I haven't looked at the Focus paperwork in a while but the engine mount on the inventory sheet probably refers to the angled spacer block the engine mount attaches to.

Duplicate Post

Crank

Burtona is right. When I purchased mine, it came with the thrust plate, offset built in. It would not work for me, as I used the Hyde mount, too thick. Central will not help you here. They told me to call the distributor. They made me a new thrust plate, which gave me the correct spacing. Looks like I made two post's here. Must be gettin' old.

Crank

I didn't use mine, you can have it.

Finally had time to work on the Focus again. Found that the JR 821 servos listed as a Good Choice in Post 84 are to deep to fit in the wings or the tail. Had to make spacers to fit under the servos in order to use them. Not a big deal but another step. My kit also came without a motor mount. I think they quit including it when most guys were using the Hyde Mount instead. Since I am building this on a budget I wanted to use a hard mount. I email Piedmont to find out which hard mount they had designed the plane around but have not heard back so I order a Glass Filled Nylon Mount from Dave Brown. Hope it fits? I see that Central Hobbies has listed the Focus Sport as out of stock now. I guess I got one of the last ones. I now have all the push rod parts so I should be able to finish this up in another week or so. Anxious to maiden this plane and see if I have done everything right.

with regard to the servo's in the fuse for the elevators......I painted mine black and they blended well with the servos.

Hi Daryl..I looked at the Central Hobbies site and they only list the ARC, (almost ready to cover), version of the Focus Sport. I might be too late. I surely could cover the plane, but you don't save any money that way. I also read that the braces for the wing tube where it goes through the fuse sides are not installed on the ARC version.

My Focus Sport is now finished, and has 6 flights on it. I have not flown an airplane that tracks as well as this one does since my days of flying real pattern planes back in the day. I set up the airplane using the recommended throws and CG, and it took one click of aileron trim to fly hands-off. All set up is done per the included instructions. Empty weight is 8-1/2 pounds. The OS .120 Surpass III is plenty of power, most flying occurs at 1/2 throttle. I am looking forward to putting many more hours on this airplane.

The attached pics show the engine mounting. I used the plastic mount from my Venus II. I shaved the thrust plate way down and glued it to the firewall. I also had to shim up my JR 821 servos in both the wins and the rear of the fuse. I ended up replacing the 821's in the fuse with Futaba 9650 digitals, and substituting 2-56 rods for the 4-40's to bring the CG to the prescribed dimension without adding weight. The 14 oz tank is located over the CG.

Another issue involved the rudder linkage. The rudder "horn" or screw hole is too far aft to put the clevis attach points over the hinge line. My solution was to machine some aluminum replacement attachment fittings as shown in the second photo. Happiness is having your own milling machine.

I really like this airplane, and I am glad that I did not procrastinate in ordering mine, I got wind that there might be no more available soon. That is a shame, I would consider buying another to keep as a back-up. This airplane is certainly a big step up in performance from my beloved Venus (RIP), and it seems to bridge a gap between entry level aircraft and the more costly 2 meter birds.

Wonderful Job - had the same issues with the elev servos & rudder linkage.
Just maidened mine last Mon (week ago) as electric conversion. Very pleased, albeit heavy overcast/poor visual (Mon) and too much wind this past Sun here in Austin.
Expect a much great flying with this fine bird. Too bad its going MD.
BTW, didnt use the special glow motor mount spacer, since with electric, the thrust angles can be done with the e motor mount.

I have a question regarding mounting the fuel tank. It was recommended to use a Perry pump if I was going to mount the fuel tank over the CG. With my magnum 120 there is little room above the inverted engine and the carb is in the way if I try to mount it below the engine center line. How much offset do you really need from the engine centerline. Perry calls for an inch or so. I might be able to modify the pump bracket and get it behind the engine with a 1/2 inch offset from the engine centerline. Worth a try? This is my first try to use a Perry pump.

I could mount the fuel tank over the CG and try it without the pump or I could move the tank forward behind the firewall. What are my best options. Any ideas or advice will be appreciated.

Perry instruction sheet says "about 1-1/2 inches above the crankshaft centerline", so if you include the crankcase itself you've already got a little to work with.

My suggestion is to mount it as high as you can (opposite the carb side) and give it a shot. Remember that the pump is somewhat adjustable for flow. Also you don't want to use a super-stiff engine mount. The GF plastic mount used by klxmaster above is good, and a Hyde mount would give plenty of mechanical action for the oscillating pump.

Once you get it up and running, you will not regret putting the fuel tank on CG. Putting it in the nose will lead to constant fuel draw issues and elevator trim changes. On CG, the engine will run well with the airplane in any attitude.

I called Central Hobbies yesterday and was told that the YS 115 might be available by September or October. I then decided to order a Focus Sport and power it with an OS 120AX. Next I was told that the Focus Sport is no longer being produced. They do have a few ARC planes in stock though. Well, I can cover as well or better than they can but I am not sure I want to get involved with a plane that has no repair parts available and they don't supply full size plans so I can make what I need. What a dilema.[&o]

I've been flying mine for a couple of seasons now......I have not required any replacement parts....if you're concerned, see what they'll charge for an extra cowl and wheel pants....for grins. I have a Saito 120 in mine...it flies great! The 120ax will be plenty.

Did they mention any plans for another model to replace it in the 1.10-sized pattern range?

Seems they would want to have an updated design in stock when the YS 1.15's finally arrive.

I keep hoping that any day now Great Planes will come out with an up-sized Sequence. It is merely a hope, not based upon anything I've seen or heard.[&o]

Nope, the lady I talked to knew of nothing in the works.

Got back after a 3 week trip and finished the Focus Sport. I have flown it 3 days last week and all I can say is wow!! It has unlimited vertical with the Magnum 120 and flys strait as an arrow. I had a little bit of a learning curve with the Perry pump. I hooked up the line from the muffler to the tank to pressurize it. Wrong, I had fuel spitting out of the carb all over the plane. Disconnected the pressure line from the muffler and adjusted the flow down wards and it is working fine now.

It is a shame they are not making this plane any longer. I would certainly recommend it!!!!

Yup Daryl.. It is too bad that they quit making it. I am glad to hear that yours is now finished. I have about 2 hours work left to have my new Venus II ready to fly; some radio programing and screw the canopy on. It doesn't look like this is the year for our Alaska trip. I will be coming to visit you one of these years though.

I am glad to see that the Perry pump worked out for you. I would presume that it is the "VP20" pump. I see that you discovered that you do not use muffler pressure with a pumped engine. Some folks still argue about this. Enjoy your awesome bird, I have 7 hours on mine now, and it just keeps getting better.

-Robert

I have about 2 hrs on mine now and I agree it just keeps getting better. Knife edge is really easy and I have just started working on 4 point rolls.

I talked to Steve Wall, replacement parts are going to be available for a good while.

I just ordered a part for a Focus 1 they had in stock, the 1 hasn't been made in years and the part is different than the 2.

That's great news!

Have you seen the Phoenix 7 http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...755#quickSpecs

What do you think better than the Venus II???

darylm44, The Phoenix 7 can't really be compared to the Venus II. Venus II is more of a modern design that can fly competitively in the lower to middle classes. The Phoenix 7 on the other hand would have been awesome many years ago but will not be able to keep with the modern sequences today.

-Chris

That is correct, it was designed for a style of pattern that is not flown today, save for SPA/BPA/CPA events. However, that should not dissuade you from experiencing the flavor of ballistic style pattern flying. There is nothing like the arrow like tracking of an old school pattern plane up on the pipe with the gear up blazing across the sky!

A couple of weeks ago I had a senior moment and forgot to connect the ailerons up to the Rx while getting the plane ready to fly. Then I compounded the error by not checking the controls before trying to take off. I know stupid, stupid, stupid. The plane immediately started to roll to the left and when it did not correct with right aileron input I shut it down as I was just barely off the ground and had a lot of strip ahead of me. Scuffed up the left wingtip and bent the landing gear. Also broke one of the wing adjustor's and tore a hole in the wing where the right wing screw goes through the wing. Flattened the right leading edge near the wingtip when I hit one of the pilot stations.

Got a new wing adjuster and fixed the rest of the damage. It could have been a lot worse and I probably won't do that again in the near future. If I had just checked the control surfaces I would have caught this before any damage was done. Hope to remaiden it again this weekend. I have checked all the alignments, etc. Sure hope it flys as perfectly as it did before.