Cap 232 maiden
 

Finished and maidend my GPCap 232.
I bought a GB Cap 232 kit from a fellow club member.
It took me about 8 months to build it. Family and a full time job can get in the way of more important things like my hobby...
This was only my second RC kit build. I have built a few control line and rubber powered planes when I was in my teens and twenties.
Everything in the kit seemed to be good quality except for the plastic parts (cowl and wheel pants).
The build was straight forwared. My only modifications where extra reinforsment to the fire wall and landing gear bracing. I also reinforced the cowl with nylon cloth and epoxy.
I used an O.S. 70 surpass that I got off ebay. After I adjusted the valves it ran very well.
I maidend the plane last tuesday.
Ran it up and down the runway a few times to make sure it tracked staight.
It pulled a little to the left but was very managable and evan lifted off the ground unexpectidly for a few feet.
Then came to moment of truth. It took off the ground effortlessly, and I only had to give it a few clicks of down for trim.
this plane is a dream to fly. Very smooth and responsive. I did not get too aggresive on the first flight. I did do a few rolls and it tracked level through the rolls with out giving any down
on the elevator when it was upside down.
landing was very smooth. I was able too slow it way down and it settled down as smooth as butter.
However, on my second attmept to take off the, long grass caught on the wheel pants and flipped the plane which resulted in a broken vertical stabalizer.
I was able to fix this by the weekend and I flew it again yesterday.
Again, it was a dream to fly. Too bad they don't make this kit any more.
However on my landing the wheel pant broke and went inverted on the wheel which acted as a brake and flipped the plane over and broke the vertical stabilizer again.
I fixed it last night and removed the wheel pants.
If I where to build this kit again, the only thing I would do differently is reinforce the vertical stabilizer and wheel pants.
I will try to add some pictures.

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

Sounds great and it was a good kit. Back in the olden days there was a bit of a problem with the Cap's, we called them Snaps for a reason. On landing, if you slowed down just a tad too much the plane would snap on you without any warning at all. I still have/had an old kit built 80 inch Cap that will snap on me if I slow it too much. It's in storage.
Take your plane up high and slow it down like you were landing several times to see if your plane will do that.
The designers of kits and ARFs made some changes or improvements to the plane and seemed to have removed that little problem. I just don't know who or when the improvement was done?
Just an FYI. Mine doesn't give a wing rock like an Extra, it just does it, instant snap. By going high I learned what the speed was where it did it's thing and never fly that slow. My old kit was cut in Mexico years ago.;) Back then the plane had a bad rep but the one's I have flown the last few years hasn't had a snap problem at all!!

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

I really like that MONSTER rudder!!!!

The Super Kaos is set up exactly like the Cap in this regard. It is one of the things that drew me to it.

Very nice!

Brian

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

Gray Beard,
I tried what you suggested.
I took the Cap up high and slowed it down to a crawl. It did not snap at all. Once it slowed down to a certain point, it would start sinking but it was very stable.
This is defianatly the favorate of my planes.

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

good deal u r talking to a cap lover i had 2-Sig Cap 232 now i have a carden and h-9 cap yeah i never had those snapping issues with cap. i hate to tell someone it may be their set up with out having opened up can of worms. then again i dont fly with crazy rates on flight mode except for 3d time:D

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

I went looking but this is one of only a few shots I have of that Cap. Just the bottom. I had just recovered it for some air show or events. The covering was so old and blistered it took me a week to remove that nasty old crap. I used whatever colors I had on hand just to get it done. They really do have a huge rudder!! This was almost 10 years ago. I sure miss having that shop!!! 1000 sq. ft. and very comfortable!!
I enjoy Caps and I enjoy the newer ones a lot more then this old plane. It must be around 20 years old now? It was built a while ago!
My basic instructor was flying it back then when I recovered it. He flew it very well!!

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

good deal Gray.......

here are my 2 caps

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

Ilove these too. Before Ihad to give up R/C back in mid/late 90's Ihad built and flown a couple GP Cap 21's, and loved every minute of it! That, and the Super Chipmunk at the time, were about my very favorite..

What a toss up thinking back, on what was more of a pleasure.. opening up that fresh balsa kit.. or the first maiden flight day..

Is this a sign of getting old, Gray Beard? dwelling on some old memories of R/C planes? Iremember Dad always giving me that look when I'd mention building another Cap or Super Chipy.. Iguess he just couldnt get past the idea of them having that 'death snap'. Ilooked at is as some kind of challenge though. Idunno..

Nice plane harlanb!

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

I never thought of it as a challange but just something to know about. My advanced instructor warned us about this plane, he was the builder and letting us fly the plane at events.
Most of my own giant scale planes in the IMAC catogory have been the Extra that I like a lot more then the CAPs. The Extras I have had over the years have all given me the stall warning of the wing rock. All Except one!!! It was worse then the worst CAP I had ever flown!!
I have maidened and flown a number of CAPs for people over the last few years and during the trim flights noticed the snap problem has been fixed with some design changes. I haven't found one that was like the old CAPs.
I also do not hear them called SNAPS any longer.
I just warn people to do the stall testing on them, I stall test all my planes during the trimming, nothing much you can do about it but I like to know and see how my planes go into there stall and what speed they do it at.
The one snapping Extra I had {got rid of} I didn't stall test. When I came out of my first stall turn I had a surprise and discovered it wanted power at the bottom. Then it bit me in the butt on a landing after that, pilot error, my bad but when it touched the ground I think it touched all four corners.
Not testing the plane was just a brain fart, not an age problem.:D

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

Caps most definatly had a snapping problem. I hated flying them, but my dad loved them. You had to keep elevator rates really low. On the other hand nothing tumbles like a cap. The newer designs are true 3D designs that have had that tendency built out of them. Nice build by the way !

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

I have the same GP Cap; it won't snap and flies just like you mentioned. The only problem I have had was the wheel pants would catch and jam the wheel and flip the plane over, so now no more wheel pants.

Someone mentioned the big rudder, yup, I like it too, this plane will knife edge forever.

RE: Cap 232 maiden
 

i just got back in from getting one quick windy flight in on mine.....