Official Freewing F/A-18C Hornet 90mm EDF Thread

[T-CAT]

Thanks T-CAT ! Funny you should say that because I could have sworn the interior gear doors were white as well but I wanted to make sure. Took me much longer than I thought to find an image of a full scale that clearly showed the wells were white only, not the interior gear doors. Good! Saved me extra work. (And yes, for the record, I have painted the interior gear doors white in the past, lol).

[Elbee]

Spent a rainy weekend painting up the gear, wells and intakes...

Aros, Looks great, diggin' the painted Intakes, too. Bravo Zulu, Sir. Best, LB

[Aros]

Thank you sir!

[Cape Jets]

Completed the build on the Blue.... All up-grades completed and afterburners installed. Being winter on Cape Cod wont see the air till it gets warmer. Till then she will sit and wait to maiden. And no I don' t want to hear about you guys in Florida flying all the time.....

[Aros]

That looks so much better with the gloss sheen to it. Did you say you brushed it on or sprayed?

[T-CAT]

If interested in a less permanent (than say, filling-in for example) and removable means of hiding the vertical stabilizer screw holes, I made some simple plugs/covers that can be 3D printed and painted over to match. It’s something simple, but I think it looks better than the holes. Obviously there are many ways to cover/conceal the holes, but if you have a 3D printer, this is an easy way and still looks good.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4750188

Here they are unpainted.

[Cape Jets]

That looks so much better with the gloss sheen to it. Did you say you brushed it on or sprayed?

Minwax Poly Gloss and used foam brushes. One real light coat and soft sanding then another coat.

[T-CAT]

Completed the build on the Blue.... All up-grades completed and afterburners installed. Being winter on Cape Cod wont see the air till it gets warmer. Till then she will sit and wait to maiden. And no I don' t want to hear about you guys in Florida flying all the time.....

Looks great!

[Hugh Wiedman]

Completed the build on the Blue.... All up-grades completed and afterburners installed. Being winter on Cape Cod wont see the air till it gets warmer. Till then she will sit and wait to maiden. And no I don' t want to hear about you guys in Florida flying all the time.....

Looks outstanding, well done Cape Jets , the gloss finish (my personal favorite) really makes it pop. I'm sure it will be tough looking at it all winter until you are able to get it out and fly her. And don't exaggerate about being able to fly all the time in Florida. We can only get out 2 to 3 times a week because this is the "windy" season and it rarely gets below a 10 mph breeze. At least you have more time to build. And besides, those of us here down south need all the practice we can get as my repair skills now far outweigh my flying skills.

[Aros]

And besides, those of us here down south need all the practice we can get as my repair skills now far outweigh my flying skills.

You too?!?

[T-CAT]

Out of curiosity, for this the Freewing F/A-18C 90mm EDF jet, did anyone (especially those who have received a jet from very recent stock) see a revision to the actual stabilator mounts?

Since I don’t have a more recent F/A-18C I cannot go by what I see and experience. Therefore, I have to go by what I read and hear, and I didn’t read or hear of any noticeable changes other than the addition of more glue. I see the notes on the MotionRC product page that they upgraded the servos to Digitial Metal Gear and the following note, “NEW! Reinforced and improved elevator assembly process”. I’m not sure what exactly they’re referring to. Any additional security of the bearings in the mount (to reduce “play”), any changes to the actual mount itself in regards to attachment and bracing, etc.?

[Mizer67]

I've seen a few of these recently and don't notice any difference in the plastic mount TCAT. If they're using more glue than previously it's impossible to verify.

I recommend reinforcing the mount if you buy one, better safe than sorry, although I'm sure MRC would take care of you.

Also, one weak point I've seen are the plastic of the ball links. It will bend then break under load (don't ask how I know). I suggest using the ones from the Gripen. They have more plastic around them and won't bend like the ones that come with the hardware. Going to Dubro hardware caused clearance issues for me and using the Gripen's hardware gives a clean install.

[T-CAT]

I've seen a few of these recently and don't notice any difference in the plastic mount TCAT. If they're using more glue than previously it's impossible to verify.

I recommend reinforcing the mount if you buy one, better safe than sorry, although I'm sure MRC would take care of you.

Also, one weak point I've seen are the plastic of the ball links. It will bend then break under load (don't ask how I know). I suggest using the ones from the Gripen. They have more plastic around them and won't bend like the ones that come with the hardware. Going to Dubro hardware caused clearance issues for me and using the Gripen's hardware gives a clean install.

Thanks Mizer. I appreciate it. I sold off my original F/A-18C (gray and custom painted) that I flew and was a pre-order batch. However, I figured I’d order a second one in the Blue Angels livery to modify because I can’t help but love that paint scheme, especially when all glossed up. I had some upgraded servos and linkage in my old one (I’ll check out the Gripen ones, thank you for heads up on that), but I didn’t modify/reinforce the stabilator mount (only kept an eye on it and physically checked it on pre-flights). If I get another, for peace of mind, I’d definitely reinforce the area. I was considering coming up with a simple 3D printed solution, a removable one that allows access to screwed on pivot plate if/when needed. That is unless someone else would like to do so instead, ha-ha. That would be awesome.

[Mizer67]

Thanks Mizer. I appreciate it. I sold off my original F/A-18C (gray and custom painted) that I flew and was a pre-order batch. However, I figured I’d order a second one in the Blue Angels livery to modify because I can’t help but love that paint scheme, especially when all glossed up. I had some upgraded servos and linkage in my old one (I’ll check out the Gripen ones, thank you for heads up on that), but I didn’t modify/reinforce the stabilator mount (only kept an eye on it and physically checked it on pre-flights). If I get another, for peace of mind, I’d definitely reinforce the area. I was considering coming up with a simple 3D printed solution, a removable one that allows access to screwed on pivot plate if/when needed. That is unless someone else would like to do so instead, ha-ha. That would be awesome.

I found a brace already designed on RGC and had someone print it for me for a few $. It looked cleaner and was lighter than the wood braces I tried to make.

There are a couple of designs posted there now. You don't need to design anything new. If you have a printer, it should be simple to print one from Thingverse.

[T-CAT]

I found a brace already designed on RGC and had someone print it for me for a few $. It looked cleaner and was lighter than the wood braces I tried to make.

There are a couple of designs posted there now. You don't need to design anything new. If you have a printer, it should be simple to print one from Thingverse.

Interesting, thanks. I’ll look on RCg to find additional designs. I only found one on Thingiverse. I still may remix one quickly to tweak the design, or start fresh depending on how I like the already made designs.

[Airguardian]

[Aros]

Great shot!

[Airguardian]

Video coming soon!

[steven gubala]

could not ask for a better shot then that

[Hugh Wiedman]

If I were to ever get a turbine, this is it. A custom paint job by one of our many Turbine jet fliers.

Oh well. But I did pick up two 90 mm 12 Blade 1835 Kv inrunners, one for my F-18 and the other for one of my F-4's (let's see how it does in that before I upgrade both of them). Or maybe I'll just strap them to the back of my truck and see if I can pull a wheelie! This was overdue as my F-18 and both my F-4's still have the old 9 blade 1750 Kv outrunner. Can't wait to see how they fly with these bad boys. Now I also need to change the LED cones of the afterburner. Unfortunately won't get them in till the beginning of March as I'm headed north to "RatVille" till the end of the month to stand in line until I pass out, or pick up Covid! Had to pull the trigger now cause they were starting to get low on stock and didn't want to get back and have them out of stock for a while. My wife and her whole family are Disney addicts, but as for me, I can definitely do without the place, but gotta keep the wifey happy.