OK, got over the frustration and continued the build. Got all the servos (except steering) in place and connected. Finally got the courage to open up a front battery hatch. Considering the retracted nose wheel, and the relatively narrow fuse, it will only fit one 6S battery there. I plan on putting two 6S 8000mAh batteries, one in the front hatch, and one right behind it, upright, in the compartment in front of the wing.

The trick to open the hatch--I connected the Dremel 225 extension shaft (easier to navigate) and drilled small holes from the INSIDE of the plane right near the formers. Then, I "connected the dots" with a disk. Pretty accurate...

I replaced the flimsy wing mounting screws provided with the kit with strong, stainless steel screws.

Hello Can any one explain the difference between the KMP F 7 Tigercat and the EMS F 7 Tigercat. Thank you for your time in answering me
Michael

The manufacturer is ESM. One of the distributors was KMP, but they decided not to represent ESM anymore. It is the same plane, just that some have referred to it by the manufacturer's name, and some by the distributor's name. That's it...

The KMP model is a composite wing and weights a good bit more, this is the one I have. The more recent ESM version has a built up wing which is lighter. The finish is different as well. The KMP is shiny the ESM has a matt finish though they now have a shiny version. Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by tone_tbm

Hi Wind of change, my name is Tone and I work at Troy Built Models, we should have an initial 10 of those coming in on a container that should be here the end of the month. We also have 9 spoken for. If you don't already have one on back order I'd advise you to give us a call and put one on back order for you! There is no obligation to purchase if you change your mind and no deposit held.

I saw you also wanted the shiny version of the Tigercat. We have that coming in the end of the month as well.

For everyone else, we have upgrade parts for all our V1 retracts either in stock or on their way. It is technically less expensive to buy the V1 and upgrade parts than it is to just buy the V2.

bruff, I hope you don't mind but I've posted your picture of your Shiny F7F on our website for the time being until we can get one in stock to take pictures. If you don't want us using your picture please let me know and I'll take it down for you.

No problem using the picture. Do you have any gear door hinge kits for the Tigercat?
Bob

Missed out on the latest batch. Looks like I'll have to wait till May now. I did pick up a set of the Gen2 electric retracts though.

Yippee! They had an early shipment. My Tigercat arrived on my door step this afternoon. Going to give the ESM Gen2 electric retracts a try.

Big box, isn't it?

Originally Posted by ysolomon

Big box, isn't it?

Yes it is...

Originally Posted by bruff

No problem using the picture. Do you have any gear door hinge kits for the Tigercat?
Bob

Thank you! Please give us a call at 941-342-8685 and ask to speak with Bill. He's our customer service guy and should be able to help you out!

Sorry I didn't reply sooner...I'm subscribed to this thread but maybe the notifications went in my junk mail!

Hi all,

sorry for not responding for a while...

Luckily I found some free time to do another few little things on my Tigercat:

1. Cut off the excessive fiberglass edges from the cowlings (will paint the inside in a gray color later on)



Looking better now ? Yes, much better !



2. Worked on the wing's connection to the fuselage. I am going to use 4 screws (M4x55 on the back, M4x75 front) and drilled the holes. To prevent the wings structure beeing bruised while tightening the screws I inserted some small brass tubes and glued them into the holes by CA.



3. Made some small plywood boards to reinforce the screws contact face.



Now that's all for the moment. Hoping to make further progress soon...

Regards
Robert

Cowl openings look much better.

Hi All

I'm very happy this thread has resumed. I've just started to build one of these (the shiny one). Before I start a build I like to walk through the entire manual and mentally relate the instruction steps to the actual parts. This also gives me a chance to inspect everything. One question is, where do all the wing servo extensions and main retract wires (using electric retracts) route into the fuse? I don't see any covered openings for cut out on the underside of the main wing panel as I would expect. Am I being completely dense here, or do I just need to read more carefully.

I have to say, I've built quite a few large ARFS (top flite, hangar 9, black horse) and I think these are the worst instructions I've ever seen for a model this involved. Very terse..

I'll post pictures once I make some progress.

Thanks

I did not have that problem. I put a receiver in each wing panel and one in the fuselage. only wire I have to connect is a power wire and the air lines for the retracts.
Bob

Easiest method for cables is to have them exit the top surface of the wing. That way, you can bolt the wing to the fuse and THEN connect everything up via the opening at the rear of the wing saddle. No need to worry about making connections while balancing a heavy wing, and trying to tuck everything in before bolting down.