crxmanpat

It looks great LL. I just finished up the paint and decals on mine today too. No pics yet as the sun was down by the time I finished. I'll get some quality shots tomorrow.

kyle1745

How is the quality of the foam?

Also where can you buy this kit?

Lieutenant Loughead

Not sure how to answer that one... :o

http://www.epyaya.com/

Tower Hobbies is selling them, but not shipping them just yet. I find this odd, since Tower Hobbies is also selling the GWS AT-6, but has not shipped any yet...

kyle1745

Thanks I ordered the FW-190 instead... :-) I am hoping the foam is not ultra cheap like the last warbird I tried.

Lieutenant Loughead

What was the last warbird you tried?

The GWS FW-190 and GWS P-40 will have the exact same foam.

kyle1745

The P-47 Eflight...

Lieutenant Loughead

Then it's all about the same.

If you don't like the look of the bare foam, I would highly recommend you learn to fiberglass your foam aircraft.

It's really pretty easy, though time consuming...

kyle1745

In my opinion there some very different qualities of foam, and so far the P47 was the worst I have seen in a plane. For example the Hobby Zone super cub is very durable foam and can stand up to a good bit of abuse. Out of the foam planes I have, I would rate the foam quality in order from worst to best.

- E-flite P-47
- Hobby Lobby Firebird Jet
- Hobby Zone Super Cub

Any foam that is like the old beaded insulation is worthless, and should not be used for anything in this day and age.

Lieutenant Loughead

Unfortunately, that's exactly what you're going to find most styrofoam airplanes are made of...

...unless you want to spend big bucks (> $100) for an Alfa, Flying Styro, or Scorpio kit. :o

kyle1745

Any links to these better foamed planes? I would be interested to check them out.

There are varying degrees Im sure, but the P47 I would compare to cheap 70s insulating panels. Very brittle and not sturdy.

The Firebird is between that and the super cub though a good bit more sturdy than the P47.

I am hoping the new one is at least like the Firebird and if not it may go back.

kyle1745

On another notes I was thinking to just paint it as I do not want to put a ton of time into a $45 body. I do like that you can buy replacement bodies so I may order a extra and try a different method. I have never tried fiberglass. I have seen people fill the gaps with light weight drywall putty and then paint which I think would be a fun to try.

Lieutenant Loughead

http://www.hobby-lobby.com/alfamodels.htm

http://www.hobby-lobby.com/flyingstyro.htm

Well, I owned an EFlite P-47, and I can tell you it's very indicitave of what you'll see out there.

Yes, I used Lightweight Spackle in this P-40 build. If you really feel brave, you can thin the spackle with water, and PAINT it on the foam... then get ready to do lots of sanding... (I've gone this route, and fiberglassing is easier.)

kyle1745

Thanks for the links!

Interesting perspective on the Spackle vs fiberglassing I would never have thought fiberglassing to be in the easy category. I had always heard it was a royal pain.

Ill see what the plane is like when it gets here. Would you rate it as a better foam than the P47?

Lieutenant Loughead

No -- it will be similar. Beaded styrofoam -- just like a $0.99 convenience mart cooler... :o

But honestly -- it's not all bad! :o

Lieutenant Loughead

GWS P-40 Statistics On GWS Web Site:

• Wing Span：1000mm (39.3in)
• Wing Area：17.6dm2 (272.8sq in)
• Length：841mm (33.1in)
• Flying Weight：650~750g (22.9~26.5oz)
• Wing Loading：36.9~42.6g/ dm2(11.1~12.8oz/sq ft)
• CG : 55mm +/-5mm from wing leading edge.

This GWS P-40, as built:

• Balances at 45 mm (with my Tanic 3s 2220 mAh LiPo pushed as far aft as possible -- use a lighter LiPo, and the airplane will balance at 50 mm).
• GWS P-40, without battery = 609 grams (21.5 ounces)
• Tanic 3s 2220 mAh LiPo = 152 grams (5.36 ounces)
• Thunder Power Pro-Lite 3s 2100 mAh LiPo = 142 grams (5.01 ounces) (This value was taken from the Thunder Power web site.)
• GWS P-40 AUW, as built, with Thunder Power Pro-Lite battery = 751 grams (26.5 ounces) (This is spot-on the GWS specification!)
• Using the above AUW (All Up Weight), the wing loading comes out to be 13.99 ounces per square foot. (This is slightly more than the EFlite P-47D, but still quite a bit less than other aircraft I have flown -- Flying Styro P-38, Alfa F-86 Sabre, Scorpio Hellcat, Aerobird Challenger, Aerobird Xtreme, Air Devil P-38. The point is, this P-40 should fly very similarly to the EFlite P-47D.)
• Using the thrust bench test results I collected earlier, the watts per pound comes out to be 153 watts per pound. This is considered to be in excess of "Agressive Acrobatic". (Note -- it IS true that this number will be slightly lower than listed, because the battery the owner will use will be different than the test setup. However, the power will still be in excess of 100 watts per pound!)

Lessons Learned: If I were to build this airplane again, I would add a little more weight to the tail, and/or remove a little more foam from the rear of the battery tray area (to push the battery back a little farther). Another alternative would be to use the stock spinner, instead of the Great Planes 3" spinner. Otherwise, I'm very happy with how it turned out!

crxmanpat

Guy,

Very nice! A few comments:

CG - As with most GWS kits (even the new ones), I think their CG location is off. I fly at around 48mm, and it's just fine. I flew at the recommended 55mm and it flew tail heavy! I would guess 40-50mm would be the better range. I may go back and open the tail on mine and take out that weight I added (I have room to move my lipo back). I use a TP 3S 2070 eXtreme lipo (5.8oz, 164g).

Flying characteristics - This thing is a kitty cat in the air (dang swear filter! )! Even when it was underpowered. On the higher power setup, it's nice and smooth and has good performance, and great slow-flight characteristics.

And what do you mean "if"? I thought you were going to get one for yourself?

Lieutenant Loughead

Good to know! Thank you.

Yes, I placed an order on September 6, 2007 at Tower Hobbies, yet their web page still says "order pending". I have this funny feeling, my order will never be fulfilled... :o

Why, you ask? Because:

• Their listed price is really inexpensive (if a deal is too good to be true, it probably is).
• There is no picture of the model.
• Other web stores are already selling (and shipping) the GWS P-40.
• The AT-6 and FW-190 have been released for quite some time, and the Tower Hobbies web site STILL says "Order Pending" for these models!

I'm sure I will build one eventually, but it may be a while... :o

The date (and time) is set for this P-40 to find it's new home. I know the owner is following this thread, and I hope he will post some video and/or pictures of the maiden! (Hint! Hint! Wink! Nudge!)

crxmanpat

Well, even if he decides to start a new thread for the maiden and flight reports, that would be cool too.

Shame about Tower. Seems they are going the way of other large retailers and dropping GWS, since GWS is having such a supply problem (can't find slope gliders of the older kits anywhere, and parts for the new kits are in short supply as well).

Lieutenant Loughead

Well, I received a flight report this morning...

The owner says the GWS P-40 is very stable, and flys really well, even with the CG in the 40mm range.

He said he would try to get some photos and/or video to send me. If so, I will post it here.

crxmanpat

See? I was right about the CG. I must have goofed mine during painting. I flew it Saturday morning, and it was tail heavy (forgot to re-check CG after painting, silly me :o). Saved a crash, but the landing was less than graceful. Slight damage to the cowl, and the shark mouth got abused on one side (needs touch up paint).

I'm going to open the tail and take out the 2oz of lead I added way back when. That should help.

Lieutenant Loughead

Pat -- what was the CG at when you had difficulty?

crxmanpat

I flew it once at a known 55mm CG (the recommended location) and had problems. Got it back on the ground that time and moved the lipo forward in the bay (it was all the way against the back wall) and flew again with no problems. CG was at about 48mm.

I don't know what the CG was on Saturday's flight. I'll check it before hacking away at the tail to remove the lead.

Lieutenant Loughead

I find it interesting that Tower Hobbies made me wait for FIVE months, then threatens to cancel my order if I don't respond within 10 days. Personally, I think it's because they sold their airplane at too low a price, and they're trying to weasel out of the deal... [/rant]

The Tower Hobbies web site says my order is, "Invoiced - Processing in Warehouse". However, this is what it said before I called them on Thursday to verify I wanted the airplane...

It still has not shipped, but we're getting closer... :o

crxmanpat

Look at it this way, you got $18 off for having to wait 5 months! :p

Lieutenant Loughead

LOL -- that's how I roll...

Yet, it was only $16 difference... :o