I've completed around 125 flights on my Wren XL 200 (34lbs)powered Kingcat and loving it
I've been pushing the airframe hard with full power high G turns and full power dives etc - Just wanted to know how much more punishment can a KC really take ?
Can a KC handle for eg Full power snaps ?
Xantos

I have seen some videos of the KC doing climbing snaps.. I am certain it can handle anything you throw at it..

Right up until it can't....

You should call/contact a BVM rep of call BVM directly. I would not want to make what is ultimately a SAFETY related decision based on hearsay and YouTube vids.

There was an article in RCJI about the King Kat taking full power snaps, can't remember what turbine, but I think it was Oli on one of his turbine reveiws.

Mike

Sounds like you are going to be the first to tell us the limits [8D].

What vintage Kingcat is it? Is it a new one, or is it one of the ones before BVM switched vendors? They are pretty rugged airplanes, but you can't abuse them and expect them to hold up.

David Reid
BVM, Jet Cat Rep

just curious amigo....but why on earth would you subject the airframe to that level of stress? you may accelerate yourself towards the service limit of the airframe, just like the big boys.

be sure to check the airframe for stress cracks, particularly along the booms (whether you have the carbon reinforcement or not) along with the wing tube / pin areas, in addition to the engine mount area

best example of strain placed on i've seen was watching Jeremy or Wojtek fly (video of course)

My Kingcat is holding up pretty good with a 44lb thrust engine on it. But I will say this, there is more movement in the booms when I pick it up after 30 flights with the big engine than there was with 70 flights on the original smaller engine (PST1300R and Titan)
I am almost certain that if I did a snap at full power my Kingcat would explode into more pieces than it's natural original kit form. At full throttle after 3 passes to let the airplane accelerate to the engines full push, I'm doing around 199.250+mph (according to radar), I think a full throw anything would destroy it at those speeds.

Like David says, it is a rugged airplane, mine is a first generation kingcat (when we still had to put the external carbon braces on the booms) but when I fly wide open, I fly smooth and with respect. You push an airplane really hard, you are pushing it's expiration date closer.

Some of the very early production KingCats had some boom problems...ask me how I know.
I cracked one boom almost in half one day *(about 2004), and was very lucky to have landed the airplane without further incedent. I replaced the booms, and later repaired the damaged one.
BVM came out with an A.D. that added the carbon fiber patches to the exterior of the boom skins, which solved the problem.

The current production booms are strong enough to be used as crowbars, but there is no sense in subjecting the airframe to high stresses....keep the speed down to a respectable level, and hold the "G's" down.
Buck has good advise on the topic, and I would listen to it and observe it to have a long and happy airframe life.

Mine is flying with a JetCat Titan, and on Sunday, my spotter (BV) and I decided to turn it down from 123,000 to 119,000 RPM, because it is probably doing over 220 MPH at 123,000. These things are pretty clean, and speed build up occurs rapidly...especially when the sharp end is pointed down hill.

Not to rag on, but they are watching us....no event or club field is transparent or hidden from the feds watchful eye. I'm off the soapbox....

Hi Guys
I bought the kit in 2007 but i think its probably the early generation KCs which had issues with the wing alignment/ phenolic tubes and the kit came with a AD from BVM how to fix it so obviously it was manufactured by CARF in Thailand.

The booms also had a sticker on them saying that modifications had been made to strengthen them.
Strangely I dont see any reinforcement on the exterior like Harley says.
I do feel a little movement in the Booms/wings when I pick up the airplane but I thought thats normal.
Im not really looking to push the airframe to destruction , but Im kind of bored with just rolls , immelmanns , high speed passes etc and would like to try a high speed pass , pull up and snap- something a little more spectacular.
Xantos

You can see the carbon plates on the boom surfaces in the attachment. There is also a 3/8" wide strip about a foot long covering the bottom seam below the trailing edge.
These booms also contain inner reinforcement as well. They are second generation CARF booms that are much stiffer than the first generation booms.

Am I right in assuming that the re-enforcement of the later booms was eventually not a visible band-aid, but internal?

Hi,
My booms have nothing visible externally , so Im assuming its been taken care of internally
Xantos

Not to throw fuel on the fire but don't assume that they were done internally. The C-ARF work towards the end of their time was sub par. I broke a set of booms in flight on one of the last kits that came from C-ARF. These had the external plates, and one of them was found at the point that I did a hard pullup for a square loop. The airplane should have a BVM serial number in it and your best bet would be to call BVM. FWIW my hard pullup was at close to full throttle. I flew mine hard and a lot, the first two were built by me and painted with the second one having some additional reinforecements to the booms. The latest generation of KC's you could likely chop down a tree with the booms.

not trying to be a jerk amigo but....it'll be spectacular for sure

just be sure to check the airframe from time to time. stress cracks or delaminating boom or wing skin would be things to keep an eye on.

I would say anytime you're doing a snap roll at 199.999mph +, you're asking for trouble. It might take it a time or two, eventually something will break for sure. I had a KC with a jetcat P 160 in it, at full throttle that plane was smok'n fast. I would never do a snap at that speed.
2 cents from Dancobsen

It's just not the destruction of an aircraft involved by pushing it to the limit, but property damage or personnal injury in case things don't go right.

Out of interest, why do you even want to do snap rolls at full throttle? If you're that way inclined you should be landing the jet and taking up an aerobatic prop model.

The risk to $10,000 of model as well as people and property if it goes wrong seems to preclude the idea from any form of sensible thinking!

There must be a multitude of other safer options that would stop your boredom with this model?

My 0.02

Hi Guys
I love my KC and Im not tryin to destroy it but I do agree with schroedm and others on the safety aspects of pushing the airframe.
The whole idea of the post was to find out if anyone out there has tried it and Im curious to know how much a KC could take.
Im sure there must be guys out there who've been there and tried it before.
Xantos

They probably can't post because they're still looking for all the pieces

I guess as long as he does not hit a cow everything should be OK.

Billy

I was going to say please dont forget the camera