P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Anyone have any experience with this airplane?
It received a very good review in Model Airplane News and I was considering picking one up??
Appreciate anyones input !
Thanks Alan

P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

A friend of mine has one and Im teaching him to fly warbirds so I have 20-30 flights on it myself. Its a GREAT ARF !! I cant say enough about its looks and flight characteristics. He has Saito 100 four stroke in his and it is a real gem. The only negative is the retracts are alittle weak which is common on ARF warbirds, the struts bend easy and the cams get loose not hard to fix just annoying at times. I would think you cant go wrong with this plane.

P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Appreciate your input ..... !!
Was considering and OS 1.08 2 stroke or a Saito 1.20 4 stoke (since I have both sitting around brand new )
Any thoughts??
Thanks again !

P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

I would go with the Saito 120. Its a little much but would most likely eliminate the need to add nose weight. The 1.08 is a super engine and I own two, but you would run into problems with muffler installation fitting in the cowl and that engine is over kill big time fot the P-47.

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Looking at the Model Tech Dragon Lady to use as a "warm up" aircraft led me to the P-47D as a consideration for that spot. The DL wing-span is 66" and has 872 sq.in. or 6.06 sq.ft. which gives it a wing loading factor of 1.1 lb/sq.ft. (assuming their build-out weight is correct). The P-47DWS is 67" and has 785 sq.in or 5.45 sq.ft. for a wing loading of 1.2 lb/sq.ft. IF you keep the weight down to the lowest build-out weight for that model. Very Impressive!


The recommended engine for the P-47D is a 91 four cycle. The few people I have polled on the DL seem to go for the 120 four cycle.

The price for the DL is $169 while the P-47D goes for $229. No one seems to discount these models and that may be because of the cost to do business with Global Hobby Distributors. My LHS says that the initial order must be for $5,000 followed by $2,500 every month thereafter.

Several mail-order shops carry only a few of Model Tech's products... mostly the cheap flys.

I am still torn between love of warbirds and the very strong recommendation from a friend to get a Dragon Lady. Maybe I will get both... shush!... don't tell the wife!

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Hi Kirk ! it was nice meeting you . I still need to come out and check out that 190. I loved those pictures! How's the 47 coming? almost ready?
I got the winter blues and havent done anything since that dayyou stopped by.

anyways.. Corsair 813 I have the p-47 too and have used 2 diff engines.. I initially used the OS 91 fx wow it was a screamer! I needed that engine in another plane so I put the old OS 91 4 stroke. It flies pretty nicely with that engine too, not as fast. I did have to use a ton of weight to balance it though. I used spring air retracts instead of those mechanicals.. they are real flimsy.

I love flying this ship... it handles the wind real well too !
I redid the color scheme to match my Dad's squadron from WW2

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Heres a pic of mine with a G26 bolted to the nose. My wife got this model for me at Christmas. It is a really nice ARF, I'm very happy with the quality. I just started work on it a couple days ago, but I've only put an hour or so into it. I have stopped work for now until my Robart Retracts and RoboStruts arrive. I will be ordering them today. I want to get the retracts into the wing before I join the halves, and I need the wing joined before I glue on the tail feathers so I can keep eveything square.

It looks like the G26 will work without completely destroying the cowl.

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Hi All, recently I just bought a Model Tech P-47D 60 size and intended to put Zenoah 20Ei to this plane. Did somebody has experienced to fix petrol engine to this P-47. Did any modification needed in the firewall and the fuel tank. Shall move the fuel tank near the CG point? :DThank You.

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

a buddy had one for a while with a saito120, the firewall literally flew out of it in the air. pretty cool to see but bad for him. so definitely beef up the fire wall or pin it if possible. jeff

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

the one in the pictures is an early generation 1, the new one is glass fuzz, and built up wings, and is green, with a yellow/ black chequared tail, kit shopuld have the newer generation 3 retracts, if you have the silver built up fuselage version, the retract bearers need a little help, and the firewall will need glassing for the gas engine, but believe me, both versions flew superbly, in the glass version, keep everything forward, and use pull pull on the rudder, we also prefer to have a central elevator joiner, with a tiller arm silver soldered on, to enable a central internal pushrod to go down the middle of the fuzz, in the warbrids, i also prefer to loose the plastic wheel bay liners, and sheet out the bays with vertical grain balsa, and just paint the bays green

Which one is yours?

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

My is the silver build up. A few flyer at my place said the zenoah 20Ei is heavy if compared to saito 120 4 stroke engine after taken consideration the ignition swiff and battery pack. The power of the zenoah 20EI is less than saito 120 4 stroke. As per there said I can fix this engine to Model Tech P47D but is underpower after taking consideration of the power to weight ratio. They said it may need longer runway to take off and landing and most important thing the retract may bend and may caused the wing broken. (Really scarely me?). The problem is there do not have the experience abount the gas engine and no one flying gas engine in my place. Can somebody give me a advise?

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

your last sentence said it all---your flying friends have no knowledge of gas engines, the Z20 will fly your tbolt well, i have seen them fly on 91forustrokes, and they are very very good, seeing as it is an early generation kit, re-inforce the retract mounts, and strengthen the engine firewall, i have personally not heard anything of them pulling out, but be on the safe side, and glass the firewall

this kit is now dis-continued, but i hope you enjoy it,

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Hi, 2 years ago i bought a Model Tech 60 size P-47 and Dragon Lady[:-]. After testing my Dragon Lady with Zenoah 20EI for 1 years, I start to assemble my P-47 with my second Zenoah 20EI engine. Finally it start to fly. The total weight for my P-47 is 5kg. Propeller is 16 X 8 Master Airscrew and the engine thrust is around 5.3kg (RPM 8200). :D

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Here in the Picture

RE: P-47D Thunderbolt ModelTech ARF
 

Sorry, have to up load again