ACW630 Gee Bee Senior Sportster 63" ARF

63" wingspan, 47" long, 652 sq. in. wing area, 6-1/2 lbs. flying weight. Just the right size for easy transport and has great flying qualities. All precision laser cut, expertly assembled and covered. Pre-finished epoxyglass cowl and wheel pants, molded dummy radial engine. Pre-bent heavy wire landing gear and steerable tail wheel. Assembly is quick, the photo illustrated instructions will allow you to complete the airplane in about 8-12 hours. The flight character of the airplane is solid and predictable with a gentle stall and light wing loading. Airplane can perform just about any aerobatic maneuver that the pilot is capable of. Because the airplane uses a 4 cell lipo battery we recommend a Jeti Spin controller with BEC that can provide the power for your radio system and servos. For 4 channels: Ailerons (2 servos), Elevator, Rudder (pull-pull) and Throttle.

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Ive been drooling over this plane since it came out. Question= would a Park 480 on 3s or perhaps 4s be enough power for this plane?

Thanks

Dan

Anybody here assembled and/or flown this baby yet? I see threads for the bigger and smaller ones, but would very much like to see/learn more about this one. Bueller...?

Originally Posted by Dan Rubin

Ive been drooling over this plane since it came out. Question= would a Park 480 on 3s or perhaps 4s be enough power for this plane?

Thanks

Dan

No. This plane is much, much too big for a Park 480.

Yeah I figured that out. What was I thinking. I bought the recomended motor and put together the Gee Bee. Easy build. Now just waiting for a good day to fly.

Dan, do you have any pics of your motor/battery/esc installation?

Either way, do let us know how the flying goes... I'm considering this plane and would like to know more--but this is the only discussion of it I've found anywhere. If you know of others, please point me in the right direction...

Hello

Dont have my camera handy but I can tell you there is only one place the 4s battery can go. Even with the battery all the way forward up against the firewall I still had to add 3 ozs of lead on top of the engine mount to get it to balance at 3.5 inches from LE. The esc is mounted next to the battery. Perhaps if I move it forward underneath the cowling I can get it to ballance. I will also be taking off the pants as I have a field in my back yard but the LZ is a little rough..... but I'm not complaining. I might modify them and put them back on after a few flights. Still looking for that perfect maiden day.

Dan

Thanks for the info, Dan--here's hoping the weather cooperates soon!

Originally Posted by Dan Rubin

Hello

Dont have my camera handy but I can tell you there is only one place the 4s battery can go. Even with the battery all the way forward up against the firewall I still had to add 3 ozs of lead on top of the engine mount to get it to balance at 3.5 inches from LE. The esc is mounted next to the battery. Perhaps if I move it forward underneath the cowling I can get it to ballance. I will also be taking off the pants as I have a field in my back yard but the LZ is a little rough..... but I'm not complaining. I might modify them and put them back on after a few flights. Still looking for that perfect maiden day.

Dan

Dan, I'm very close to pulling the trigger on this plane, to the point that I'm figuring out equipment/costs. To that end: Are you using standard-size servos, or something smaller, or...?

Thanks for your help...

If you choose one HS422 and three HS322 they will fit perfectly in place with some minor shaving of one of the servo mounts. These are standard servos and they are inexpensive. Yes!

Well, I've gone and done it. Kit, supplies, and electronics should be here next week. Yeee-haa! Thanks for the info, it helped me make up my mind...

Kit arrived to day in perfect condition. Electronics should be here in a week or so. In the meantime I'm busying myself planning a few modifications to the plane's appearance to add/improve scale details. I'm thinking of aiming for something like the Senior Sportster reproduction in the picture.

Anybody know if Callie or some other source already has graphics for the Model Y?

congrads on your purchase. I'm all ready to maiden but I need something other than rain. geeeez you would think this is Seattle or sometin
Really would like to see if you have to add weight to the nose to get it to balance at 3.5 inches.

Dan

Originally Posted by Dan Rubin

congrads on your purchase. I'm all ready to maiden but I need something other than rain. geeeez you would think this is Seattle or sometin
Really would like to see if you have to add weight to the nose to get it to balance at 3.5 inches.

Dan

We're about to get some SNOW here. You'd think this was Minnesota or something... ;-) Sheesh.

As for CG: I won't know for sure 'til the electronics arrive, but if it won't balance without added weight I'm considering cutting a pass-through in the firewall to push the 4S1P 5000 mAh LiPo forward into the open space within the wooden motor mount.

Before I ordered the plane, I looked around the HL website but could not find the .pdf of the assembly manual for this 63" version.

Now that I have it, I've pdf'ed the manual in case anyone's interested in browsing it. Not the best quality, but better than none. It's too big to post here, but if you PM me with e-mail addy I will send this 9.7MB .pdf file to you.

Aside from the assembly sequence, the important data includes recommended throws, exponential %, and CG:

Ailerons: 1" up, 3/4" down, 10% exp.
Rudder: 1" left, 1" right, 10% exp.
Elevator: 3/4" up, 3/4" down, 10% exp.
CG: 3-1/2" from LE