Does anybody have any suggestions on a first time pattern plane ARF? anything from .46 to 1.00 sized would work good. I am not a professional, just want something other than my 3d profiles and fun-fliers.

This question gets asked alot.......maybe this forum needs a sticky for viable pattern arfs organized by size...there are a quite a few of them.

I'll start with the Excelleron.....both sizes.
Leo
Swallow
Quest
........so many of these fly really well......it's best to get something in the air, get the airplane trimmed really well (get help if necessary), and burn lots of fuel.

Good luck and enjoy the pattern community.

I am going to have to agree with Mark about the Excelleron.. mainly the 90 size. Biger does fly better. If you can stick with a 90 sized plane it is a great advantage. You can see them better for one, and they tend to be less squirrelly (sp). I flew the Swallow 90 from Giant Scale Planes and had great success with it. I was considering the Leo but ended up going full 2M through a great deal (aeroslave aries). Good luck and let us know if we can help. Hope to see you at a contest maybe huh?

Chuck Hochhalter
San Antonio

Hey Chuck,

I'm new to San Antonio, being stationed by the USAF at Wilford Hall (Lackland AFB). Where is a good place to fly? I have been loooking at ARCS? out on Hwy 90. Any suggestions for a club? Never flown pattern before, minimal IMAC experience....mostly 3d and sport flying.

Thanks for any input you can provide.

Contact 2nd Chance Hobbies in Universal City (right down the street from Randolph AFB).....the owner is Ret Army Col......Very nice guy.

He'll know where to fly

I am new to pattern and have teamed up with a few of my buddies at my flying club. Each of us is building the Quest 2 with YS 110 using Eric Hendersens recommendations. While I am building that I am flying a Great Planes Venus. It is a 40size with a Saito 72. Cost about $150 flys great and is giving me some good practice. I think it is a good plane to get familiar with some of the basic pattern manuvers

If you really want to just try it out, I strongly recommend a World Models Groovy 50 with a YS 63 or a Groovy 90 with a YS 110. Both fly exceptionally well and will cost you less.

Cermark Javelin

I am using a Hanger 9 Showtime for pattern. The control surfaces are way to big for pattern, however, it flies pattern very well when you cut down the throws.

John VB

Sweatpea01,

I have talked with Jim Rice. There is a nice field in Kingsbury TX, but that is a 60 mile drive ONE WAY from my house. I know there are some over on the southwest side of San Antonio.

Camodel Epsilon?

Look at the Kyosho Oxalys 50, you can't go wrong. My brother has built 3 of them and all have been top notch and fly like a 2 meter. This plane with a ys 63 is hard to beat!



Todd Schmidt

For a .90 size, the Hanger 9 showtime is a great plane. Just cut the throws down. A guy I fly with has one and I've flown the P-05 and P-07 with them without any problems. No it isn't quite a 2 meter plane, but still an excellent flyer. For a .45 size, the Cermark Javelin is hard to beat for the price.

Arch Stafford

BMircle, sorry i sropped out of sight for a couple days. I fly pattern at ARCS when i get to. I prefer it there because of the paved runway and also they do have 60 deg lines painted on the runway, plus the powerlines are about 175 meters. I want to fly at kingsbury becuase it is the same distance for me and i can surround myself with other precision pilots IMAC and one crossonver pilot Bill Higgins might (should) fly pattern this year.

I live perfectly inbetween both fields.. 45 miles both directions. For your regular club, go with ARCS as it is on your side of town, get off at 4-5 and fly for 3 hours till sun goes down during the summer, cant beat it.

Gimme a call if you like, i will pm you the number.

Chuck

What about the Great Planes Venus II ARF .61-1.20? Tower Hobbies is listing them in the $280. I own a Great Planes CAP 580 ARF .46-.61 and it is one of the best ARF's I have seen. It is built better than I could ever manage. I can imagine this larger Venus ARF might be good.

I am new to pattern and am currently building a Quest 2, I am practicing on the Venus 40size. I have a friend who is an accomplished pattern flyer, he trimmed the plane for me and now it flys so much better than when I first flew it. I think this is a good plane to practice your manuvers for little money. By the way, it is powered by a Saito 72, more than enough to pull it through all the manuvers.

How do these pattern planes fly in comparison to Extras/Giles/Edge etc. I have flown these for IMAC...do pattern planes fly smoother?

Brian.. are you trying to start a war?

hahaha!!!

A properly setup IMAC plane will fly as smoothly and lock on as precisely as a pattern model in my little opinion. This of course is if you are flying a 35 to 40 %er. the smaller Imac planes to me have higher wing loadings and are skiddish compared to a good 2m pattern plane.

Chuck

I believe that pattern planes fly smoother than Edge/Extra types due to their longer tail moments. Once you fly a pattern-type plane, you will realize how crappy other planes really fly.

John VB

I have been flying pattern for years, and in my opinion, NOTHING flies as well as a pattern plane. I have a 40% Carden Extra 330 and have flown other brands and they all fly very nicely, but nothing locks in like a 2 meter pattern plane. This is directly related to the design. Pattern planes are typically longer than the wingspan so they have a much smoother pitch moment. Also the wing loadings are considerably lighter than even the 40% Extra/Yak/Edge. Scale aerobatic type do tend to snap a little cleaner and prettier in my opinion, but when a 2 meter plane is setup correctly there is nothing that flies smoother. At the end of the day though, you do need a well setup airplane, one that is properly trimmed no matter what you fly. A lot of people do not realize just how important really trimming a plane is. Most pattern planes fly well because they are trimmed correctly. If you have a plane no matter how nice it is, that is not totally trimmed as well as the proper throw settings, it wont matter what kind of plane it is, it will not fly smoothly. The two most important things I think for Pattern, or IMAC, are A: properly trimmed airplane, and B: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE and you have to be careful with the practice part. If you are out practicing but doing a maneuver incorrectly, then all you are doing is hurting yourself. You need to make sure someone is there that knows what to look for you to get your practicing correctly, and even after that is the case, make sure periodically you have someone come help, just to make sure you haven't developed any bad habits...There are a lot of good designs out there to choose from..just make sure its built straight, light, and properly trimmed and you'll be happy no matter which one you choose.

Arch Stafford