P-40LUVR

Well...i flew my NEW Kyosho P-40 with Robart 615's in her and did some touch and go's and did 5 landings,on the 6th landing the right gear twisted in then the plane nosed over broke my prop scraped up the cowl and wing.
These gear SUCK!!!
Is[:@] there anything i can do to remedy this gear..i think they call it a Trunion that the gear wire fit into and it is plastic,i can twist it back and forth now and i don't see any set screws to tighten it.
These landing i made where nowhere near "HARD" landings,i can't believe these gear cost 105 dollars and lasted 1 hour of flying!
My plane weighs in at 7 pounds 4 ounces nowhere near the 12 pounds they say it's top rated for!

Doug D.

I'm using them in a TF Corsair. I keep a constant eye on them. Mine are wearing, after each flying session there a little looser. I replaced the wire struts with 650 robo struts and get better shock absorbtion on landing. But then again there are starting to twist some as they wear. Can be difficult to get everything set, but the do work better. Overall the Robart 615's and 650 struts are maintance intensive. You may have better luck with Century Jet or Seirra Precision. Most of what I've seen talked about here is that Seirra is the way to go. [&:]
www.sierraprecision.com
www.centuryjet.com

parabellum

Sierra doesn't seem to make any small (40 -60 size) retracts, according to
their web site, unless I'm over looking something.

all their stuffs are 1/5 1/4 etc.

Doug D.

You have to call them and talk to them personlly.
And you might check out unitracts. [&:]

Rocketman612

My Feedback: (85)

Another sad tale... Sorry to hear the gear failed. This subject has been beaten to death over the past year. Do a search but salvation is around the corner see this thread.
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/ATTE..._870108/tm.htm

Take care, Pete

LDM

My Feedback: (15)

Century Gear !

cknaack

My Feedback: (1)

Imagine that? Another unsatisfied Robart 615 user. When will Robart start listening? I will never use another set of 615 in my life!

I wonder why the giant scale gear is so much better?

Sorry to hear of your loss.

Just Plane Nuts

Sierra precision is making a set of gear for the top flite p-40 and the corsairs check out this thread for more information. They should begin shipping soon.
Dale

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/ATTE..._870108/tm.htm

BankYank

My Feedback: (63)

Here is what i did and have not had a single problim with them sense i did it. On top of the trunion there is a gear that the gear wire goes through. You need to take it off and drill and tap it for two set screws. At the moment there is only one. toss out the short set screw and get longer ones that you can really tork on to tighten. On the gear wire notch 2 flat spots on it for the set screws to lock the gear wire in place so it cant twist there. That takes care of the top part. If your using robo struts dont use the little set screw like the directions say. Rough up the gear wire pretty good then fill the robostrut with some epoxie. Slide it onto the gear wire. Twist the strut till it is pointing forward till it is the way you need it and let it harden. If you ever need to get the wire out of the strut just heat it up and the epoxie will let go. On the side of the gear where the trunion is mounted make sure the screws are tight enough to hold the trunion almost to the point of binding. Use some blue locktite to hold them and keep them tight. I found they always loosen up otherwise and this will allow them to strip. I have a set in a P-40 with some time on it and sense I did this I have had no more problems with them at all.

w0mbat

My Feedback: (1)

I agree, the 615 have some problems. Unfortunately, they are the only rotating gear that fit in a reasonably small area. Century Jets seem to work well, but the cylinder is huge. The Sierra Precision retracts are also too large for many applications. I'm not sure that cutting or modifying the main wing spar is a viable solution for most planes. I think in order for the Robarts to work correctly every time, they need a complete redesign of the gear mechanism and the cylinder.

Some things that may make the Robarts work better:
Use smaller wheels, the larger wheels don't allow the gear to lock down properly sometimes. I usually do a slow fly-by once I put the gear down to insure that they are locked.
Make sure the mounting plate fits the gear mount exactly so there is no bending on the retract mechanism
Spray some silicone on the gear assembly and scissor arms before each trip to the field
Use the included 3/16" spring gear - the scale struts don't give and put a lot of pressure on the scissor arms
Pray!

LDM

My Feedback: (15)

I think that Seira will be good if they make one that fits .However I switched from Robart to century . Its comparing a toy(robart)To real (century ) I am buying a new custome paor for my new hanger nine corsair.
I have followed the bull ads in the Rags , they are all robart so I figured if its good enought for all those top gun guys its good enought for my little 9 or 10 pound model-wrong! Look for aprox $215 or so thru tower you get everything from Century including attached heavy duty as close to scale real working struts. With Robart they are after market add ons that have to be drilled with a slow RPM industrial drill press/carbide bit to get the set screw holes . With century all you do is remove the set screws , file a falt spot put the strut back on and your good to go .
Ideally- its a wonder that some company would simple make the oleo strut as permanant part pf the gear so that there is no set screws to come loose on a model. Look at the real planes vs models and the gear is not taht much differant except that the struts dont have little screws or bolts that keep them from turning . Until there is a better mouse trap Century had provided me with great servace and great gear for a slightly better price

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

Robart has had this problem for years. I had a set of them in my Top Flite Corsair and the gear train had so much slop in them that the wheels would start chattering on take off. They would chatter so much that the plane would not reach enough speed for a take off. I tryed everything in the book to fix it. I contacted Robart about it and I was completly ignored by them. No response at all. From that moment forward, I have been a loyal user of Spring Air and Century Jet and I have never looked back. I figure that if Robart did not want to talk with me about a problem, they are not getting any more of my money. Good Luck, Dave

w0mbat

My Feedback: (1)

Spring Air is currently working on a set of rotating retracts that fit in the same space as the Robarts. I'm not sure when they will be finished, but they should be good quality.

CorsairJock

My Feedback: (90)

Search Instructions:
Go to the bottom of "Warbirds and Warplanes" page
Type in "615s" OR "Robart" into "Search" box
Scroll to "Subject" in box below left
Scroll to "Topics" in box below right
Click "Search" button
You will discover that this topic has been previously discussed, feel free to bring it back to the top by adding your own comment(s)

Rocketman612

My Feedback: (85)

I know Sierra is working on a rotating gear for 60 size warbirds. When I spoke with Spring Air earlier this year the were not interested in making rotating gear in this size. Pete

LDM

My Feedback: (15)

Dave , same deal with me, when you contact them they are death dum and blind so I switched-just ordered a new pair of custom century for the hanger nine corsir , $230 total but if you figure the quality less the cost of a good retract servo its not that bad . i should have them by tuesday , hit me back if you interested in what the gear looks like next week .

Antoinebobrob

Has anyone had these retracts work without any modifications?

aghost

My Feedback: (13)

I have them on a TF F4U 60 ARF, using wire struts. its a 10 lb plane. They are OK once i got the rails level. For whatever reason,  the rails are built with a slight curve that follows the wing curvature. The struts are fairly short, reducing the stress on the entire gear system. 17 flights so far.

rc34074

My Feedback: (5)

Sierra does show 60 size rotating retracts on their web site today. $270 and they say many sizes in stock.


Ed

raptureboy

Try this link from Corsair jock http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_14...tm.htm#1438302I have had the same problems. Avoid locktite on the trunions they are plastic and it will weaken the threads(learned from experience) you can use heli coils instead of the keenserts, a little cheaper but basicly the gear sucks and thats all there isto it. I just ordered 2 sets of replacement links and it cost me $ 37 with shippingI tried the new wingspan retracts but sent them back because they suffer from the same issue,to much slack in the rotating mechanisim. Shame because they are electric and are really well made but I could see them folding up the same as the Robarts. Here is another p-40 thread wher I was trying to solve the same issue http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_98...18/key_/tm.htm

Chad Veich

My Feedback: (60)

I have used the 615 retracts without any modifications in a P-40 and two Hellcats with no problems. However, I have always used functional struts and I fly off of nothing but smooth paved surfaces and I'm sure both of those things make a difference. As noted above it is imperative that these retracts do not get twisted at all when mounting. I would recommend (if possible) that the gear be bolted to the rails and then the rails installed in the model just to make sure they stay perfectly aligned. While thus far I have had success with these gear I also have a set of the Sierra rotaters and they are light years better than the Robart units. When comparing prices keep in mind the Sierras come with functional struts while the Robarts come with plain wire and struts will have to be purchased seperately.

rc34074

My Feedback: (5)

I totally agree with Chad Veich about how well designed and built the Sierra retracts are. I have eyeballed their retracts at the Toledo show in the past and would buy their rotating retracts in a heartbeat if I were to build a plane the required rotating gear .

Ed

Firepower R/C

My Feedback: (10)

The new Wingspan units do have a little play in the rotation mechanism, but the links are thicker than the Robarts, and they are straight (Robarts have a slight dog-leg in the links). Overall the contruction is beefier on the Winspan units. The trunion is also metal instead of plastic.

I will be trying them out soon in a Corsair ARF... I hope they hold up!

Antoinebobrob

Im worried about this, I just ordered them and now everybody says they don't work.  I am worried because i am going to use them on a top flite p40.60. The plane can weigh 14 LB. Im also using robostruts and I do not fly on grass.  Has anybody had theirs work without modifications?

da Rock

Up until now, there has been little criticism of the Wingspans' strength. However, they've established a strong history of retraction weakness and electrical problems.

Your actual use will tell the story if you've just recently purchased those units. Odds are they will hold up. Odds are unknown how they will work otherwise.

Did your installation instructions advise you to use a stronger battery than 4.8V? 6V? Did they advise you to use a larger capacity battery? Did they mention wiring your model so the Wingspans had their own dedicated battery? Any mention that you should not use heavy struts like Robarts? Or heavy wheels? Each one of those steps were required to ultimately get my 2nd set to work after they were upgraded a couple of times. They ultimately did work. Once.

I hope yours not only hold up, but work reliably and don't burn out. I might go to the effort of swapping out my Lado's for the 3rd or 4th time, to try my latest version of Wingspans if your's work more than a couple of sessions. So far, these forums haven't really had too many reports of successful use.

We await your report. When do you think you might be test flying? Honest, we really could use reliable 100degree/rotators. If the Wingspans have really had it's early problems solved, we all would benefit greatly.