I'm suddenly airplane-rich!
09-22-2011, 09:21 PM
#1
Thread Starter
I'm suddenly airplane-rich!
This has been a good week for aircraft ownership around here!
Let me start by stating that I am NOT a frequent purchaser/builder of planes. Don't get me wrong, I love building kits (never bought an ARF, don't much care for 'em), but time, money, and space have left me with little opportunity to add planes to the fleet. Of the six planes sitting in my fleet before this week, all but one is over 10 years old (I don't crash much!), three have been restored in the past couple years and are flyable, and one is in the process of being restored.
So, last week my wife and I went out of town for a sort of family reunion. A good friend of the family had promised me his entire aircraft collection last year, which I had actually forgotten about. Well, last week he brought the goods for me to take home. Amongst them was:
- A built and flown PT-40 in decent condition, with an OS .46 in it and a spare ARF-version wing set.
- A really small (and cool) CG Eaglet, 38" wingspan, with a brushed electric motor/ESC and HS-55s, looking almost brand new. I thought it was an ARF, but on further inspection it may have been kit-built, just from nice modern laser-cut parts....this is one I'm excited about, should make a great park flyer.
- A Sig Riser 100 in need of some love, but with servos, tow-hook, and NIB hi-start
- A NIB Sig Somethin' Extra, which the wife has decided she wants to build with me
- An Ultra Stik ARF with a bit of hangar rash....not crazy about this one, but it's something to bash around, maybe fix and sell.
Good day, right? Well this week I'm perusing Craigslist and run across a guy selling his entire collection for cheap. Initially I was a bit disappointed in the collection (lots of old junk), but after taking the lot home, I realize I have a couple of neat vintage kits:
- A CG Junior Tiger, partially built (wing is pretty much done, fuselage started, looks good), with its box/hardware and remaining pieces
- An old Direction Connection Ultimate Kaos 40, in the box, wood is good, and kit appears complete...!
- Some flavor of 40-sized Ugly Stik with a Fox .40 on it, and sporting plenty o' hangar rash.....let's just say it puts new meaning into its name.
- The wing to some other plane, built but not covered....I don't recognize it, and it's definitely not for the Kaos. Maybe the parts for the rest of this kit are buried in the boxes somewhere, we shall see.
- Another Fox .40 (both have good compression and turn over, but are quite old)
- A brand new Enya .45 in its box, never even been run!
Plus miscellaneous other accessories, a flight box, a homebrew plane stand (which actually looks pretty decent, surprisingly), and an old 4ch radio. He also offered me his OLD gallon of 10% fuel that had turned an approximately vegetable-oil color and reminded me a bit of the Reagan years. We decided he could hang onto that one..........
Now I'm trying to decide what to do with all this stuff.....I have a Tiger 2 which has been flying for 15 years and is just awesome, and I really like the old-school look of the Junior Tiger (plus I have an OS .20 kicking around), so I think I will finish and enjoy that one. The Kaos, I'm not so sure about......it DOES look a lot more cool than Tower's modern version (they messed up the tail!) and I'm reading some good stuff about it on the forums here, so maybe I'll build that one too, not sure yet. The Eaglet and PT-40 shall be flown, maybe do some training with the PT (I think I'd like instructing, but I have not had a trainer for the longest time). The Riser really just depends on finding a big enough field for the hi-start.
It would appear I have a busy winter ahead of me!
Matt
Let me start by stating that I am NOT a frequent purchaser/builder of planes. Don't get me wrong, I love building kits (never bought an ARF, don't much care for 'em), but time, money, and space have left me with little opportunity to add planes to the fleet. Of the six planes sitting in my fleet before this week, all but one is over 10 years old (I don't crash much!), three have been restored in the past couple years and are flyable, and one is in the process of being restored.
So, last week my wife and I went out of town for a sort of family reunion. A good friend of the family had promised me his entire aircraft collection last year, which I had actually forgotten about. Well, last week he brought the goods for me to take home. Amongst them was:
- A built and flown PT-40 in decent condition, with an OS .46 in it and a spare ARF-version wing set.
- A really small (and cool) CG Eaglet, 38" wingspan, with a brushed electric motor/ESC and HS-55s, looking almost brand new. I thought it was an ARF, but on further inspection it may have been kit-built, just from nice modern laser-cut parts....this is one I'm excited about, should make a great park flyer.
- A Sig Riser 100 in need of some love, but with servos, tow-hook, and NIB hi-start
- A NIB Sig Somethin' Extra, which the wife has decided she wants to build with me
- An Ultra Stik ARF with a bit of hangar rash....not crazy about this one, but it's something to bash around, maybe fix and sell.
Good day, right? Well this week I'm perusing Craigslist and run across a guy selling his entire collection for cheap. Initially I was a bit disappointed in the collection (lots of old junk), but after taking the lot home, I realize I have a couple of neat vintage kits:
- A CG Junior Tiger, partially built (wing is pretty much done, fuselage started, looks good), with its box/hardware and remaining pieces
- An old Direction Connection Ultimate Kaos 40, in the box, wood is good, and kit appears complete...!
- Some flavor of 40-sized Ugly Stik with a Fox .40 on it, and sporting plenty o' hangar rash.....let's just say it puts new meaning into its name.
- The wing to some other plane, built but not covered....I don't recognize it, and it's definitely not for the Kaos. Maybe the parts for the rest of this kit are buried in the boxes somewhere, we shall see.
- Another Fox .40 (both have good compression and turn over, but are quite old)
- A brand new Enya .45 in its box, never even been run!
Plus miscellaneous other accessories, a flight box, a homebrew plane stand (which actually looks pretty decent, surprisingly), and an old 4ch radio. He also offered me his OLD gallon of 10% fuel that had turned an approximately vegetable-oil color and reminded me a bit of the Reagan years.
We decided he could hang onto that one..........Now I'm trying to decide what to do with all this stuff.....I have a Tiger 2 which has been flying for 15 years and is just awesome, and I really like the old-school look of the Junior Tiger (plus I have an OS .20 kicking around), so I think I will finish and enjoy that one. The Kaos, I'm not so sure about......it DOES look a lot more cool than Tower's modern version (they messed up the tail!) and I'm reading some good stuff about it on the forums here, so maybe I'll build that one too, not sure yet. The Eaglet and PT-40 shall be flown, maybe do some training with the PT (I think I'd like instructing, but I have not had a trainer for the longest time). The Riser really just depends on finding a big enough field for the hi-start.
It would appear I have a busy winter ahead of me!
Matt
09-23-2011, 11:57 AM
#2
Thread Starter
RE: I'm suddenly airplane-rich!
Whoopsies, looks like I messed up on my model ID'ing. Upon a second look, I see the Tiger is a Sky Tiger, not a Jr Tiger. Also, it appears the Tiger's fuselage has not been started. The partial fuselage I do have, and the mystery wing, appear to be a Super Sportster! Good news, as I have always liked that model but never got around to building one.
Matt
Matt
09-26-2011, 06:03 AM
#4
RE: I'm suddenly airplane-rich!
Matt... congrats on the hanger increases. I've seen similar happenings several times and it is good when planes end up in the hands of those who will give them some value and attention. In fact, the changing nature of the hobby to one that includes a great many who are strictly ARF builders, opens a window to the remaining kit builders to become benefactors of many orphaned projects.
I've turned down some offerings knowing realistically that the projects simply wouldn't get the enthusiasm from me that they deserved. I see more give away projects than I recall in the past and credit this due in part to ARFs and that fewer builders remain that will give value to a project needing TLC.
When I mentally think of the builders left in our club, most have a supply of projects now that will last their lives and they are hesitant to take on more, unless the project is one that for some reason yields some inspiration. There are of course the exceptions and some younger builders who are excited to get such projects and will choose from the lots and give life to some of the forgotten dreams.
I've turned down some offerings knowing realistically that the projects simply wouldn't get the enthusiasm from me that they deserved. I see more give away projects than I recall in the past and credit this due in part to ARFs and that fewer builders remain that will give value to a project needing TLC.
When I mentally think of the builders left in our club, most have a supply of projects now that will last their lives and they are hesitant to take on more, unless the project is one that for some reason yields some inspiration. There are of course the exceptions and some younger builders who are excited to get such projects and will choose from the lots and give life to some of the forgotten dreams.
10-23-2011, 06:13 PM
#5
Senior Member
RE: I'm suddenly airplane-rich!
I am relunctant to take partially completed kits, But I am always on the lookout for a nib kit. Picked up a GP PT .40 today.
