Arthobby sailplanes from Poland...anyone have experience on these beauts

[Chuck Frady]

I was browsing the net last night and came across these sailplanes.

www.arthobby.com

they look fantastic and you cannot beat the price for these kits.
Most are 80% finished and have beautiful lines. Love that natural wood sheeting on the wings.

Anyways, I am looking to purchase several models and was wondering if anyone had any experience with these kits. I have built several Graupner kits that look very similar to these, with the exception that the Graupner kits are almost always printed in German with very little English translations.

Anyone??

thanks

Chuck Frady

[Daemon]

A few people around here have em, and they've all been quite happy with them. Look good, fly good, cheap.. takes a little extra time to build.
If you build some of them right, they can be discus launched.

ian

[tclark]

Chuck-
I'm flying a JKThermic, which is their 2.5 meter thermal duration ship. It's very sleek and light - I love the way it flies and looks. I've hooked some nice thermals with it. This is my first glider with ailerons, and I am slowly learning how to coordinate with my left thumb.

-Tracy

[CloudyIFR]

I have the Fantasy-III powered by a Jet Phasor Brushless 30/3 on 7 1300mah batteries with a 13x7 carbon folder prop. I made a conventional tail instead of the V-tail and made it removeable. I get 2.5 minutes runtime and it takes about 20 seconds to get to the same height as winch launch. It has a about a 12.5 ounce wing loading so it thermals pretty well. The high speed after a dive is awesome, will turn on a dime, rolls, snap rolls, loops are very tight. I moved the CD aft about 1 1/4" to get 38% MAC where I like it. I moved it a little further aft after initial flight tests. The Europeans just can't seem to get the CG where I like it for starters.

Would I buy it again, YES!!!!

I mean 7 times to winch launch height on one charge, breaks down easily and flat for transportation. What's not to like.

To see a photo go to:
http://www.suterc.itgo.com/models.htm
Scroll to the bottom right.

Curtis
Montana

[John McCloskey]

Two folks I fly with have Sierras . Very nice especially when you look at the price . Personally... I'm waiting on the High Aspect to come out ! You also might want to take a look at www.soboxplanes.com . They have a very similar bunch of ships .
John

[casniffer]

Hi,
I just ordered a Castor 2.5M sailplane after looking at many, many other planes and reading many forums. Its at the post office as I type, waiting for me to pick it up tomorrow. I will post again about the quality of the glider. Everything I found about ArtHobby's gliders was very positive and the price is great. I asked many questions about the plane and Andre Czeczel answered every one to my satisfaction. I talked to him on the phone as well. Good guy. I'll let you know what I think of the glider.
Steve

[casniffer]

I opened the box and was happy to see a very well constructed kit! The wing panels were built better than expected and strong. The quality of the kit is fantastic and all hardware is included. It is obvious that a tremendous amount of pride goes into the manufacture of Art Hobby kits. I can't wait to begin assembly. I will try to remember to document the steps and post them here.
I plan to use a Mega 16/15/4 brushless with 3.8:1 planetary gearbox, (it weighs the same as the recommended speed 480 powerplant, but with greater efficiency and power) HS-81 servos and Hitec 555 receiver.

(this is an honest testemonial by a satisfied customer)

casniffer

[tclark]

casniffer-
I'd be very interested in hearing more about your Castor as it progresses. It's the electric version of my JKThermic, and I have been considering getting a Castor fuse to use when a winch is not available.

-Tracy

[Storhund]

I've been flying a Velvia 2M for about 6 months now and I'm actually not that impressed with it. This is my first 6 servo ship and I'm still messing around with the trim and CG but I just have trouble keeping this plane up on light thermal days and I have difficulty in seeing when it's in lift. In big air it's fine and the quality and strenghth are great. The guys at my club think it would be a great slope ship but seem to agree that the obechi over foam is too heavy, especially with 6 servos.

Gary

[Randy G]

I had a Boar 2m with ailerons until about two months ago. It flew great! (notice the past tense here...)

The day the plane turned into a lawn dart was when I hi-started it and the feathers came off. This was, from my opinion, a poorly designed system of attaching them to the carbon boom. It was clip with a small screw through the middle. After I crashed the plane I examined the clip and it was cracked. Oh well, live and learn...

So, I bought a second Boar and instead of ailerons installed just the classic rudder/elevator combo. I made the wings poly and epoxied the tail feathers to the boom so they could not break off! The orig boar weighed about 22ounces with the new poly ship just under 18ounces. The orig Boar would thermal like crazy! I have started flying the new Boar just yesterday and it floats really good. I can hardly weight to hit some thermals with it this fall or winter. I also bought the Andromeda 2m fuselage so I can put a motor in it and use the same wings.

[Far4nugn]

I've been flying the Velvia with standard tail for about 5 months and I'm completely satisfied with it. It is my first 6-servo glider, but I've gotten the hang of it without difficulty. I love doing an 80-90MPH downwind pass, turn to final just 100' downwind, open up the crow and land in my hand. Incredible stopping power! I flew it 3 days last week at lunch and after work at a tiny slope. Had enough wind to add 12Oz of lead to the usual 34Oz AUW. I think its a great thermaller AND sloper. The wing skins, BTW are not obechi, but black poplar, and the wing has half-span spars of about 4X4mm poplar wrapped in Kevlar thread. It is very strong and I have no reservations about pulling hard up out of a high speed dive.

My first ArtHobby glider was the 1.5M Elster. After getting the CG right with an ounce of nose weight, I have had a ball with it as well. The V-tail mounting and joining construction could be improved as Randy G mentioned. After discus launching a few times (which it is not designed or advertised to do), the tail came off. I built new surfaces, joined them and mounted directly to the carbon boom. No problems since. Radio installation is tight, but possible.

I would highly recommend them for price/quality/value and service. Also, Andre is very helpful on the phone if you need him.

I'm not affiliated in any way other than happy customer.

Cheers

[CactusJackSlade]

I have Art Hobbies Colibri 1M... it is the COOLEST pocket rocket in my arsenal! This misquito class plane is SWEET!

I am MORE than satisfied with the quality/cost etc. I WILL be buying my next Art Hobby ship (a 2M or 2.5M ship with 6 servos) very soon!

I made the ailerons on my Colibri 15" long... almost 2x the stock length. It snap rolls like no tomorrow! I also can dial in a little camber and it floats very well... on those spotty days I'm usually one of the last ones to land!

I have a flap switch set up and this makes for some fairly slow landing speeds as well.

I LOVE the way this thing will scream down out of a dive and retains energy pretty good for a 9.5 oz plane!

ONE TIP: on the small 1M planes the tail feathers are VERY delicate... I would recommend a small, thin fiberglass patch where the control horn goes on the elevator! I actually made a slightly heavier complete tail feather set up, now I can bang it around and not worry!

I can't wait to build my next Art Hobby plane - best bang for the buck I have found so far!

L8R!

[casniffer]

Prior to ordering my Art Hobby 2.5m Castor, I spoke with Andre about the hinging method he recommends. He says he uses silicone to hinge his control surfaces. He told me he has taken his planes to shows in Europe and the control surfaces had been deflected literally thousands of times. He routinely show people that you can bend the aileron up and lay it on the wing. (no linkages, of course) He also says you should use a silicone that is thinner than regular clear RTV from AutoZone. He says he uses the same stuff thats used to mount and seal aircraft windows. Before I employed this hinging method on my Castor, I decided to try some mockups. I used two different types of silicone at my disposal. The first was Permatex Clear RTV Silicone and the second is Dow Corning 3140 MIL-A-46146 RTV Coating. The Dow Corning stuff was much less viscous than the Permatex and easier to apply. I beveled two control surfaces with the same angle and scotch-taped them to a "trailing edge" with about a 1/32 gap. I turned it over and applied the silicone so it filled the 1/32 gap with about 1mm of silicone. I cleaned out the rest of the bevel so the control surface would deflect in both directions and let them both set overnight. I was surprised to find that the silicone adhered to the bare balsa very well and I could bend the control surface nearly 270 degrees without tearing the silicone. Both silicones held up to the same treatment. The Permatex is a little stiffer and stretches less than the Dow Corning 3140. It is a little more difficult to apply, but I like its hinge properties better than the Dow hinge. I am going to do some more tests before I commit to either one, but I am leaning more towards the Permatex, though.
Has anybody else had any experience with Silicone hinging?
Thanks

CAsniffer

[fledge]

anybody with any comparisons between art hobby and soboxplanes gliders?? as mentioned earlier,there almost the same! but available in canada?? great prices!!!! fledge

[jrgospod]

I have looked at both and the difference in weight was notable. I ended up with the Colibri-V but have not built it yet.

[Dood]

CAsniffer - I used GE Silicone I for the hinges on my Prodij and have been happy with the results. No slop, and they return to neutral beautifully. I probably overdid the silicone on the first hinge, as it is noticeably stiffer than the second hinge. Now I think I've got the hang of it and will lighten up on the silicone next time around.

Dood

[Far4nugn]

Could one of you guys please post a pic. You've got me interested now, but I've never seen it.

TIA

[Steve Diebolt]

Far4nugn,

Not a picture post but this link will explain how it is done. Hope this helps.:D

http://www.rc-soar.com/tech/silicone.htm

Regards,

Steve

[Dood]

Steve's link really covers it. Here's a secondary source of information:

http://www.slopeflyer.com/soaring/html/tip/silicone_hinge.html

Dood

[ljsoarinson]

I have been flying a Colibri 1M for about a month and love it! I built mine with ailerons and a V-tail. Flying weight is 7.25 ounces with three CS-20 servos, a Hitec 535 Rx and 4-cell 150mAh battery. A great plane for small slopes. It fills my need for a plane that works with light slope lift but can still penetrate. Roll response is very good and it flies like a Fun-1. Aerobatics are possible in slope lift that would only keep HLGs aloft. Still, I have flown the plane in 25 mph wind with no problems. My Colibri has even seen some dynamic soaring action. It was very predicable to DS and got good speed in nice tight circles.

The only weakness with this plane is some barely perceptible aileron flutter in a fast dive. The flutter shows up if given a strong discus launch, but lighter discus launches still give very respectable heights. Facing the aileron leading edge with balsa may stiffen them but for now I’ll leave my ailerons showing foam and keep the speed down. Flat land thermal performance is not impressive (compared to my 1.5M HLGs) but the Colibri can easily sniff out thermals from the slope if the air is light.

I installed an Azarr compact antenna in the wing to reduce weight and drag. I also cut the ailerons full span, which permitted mounting the CS-20 servos near the wing root. Two coats of water based polyurethane finished the wings nicely, and the v-tail was CA’d to the tail boom and the joint reinforced with some light glass. Balanced with radio components only, no extra nose weight. For a great price the Colibri kit is flawless and of good quality. It builds fast and is a very responsive small-slope plane!

I have my eye on the 2.5 meter Sierra for thermal and medium slope use...

Larry Sorenson