| Flair Chipmunk |
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Displaying its purposeful lines, this
semi-scale model was my first ARTF model. The plane has an epoxy-glass fuselage and balsa
veneered foam wings. The spats are probably the least scale item, since they appear to
have come from the Ryan PT-25 kit, but even so, the completed plane looks the part. The model is powered by an OS52FS, supplied from a 6 oz tank, which leaves it a bit short on duration. However, fitting a larger tank would have meant having an elevated tank position, and I wanted to give the inverted engine the best chance of reliable operation. So far, the performance has been very good. |
| I wrote a review of this plane for Peter
Dennis' Flying Sites web site, which was published there last year. I have reproduced the
article on this web site - just click on the link in the reviews menu, or click here. Overall, I was pleased with the finished plane, but
there were some problems with the kit, and it was not a straightforward build. The main failing with the finished plane is the poor quality torque rods fitted in the wing. These are a very loose fit in the bearing tubes, and also can flex a little, meaning that the ailerons can be deflected by up to ¼ inch without moving the servo arm. This leads to what I can only describe as soggy turns when in the air. I may get round to doing something about it some day. |
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I built this model with the intention of
getting it finished for our club scale day in September 2001. I worked pretty hard to meet
the deadline, only for the day in question to dawn overcast and windy. Up at the field a
few hardy souls had turned up, but flying wasn't a practical proposition, and by the time
it started to rain at 12:00, most people had packed back up and headed home. Update I have now had some more experience with this model, and have re-evaluated my opinion of it. The problems with the landing gear and the ensuing rebuild of the wing revealed the poor build quality - it's no wonder that other Flair ARTF models I have seen have needed the landing gear to be beefed up. At £135, this is an expensive model, and for similar money, I could have put an Airsail Chipmunk kit into the air, and had the reassurance of knowing that it was properly built and covered. This will be my last ARTF, unless the quality improves dramatically. |
This page was last updated on 21/02/04
Copyright Jonathan Mead 2002