I would prefer some more power to improve the vertical. The OS 70 would be my choise

Ctritson, how did yours balance out ?? The Saito 56 weights 5.5 oz's less then the OS 70 without a large power loss. If it needed nose weight the 70 would be the way to go. The 70 weights 20 oz and the 56 weights 14.5 oz.

Bob

Critson
I am going to try and put my RV-4 in the air sat the 5th , I am used to flying "Cubs" and "4 - Stars" Is there anthing I need to know in advance?
Thanks Bushpilot99

Bushpilot this is an easy plane to fly. It will handle on the ground easier than your cub. It should fly about the same as your 4-star.
Make sure you have the elevator throws within the recomended range. It is not the easiest plane to land. Everything looks fine until you touch down. It tends to bounce easily.
I now use flaps on landings and slow down to a walking pace. You should try a bunch of stalls on your first flight to determine how slow you can fly. A word of warning. Mine drops a wing fast when it stalls so make sure you have enough speed on your landing approach.

It's not an Extra or a Cap, but is a fun Sunday type flier. It does all the outside stuff, spins well (not very flat), knife edge requires a bunch of coupling and falls out about half the legnth of our field. It looks great in the air.

Let me know how it goes

My Rv-4 doesn't drop a wing in fact it doesn't really stall just mushes down. It flys GREAT and slows down real good with flaps down for landing. I don't have a big problems with bouncing. I use foam wheels tho.

I just launched my GP RV-4 on its first three flights this weekend. I am absolutely impressed. It flew awesome. Either Great Planes designed it well or I surprised myself in my building skills on this one...but I suspect it was much of the first and a little of the latter. For those of you out there trying to hone your building skills and flying skills, the RV-4 kit is a great way to accomplish both at a great price. My model is finished in white and carries the stripes just like the box. I added some blue diamonds to the underside of the wing so that my tired eyes would have an easier time keeping track of it. Flew it without the cowl and wheel pants for the first three flights. Buy the way, I heaved the plastic cowl, wheel pants and wing tips and invested in the Fiberglass Specialties fiberglass parts. They fit great and I don't have to worry about them cracking if I look at them wrong. I installed the OS .50 SX with Brisson Pitts muffler and it provides plenty of power for this aircraft. Tried to get it to drop a wing in a stall but it flat would not do it. Flew very smooth on approach with the flaps down or up. I took some of the advice of the threads here on RC Universe and did long easy approaches because the RV-4 does like to float as she gets close to the ground. Anyway, I recommend this airplane kit for novices and experts alike. Fun to build, fun to fly, and looks good in the air or on the ground. Razorback11

Jeezus you guys a making me real excited to fly mine. Still not finished , have to install the closedloop and then cover the fuselage and finish the cap. Wing is completily finished. Gonna fly it with an .40 FX.
But first there is school. Will fly it the first weekend after the one that is coming. Hopefully I can get some pics of it.
Will let you know how it flies.

see ya

Hey Fellas,
My Great Planes RV-4 was flying so sweet. she tracked beautifully and I could not get her to drop a wing no matter how slow I flew. She was a huge hit at the field with my club members but on the 10th flight, at the bottom of a split-S, the horizontal stab broke on both sides of the fuselage just outside the sheeted portion. Aircraft went in hard and was totaled. While I was building the kit, it occurred to me that the balsa they provided foe the leading edge of the stab was way too light. But I decided to go with it. After the aircraft was covered in Mono-coat, I still thought the stab was a bit flimsy. Well, If I build another, I will beef up the stab. I would even consider sheeting the entire stab as opposed to just the center section. I had to add 1.5 oz of lead to the tail anyway to get her to balance out with a OS .50sx in front. Anyway, It was a super kit that looked as good in the air as it did on the ground. Easy to build and a super flier. Just a word of caution to those who are currently building this little sports car. Give some thought to the stab area so it does not happen to you. razorback11

Rats, I had written off the RV-4 because it seemed to have too small a wingspan to me. But after reading these posts, it looks like I might have to go out and get one... Thanks guys.

Oh Yeah, that last post made my stomach turn. I hate hearing about crashes.

Hi all, I just maidened my rv-4 today, with a saito 60 twin up front. It flies so scale like with that engine! I fly at 6000', so I didn't have a ton of power, but that is what makes it fun, flying it carefully enough with the available power. (APC 13x7 @ 9200)
This airplane flies the approach like a dream, it is so stable, but once it gets into ground effect, it wants to bank and yaw to the right like crazy. Tried the flaps, and even at a hefty 7 lbs, I would swear that thing flew the circut at about two mph. I covered it the same way as shown in my avitar, and it sounds so cool in the air with a twin cylinder engine! I think I may put flying wires on my tail though, after reading one of the posts above.

NJD

I am think'n of getting into one myself!!!
Rgrds
Hisham

Hisham
I also have this bird, it went together very well and I am really happy with the final result, got a pic of it in my gallery, take a look if you like as to the flying side I cant really say I have a friend who has flown it once for me and he was impressed. Maybe if the wind ever dies down here I will get a chance myself.