Official FlightLine RC 1600mm P-38 Lightning Thread

[tdevince]

Sil
hey mate, gotta support your team. :D (you forget I'm Aussie, all we care about is sport and it's all we are really good at, so..... :D plus, I love a bit of friendly banter. It's a very normal thing with your mates over here, I sometimes forget we have slight cultural differences with the USA). But anyway, ...

Go team silver!!! ;):D

(Though team moon dream seems a good one to get behind.... :D)

LOL, but you're always on the wrong side, first Blue Nose instead of the better Red Tails, and now the Silver instead of the Green. Everyone knows the Green will fly faster and land slower than the Silver, is just physics :)

[Grossman56]

I'm trying the Varathane spar urethane out door clear acrylic which has a uv protectant in it and really does a nice job. Speaking of great products, ever try to polish your canopy? Try Meguiars Plastx Clear Plastic Cleaner and Polish. I happened to win a bottle of this last Summer, and tried it on the Pitts and the Mustang canopies, works great! Find it in the automotive cleaner dept.

Grossman56

[Grossman56]

AHHHHHH! Can't wait anymore. I'm going to China, swimming, to intercept the boat. Godspeed!

And could somebody PLEEEZE give Ryan a P38! We don't want him going to China, remember only Nixon could go to China.
Besides, I couldn't go that long without a Mike and Ryan video, withdrawl you know.....
Grossman56

[tdevince]

I'll be using 2.5" for the nose, and 2.75" for the main. The Robarts look great, but the stock wheel collar is too tall and prevents Robart's spoked hub cab piece from clipping onto the inner hub. This requires the modeler to drill out the hub cab piece's center to accomodate the wheel collar poking 2mm through it.

I'm putting together a few pictures this week to show pilots how to execute the mods, and showing the finished result, for those wanting to go the extra mile for Robart's spoked look and nice Goodyear diamond tires. The Dubros are drop in fits, but the Robarts will take some extra work to fit right.

The previous posts regarding the mod had new 2.75" wheels going to the mains and taking one of the 2.5" mains and moving that to the nose. To look consistent, I would be inclined to also put a new Dubro 2.5" in the nose. Would the Dubro have any fit problems for the nose wheel?

[Shirty]

Lol boys. Dunno about shifty, think I'm a pretty stand up guy, but that's just my opinion ;)

I dunno if shirty means the same over there, but to get shirty with someone means to get annoyed with them. I didn't pick this nickname btw, it's based on a tv show over here and my mates have been calling me shirty for over 20 years. No one calls me by my name except my family and gf.

Now just to clear up some misconceptions with a bit of real science. Since the silver is a lot more reflective of sunlight, (especially over green), not only will the model look good longer, but it will reflect more heat, leading to cooler operating temps and better performance.you can't argue with science. Silver IS better. ;). Lmao. :D. (Btw, we just call it **** stirring) You know your mates like you when they greet you with insults lol.

[mr.frankenjet]

I'm trying the Varathane spar urethane out door clear acrylic which has a uv protectant in it and really does a nice job. Speaking of great products, ever try to polish your canopy? Try Meguiars Plastx Clear Plastic Cleaner and Polish. I happened to win a bottle of this last Summer, and tried it on the Pitts and the Mustang canopies, works great! Find it in the automotive cleaner dept.

Grossman56

+1 on the plastic polish, great on the car plastics too. Also use a microfiber cloth to apply and especially remove the polish, really helps.

[boomer108]

I've been using the Meguirs plastic polish for years,works great. I also finally found Varathane Spar Urethane at the new Menards by me. Put it on my Pandora,looks great. Can't wait to use it on the P-38.

Roy B.

[Konrad]

How has this "Varathane Spar Urethane" worked for you as a thermal barrier? Does it keep the surface texture of the EPO foam under control under the heat of the sun?

[TwistedGrin]

In this part of the world Minwax Polycrylic finish with UV protectants has failed to offer any significant added protection from the infra-red heat radiation that expands the EPO beads forming a surface finish that is in the vernacular known as alligator skin.

I've tried it on some black anti glare panels with the results being utter failure of the EPO finish texture, in any kind of sunshine!:@

Ya Black painted surfaces are tough to protect in 100+ degree Texas dog days of summer.....I have no answer but shade or cover to help prevent the dreaded little bubbles from popping up on black painted surfaces
TwistedGrin

[Konrad]

So the all black night fighter is a still born concept (with EPO) even in the cool high plains desert air of Colorado. I've had the black fry the EPO even as I taxied out from under the tarp onto the runway.

[jagdpanther9]

on every epo model i have the cockpit gets it the worst. All of them are gator skinned. i figure it must be from the clear canopy magnifying the uv rays? anyone else notice this or is my little piece of the planet unique to this condition.

[Aros]

The cockpit is something I would like these foam manufacturers to move away from instead of using foam molds (often painted black), make the cockpit plastic to avoid the gator skinning that is so common. I do believe the canopy acts as a magnifying glass so even on cooler days you can still end up with gator skin cockpits that look terrible.

Plus a plastic cockpit looks SO much better than foam. I am sure most of us would be willing to spend an extra $10 bucks or whatever to cover costs from moving from foam to plastic cockpits. Heck I would gladly pay an additional $50 bucks if the model came with a completely scale detailed plastic cockpit. For too long the cockpit is an after thought on what is otherwise a great looking model.

[xviper]

on every epo model i have the cockpit gets it the worst. All of them are gator skinned. i figure it must be from the clear canopy magnifying the uv rays? anyone else notice this or is my little piece of the planet unique to this condition.

Yup, same here. When parked, I try to keep dark colored planes in shade as much as possible and I turn the canopy upside down or leave it in shade. I've also throw a towel over the more sensitive planes. This P-38 in the dark green may be one of those "sensitive" planes.

[ryramZ]

That would be sweet Aros!

Yeah I'll throw my battery covers under the shade of the wing and park the planes under the shade of the van.

[F106DeltaDart]

The cockpit is something I would like these foam manufacturers to move away from instead of using foam molds (often painted black), make the cockpit plastic to avoid the gator skinning that is so common. I do believe the canopy acts as a magnifying glass so even on cooler days you can still end up with gator skin cockpits that look terrible.

Plus a plastic cockpit looks SO much better than foam. I am sure most of us would be willing to spend an extra $10 bucks or whatever to cover costs from moving from foam to plastic cockpits. Heck I would gladly pay an additional $50 bucks if the model came with a completely scale detailed plastic cockpit. For too long the cockpit is an after thought on what is otherwise a great looking model.

I would love to see that happen. I had to build a styrene cockpit tub because the foam bubbled so badly that all detail was unrecognizable. The plastic cockpit tubs are one of the reasons I still love the old FSK kits.

[jagdpanther9]

my 80mm freewing f-86 got it real bad in the cockpit and even some on the aft fuse for some reason. all is from flight time with that model. it has its spot in the van when it isnt airborne.i learned my lesson with my FMS Stuka with leaving it in the sun a couple years ago. it would be nice to see more models with the plastic cockpit tub i would pay for the quality.

[Konrad]

$10 dollars maybe but not $50, that is close to 20% to 25% of the cost of most of the 'FOAM' models MotionRC sells. I'm a pilot first and scale enthusiast a distant second. For that kind of mark up I'd rather that we get faster servos, more programing option with the ESC/BEC and stiffer control surfaces.

I'm the kind of guy that often cuts out the doll (ops Action Figure) from my models as they look stupid, weight too much and the wife gives me too much grief for those dolls.

[Aros]

Maybe $50 is too much, but I would definitely pay an extra $10-20 to have a fully detailed, scale plastic cockpit instead of a simple foam mold that looks like gator skin after your first outing.

[Konrad]

I didn't want you (MotionRC) to think that there was this much movement in your cost structure.

[boomer108]

Hey Konrad!

I have not been able to test the Varathane in the sun yet I just did my Padora. I would have to believe the UV inhibitor should offer some protection. I will see soon!

Roy B.