Clipped Wing Cub 1.2m BNF Basic with AS3X and SAFE Select Review
When is a Cub not a Cub? When it's a clipped wing aerobatic beast.
Introduction
| Wingspan: 49.25" (1250mm) |
| Wing Area: 405 sq In (26.2 sq dm) |
| Length: 38.7" (985mm) |
| Flying Weight: 48 ounces (1360 grams) |
| Motor: E-flite 10-Size Brushless Outrunner Motor |
| ESC: E-flite 40A Brushless ESC |
| Receiver: Spektrum AR636A Receiver with AS3X and SAFE Select Technology |
| Prop Size: 12X8 |
| Servos: (4) Spektrum A330 Micro, 9 Gram |
| Battery: 2200 3S LiPo Flight Battery (not included) |
| Available at: Horizon Hobby |
| Price: BNF $199.99 / PNF $179.99 |
I wonder who was the first one to think, "This Cub is too boring, I think that I'll chop about 7' off of the wingspan." Whoever thought of it was onto something. It took the passive Cub and increased its ability to fly aerobatic maneuvers to a whole new level. On the full scale Cub the wing shortening was accomplished by cutting about 40-1/2" off the root end of each wing panel and then reattaching them. The wing strut pickup points were also moved. The ailerons remained the same length as stock but were now much larger in relation to the overall wing. All this resulted in an aircraft that was a good deal sportier than a stock Cub even if the original engine was retained. Of course many pilots added higher powered engines to their aircraft for even more performance.
E-flite has faithfully reproduced the lines and details of the original in their latest 1.2M wingspan offering. It's good looking, easy to assemble, powerful and just plain fun to fly. Let's look at the specs and get into the details.
Kit Contents
As always, the packaging was excellent and the airplane arrived without damage. Unpacking revealed a very small part count to this Cub, only 5 larger parts and some smaller hardware items. It was obvious that assembly wasn't going to take long to complete. Aside from the nice scale detail on the engine, I was impressed with the scale looking landing gear with wheel pants and the spring dampened tail wheel assembly. The one piece wing is a plus and the struts were already installed. The struts are held to the bottom of the wing by a clip that keeps them secured during transport, a simple but welcome feature. I received the BNF (Bind and Fly) version that includes a Spektrum AR636A receiver with AS3X and SAFE Select pre-installed. A PNP (plug and play) version is also available for those that already have a transmitter and receiver that they want to use. The only additional things that I needed were my Spektrum transmitter and a 3S 2200mAh LiPo battery with EC3 connectors. Horizon generously provided the battery pack for this review.
Assembly
The Cub goes together very quickly, there are only a few screws needed to install the landing gear, tail wheel and horizontal stabs. The wing is held in place with a single nylon screw. The wing struts mount to the bottom of the fuselage without the need for any tools.
Details that deserve special note:
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Nice scale motor adds to the overall classy look.
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Large hatch gives you easy access to motor, battery and receiver. Hatch is held in place by strong magnets.
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Rudder and Elevator servos are pre-installed and pushrods in place.
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Spectrum AR636A receiver is pre-installed and solidly mounted on a shelf in the fuselage. The receiver includes AS3X and Safe Select technology.
The photos below show some of the assembly steps, I won't bore you with repeating them here.
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Lift up on the front of the cowl for easy access to the motor, battery and receiver.
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The landing gear mounts are metal and pre-threaded for machine screws.
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A total of six screws hold the scale landing gear in place.
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Scale landing gear and wheel pants look sharp.
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Spring dampened tail wheel assembly.
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Two screws and hooking up the springs is all it takes to assemble.
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The spring dampened tail wheel reduces the chance of rough fields damaging the rudder servo.
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Tailwheel assembly installed.
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Built in clip holds struts to bottom of wing for easy transport and storage.
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A single nylon thumbscrew holds the wing in place.
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Slip base of strut over brass fitting on fuselage.
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Rotate wire keeper into place to retain the strut.
Flying
I limited the control throws on the first flight to low rates and performed mostly easy flying standard maneuvers, just getting the feel of the airplane. In low rates the Cub flies like a Cub, very predictable and gentle. This is a plane that even a fairly new pilot could be successful with. I did a few easy aerobatic maneuvers, a roll and loop and a hammerhead stall turn or two and then I brought it around for a landing. One of the cooler things that I discovered is how easily the Cub will perform a sideslip to lose altitude in the landing pattern. It was fun to do, I plan to work on improving how I perform them on future flights.
Basics
I took the Cub to our local field and attached the wing with the single nylon thumbscrew. The aileron servo wires were plugged into the Y-connector on the receiver and the cowl hatch closed. The struts were snapped into place on the bottom of the fuselage and the keepers rotated into position. I strapped the 3 cell 2200mAh battery into the battery location with the hook and loop fastener provided. The installation is nice and neat and best of all secure. I did not activate the SAFE Select on the receiver, so only the AS3X was active. The wind was light and fairly straight down the runway. Time to taxi out and see how this plane flies. Our club field is nicely paved, the Cub felt solid taxiing out to the flight line. The wheel pants on the Cub are an attractive scale detail, but they are best suited to a paved runway or short smooth grass.
Taking Off and Landing
I applied some throttle and a bit of right rudder to maintain direction and in a few feet the airplane was climbing out. One thing that was immediately evident was that the Cub has lots of power. Very short takeoffs are possible, although I prefer a more scale like approach to flying. Landings are a thing of beauty. The AS3X smooths out any small turbulence without interfering with my control of the airplane. Soft wheel landings are the norm for this model, really predictable and smooth.
Aerobatics/Special Flight Performance
For the still photos and video work I asked my friend and talented pilot Jason Cole for assistance. I stuck to operating the cameras. Jason switched the rates to high and proceeded to check out what the Cub can do in talented hands. This is where the airplane really shines, doing the things that a full scale clipped wing Cub could only imagine. The larger control movements combined with the abundant power allow the Cub to fly knife edge without losing altitude. There is a bit of coupling but nothing that a bit of elevator input can't control. Inverted required only a small amount of down to maintain level flight. Jason preformed some large smooth loops with a snap roll at the top. You can see them in the video at the end of the review. Speaking of snap rolls, the Cub can do some wicked multiple snaps, triple snap rolls are easily achieved. After about 5 minutes of energetic fun Jason slipped the Cub in and greased a landing, very sweet. In subsequent flights I have worked on improving my aerobatic skills, meager as they are. I'm working on flying the length of the flight line in knife edge on one side and reversing sides for the return run. I'm also working on my side slips to lose altitude on final. Suffice it to say that the clipped wing Cub is the perfect model for improving these skills. It is capable of fairly extreme maneuvers but still a simple easy to fly model when flown in a normal way.
Is This For a Beginner?
If flown with the SAFE Select active I think that the Cub could be flown by a beginner. Probably better as a second plane due to the very broad flight envelope however. It excels as a plane for the beginner to aerobatics however. It has everything that you need to quickly improve your overall flying.
Flight Video/Photo Gallery
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Take off from pavement takes only a few feet.
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Climbout is strong, this plane is overpowered, just as it should be.
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The yellow wings and black starburst are easy to see in the sky.
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Point rolls are fun to perfect.
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Low and slow is also in the Cubs wheelhouse.
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Upside down coming at you.
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Slow inverted requires a higher angle of attack.
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Plenty of power for loops and just about any other aerobatic maneuver you can think of.
| Horizon Hobby E-flite Clipped Wing Cub RCGroups Flight Video (3 min 34 sec) |
Conclusion
This is a big hit in my book, all around superior handling combined with lots of power and wrapped in a great scale package makes it just about a perfect combination. I'll be flying mine just about every trip to the field.
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Last edited by Hiflyer; Jul 15, 2018 at 10:36 AM..| Thread Tools |
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There is already another thread for this plane....... From January
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show...-Wing-Cub-1-2m 
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Great review Hiflyer. The Clipped Wing Cub is, pardon the pun, flying under the radar. It is really an exceptional flyer and very versatile too. I have mainly been flying mine with the recommended floats. I add the yellow paint and Cub lightning bolt stripe. It's been a lot of fun.
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This plane flies great but it has an Achilles heal, the landing gear. See the CWC thread mentioned above. The break prone gear is the #1 topic.
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Latest blog entry: 4th Annual SAPB Build’n’Fly Event - the...
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 I have lots of flights on mine & the stock gear are doing fine (flown it both off a paved runway & a dirt road) Maybe those that don't know how to make good landings, will refrain from posting to this thread This CWC is an absolute blast to fly.  If one of the available ratings here for this plane, was "Superb", I would click on that. 
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Lucky you. The other thread on this plane is populated by incompetent pilots. Got it.
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Latest blog entry: 4th Annual SAPB Build’n’Fly Event - the...
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Seems like some of the gears were defective - I have 2 of them, one collapsed on a smooth landing the other has been fine |
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Two problems with this plane
There are two weaknesses with this plane. One is the landing gear which is very weak and subject to breaking on any but the softest landings. Then if this breaks and the airplane tips forward, the motor shaft is soft and bends. Furthermore the shaft is not available and cannot be easily replaced were it available as the rear case is solid one piece. This motor is also pricy and backordered.
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The motor shaft used on this motor is no softer than most motor shafts.
Also, I don't see it as being tough to replace either & I posted about that on the other thread you posted to. Apparently, the landing gear has been a problem for some, but mine are still doing fine after hundreds of flights. I'm liking this Clipped Wing Cub a lot
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