Finally it arrived! Great Planes new SE5a Specs are:
Wingspan: 34" (864mm)
Wing Area: 420 sq in (27.1 sq dm)
Weight: 1.3-1.5 lb (595-680 g)
Wing Loading: 7.5-8.2 oz/sq ft (22-25 g/sq dm)
Length: 25.5" (648mm)
I'm using the new Rimfire 28-30-950 Brushless with 10 X 3.8 APC SF Prop and will run Power Meter tests on it when it is installed. Here are some pics.
Looks like a few wrinkles to be ironed out but not bad.
boomer

I'm waiting for the Fokker DVII to come out. I am anxious to see how she performs. Seems like a sweet deal.

Too funny - that one caught my eye tonight online. Looks really nice.

Looking good!!

Originally Posted by Greg Knipp

I'm waiting for the Fokker DVII to come out. I am anxious to see how she performs. Seems like a sweet deal.

I have it on backorder. Also on the way is the PT-19, Cessna 182 Advanced wing and Ultimate Bipe!
boomer

Just finished my ironing. There are a few small wrinkles I can't remove because of the insignia and trim but hey the real plane had lots of wrinkles!
boomer

Thanks for posting Boomer - it looks really nice. Those s in China do a better job than I do after 27+ years of this!

Mike

Whose PT-19 did you buy?

I looked over one of thoes in the LHS today in fact. Very nicely built it appeared. Certainly very, very good looking!

Dang I have too many planes on the wish list...

Edited to ask: Is there no steerable tail gear on this one?

Originally Posted by chevy43

Whose PT-19 did you buy?

The one HL sells.
OK have finished building the SE5a and only have to paint the cockpit flat black. Plane is beautiful but there are several problem areas. One is the tail skid which is plywood and when plane rests on the tail the bottom of the rudder has no clearance. I added a music wire tail slid glued and small zip tied to the skid to get the tail up off the ground. Second problem is the battery compartment is too small for any lipo except the Great Planes LiPo 11.1V 1250mAh 3S 15C which I consider too wimpy to support the 15A draw of the Rimfire 28-30-950 new motor. The only other lipo that will fit is the TP 2000 Pro-lite 3S which IMHO is minimum for that motor to expect reasonable flight times. BTW with the added weight of the tail skid wire the plane balances perfectly with the TP 2000 The now included 2 piece pilot out of very thin plastic that when cut out doesn't have any surface to glue the pieces together isn't worth fooling with so I have ordered a pilot from HL for it. One other area that could be a problem is the LG. It has no shock absorption but is fastened with machine screws to the plywood bulkhead. More later when I can maiden it.
boomer

Originally Posted by WarrrEagle!

I looked over one of thoes in the LHS today in fact. Very nicely built it appeared. Certainly very, very good looking!

Dang I have too many planes on the wish list...

Edited to ask: Is there no steerable tail gear on this one?

SE5a Had a tail skid as did all the other WWI planes I know of.
boomer

BTW AUW is 22.7oz and according to the motor specs it delivers 168W at just over 15A with a 10 X 3.8 APC SF Prop. This comes out to a very un-WWI like 118w/lb. Vertical anyone??? Wing Loading comes out to only 7.77oz/sq ft.
boomer

Hey Boomer, I think you should replace that ugly Shinden in your avatar with the SE5a once you get an in-flight pic of it!

Originally Posted by 10Thumbs

Hey Boomer, I think you should replace that ugly Shinden in your avatar with the SE5a once you get an in-flight pic of it!

boomer

Just doing some work on the cockpit. Some touch up still to do and pilot needs to be installed when it arrives but I like it so far. Trouble with close up pics is they show all the bo-bo's! It looks much cooler in the flesh!
boomer