Official Nexa 1860mm PA-38 Tomahawk ARF Thread

[Aros]

PA-38 Tomahawk 1860mm (73.3") Wingspan - ARF from Nexa - NXA1061-001

The PA-38 Tomahawk is a two-seater, low-wing cantilever monoplane boasting a T-tail and enclosed cabin. Boasting a fixed tricycle landing gear, it is powered by a Lycoming O-235 four-cylinder piston engine, along with a twin-bladed tractor propeller. With two front-hinged doors for easy cabin access, the Tomahawk was Piper's response to creating an affordable two-place trainer. Before designing the aircraft, Piper closely collaborated with flight instructors on the design, who requested a more spinnable aircraft, as current two-place trainers were designed to fly out of a spin without pilot input. The NASA GA(W)-1 Whitcomb airfoil solves this problem, requiring specific pilot input for spin recovery, allowing pilots to develop their spin-recovery skills.

The Nexa PA-38 Tomahawk is a .25 size electric scale series civilian trainer aircraft with a 1860mm wingspan, constructed primarily from balsa wood. This ARF requires assembly and installation of your choice of servos and power system, and includes two piece wing with aluminum wing joiner, fiberglass cowl and spinner. A large battery tray provides ample space for any size battery you require.

Features:

• Complete Balsa and lite-ply construction for rigidity and durability
• Two piece wing with aluminum wing joiner for easy transport
• Large battery tray provides ample space for any size battery you require
• Functional cabin door and well appointed throughout
• Fiberglass cowling and spinner for strength and durability
• All control surfaces come out of the box pre-hinged and installed for convenience

Includes:

• Nexa PA-38 Tomahawk 1860mm (73.3") Wingspan - ARF
• Gear assembly
• Wheels
• Aluminum wing joiner
• Aluminum landing gear
• Decals and all hardware
• Engine mounts
• Fuel tank
• Motor mount

Requires:

• 7 Channel radio - select a minimum 7 channel radio from our Radio Collection
• 7 Channel receiver - select a minimum 7 channel receiver from our Receiver Collection
• 400Kv brushless outrunner motor - we recommend the Admiral GP10 5030-400Kv Brushless Motor
• 85 Amp brushless ESC - we recommend the ZTW Mantis G2 85A ESC with 8A SBEC
• 7x 17g mini servos - we recommend SEVEN Hitec HS-225MG Ball Bearing Metal Gear Mighty Mini Servo
• 2x 45g standard servos - we recommend TWO Hitec HS-645MG Ultra Torque Ball Bearing Metal Gear Standard Servo
• 5 Cell 18.5V 4000 mAh LiPo Battery - we recommend the Admiral Pro 4000mAh 5S 18.5V 60C LiPo Battery with EC5 Connector
• Electric propeller - we recommend the APC 14x8.5 Thin Electric Propeller
• 5 Cell compatible battery charger - select a minimum 5 cell (5S) charger from our Charger Collection

Gas Option:

• 2 stroke engine - we recommend the NGH GT17-Pro 17cc Two-Stroke Engine
• 12x6 gas propeller - we recommend the APC 12x6 Gas Propeller

Customer Note
Nexa ARF models are constructed out of balsa wood and plywood. These are not foam models. The assembly of balsa wood ARF aircraft requires basic model building skills including the installation of servos, ESC, and motor (or gas engine). Product Specifications:

AGE LEVEL :14 and up
SKILL LEVEL :intermediate
BUILD TIME :3+ hours

Model Scale	1/6
Wingspan	1900mm / 74.8in
Length	1200mm / 47.2in
Weight	4100g / 144oz
CG (Center of Gravity)	62mm from the leading edge of the wing root
Power System	400Kv brushless outrunner motor (required)
Electronic Speed Control	85A (required)
Propeller / EDF	14x8.5 2-blade for electric, 12x6 for gas (required)
Servos	7x 17g mini servos - HRC32225S 2x 45g standard servos - HRC32645S
Landing Gear	Fixed (included)
Required Battery	5 Cell 18.5V 4000 mAh LiPo Battery (required)
Required Radio	7+ Channel (required)
Ailerons	Yes
Elevator	Yes
Rudder	Yes
Flaps	Yes
Lights	No
Hinge Type	Nylon
Material	Balsa and light plywood
Skill Level	Intermediate
Build Time	6+ Hours
Recommended Environment	Outdoors

[NewbieBob]

Now that is a beauty. Must wait for the new year though.
Santa has his hands on my wallet right now.
I like the colouring and the wide stance landing gear.
gear. The body lines are sweet.
Nice job Aros, 👍🏻

[flyguysc1]

Any pictures of battery hatch access?plane looks nice just need to see battery access

[Aros]

Any pictures of battery hatch access?plane looks nice just need to see battery access

Here you go!

[CF-105]

I was hoping/fearing you guys would stock this! There's not many GA birds that excite me, but I logged a lot of hours in the ol' Traumahawk back in the day. Will be ordering after I finish this post...

I do have a question and a couple of issues:

First, the question: what's the covering? Vinyl or Oracover/Ultracote/Chinakote? I'm planning to strip & re-finish as the bird I soloed in.

Now the issues: There are things in the writeup that make no sense. I see no sign of a "functional cabin door". In any case, the full size has two doors. Personally it's not a selling feature for me, but it is misleading. The other thing is the claim that this 9lb, 73" wingspan model is expected to fly on a .25 equivalent? Granted the full size is no rocket (cruise is 90-100 kts), but that still seems way underpowered. The 41.5" Mansell Models short kit version flies nice & scale on a Power 10. Then there's the pilot - seriously? They don't have a normal civilian pilot figure? Plus he's in the wrong seat. None of these are show-stoppers (for me anyway), I'll just modify as needed.

Btw - if you care to search for it on YT, you can find the footage from the NASA spin tests for the Tomahawk!

[Aros]

I was hoping/fearing you guys would stock this! There's not many GA birds that excite me, but I logged a lot of hours in the ol' Traumahawk back in the day. Will be ordering after I finish this post...

I do have a question and a couple of issues:

First, the question: what's the covering? Vinyl or Oracover/Ultracote/Chinakote? I'm planning to strip & re-finish as the bird I soloed in.

Now the issues: There are things in the writeup that make no sense. I see no sign of a "functional cabin door". In any case, the full size has two doors. Personally it's not a selling feature for me, but it is misleading. The other thing is the claim that this 9lb, 73" wingspan model is expected to fly on a .25 equivalent? Granted the full size is no rocket (cruise is 90-100 kts), but that still seems way underpowered. The 41.5" Mansell Models short kit version flies nice & scale on a Power 10. Then there's the pilot - seriously? They don't have a normal civilian pilot figure? Plus he's in the wrong seat. None of these are show-stoppers (for me anyway), I'll just modify as needed.

Btw - if you care to search for it on YT, you can find the footage from the NASA spin tests for the Tomahawk!

We are continuously striving to offer accurate information for every product we sell. Sometimes, through any number of reasons, that falls short. I have submitted your questions to the Product Manager and once I hear back I will update the product page accordingly as well as this thread. Appreciate your input!

[Nero]

Will these be available in Australia? If i buy from MRC it's $900AUD delivered.

[CF-105]

Thanks Aros. I think my "tone" may have been a bit harsh (at least when I re-read the post), but looks like you took it in the spirit I intended.

My model arrived about 30 minutes ago; its now spread all over the floor so I could check it out. Looks like it had an adventure getting here, there's a fist-sized puncture dead-center through both boxes! Fortunately the only damage I found was a crack in the plastic canopy. I've already opened a support ticket for a replacement.

First impressions are positive! Did not expect an instrument panel & control yokes. The forked nose gear strut is a nice scale touch. Sure an oleo strut would have been even better, but probably not practical from such a short strut. Nice to see the panel lines molded on the cowl and canopy. As I suspected the covering is adhesive vinyl; I'm not a fan, but at first glance this seems to be adhering well. And the printed lines and colour scheme look great! I'm having some second thoughts about re-covering it as the full-size I soloed in. I noticed on the front of the manual it recommends a 17cc gas engine (if going that way); that seems reasonable. I think I'll look at an electric motor in the Power46 - Power60 range.

[flyguysc1]

Is the rear landing gear two pieces where it connects to the fuse?

[CF-105]

The gear are two pieces. However like the full-size they mount on the wings, not the fuselage.

I'm not impressed with the manual; there are some rather obvious steps completely missing. Not so much the major stuff like servo & motor/engine installation, but for example there is no reference at all to the cover for the bottom of the tail. And page 18 is labelled "Joining the Wing", but in fact only covers installing the fuel tank.

There are things I like about the model, and things I'm not fond of. For example including the small step that attaches to the fuselage aft of the wing is a nice scale touch... except they only include one, when there should be one for each side of the fuselage. And I'm baffled as to why they chose to mount two elevator servos in the tail, when they could have used one and incorporated a joiner for the two elevator halves.

When I get working on this, I may do a "build" thread. But first I need to get at least one other project off the table!

[Glazer]

Motion recommends 9 servos. Why 9 ?

[CF-105]

As designed, you need 8 for the control surfaces (the elevator takes two, and it calls for a separate nose wheel steering servo). If you install a gas or glow engine you'd need a 9th for the throttle.

Btw, received my replacement canopy yesterday. Thanks to Motion for making that a hassle-free transaction. I admit I was surprised to see only the plastic canopy itself - I automatically assumed it'd be a complete hatch - but given that the canopy is secured with screws rather than glued in place, this makes complete sense.

[R loop]

The recommend hitec servos (HS-225MG) do not fit anywhere on the airplane. Not even close. The directions are wrong. Both the website and the printed directions are wrong.
The aileron mounting holes are "standard" servo size, not 'mini servo size. the flaps mounting area are for a mini servo but the mini servos dont fit. I will have to cut/modify the wing to get these to fit. For the elevator, the servos dont even come close to fitting. I will have to remove a lot of material to make them fit. I now have quite a few of unreturnable servos sitting on my bench.

[jlsmith54]

I changed out the pilot, changed the wheels and added chrome spinner. I used the right size servos that fit. I have not maiden yet.

[jlsmith54]

Piper PA-38 Tomahawk waiting on weather to maiden

[jlsmith54]

Nexa Piper Tomahawk, { name the guy in the right seat} hint: he designed the DRACO

[CF-105]

Looks good! What did you go with for power? Will be interesting to see how your maiden goes.

Mine's still under assembly. Ran into a snag installing the main gear: can't tell which one goes on which side, and I had a blind nut fall out. Short of major surgery there's no way to reinstall it, so I resorted to using a threaded insert.

[jlsmith54]

I used the electric motor that motion RC had listed. I changed out the pilot, added a pilot & passenger. The pilot that came with it looked like he belonged in a HUEY. Dubro chrome rubber wheels, added a 2 3/4 spinner I got off ebay.

[waterboy007]

Can someone please post some pics of how they installed the elevator servos (HS-225MG) in the tail while managing to hide the wiring? Unfortunately, the installation manual is extremely poor in providing sufficient details.

[waterboy007]

I was able to get the servo installation sorted out. This may not be the best way to install the servos, however this solution does work.