Official Black Horse 2385mm A6M Zero thread

[Eddie P]

Is anyone on the west coast within driving distance from Reno, considering selling their “in good condition” zero?

[Eddie P]

Thanks LMP! I think I’ve decided to sell one of my planes to make room in my shop for the Zero. My problem is running out of shop and storage space occasionally… I’m in one of those moments where I’be been forced to recognize it’s time to move some of my loved planes to the next caretaker if I want to make room for a few of the next projects.

I’s also like to offer thanks to JetDoc (and others) who have posted their details too. I really appreciate your notes JD - and sharing your ideas on your build. How are you liking your ownership experience now that you are flying?

[Lmpbpd]

Hey Ed, I went with 645MW’s (purchased from motionrc) all the way around. The motor I went with on my electric Zero is the Turnigy CA80. Needed no extra nose weight with 2 6s 8000 in series for 12s. With a 24X12 3 blade Biela prop.

My gasser is equipped with the EME 70 twin and has 645MW’s all the way around as well. Has a Xoar 24X12 2 blade prop. Maidened it yesterday and flies just as well as my electric version Zero. Needed a 1 pound diving weight at the nose to balance it out. The diving weight was bolted to a nice space in the center of the firewall.

[Eddie P]

Excellent LP - thank you for that great bit of information. Sounds like a winner of an airframe. If you don’t t mind - what servos did you go with and what 80cc motor and prop? I was thinking a belt driven 3 bladed prop would be pretty nice!! Then again a direct drive 2 blade performance prop might be a good combo of simplicity and sport for a lighter weight wood and covering Zero airframe like this.

[Lmpbpd]

Hey Ed, I purchased my first one in 2021 and it is still flying today with no issues. One of my best flying birds with a 80CC motor. I did have to swap out the retracts for the Hangar 9 KI-43 Oscar retracts ( have both the Hangar 9 pneumatic/ Robart Electric made for the Hangar 9 Ki-43) as the gear bay is the exact same. I have heard the retract actuators are built more reliably as of late. I am building my second one with an EME 70CC twin and it fits perfectly into the cowl. I also have the Black Horse P-47 on an electric motor. It also flies exceptionally well but I give the zero a little more of an edge over the P-47. You can't go wrong with either one though. Hope this answers some of your questions.

LP

[Eddie P]

Hello BlackHorse warbird folks. I notice not much traffic in the Zero thread. Wondering a few things:

1) Old build threads talk about reliability issues with landing gear and the fact that there may be problems sourcing suitable replacements / swap outs, if problems crop up. Can anyone give any thoughts as to the reliability of gear shipped in 2025 deliveries?

2) Hiw many of these are being built these days? I see the most posts from 2 years ago plus.

3) Anyone familiar with the TopRC Zero of the same general size? How do the two builds stack up nose to nose so to speak?

4) Anyone have experience / thoughts about the Zero vs P-47 of the Black Horse lineup as far as build quality/covering/handling? I like them both of course…

[BigRon]

Does anyone have the distance from the firewall to back of spinner for the gas engine? Wondering if I need to make spacers for motor. Thanks

[jetdoc]

Well, finally got to maiden the Zero last week. What can I say? It flew perfectly with "zero" trim required in any axis. As expected, the balance was perfect as well. I did have to add 10% down elevator at half flaps and 20% down at full flaps on low rates so the percentages were adjusted to 8% and 15% respectively when I switched to mid rates, at which I found the Zero happiest. I will reprogram my rates so that my current mid rates are the new low rates, current high rates are the new mid rates and my new high rates will just be mid rates with "max" elevator (with higher expo in case I forget to switch back before takeoff) mostly for taxi. By the fourth flight it was perfect. The best way I can describe it is a cross between a low wing trainer and a sport plane. Still requires power control on takeoff and landing (both uneventful) as any warbird does but it's honest with no bad habits. I had to slow it to nearly a full stop in the air to achieve stall where it tried to just mush forward and drop the nose until I pretty much forced it to drop a wing. I doesn't prefer either side when it drops and is immediately recoverable. Just amazing.
Once again, I'm flying with the Admiral GP-60 180kV 60cc equivalent motor, CC Edge 160HV esc, Biela 24x12 3 blade composite warbird prop (repainted for scale) and (2) HRB 6s 9500 120C lipos in series for 12s. It flies around 80 mph and keeps up with most of the gassers. I got 9 minutes combined throttle with 20% remaining in the packs and 10 minutes at cruise with 30% remaining. I truly believe I could coax 12 minutes out of this setup but I won't push it. I plan to take it out next time with a Xoar 23x14 2 blade warbird prop and I'm expecting not only at least 10 minutes mixed throttle but higher speeds as well, due to the greater efficiency and rpm. The two big 9500 lipos weigh 5 lbs combined so my AUW is 30 lbs. Perfect for this big bird.
The receiver is a Spektrum AR10100T, no AS3X, doesn't need it. Two remote receivers are used as well. Servos are Hitec D645MW, wide voltage, high torque, metal gear, digital. The receiver and gear controller are powered by separate HRB 2s 2200 lipos. Each servo is on its own channel except for the ailerons which are on a y-harness, which is perfectly fine for a warbird as long as the preliminary mechanical adjustments are optimal. I control it with a Spektrum iX20 with full metal gimbal upgrade. The gimbal upgrade was a Christmas present last year from my lovely bride of 43 years!
The Zero is very convincing in the air and has a wonderful presence. The compliments didn't stop. I added nose guns and wing guns since the maiden and they look great! The wing guns have 8-32 threaded dowel plugs epoxied into the holes BlackHorse provided in the wing leading edge (beneath the covering) in the scale location. I drilled the resin barrels (iFlyTailies.com) and tapped them for a nylon stud that screws into the wing recepticle. This allows removal for transport and protection in an incident. The covering was exposed to direct sunlight all day and looking closely, the photo reveals wrinkles in the wings, horizontal stab and upper fuselage. These were easily removed with a heat gun immediately followed by a swipe with a covering mitt. The wrinkles have not returned.
A resounding success! She's a keeper and highly recommended! GET ONE!

[jetdoc]

Finally got to work on the Zero this week. As I mentioned before, I'll be flying with 2ea. HRB 6s 9500 120C lipos in series for 12s. I'm also flying with a Biela 3 blade 24x12 scale composite prop. Both of these options add weight to the nose. The two 9500s weigh 5 lbs together. After initial balance check, as expected I was a bit nose heavy. After a few weight and balance calculations (from A&P aircraft maintenance school 43 years ago) I determined that if I moved the batteries aft 5.4" the balance would be parfect. I was able to construct a similar tab/slot system just inside the motor box, just forward of the firewall and a new plate and T-nut to allow me to use the existing battery tray. Second balance attempt was perfect, as expected. The math doesn't lie. With the extra weight the AUW is 30 lbs on the nose. Not bad for a 94" warbird. The rebuild was worth the trouble as it puts the big lipos fully in the cabin behind the firewall. This morning I accomplished power runs and taxi tests. Here's where the big lipos earn their keep! At WOT I'm developing 6500w@155A. At 50% stick I get 2500w. That's 210 w/lb and 83 w/lb respectively. 210 is 3D range! What'll be my flight time, you ask? I "flew" a 10 minute "flight" on the ground with varied power settings between 50% and 100%. After 10 minutes I still had 20% in the batteries! Knowing that, when unloaded in the air I'll easily get 10 minutes and probably 12 minutes. Unreal for an electric warbird! Getting ready for the maiden at my local sod farm. Stay tuned!

[boomer108]

I was originally going to get the P-47 but the Zero is larger and honestly, I've never flown a Zero that wasn't anything short of phenomenal! Just a perfect planform for an airplane. Mine is very close to maiden but family health issues have kept me out of the shop for the last few weeks. Should be able to get back at it pretty soon. Congratulations on the purchase. I mounted my tailcone with magnets for future access to the tailwheel assembly. I'm an aircraft mechanic by trade and there is just too much to go wrong to glue the tailcone and assume I'll never have an issue with the tail gear.

How right you are! Murphy's law in action!

[jetdoc]

I was originally going to get the P-47 but the Zero is larger and honestly, I've never flown a Zero that wasn't anything short of phenomenal! Just a perfect planform for an airplane. Mine is very close to maiden but family health issues have kept me out of the shop for the last few weeks. Should be able to get back at it pretty soon. Congratulations on the purchase. I mounted my tailcone with magnets for future access to the tailwheel assembly. I'm an aircraft mechanic by trade and there is just too much to go wrong to glue the tailcone and assume I'll never have an issue with the tail gear.

[dmdeaton]

I just ordered one. Friend bugged out his new P47 today and it was awesome!

[jetdoc]

I ended up going with the Admiral GP-60 electric motor, CC 160HV esc, 12s 9500mAh HRBs, Biela 24x12 3-blade and TopRC composite spinner. There were just too many warnings about overheating danger in the Xpwr 60cc manual so I was afraid to use it with a heavier plane and a heavier 3 blade prop. I added gun barrels from IFlyTailies. The prop will get repainted to proper Japanese colors after the maiden.

[TedEv]

Is anyone using the included spinner with a gas engine on this plane? I noticed the backplate of the spinner is aluminum, but I am not sure about using this spinner with the EME 70 I am installing in my Zero.

[jetdoc]

After reading this thread I've gained a lot of useful information to be used on my Zero build. I've also gleaned what I can from YouTube. I'll be flying with an Xpwr 60cc electric motor, CC 160A esc, 24x10(12?) Biela three blade prop and 12s 6000mAH. I deviated a bit from the instructions in that I modified the tailcone and tailwheel bulkhead with magnets to allow for a removable tailcone. As much as I'd like to believe the tailwheel and cable system is maintenance-free I just can't. I'm an aircraft mechanic by trade and I feel better having access to that area. The Xpwr 60cc motor was purchased from a friend who was flying a TopRC P-51 with it using a Biela four blade prop. It pulled it around just fine (scale) but he wanted more speed and like me just couldn't stand not using a scale prop. He replaced the Xpwr with an electric belt drive setup that suits his purpose. I've been powering an Extreme Flight 87" MXS with an Xpwr 60cc, 12s and a 24x10 BadAss prop. It'll produce 7200 watts all day (well, at least until the lipos are drained, which doesn't take long at 7200w!). I plan to try my setup on both 10s and 12s before making a final decision.

[Dmdomokos]

Anyone have the worm gear block strip out on the retracts?

[Stuka]

I have about 4 flights on mine. Plane flies well with a DLE 61. My only issue is the landing gear. I have one the does not go up all the way up. Running a 2 cell lipo on the controller. Gear work perfect on the ground. Does it wether the gear doors are on or off. Anybody have the same issue? Any fixes out there? Thanks.

[Dmdomokos]

Has anyone put a DA85 in this model?

[sadams714441]

Has anyone used a gas G62 in this yet. If so any mods have to be done to it

[AcesHIgh]

Has anyone ran a DLE 61 on the Zero? How does it perform.

My DLE 65 made it fly scale, imo, and it wasn't a speed demon. I can't remember which prop I used.