Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

I took my recently completed VQ P-40 up for its maiden flight today. This is the new and improved version with wing washout. Here are some pre-flight pics:









I didn't like the pilot that came with the ARF, so I decided to paint my own H9 1/7th scale US WWII pilot and gave him proper shoulder patch and blood chit:







Specifications:
[ul][*] Wingspan: 63"[*] Fuselage length: 51"[*] Engine: YS 110FZ[*] Prop: APC 14x11 two blade[*] Retracts: Robart 615 pneumatic with RoboStruts[*] Wheels: Robart 3" diameter diamond tread[*] Spinner: Great Planes 3.25" diameter plastic with aluminum backplate[*] Dry Weight: 9.5 lbs
[/ul]
Edit: added specifications

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

I did not feel good about using the MA 14x9 three bladed prop for the maiden flight, so I swapped it out for an APC 14x11 two bladed prop.

Well, talk is cheap. Let's see some videos from the initial flight:

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/take_off.wmv]Take Off[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/haul_butt01.wmv]Hauling Butt[/link] - YS 110 is spinning the 14x11 prop at 9200 rpm on the ground. This thing is quick

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/loop-splitS.wmv]Loop into Split S[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/figure8.wmv]Figure 8[/link] - at half throttle

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/hammerhead_to_loop.wmv]Hammerhead into Loop[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/touch_and_go.wmv]Landing Attempt[/link] - ran out of runway, even with 30-degree flaps, so I decided to take off again.

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/landing.wmv]Landing[/link] - with around 30-degree flaps

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/me.wmv]The Pilot[/link] - LOL

Edit: added hammerhead video and a glimpse of me

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

This plane had zero tendency to tip stall or snap at low speed, as can be seen from the two landing videos. I took it up high and chopped the throttle to see if it would drop a wing, but it just mushed forward. I was very happy with the plane's low speed handling. The plane was predictable and controllable at low speed.

t_burley

My Feedback: (59)

very nice job Richard!

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Here is the only in-flight pic that turned out OK:



Here are some pics taken after the maiden flight:

bosssman

My Feedback: (35)

Richard,

OUTSTANDING!! It seems the ARF warbirds just keep getting better. I have noticed that VQ has eliminated their pre-installed retracts which is a VERY good thing. What retracts did you use? The pics and the flight videos sure make this bird shine and has me looking seriously at purchasing one. I have several P-40 kits, some finished and some yet to be started, but this plane for out-of-the-box appearance and performance has given me the itch to get one. Any other oddities about the flying you noticed???

randy

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

The second flight also went well. However, I lost the top cowl mounting screw. It was screwed really well into a piece of nylon pushrod tubing embedded into hardwood. I found a spare screw and CA'd it into that hole.

The third flight also went fine. Those Robart 615 air retracts held up fine so far. I lost a side cowl mounting screw this time. I might need to drill out those nylon pushrod tubing and epoxy in brass inserts.

The awesome YS 110 continued to perform flawlessly.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Randy, since VQ supplied these new P-40's with oleo struts, I decided to go with Robart 615's pneumatic retracts.

I added some custom touches to this plane, such as the shark mouth, the hell angels, and the wheel hub caps. So far I did not witness any bad habit from the plane, just that you need to come in with a click or two on the throttle if the flaps are down. More on that later.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

The fourth flight also went fine initially. On landing, I made a mistake of chopping the throttle a little bit early on the final approach with the flaps deployed. The plane came over the runway and dropped down hard on the left strut from about two feet up. This made the gear in the Robart 615 skipped a tooth and twisted the left wheel. There was no damage to the gear mounting rails. Those rails were rock solid. I just removed the left retract, used a flat blade screwdriver to pry the gear in the retract back to its proper place, and I was up in the air again after five minutes.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

The fifth flight went great. I remembered not to chop the throttle until I was about a foot above the runway.

Overall, this plane is a keeper. VQ got a winner here. They have fixed the wing problem from the previous version. Now all they need to do is move the gear closer to each other (the real P-40 has narrow track) and allow the wing to accept 4" diameter wheels since scale is close to 4". Those 3" wheels just look too small.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Some videos from the second flight:

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/take_off2.wmv]Take Off #2[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/big_loop.wmv]Big Loop[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/big_loop_to_roll.wmv]Big Loop to Roll[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/inverted_pass.wmv]Inverted Pass[/link]

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/blowing_by.wmv]Blowing By Two Strokers[/link] - those poor 2-stroke powered Mustang and Spitfire didn't stand a chance.

* [link=http://www.whitetyphoon.com/rc/vq_p40/movies/landing2.wmv]Landing #2[/link] - not as pretty as the first landing due to a crosswind.

SBR_RV

looks good Richard, did those wheels come with kit, proberly just a paint job, thinkin of getting one one day.

aghost

My Feedback: (13)

Really nice plane. It does look like a keeper.

Brian

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Thanks. Those are Robart 3" diamond tread scale wheels. I made the decals for the wheel covers.

tank tiger

My Feedback: (75)

looking great .richard

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

I've added two new video clips to Post #2 above. By the way, I found the elevator to be slightly on the sensitive side, even with only 11mm of travel in each direction. I never use expo or dual rates (just extra things to worry about), so I will try to tame the elevator manually.

skispeed69

Rich,

Looking super. I thought mine fly awesome but I see the extra power of the YS kicks butt. I might have to look into those robarts, Like you said flying the P-40 with fixed landing gears is a crime.

SKi...

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

skispeed69, I was just giving you a hard time. Don't worry about it. About those Robart 615's, they will twist and the links inside the mechanism will bend if you happen to have a hard landing.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

I got four more flights in today without any incident. The plane flew better with age. I got used to the elevator, so there wasn't a need to dial in some expo.

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

I just put the plane on a postal scale to see how heavy it is:

* Fuselage with YS 110FZ: 6 lbs 1.0 oz
* Wing with Robart 615 retracts and RoboStruts: 3 lbs 7.0 oz
* Total Weight: 9 lbs 8.0 oz or exactly 9.5 lbs

LDM

My Feedback: (15)

Rich you are a first class pliot , great job on the flying and the post overall . I hope I can follwo in your footsteps and make mine as good as yours .
As far as the 4cycle , you seem sold on yours , and it looks as if the robarts will work .
Have you ever used a magnum 4 cycle ?

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Thanks LDM. I have never used a Magnum 4 stroke. However, one of my flying buddies has a Magnum .91 four stroke in his VQ P-40, and the plane flies well with it. This plane weighs only 9.5 lbs with air retracts, so any .91 four stroke would be adequate.

Paul Grubich

My Feedback: (1)

Richard would you do a report on this for rcwarbirds.com ? Please email me if interested. You can reach me through the contact link on my site www.rcwarbirds.com

Thanks,
Paul

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

Paul, I would love to do a report on the VQ P-40 for rcwarbirds.com. However, I don't think I will have time. Let me think about it.

romonte

I have the first version of the P-40, could you please tell me what modifications have been made by VQ Model to the wings of this model?

Thank you