Pitts Biplane Build Log (Art-Tech, Sapac, Hobby-Lobby)

(Click here for the flight report)

This pretty little biplane is a decent quality kit, and is very similar to some kits from GWS and other Chinese builders. It is made of a fairly heavy foam, and I'm not sure what exactly it is. The decals look beautiful, but they scratch off fairly easily, so be careful. Overall, I'm fairly happy with this kit, but I haven't flown the plane yet. I will edit this report and include a flight report after the maiden voyage. My kit came with a brushless motor, and cheap radio which uses 8(!) AA batteries. I also got a charger, Lipo battery, and free "LipoSack", which is fireproof Lipo charging safety bag. It can be ordered in this configuration from Hobby-Lobby, for around $235.

http://www.hobby-lobby.com/pitts-bipe.htm

1. OK, the first thing I did was to get rid of the cheapo receiver and mount one of my Berg receivers. I just don't trust the radio it came with, and there's no substitute for quality stuff.

2. The second thing I did after mounting the landing gear was to turn on my radio, hook up the battery and center all the trims. This is very important because the servos were not centered when they were installed. I had to mechanically trim the rudder, which was really off-center. The rest of the surfaces happened to be correctly centered, but your kit may vary. Unfortunately, the rudder and elevator servos are mounted inside the rear of the fuselage, so I had to use the clevis in the back to adjust the centering.

3. The next thing I did was to pull off the Hobby-Lobby sticker. I love Hobby-Lobby, but I didn't like the look of their sticker on my lovely new Pitts.

4. Then I attached the wings as the instructions say, using the nylon bolts, and using the zip ties to attach the braces. The zip ties are hard to tighten, so I used pliers to pull them tight. Be careful attaching the aileron connectors, because the horns bend easily.

5. I was not happy with the attachment of the braces, so I put a small amount of foam-safe CA to hold them in place. Be careful not to let it run around because it can bleed the colors from the decals. Wipe away any excess right away.

6. I also applied a little CA to the landing gear fairings to hold them in place.

7. I applied a little CA to the aileron connector horns so they don't rotate back and forth on the aileron.

8. I used some packing tape to secure the battery wires into the battery bay, so it doesn't pull itself back inside and make itself a real pain. Then I also put some hook-side of velcro into the battery bay to help hold the battery in place. I put loop velcro on the battery.

9. I am having trouble getting the battery into the place it's supposed to go, and the CG is going to be a little too far back with the battery they sent me, so I'll have to figure something else out. Maybe a bit of ballast will help, but I don't like doing that...

10. As a last step, I hooked up a really big, powerful battery and my watt meter. This is because I'm at high altitude and have had bad experiences over-amping motors using recommended setups. Results were: 7.4 amps, 84 watts - I would like to see a lot more for a plane of this weight for aerobatic performance, but this will be enough to make it fly.

The only thing left to do at this point is wait for a good day to fly! Here's a photo of the finished Pitts S2A Biplane - isn't she pretty! (Let's hope she stays that way, hehee)


(Click for bigger image)