I'm on my third 81" Cub

Lost the first one due to engine failure over some trees and the second one to Rx battery failure. I almost gave up, but it called me back and now I have my third Cub. Each one seems to fly better than the last.

I'm sure anyone could say that about any airplane, but there's something special about a Cub. I flew helicopters for years and what's the first plane I buy to get back into planks?

J-3 Cub

The "into the wind" discussion cracked me up. I was lining up for some landings when they cut off the camera and wasn't paying attention to the conversation.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEdfCcuYmuc[/youtube]

I flew my Cub straight into the ground after about 100 take-offs and landings. Each flight was a learning experience and I just kept pushing and pushing and learning and learning with each flight, until one day the pushing got just a bit ahead of the learning and I turned this way instead of that way after a series of scale aerobatics. But I wouldn't have changed a thing.

The vertical struts are called "Jury Struts". Their purpose is to prevent the main struts from bending or folding in the middle under load (Negative G's). They are easy to add and I wouldn't think of flying a larger model without them. Some of the smaller planes omit the jury struts due to the strength of the main strut and their relatively short length.

Another consideration with struts is are they functional? Many models had the struts for appearance only. On my Sig 1/5 Scale Cub the struts are functional. Without them the wings would fold immediately. The two wing halves are in no way connected to one another. Like the real Cub this use of the struts creates an extremely strong airframe. The stress of the wings lift is spread out around the fuselage instead of concentrated into the middle of the wing.

Good luck with your projects,

Phil

I have never seen anyone try to drag a cubbie's tail down the middle of the runway. Now I have seen someone come close... Hey those wings aren't rotating!

I have a guy at our field constantly telling me to change my CG because it doesn't do 3 point landings.

What a GREAT video. Yes this is why a CUB.

SunDevPilot....

I'm quite sure the struts are non-functional as the wing incorporated center joiners, etc and is built as one piece. I'm going to add the "jury" struts to keep the scale appearance and also make up some functional landing gear. A fellow from one of the scale sites sent me some pics of the unwrapped full size cub gear. Basically a rod in a tube with cross bars and bungee.

One of my favs
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNuzvSNO7X8[/youtube]

According to the assembly manual for their 40 size ARF, the struts are functional on the Great Planes Cub. The kit built plane may be different, but they appear very much alike. Robart 1/5 scale Cub gear fits perfectly and looks/functions like the full scale gear. It's a huge improvement to the Great Planes gear.

Yuk! Hovering a Cub? [:@]

$142.00 (set)

The stock gear are great!

Well if youre truly against Cub yellow( which I WAS!) try using all cream color and tinting the cabin windows with transparent gold monokote. Gives the plane extremely clean lines and a very nice look. [:-]

I'll dblecheck the plans, etc as I got it for Christmas and haven't thoroughly looked it over. Either way I'm using the struts and will add the Jury struts. 142 is a lot of beans for gear... definately making my own. Hinged at the top and bungee allows the sliding "in and out" of the tube over the rod as weight is applied and removed on landing.

courtesy of steve barker on rcscalebuiler.com

As an alternative to a bungee, I use two large "O rings" attached to each side. Work great, too.

I use O-rings as well.

Suit yourself. That's what's great about this hobby, you can do it your own way. I flew the stock gear for a year or so but there's no comparison to the scale gear.

I LOVE Piper Cubs!Can be build basic, or made to look just as scale as any scale winner - It is also easy to fly, unlike some other scale aircraft.For a beginner, who wants to try scale, the Cub is a perfect first scale model. I also love the colour! The Carl Goldberg Anniversary model was my first try at scale, and was (still is) great fun! It can fly like a trainer, but ismore aerobatic. Long live the Cub!

SunDevil...
Did you solder the brass couplings to what looks like aluminum or is it just crimped tightly? Is there anything inside the faired aluminum struts to increase stiffness?
Mike

I know a few people around here that almost melt down when a cub even comes up in topic !

I have gone through times when I loved them, and ,,,,not so much!

I will say a couple things though, the Hazel Sig blue and white one is the best color scheme . And the clip wing is so much nicer looking than the full wing model.

The struts are hollow aluminum, nothing inside. They came out plenty strong for the 1/5th Scale model and I plan on using the same material for my 1/4 Cub. The brass couplers for the jury struts were made in such a way when the bolt passing through them is tightened the brass tightens around the strut. I also JB Welded them on to make sure they didn't move.

The ends of the main struts consist of flat aluminum I cut to fit within the airfoiled struts. These pieces were roughed up and "barbed" along the edges in direct contact with the struts interior to prevent them from pulling out. They were ultimately JB Welded into the struts. Attached is the attachment point for the strut where it meets the fuselage, prior to it being JB Welded. Not a very scale attachment but they work great.

If you look really close at the seam of the strut you can see the aluminum plate inside. This plate is "V" shaped end extends down each strut past the joint several inches.

SunDevilPilot

Now you have!

The ending was not pretty, though......

Cubs. Yes, they're wonderful. But having just gotten back from flying my Flair Puppeteer which is a sport scale version of the Sopwith Pup, I have to admit that I'd take a Pup over a Cub anyday!

So how about the fine points of different Cubs? For example, the Kyosho ARF Cub I had used a semi-symmetrical airfoil but another ARF I've been eyeing has a flat-bottomed airfoil. What about more scale Cub? In fact, what's the scalest Cub kit out there? Are truly scale Cubs funkier to fly than the sport scale versions? If so, why?

I'm sorely tempted between either just ordering the 40-size ARF (here in Japan) that I could have flying in two weeks (or less) and ordering the 1/5 scale SIG kit and doing a "speed build" so I could have that flying in under two months. I already have the radio gear and engine for either. Getting the kit from SIG might actually be a problem, though. If I went with the SIG 1/5 scale kit, I'd probably spring for the 1/5 scale Robart gear.

The H9 ARFs are pretty close!

All of the "cubs" were flat-bottomed wings. The original E-2 were built by Taylor (he left and formed Taylorcraft); the first of the Pipers were J-3; military type were L-4; postwar cubs were designated with PA for Piper Aircraft: PA-11 enclosed cowl, PA 18 (also known as "Super Cub"), the PA-20 Pacer, the PA-22 Tri-Pacer ... etc. The PA-23 was the first twin "Apache". The evolution of the Piper Aircraft company is an interesting story. Many books have been written.