p51Dpony

I've always hated the "dumbthumb" term, but in case of most crashes and cubs especially, it's just a misnomer.  By the time you crash your cub, or other plane, you're 2 or 3 mistakes into your flight and no amount of "genious-smart-double-jointed-chocolate-dipped-honey-soaked-glazed-thumb" is gonna save you!

on_your_six

My Feedback: (11)

It's called learning to fly... a proper cub has to be flown with a gentle hand and air smarts. A couple of hundred flights and you will understand.

Flying the cub and other skidded aircraft are a sheer joy... the J3 opens and expands your world greatly to the number of models you can fly.

Nitro777

Shane18 of course he didn't know what a dumbthumb was.  Did you know what it was the first time you crashed?????  Were you ever new to the hobby???? Has your ego ever been bigger than it seems to be now????  The guy is brand new BACK OFF a little.  Do you have to make him seem like an idiot to make your flying mistakes go away?  I believe  there's a huge difference between criticism and constructive criticism.  Seems like everyone on this particular thread konws the difference besides you.  If you can't help without making him feel like a dummy then keep you mouth shut.


Learn2fly stick to your screen name and keep learning man.  We all had to.  Just ignore the ones who might discourage you even if they think they are helping.  Alot of these guys have given some great advise in this and many other threads.  Keep learning to fly and remember if you never crash it's because you ain't flying.  Kudos for learning to fly on a tail dragger. 

Villa

Hi on_your_six
You explanation is very well put. I always chuckle when I read a comment on the J3-Cub to the effect that it is an easy plane to fly. Currently I have a 71" WS J3-Cub with an OS-46-AX with an APC 12X4 prop, that I have been flying for about 5 years. I designed it so I could make it from Coroplast, so it is a SPAD. Every time I take it up I do my best to remember that it is "different" and I give it the respect it deserves. If it has been weeks or longer since I flew it last I try to remember all of the special "things" the cub MUST have. It is a fun and challenging plane.

cfircav8r

My Feedback: (1)

Practice is very important, but without a good understanding of how and why your A/C acts/reacts to control inputs and external influence, you will never really master flying. I have seen many flyers that can make their planes dance, yet you hand them a different model and it's like they are learning to fly all over again. Most go to guys for maiden flights aren't the most impressive flyers on the surface, but if the plane can fly they will bring it back every time, and be able to tell you exactly what you need to do to make it fly better. That comes from a combination of experience and an in depth knowledge of what makes a plane fly. Keep asking the questions and keep practicing. There are no stupid questions just stupid people that think you should be born knowing everything like they were.

Tall Paul

On my Tail dragger Kadets, having the axle in line with the leading edge gives almost hands free free takeoff runs..

piperfloatflyer

My Feedback: (1)

Ihad a couple different people maidenmy J3for me and they helped me get it set up. I feel it isproperly set to the specs of H9. I have had 10 to 12 succesful flights with this plane, and half as many unsuccesful though not always damaging ones.

It surely is a hand full on the runway, but with all this information ( not fully digested yet) I feel there are some definite changes I can make with my style and with a few expo adjustments that will help.

This isn't my first plane, it was my second, but after a couple failed attempts it became shelved and was returned to after a few more months of practice with an Alpha. I learned to fly on a Super Cub LP, and havegone throughthree motors (and numerous other parts), playing with that great little plane on and off the water. Then I bought an Alpha ( first succesfull flights with ailerons). I installed a set of floats on this plane but never made it to the water with it... so the floats will be maidened off from the snow, the next calm day we get.

I'll tell ya... I'm 41 yrs old and I can't think of enjoying anything more since I've been a kid,than I do flying these planes! I spend alot of time flying and working on these things and enjoy it emensly. And I appreciate all the verbal expertise on this site. I'm more of a lurker than anything in here, but maybe in a few years I'll have enough experience to help some one else.

on_your_six

My Feedback: (11)

Villa,

Flying the cub correctly comes mostly from confidence. If you think you can, you will. Baby her, you can get in trouble, ram it to the firewall and you are sure to feel the bite. She will never takeoff very well in a cross-wind so you learn to cheat. It is really flying, and my 1/4 scale tail draggers appreciate my time ground looping the cub. At times, the cub made me look so bad I just hung my head in embarrassment, then at other times, I flew like a pro. I will never tire of her, you see we now have an understanding. She is as aerobatic as she is graceful... just a different style. When you spin her, hold on tight because you are going to need to.

There are things you can do in a cub that you can not seem to do anywhere else. I now fly her in just about any wind... I have not mastered her, no-one ever will, but I do not fear her.

GerKonig

I had the problem the first time with a Goldberg Cub. The solution was to add a little toe-in to the landing gear. Never had a problem again. Also, accelerarate at a steady rate, do not bump the throttle, just advance, and compensate with the rudder to stay straight.

Will become second nature in no time. Now remember, the most important thing is the toe-in:-)

Gerry

archie05

This is a great thread and some really good advice. Now I can tell my stepson why he is having so much trouble with his J3 and takeoffs. Thanks learnin2fly for asking the question.

Archie

crustychief

Shane 18 has 5 posts, one of them is asking for help with a little cox motor, two are on this thread and one just says "dumbutt" or something to that effect. On top of the fact he can't even spell the name of the town he lives in. I would say 13 year old internet warrior, but that is just my opinion.

lernin2fly, there is a lot of good information on this thread. I have always believed that if a pilot has good power / rudder management skills it will show on a cub. Keep trying and don't get discouraged.

Gooseman240

Reported as abuse for a friendly tap on the shoulder that these comments are not appropriate. Time for you to engage the brain before your mouth.

piperfloatflyer

My Feedback: (1)

Ihave a picture of my planes, but I can't seem to get them to upload. If some one thinks they can do it I will email them to them. They are nothing to right home to your mother about but I love them like my kids

Tarasdad

Villa, a Cub really is easy to fly. Takeoff and landing, on the other hand...not so much.

Lnewqban

L2F,

Verify that your pictures are the type and size supported by the RCU system:

Max. 6000KB;
gif/txt/jpg/jpeg/pdf

piperfloatflyer

My Feedback: (1)

Ok... Looks like I was able to uplaod them...

barndawg77

I have a 71" wingspan J-3 that took alot of practice to get into the air smoothly...it was always a battle. It's a rough field, so everything had to be perfect, and ya had to be right on top of the rudder...up elevator to keep it from nosing over, slowly advance throttle to avoid the hard left turn (even with right rudder applied), relax the elevator just a touch to prevent lifting off too soon...easy on the rudder because just a touch too much right rudder would send it darting off to the right. It was challenging, which made it fun. I finally got it to take off with little effort ...I PUT THE DAMN THING ON FLOATS!!! Hehehe...it's a blast to fly off the water. I replaced land based operations with a pheonix models super decathlon...way easier to get off the ground thanks to all the practice with the cub.

rcflyingnut

My Feedback: (9)

I have never taken off on water or snow. Done it on the pheonix sim and I do fine, but I think I would be even more nervous than usual if it were my real H9 Cub. Seems like your throtle and rudder management would have to be even higher on the two.

We fly on a fairly rough grass runway as well, and like you, there are a couple of "sweet spots" that I use when flying the cub. Like the others have said; ask all the questions you can. Look at my "signature". Believe me; I'm not scared to ask questions.

p51Dpony

My smaller cub came as a plug-n-play and had a .46 evolution on it, the instructions recommended, for float flying, an auxillary vertical stabilizer that was mounted on the back/bottom of fuselage.  I tried floats without it and it really wanted and often did spiral in right as breaking water so once I added that piece of stabilizer, looked like a fin pointing down,  it was no worse behaved than the regular ground/ wheel flying.  That plane (H9) came with that stabilizer that was intended for float flying.. I eventually ended up with a saito .56 on that plane and love the way it flies, I have not tried floats w/ that engine but suspect if it was able there would be no spare power whatsoever.

Im curious if anyone has experience w/ clipped wing cubs?  I suspect maybe with that shorter wing it can't slow down so much so would be less prone to the aggressive spiraling stalls that the long wing version does when your not careful when you slow too much??!!

greg d

My Feedback: (34)

great thread I have been flying several years now lots of different planes the other day one of my cubs helped me remember that you must fly the plane from start to stop,not concentrating for even a second cost me a nasty ground loop!Oh well get up shake the dust off and try it again thats flying.Most people think cubs are trainers because of there slow flight in general I would say they are a great second plane but as a trainer they might break your heart and spirit and the spirit part is important when you are getting started in this hobby.Alot of people quit because their spirit is broken by crashing a first plane they really should have not been flying yet.Help folks when you see the chance and encourage them so that we can keep the hobby growing.The term dumb thumb for me indicates I did something when I new better.Crashes are a part of the hobby I hate to see a new person having that happen right out the box.I really appreciate having websites like rcuniverse because a lot can be learned with very little expense.

ronwc

My Feedback: (404)

This above is very good advice - toe-in and come on throttle slowly. As fas flying off floats, it may actually be easier because the floats slide across the water. Here is a picture of my Cub -

Tall Paul

The GP 40 sized J-3 flies like a J-3 with an VT .21 4-stroke.
It needed the OS 26 4-stroke to handle the GP floats.
And it flies nicely with an AXI 2820/10.

rivas8409

My Feedback: (1)

Some good advice not just for the Cub, but for a BF-109. Getting that plane off the ground is a bit of a challenge until proper/correct throttle and flight surface management is learned. Getting it back on the ground is just as difficult. Bottom-line, it's a learning process and I think every RC pilot will agreethat no matter howcomfortable and profieceint we become with our planes every take off and landingcan bea new adventure. I can't begin to count how many take-offs got my heart racing due to runway conditions and any crosswinds...but that's what makes this hobby so fun!

MTK

[quote]ORIGINAL: lernin2fly


[quote]ORIGINAL: da Rock


Not sure if anyone mentioned it before, I did not read the whole thread.

Don't know how much scale fidelity you need for this Cub. If you don't mind getting slightly off scale on the gear, wider stance will be about all you need. Cubs are notorious for very narrow wheel base and hence very susceptible to "ground looping", unless throttle management is done correctly as several posters have mentioned.

If you want a much more forgiving set-up, widen the wheel base as much as 50% (if the model has about a 75-80" wing span, shoot for wheel base of 18"-20" or wider) and add toe-in on the wheels. Don't need much, about 1 degree on each wheel will do. The wheel axles should line up with the wing LE or slightly ahead of it. An arrangement like the one I describe is not as "scale" but it allows much less finnesse with throttle and will be far easier to manage

piperfloatflyer

My Feedback: (1)

Well.. Icame home at noon for lunch.... went to put some wood in the stove at the shop. As I'm loading the stove I see my cub sitting there with her ski's on,... I look out the window at the flag, Old Glory's dancing a bit but nothing major. I finish filling the stove and take a second glance at the flag... I probably don't need to tell you what happened next... but Iwill.

I stuck a fresh battery in the cub and took it down to the runway. we just got a couple fresh inches of snow last night. I taxied it around for 10 or 15 minutes. I had set my expo on the rudder to 55% the other night and it seemed to help me with my overcorrecting today.
several times the ski's came off the ground and Ibacked off the throttle, to bring it back to me. Well... I had to do it, I was hoping to wait until a perfect calm day... but god hates a chicken.

I set her straight and let her go adding throttle ever so slightly as well as a little right rudder. she lifted off at a little under half throttle...looked like I'd been doing it for years.

I made a few passes and broought around to set it down... I had it about 10 - 12 inches off the ground and she cartwheeled. No damage landed on her ski's and taxied her back to me.

I tried her again... beautifull take off, I was impressed... the nice flat snow surface has alot to do with it but the biggest factor is the expo, I believe. It just makes it easier to handle .

I landed it the second time like I had done it a thousand times.

I really appreciate all the help and I only wish I had some one there to document it with pictures to show.