ty marcucci · Feb 14, 2006 04:30 PM
#0 sourceI ordered the ARF Tutor 2 last week, picked it up today. Price is right. Box was light. Then I opened it. Very well packed. Lots of plastic bags. Nice stick on decals if you like that sort of thing, I don't. I'll use them as guides for Japanese tissue trim.
The bicycle spoke push rods are a joke. Tossed them. Tossed the plastic clevises. First I pulled off the monocote off every thing. Good thing I did on the so called fuselage. The motor mounts are not hard maple. They aren't even hard. The outside ply doubler was not attached very well as I could slide,with no effort, my #26 blade under most of it. The motor mount was not epoxied to it either. In fact the bottom motor mount is sort of "just there". There is no balsa under the bottom motor mount, just air. Repeat, it is hollooooowww. ????. The fuselage balsa meets the mount, but is not glued to it. The top balsa on the motor mount is a series of four balsa fillers, none on which is glued to the other. Why?? I have never seen a profile quite like this. Even the Flite Streak is better than this, and it needs help. I have done or repaired three of those things.
The lead outs are heavy wire, looks like 7 strand .021". But the way they connected them leaves much doubt as to how long before they flex and break. They look like my first leadouts in 1954. Not very well done. Do replace these and use wire wrapping vs the crimping they come with. Bell crank looks OK.
The bare fuselage from the side appears to be a Warhawk P40 C minus a canopy. Big hint to make it a little different from a stock Tutor 2.
Just make a new Rudder/fin. Nice balsa in those, but too much off set in the rudder. Straighten that out. Stab is built up, very light. Elevators are solid but very light.
Everything looks true, straight, and it is light. A .35 would fly this thing. The motor holes are not all the way through, but are started from both sides and an OS.46 LA-S fits perfectly. They do reccomend a .40 or larger engine. I agree. I was impressed with the size of the wing compared to my only other Tutor I built in 1979 while at Memphis NATTC. Once I get it built, er, assembled and recovered in silkspan or polyspan, painted, etc I'll update these severe comments.
I like the plastic tank and the spinner supplied was a nice touch.
The wheels are best for grass fields, not unlike the biggies on the ARF Nobler.