Radio Control Jets-2010/08

112 MODEL AVIATION
Also included in this column:
• KingTech K-80
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Jets Jim Hiller
Hot times at Florida Jets
Above: Lewis Patton has upgraded the power
in his F-15 to the Jet Central Rhino. Now up to
48 pounds of thrust is available to make the
model perform identical to full scale.
Right: This pretty 1950s warbird is Eric Clapp’s
Der Jet F8F-9 Cougar. A light touch of
weathering brings out the molded details on
this scale ARF. Power is a Jet Central Super
Eagle turbine.
FLORIDA JETS this year was great. The
weather was cool in Lakeland, but the
skies were clear, winds were mild, there
was no rain, and the flying was
impressive.
This is a great event for us snowbound
pilots to use to start the season. It’s held in
March, so we get some early flying in
warm weather, and many vendors show up
with new products.
This year Jet Central had a courtesy
tent (thank you very much) and exciting
product news. The Mammoth turbine is in
full production, and customers flew them
at Florida Jets.
If you need brute force, this
powerhouse puts out 48 pounds of thrust,
yet it weighs just less than 5 pounds. What
a package! If big jets are your thing, this
monster will push any non-experimentalclass
airframe to awesome performance.
Lewis Patton had a Mammoth turbine
in his big F-15 Eagle. That aircraft has the
power that a true scale jet deserves; F-15s
are all about sheer strength.
But that’s not all from Jet Central. The
Rabbit and the Super Bee II are now
available as kerosene-start turbines, and
existing Rabbits are upgradable to
kerosene start for a reasonable cost.
I just got my Rabbit back from its 25-
hour inspection, so its next trip should be
this coming winter. The kerosene-start
option will have to wait until then, but it
will be upgraded.
Eric Clapp and Felipe Nieto rolled out
the latest version of the Bee, and it has
16.5 pounds of thrust. Yes, 16.5 pounds.
That is truly impressive power from such
a small, lightweight power plant. I could
see a Super Bee II in one of my aircraft.
For those Super Bee owners who
want to upgrade their turbines to the
latest version and take advantage of the
additional thrust and kerosene-start
option, it can be done. It’s a bit
expensive at first glance, but many
engineered parts must be replaced to
gain the additional performance.
All Jet Central turbines carry a
lifetime warranty, which the owner
maintains by keeping up with the
required 25-hour inspection period. It’s a
great time to upgrade that engine.
Bob Wilcox showed up in Lakeland
with a new JetCat turbine: a small 5.25-
pound-thrust P20-SE. It’s a cute little
engine that is capable of flying those
70mm electric-ducted-fan models with
the authority, sound, and smell they
deserve.
I didn’t catch who was flying a
Mirage powered by the P20-SE, but what
a show! The small jet flew with authority
and reliability—just the thing for keeping
in the trunk for a quick flight on the way
home from work.
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August 2010 113
The turbine weighs in at a petite 13
ounces and is only 2.4 inches in diameter,
or 61mm. It will fit in many small
airframes with ease.
The latest version of the CARF Models
UltraLighting abounded at Florida Jets,
and David Shulman had his new one
flying. It looked great pumping smoke into
that beautiful blue sky as David flipped the
jet about and spun it up high in the sky.
Good show, Shui.
CARF Models also showed an
impressive A-4 Skyhawk, flying it
regularly to show how nicely this package
performs. It is cool, complete with LE
flaps and scale landing gear, packaged in a
large jet.
The A-4 is big enough to be impressive,
but not so large that you can’t handle it
yourself. It is 106 inches long, 68 inches in
wingspan, and expected to weigh 40
pounds—great for 34- to 44-pound-thrust
turbines.
Optional ordnance and a scale cockpit
kit are available for the Skyhawk. It is a
warbird, after all; load it up and have some
fun.
I have to mention the new T-33s at
Florida Jets. Pablo Fernandez had his new
Fei Bao T-33 flying in classic
Thunderbirds colors. That thing is big! The
new T-33 and P-80 became part of BVM
Jets’ inventory just in time for open-box
display under Bob Violett’s tent in
Lakeland.
Skymaster models keep getting better.
The molded detail and quality of the
landing gear systems look wonderful. I’ll
bet that more details will be added to the
T-33 and the P-80 as regular production
starts and deliveries begin.
Then there was the Der Jet 1/6-scale
F8F-9 Cougar, distributed in the US by Jet
Central, hiding under Eric Clapp’s tent.
It’s a great package.
One stock, from-the-box Cougar in the
navy blue scheme was pulled out and set
up on the table. It had great workmanship
on the fit and finish, and the paint work
was top-notch—impressive for an ARF.
Molded detail such as hatches, rivets,
and panel lines are well done on the F8F-
9. Add that incredible cockpit kit, and you
have a spectacular scale model—not just
another ARF.
The Der Jet Cougar is sized right for a
22- to 30-pound-thrust turbine, and Eric
Clapp had a Jet Central Eagle in his.
That’s a great combination. The model has
a 66-inch wingspan with a length of 82
inches and weighs 32 pounds empty.
Eric’s own Cougar was on display in
The new BVM Jets E Bandit ARF is a large
sport model built for electric-ducted-fan
power. The BVM EVF-2 powers this
aircraft with the authority it deserves.
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114 MODEL AVIATION
the white-and-orange scheme with a light
touch of weathering added to bring out the
molded details. On Sunday Eric removed
it from the display table and invited me to
fly it; you might know I did.
You might read about how an airplane
flies, but there’s no hiding the truth once
you fly it yourself. And I like this model.
Eric’s Cougar has all flaps operating,
including the inboard belly flaps. It’s
striking when it is dirtied up, with landing
gear and flaps down.
This aircraft took off with authority. If
you doubt its 32-pound weight, watch it
fly when you can; you might swear that
it’s even lighter. This jet has ample wing
area for its size, and it shows in
maneuverability and slow flight,
enhanced even more by the cuffed (or
drooped) LEs.
Setup for landing is a straightforward
experience with the Cougar. Slow it a bit
and lower the gear and flaps, and leisurely
flight on approach is solid. It has enough
drag to make approach airspeed control
easy; there are no excuses for coming in to
land too high and fast.
I expected the Cougar to fly the way it
looked—like a heavy super-scale model.
Wrong! It flies like a sport aircraft. I wish
time had allowed for more flights; it only
allowed for one.
Florida Jets featured plenty of
impressive models and flying, and I
didn’t even mention the electrics. Bob
Violett rolled out his new EVF-2 power
system that offers more thrust on the
same watts. Efficiency improvements
made that happen.
The additional power allows BVM
Jets to introduce the E Bandit ARF—one
large jet for electric power—and Bob
Violett flew his so everyone could see the
impressive performance of this package.
It has unreal flight times and great
performance. He ran with the turbinepowered
aircraft.
I spent a few days with a KingTech K-80
before it was delivered to the company’s
new representative, Joe Lewis. This
turbine is out to break the price barrier,
costing less than $2,000 with an
introductory price of $1,750.
The K-80 is a good-looking package,
but it’s not quite as complete as others.
No battery or onboard propane tank is
included, but valves, engine control unit
(ECU), fuel pump, and turbine are
included.
The K-80 produces 17.5 pounds of
thrust and is packaged in a 96mm, or
3.78-inch-diameter, case. That’s
excellent power for the size of this power
plant.
Fuel requirements are 5% turbine oil
mixed with kerosene. Experience is
already being gained with Mobil DTE oil
mixed at this ratio, and no problems are
reported yet. Check with KingTech for
final results.
Initial start and running on the test
bench were positive. The K-80 is set up
with a complete automatic start sequence
utilizing propane or Powermax as the
initial starting gas.
A FADEC ECU controls all turbine
activities. This well-known, popular unit
has an outstanding record in jet modeling.
It is good to see that KingTech did not use
a cheap ECU of limited capability. I have
three turbines running on various versions of
the FADEC ECU, all with excellent history.
The fuel pump is unique. It is a bit
large, but it does have mounting lugs to aid
in securing the aircraft. Overall, the K-80
looks like a quality package at a reasonable
cost. Joe Lewis has completed his first
flights with it, and it looks to be an
interesting addition to the turbine market.
That’s it for now. Let’s get back out
flying, and remember to make it to the Jet
World Masters USA Qualifier, September
4-7, followed by Route 66 Jets in
Litchfield, Illinois. See the best scale jet
modelers in the US shoot it out for a spot
on the 2011 team. MA
Sources:
Florida Jets:
Frank Tiano Enterprises
(863) 607-6611
www.franktiano.com
Jet Central
(941) 468-1246
www.jetcentralusa.com
JetCat USA
(805) 226-8700
www.jetcatusa.com
CARF Models
www.carf-models.com
BVM Jets
(407) 327-6333
www.bvmjets.com
KingTech Turbines
(626) 793-4677
www.kingtechusa.com
Jet World Masters 2011
http://jwm2011.com
Jet Pilots Organization
www.jetpilots.org
Visit the AMA Web site at www.modelaircraft.org.
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