BY DON NELSON • PHOTOS BY JOHN REID

RC Guys

CESSNA ISO ARF

This beautiful, scale 96-inch-span Cessna 150 from RC Guys
is guaranteed to turn heads at the field
DURING TMI- l*)7(i,S AND '80S, Cessna
built a version of its [Wpular Cessna ISO
SPECIFICATIONS
that was designated tbe "Acrobat." It MODEL Cessna 150 Aerobat ARF
became a popular aerobatic trainer because OISTRIBU'TOR RC Guys
of its gentle Ilight characteristics, tn fact, TYPE Scare aerobat
many pilots who have flown Cessna Aero- LENGTH 67 in.
bats often describe the airplane as capable WINGSPAN 96 in.
of "gcTitlemanly aerobatics" sucii as loops, WING AREA 1,290 sq. in,
roih and even flat spins. Now you can enjoy WEIGHT 14 Ib. 12 oz
flying this beautiful, giant-aale Cessna 1 SO WING LOADING 26.7 oz/sq. ft.
at'robat from RC Guys, ENGINE REQ'D .90 to 1.20 2-stroke;
This model lives up to its name as an aer- 1.2 to 1.8 4^roke, 22 to 32cc gas
The Saito 1.80 has pienty of room under the cowi
obatic trainer, and when equipped with a for good airflow and easy firewall mounting. The RADIO REQ D 5^;hannei
engine provides outstanding performance and pulls
recommended engine, it can perform most the Cessna around with good authority.
simple looping and rolling maneuvers. It
isn't difficult to fly, and a pilot who has and it's helpful to have a good set of mod- HIGHLIGHTS
graduated from the basic trainer should be eling t(K)ls. The model is a well-constructed • Very scale outline
able to fly it easily. This model will wow ply, lite-ply and balsa frame. It's beautifully « Striking color schem
1 hem at the field! covered in a striking red, white and blue
" Weil constructed
Assembly requires intermediate skills, color scheme that is highly visible on
• Fun to fly

the ground and in the air. .-Ml decals and

markings have been applied by the manu-
facturer. The mode! also has fully
functional l-owlcr flaps that enhance Its
scale appearance. The cabin dixir is fully
operational right down to the handle and
door lock. The kit also includes a painted
fiberglass cowl and wheel pants. The
painted wraparound windshieids fit very
well and give tbe model a sleek, scale
appearance. Overall, this plane is finit-ratc.

UNIQUE FEATURES
The kit includes a complete set of hardware
and accessories that includes wheels with
balloon tires and a fuel tank. The steerable
nose gear on this model is a work of art; it is
a carefully machined Oleo strut that kmks
and acts like the shtxk-absorbing nose gear
used on the full-size airplane. Ttie higli-

70 MO0ELAIRPLANENEWS.COM
quality control horns for all movable sur- structure of the control surface. I think tlut
faces were machined out of aluminum stock. would result in a weak control system that,
VVhen the model rolled on the main j;ear, over time, would suffer from wear. Before I
the wheels wanted lo spread, and i was toii- installed the horns, I hardened the holes'
cerned that the gear would collapse if edges with thin C:A and then filled each hole
subjected tu a hard landing, so I attached a with foamins [xilyester glue. The polyester
tahle belween the axles lo prevent it from glue foams tip to fill the hole and dries hard.
spreading. When I tried to bend the aileron The kit comes with a beautifully crafted
and flap pushrmi wires in my Z-bender, elevator pushrod. The niimual includes a
they snapped, %o I replaced them wilh 2-56 detailetl picture of how lo Iwnd the wire
pLishrods and installed L-hend connectors. sections at the end of the pushrod to affix it
RC Guys includes a great set of detailed to the elevator control horns; however, the
instruLtions witli many photos to guide plans neglect to tell you how to get the
you through the construction process, ami The Cessna 150 ARF kit Includes a nicely (tone entire pushrod inside the fuselage. If you
scale front wheel. It's mounted Inside the fuse- carefully tape the wire portions of the
I have a few notes to add. I'irst. 1 recom- lage, so be sure to iock down everything tJghtiy.
mend thai you complete the radio pushrod together, you can thread the entire
installation before you install the windows working in this area difficult, so I appreciated assemhly through the fuel-line hole in the
and windshieiils. The radio and servos go in having tlie adtlitional actess. firewiill to the rear of the hiselage and out
the cabin area of the fuselage; once you've The model does not iiave "hard points" through the exit lioles. Be careful; it's easy
installed the windshields, the only access for installing control horns. The mantial to puncture the side of the fuselage and pu i
is through the door, and that can make instructs you to drill directly into the balsa a hole in the beautiful covering.
 I C BOYS CESSNA ISO ARP

In the
The Cessnas first flight was ofTa
5 4 In. down

straight and lifted into the air withi : Futaiia 7-channei PCM:
wa5 off the ground. I added a little up-elevator to begfn a gentle looked great. I also did a few ba S3305 servos (6)
cllmbout. Landing the model Is also quite easy. Line it up with the spins. You have to wait for
runway, cut the throttle to an idie and iet tiie airpiane settle. You the stali, but once the spin
wiii have to add some eievator as you approach the ground to get a starts, it is siow and gentle. I
little fiare before touching down. I fiy off a paved runway, but the used opposite rudder and f^UEL Wildcat 15%
Cessna 150 shouid aiso be abie to take off from cioseiy mowed ailerons to stop the spin.
grass fleids without any trouble.
Glide & stall parformance This model staiis gently and doesn't
show any tendency to drop wingtips. Recovery is quick if you iet
GENERAL FLIGHT PERFORMANCE
It gain airspeed by adding throttle. This airpiane has a iarge wing
Stability The Cessna is an easy model to fly. but ft isn t a trainer. If and is reiatively light for its size, so when you cut the throttle, you
you neutraiize control inputs, it wiii continue to track aiong its current have a great glider.
path. You have to fiy it bacit to ievel fiight. i was surprised to find that
the rudder is quite effective. As you first input rudder, the model wiii
enter a relatively fiat turn in the direction of the input; however, at PILOT DEBRIEFtNG
some point, it wiii tuck its nose, and you wiii need up-elevator to This modei comes equipped with Fowler fiaps. They are large, and
maintain altitude. For a iarge, high-wing airplane, its response to aii they are effective, if you've never flown a model with fiaps, be sure
controi Inputs Is very soltd. to gain altitude and appiy flaps slowiy. At first, youH notice littie
effect, but at some point, the model wiii pitch its nose down, and
Tracking The Cessna tracks very weii. but it has to be piioted as if if you wiii have to apply quite a bit of up-eievator lo maintain ievei
were a large airpiane. You will have to use the rudder to maintain flight. Once you get used to using fiaps. you wiii be abie to make
straight tracking when it does verticai maneuvers or loops. You will short, relativeiy steep approaches on your landings.
aiso have to use the elevator to maintain ievel flight when it does
This modei fuifiils many roles; you can take it to the field for
rolling maneuvers. The designers got the firewali angie right; the relaxing, gentie flying, or you can use it as a basic aerobatic trainer,
model didn't show any tendency to ciimb or dive as throttle and air- if this is your first iarge modei, you wiii find flying it quite different
speed were varied. from fiying smailer sport flyers. The modei wiii teach you to use ali
Aerobatics This modei is advertised as an aerobatic trainer, and it of your controi inputs, especially the rudder. Although Its capable of
looks great flying basic rolling and looping maneuvers, Throttie aerobatics, it isn't abie to do more advanced "snapping" maneuvers.
advances increase the models pulling performance, but they don't Within its design envelope, it's fun to fly and absoluteiy beautifui to
have a huge impact on airspeed, so maneuvers wiii be relativeiy watch, if you want to get into iarge modeis. the Cessna is a great
siow and, with practice, quite graceful, I tried a few stall turns (not way to do it.

Because the instructions didn't desig- CONCLUSION When I finally was able to step hack and look
nate where the center of gravity (CG) was ihis mudel's assembly does take some time at the fully assembled model for the first
located, I put it about Vi back from the (1 spent about 30 hours), but if you approach time, I could only say, "Wow!"
leading edge. Flight tests proved this to he each task carefully and think ahout what
very close. you are doing, the result is well worth it. See the Source Guide for manutacturers' contact infonnatlon.

72 MODELAIRPLANENEWS, COM