That's awesome. Please post the video when you maiden it.

My Sbach arrived this week, going to be allowed by the DW to actually put it together tonight. I snuck down to the basement to look it over based on some of the reports I'd seen where there were quality issues. Happy to report that a quick inspection revealed no issues with quality at all. I'll look at it even more closely tonight and hope to maiden it Saturday.

I nosed in my Sbach after the rudder stuck during flight. Tore the nose off and broke the metal motor mount. I cant seem to find a replacement mount, so I've decided to just go ahead and upgrade the motor (wanted to anyway). What should I go with? HK is out of Turnigy G32 motors at the moment, is there anything similar in price/size? Would a G25 work?

Well, I promised a video of the maiden flight, so here it is. Unfortunately, it didn't go so well. If you get this bird, CHECK YOUR AILERONS FOR REVERSAL!!! I made the rookie mistake of checking for movement during the preflight, but not checking direction. Luckily, the damage was fairly minor: Smashed cowling, torn out motor mount, separated rudder, and broken landing gear. Here's the vid, you'll see the immediate roll where I realized things were reversed.

Sbach maiden with Ailerons reversed (0 min 24 sec)

By the way, you'll notice it trying to dive in the video - my elevator is very warped, and what looked like "neutral" from the side was actually a lot of down elevator, so not only was I trying to remember to fly with reversed ailerons, I was having to keep backstick on it since there was no chance to adjust trim. The fact that I put her in this gently was a miracle.

The good news is that I had her fixed up in less than an hour, and the second maiden went beautifully. This is an AWESOME plane, and the power is very impressive! A couple things I learned for others to think about prior to maiden:

1) Did I mention to check the ailerons for direction?
2) Full power on take off is a really bad idea. You get very significant yaw, as you will see in my video. She takes off just fine at about 1/2 throttle.
3) Secure the battery well. Unlike some models, there is nothing that will keep this battery from sliding all the way back into the fuse if it comes free. Don't ask me how I know.
4) Given how hard the cowling is to replace, it might be a good idea to maiden it WITHOUT it. Chances are, if something is going to go wrong, it will be most likely to go wrong on the maiden. If I had removed the cowl for maiden, I would still have a prestine looking airplane.

WOW you did awesome for having the ailerons reversed, the last time I did that rookie mistake, my F-14 took a nose dive hard inverted into the ground.

I've been considering a new transmitter with pre-flight checks to force me to not do quick ones with the excitement of a maiden.

Thanks! I was surprised I was able to recover in time and keep it out of the trees. I know better than to make that mistake since I've made it before. Bad enough to do it, but to do it a second time is MADDENING.

In spite of that, this thing is FANTASTIC! I can't believe the power.

Did anyone else have a warped elevator? Looking at mine, the tips droop down and you can feel almost an under camber in the control surface. I assume this isn't normal, right?

Yeah, that was a great job - you kept that bird in the air a lot longer than I would have! I once did that with a slope glider, tossed it off the cliff for the maiden, and the flight lasted about 2 seconds.

Originally Posted by whichwaysup

Thanks! I was surprised I was able to recover in time and keep it out of the trees. I know better than to make that mistake since I've made it before. Bad enough to do it, but to do it a second time is MADDENING.

In spite of that, this thing is FANTASTIC! I can't believe the power.

Did anyone else have a warped elevator? Looking at mine, the tips droop down and you can feel almost an under camber in the control surface. I assume this isn't normal, right?

yes you did amazing ! My maiden flight never got off the ground,checked controls but didnt see elevator was reversed, took off gave it up and it nosed into the road broke landing gear,prop and cowl

Which Sbach to buy Dynam or HK ?

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I am going to buy one in the next couple of days , but short of reading 100 of pages of posts on both threads can someone post the pro's and cons of each plane?. Is there a list of the "must do mods" for each plane.?

For what I have gathered so far , the tail wheel need to be changed , the cowl and engine mount reinforced, and some paint issues regarding the black paint on the HK as well as the HK being prehinged..difference is the size but which one is a better flying machine?

Thanks for the help Geoff

I am flying the Dynam now for almost 3 weeks and only thing you really have to replace are the Servo's for Elevator and Rudder ... other than that, she fly's really nice. I am happy that I went for the Dynam since she is a bit smaller and fits better in my car, allowing me to take a few more planes to the field.

Also shipping from Nitroplanes was more reasonable than from HK ... NP was $15 and HK wanted $50 .. I got 2 extra LiPo's for that price difference....

Flew the Sbach again last weekend. My new cowl came in, but I didn't put it on since I am still getting used to the plane.

3.5 batteries, everything was going great. Landing this thing is a breeze and I simply can't believe how much power it has. Unfortunately, on the fourth battery, disaster struck (again). I did a nice touch and go, then powered off for take off. She climbed smoothly, and then began arcing back down. I gave her more back stick and increased throttle, but it only accelerated the dive, so I dropped the throttle way back and gave full up elevator, and she leveled out - still descending but more like an approach rate. I brought her around and put her down (hard) next to the runway. I ripped off the landing gear (again) and found the motor mount loose.

When I inspected her, I discovered that the control horn to the elevator had broken - how I was able to get ANY elevator, I don't know, but I consider myself pretty lucky. I also suspect that the motor mount may have been loose prior to the crash, contributing to the downward arc when I applied more throttle.

So - I've cut the foam back to allow me to put a piece of basswood across the nose - I have discovered that the motor mount is glued to an area that doesn't have much foam behind it. I've also cut foam back on either side of the LG mount to do the same thing - run a piece of basswood across a broader area to provide more support.

Thankfully, I still have an intact cowl - and it won't go on until all the bugs are worked out!

Originally Posted by whichwaysup

Flew the Sbach again last weekend. My new cowl came in, but I didn't put it on since I am still getting used to the plane.

3.5 batteries, everything was going great. Landing this thing is a breeze and I simply can't believe how much power it has. Unfortunately, on the fourth battery, disaster struck (again). I did a nice touch and go, then powered off for take off. She climbed smoothly, and then began arcing back down. I gave her more back stick and increased throttle, but it only accelerated the dive, so I dropped the throttle way back and gave full up elevator, and she leveled out - still descending but more like an approach rate. I brought her around and put her down (hard) next to the runway. I ripped off the landing gear (again) and found the motor mount loose.

When I inspected her, I discovered that the control horn to the elevator had broken - how I was able to get ANY elevator, I don't know, but I consider myself pretty lucky. I also suspect that the motor mount may have been loose prior to the crash, contributing to the downward arc when I applied more throttle.

So - I've cut the foam back to allow me to put a piece of basswood across the nose - I have discovered that the motor mount is glued to an area that doesn't have much foam behind it. I've also cut foam back on either side of the LG mount to do the same thing - run a piece of basswood across a broader area to provide more support.

Thankfully, I still have an intact cowl - and it won't go on until all the bugs are worked out!

hmmm mine did the same thing ! Control horn on elevator broke but somehow got it down. I have replaced them all now after that scare.

Originally Posted by whichwaysup

Flew the Sbach again last weekend. My new cowl came in, but I didn't put it on since I am still getting used to the plane.

3.5 batteries, everything was going great. Landing this thing is a breeze and I simply can't believe how much power it has. Unfortunately, on the fourth battery, disaster struck (again). I did a nice touch and go, then powered off for take off. She climbed smoothly, and then began arcing back down. I gave her more back stick and increased throttle, but it only accelerated the dive, so I dropped the throttle way back and gave full up elevator, and she leveled out - still descending but more like an approach rate. I brought her around and put her down (hard) next to the runway. I ripped off the landing gear (again) and found the motor mount loose.

When I inspected her, I discovered that the control horn to the elevator had broken - how I was able to get ANY elevator, I don't know, but I consider myself pretty lucky. I also suspect that the motor mount may have been loose prior to the crash, contributing to the downward arc when I applied more throttle.

So - I've cut the foam back to allow me to put a piece of basswood across the nose - I have discovered that the motor mount is glued to an area that doesn't have much foam behind it. I've also cut foam back on either side of the LG mount to do the same thing - run a piece of basswood across a broader area to provide more support.

Thankfully, I still have an intact cowl - and it won't go on until all the bugs are worked out!

Sounds like you mostly dodged another bullet. I guess I need to check my motor mount and horns on my Peaks pretty regularly.

Curious about your warped elevators. Have you tried anything to straighten them or are they much of an issue? I have a CZ Yak with warped elevators(last 2 sets) and I haven't had any luck trying to straighten them. It doesn't track like it did with the straight originals.

Got her back together, cleaned up, reinforced, and pretty much looking good as new, but I had my rudder servo strip out (surprise, surprise).

Any suggestions on servos (yes, I'll be replacing the elevator as well) that won't break the bank but are not going to break either? I'm not a crazy 3D guy (yet), so I don't need anything top of the line. Just looking for something reliable . . and reasonably inexpensive.


For anyone interested, here's what it took to get my Sbach "up to snuff". Hopefully anyone who is interested in buying this thing will benefit. It's a great airplane, and with a few mods, I'm delighted with it.

For the weak landing gear, I cut out about two inches of foam on either side of the original brace (this was easy, since half of the foam was ripped out in my last LG collapse. I smoothed the remaining foam as much as possible, then epoxied a 1/8th inch piece of plywood over the entire area. I cut holes to allow access for the screws, then epoxied the original LG mount to the basswood. I was tempted to screw the original mount to the basswood, and probably will regret not doing it, but time will tell.

EDIT: Yep, I regretted not screwing the mount to the basswood. I did it later after the epoxy broke free (I used 5 minute which was too brittle). Four screws later, a little more epoxy, and it hasn't failed since, even after a minor crash that bent the LG)

For the Motor mount, as I mentioned before, the plastic motor mount is glued to an area of foam that is not very thick. I cut out foam to either side (I probably could have cut it all out, and again may end up doing that later), and used 3/32 basswood epoxied over the entire area. I cut a venting hole in the basswood to match the hole in the plastic motor mount, and additional holes to match the screws. I used two basswood sticks to attach to the remaining foam on either side to provide some additional bracing. If you do this, keep in mind that you need to ensure the motor is still mounted in the original location to fit inside the cowling.

Now, once I get a couple new servos, she'll be back in the air again.

And here's how she looks now:

Originally Posted by whichwaysup

Got her back together, cleaned up, reinforced, and pretty much looking good as new, but I had my rudder servo strip out (surprise, surprise).

Any suggestions on servos (yes, I'll be replacing the elevator as well) that won't break the bank but are not going to break either? I'm not a crazy 3D guy (yet), so I don't need anything top of the line. Just looking for something reliable . . and reasonably inexpensive.


For anyone interested, here's what it took to get my Sbach "up to snuff". Hopefully anyone who is interested in buying this thing will benefit. It's a great airplane, and with a few mods, I'm delighted with it.

For the weak landing gear, I cut out about two inches of foam on either side of the original brace (this was easy, since half of the foam was ripped out in my last LG collapse. I smoothed the remaining foam as much as possible, then epoxied a 1/8th inch piece of plywood over the entire area. I cut holes to allow access for the screws, then epoxied the original LG mount to the basswood. I was tempted to screw the original mount to the basswood, and probably will regret not doing it, but time will tell.

For the Motor mount, as I mentioned before, the plastic motor mount is glued to an area of foam that is not very thick. I cut out foam to either side (I probably could have cut it all out, and again may end up doing that later), and used 3/32 basswood epoxied over the entire area. I cut a venting hole in the basswood to match the hole in the plastic motor mount, and additional holes to match the screws. I used two basswood sticks to attach to the remaining foam on either side to provide some additional bracing. If you do this, keep in mind that you need to ensure the motor is still mounted in the original location to fit inside the cowling.

Now, once I get a couple new servos, she'll be back in the air again.

one more thing to do, sometime back in this thread is a post where guy ran CF flat stock from landing gear back to plane frame. i did it also but i used round CF tube. landing gear has had some tough bumps but never came off again