Since the Sport flying forum gets no love, here's a thread everyone can take part in. What's the hands down best flying plane you've ever owned, or at least flown?

After some careful deliberation and thinking back to the glory days of my Tiger 2, Scat Cat, Patriot, 1/2a Sukhoi, and profile Ultimate along with what I currently have, I think it still comes down to the Vagabond. The plane I owned for all of 4.5 flights before it met its demise a few weeks ago. That was a good one. Honorable mention goes to Alvin's Olympic 20L for planes belonging to others that I've flown. :lol:

I know some love the Twist, some the Ultra Sport...what's the best flying plane you ever had?

I have had a bunch of planes over the last 45 years and some were pretty good and some were dogs.

Yeah...The Olympic 20-L was a neat flying little plane. I know I flew it a lot over several years and it won the combat event over at the Polo Field one year. And even got fixed back from a tramatic cartwheel landing at Irvington Field by some little fellow I let fly it.

But if I had to pick just one to have back, it would be the SIG Kougar.
A sport plane that had the good points of a pattern ship, in that it grooved through flight manuevers really well and had good power to weight ratio.
Was plenty fast enough and would slow down well for landing.



2 - Bridi Kaos, best inverted flying plane I had, so good in fact that I often landed it inverted, on purpose of course.

3 - Alvin designed "Combat Avenger" flying wing. Hands down best combat wing I have ever flown. Wide assed open full speed, would turn a 90 in wink of eye and do it in style. It had so many different colored combat streamers hung on it's wing one time, looked like a christmas tree comeing in for landing.

Several more that could get honorable mentions, but too many to list.

The doggiest dog plane had to be an "El Gringido" or something like that spelling. Man, slow it down below about 50 MPH or pull a sharp manuever and look out, Snap City. It was painted a pretty metallic green and white color scheme.

After careful thought my best flying plane(s) in almost 9 full months of enjoying this hobby I have listed the top 4 below.

#1 - My 2nd Twist (the one that died when doing the touch and goes and rolling inverted very low after take off, I retired that maneuver after that)

#2 - my third twist before the crash and repair.

#3 - my first twist (it was used when I got it after Don's crash, I repaired it and flew it for several weeks till the wing came off in flight)

#4 - the 3rd twist after the last crash, still working on getting it right again.

Hay Steve,

Let see if I got this right???????? :o

Your #1 was your 2nd

Your #2 was your 3rd

Your #3 was your 1st

And your #4 th was your 3rd again :wacko: :wacko: :P

#1 MyTwist hands down....I've never had a plane that is as responsive yet as easy to fly as a trainer.

#2 My Ugly stick....fun with flaps

#3 My Gnat...with the newly clipped wings

Oh yeah.....and Don's Spy plane

Mike,

I :wub: the Sport flying forum :thumbup: :banana:

The best flying plane I had was the Bulsa Nova, AKA The Spy Plane.

BUT" :) Can we say what plane we like to fly the best :D Or is that going to be another topic?? :cloud9:

Because, the one I had that flew the best ( it mighy fly again) is not the one that I LIKE" to fly the best :)

Don, I looked up the rules on best flying plane topic in the official forum handbook, and rule # 37, part 12, paragraph 3 clearly states "anyone can talk about whatever they want except if someone starts a topic about best flying planes in which case no one named Don can discuss his favorite plane if it does not so qualify as his best flying plane" :thumbdown:

Sorry I was as shocked as you when I found this ruling, I would have thought it would be OK but rules is rules. :clown:

Geee...Shock and Surprise...I did not know that rule was there either.
But plain as day, there it is up near top of this page. :o

Thanks Steve, :thumbup:

Glad you looked up the rule, as I could have gotten myself into a lot of trouble if I would have said that the plane I like to fly best is my Twist. I didn't know where to go in the forum to find the rule book :no: and, I can not find the hand bound leather covered gold plate and silver original book that I received when I joined the forum :(

So, it's a goog thing for me that I didn't just take it for granted and say that the plane I like best is the Twist, because Alvin would have had to give me one of those warnings that we all so dread :huh:

I spoze I is in BIG trouble now :crying: for loosin dah original hand bound leather covered gold plate and silver book :crying: :crying:

Is gold suposed to turn green???????????? :o

Alvin says ARG!! :pirate: :santa_smiley: :ouch: :hyper:

My 1st choice is the 40-size Lanier Shrike with Y. S. .60 rear-exhaust engine and tuned pipe that I crashed last weekend... Definitely my fastest plane ever! :crying: :crying: :crying:

My 2nd choice is the canard Crusader, a pusher delta wing plane powered by a Webra .50. Has retracts. It still needs some repairs done to it and is patiently waiting... :D

My 3rd choice is the Yoshioko Flash, a pattern plane with an O.S. .46 pumped engine and tuned pipe that I flew in pattern competition (circa 1992/93). Definitely the smoothest of any of my planes. That's the one I learned to really fly with.

Y'all had to make me say Shrike again, didn't you?... :crying:

well, i awould have to say that my best ever flying airplane would be a 40 size morris knife, not because of itss ability to fly aso much, but rather its ability to quickly be recovered oh say an inch from the ground. It is what i like to call, a quick save aircraft :parachute:

Hi Eric.

Is this the same Eric who used to be in Mobile.
You and little Justin used to run together.

Yall all growed up now.

How can you have just killed your favorite plane ever, still have your second favorite plane ever in need of a few repairs, and be working on an Ultra Sport which doesn't even fit in your top 3? Why not get the Crusader out and blow the dust off of it? I've never seen this Crusader that you speak of. Bring it on.

For me The Ultra stick 40 was the best plane. the speed and handling was awsome and i loved that plane even when it went to bals heaven :(

Well, I CAN, Mike! Gosh, you sound a bit testy! (And you were so civil last night...)
But no one has told me the real, official RUUULES on the selection of one's favorite flying plane, whether existing or demised. :angry:

I have flown the Ultra Sport a dozen times when it wasn't mine. But it has been mine for a year or two now, and hopefully you will see it soon.
Okay, fine, so the Ultra Sport is my fourth favorite plane... (Is that okay with you. Mike?) :D

It doesn't just need a simple dusting, Mike. There is some major structural damage that needs attention. :(

You just don't understand... I am retired now, and I have no time to do ANYTHING... ;)

:roflmao:

Hahahah...didn't mean to sound testy. Just if I had killed my favorite plane, but already had in my possession my second favorite, I'd be getting it ready to fly.

Seriously now, who among us has a plane without at least a little major structural damage? :D

Frits....By the way I looked at that Lanier catalog I have and they DO make a Shrike ARF so now you have no excuse....... :D

*alvin raises hand for attention*

Me Me Me, I have one. I don't beleive in a "little major damage".
All or nothing for me is the way do go.


Frits has noticed, as have I, that Mike is getting a little more "testy" since he made forum moderator of "RC Sport Airplanes". :hysterical: :roflmao:

Better watch it Alvin, youll get kicked out of your own website!! :P

:o :hysterical: :unsure:

Indeed, there is a Shrike ARF. The downside is it's pretty hideous. However, since Frits already said he would have to reinforce the plane to stand up to the YS .61, he can recover it in his own choice of pink, yellow, and sky blue. Go for it Frits.

http://www.lanierrc.com/lrcprivate/rcairpl...Shrike40ARF.htm

Frits,

Check with Steve ;) He has the ruel book :dance:

Yes, I know!
Andy looked it up. A 40-size Lanier Shrike ARF is about $140, a kit is $60.

I'm afraid an ARF would not hold up with that Y. S. .60 engine on it... :thumbdown:

Which means I would have to build..... <_< :no:

If you buy I will build it for you but not cover it, you could then just add the reinforcement parts that you think necessary to hold up to your YS .60 engine and cover it to your liking. The only stipulation is I get to fly it once. :thumbup:

Of course I have a new plane of my own and a helicopter to get flying first then I would start on the Shrike if you don't find another excuse to avoid getting back in controll of a shrike. :biggrin:

I see the ARF has landing gear, you could do 170 MPH loop and goes !! :pilot:

I'm confused about the Shrike's speed. I see where Frits has mentioned 170-180mph or so, but when he was flying with Tim they looked pretty even. Tim's been clocked in the 130s, right? So what's the story Frits? B)

yes fritz the shirke is on sale at tower from 25-60 bucks but they only come in kits :bigplane:

An older Scat Cat Quickie 500 racer that I used to fly was clocked at 126 by radar gun.
I know Tim's is probably faster. Even after our race, I was never really convinced that my Shrike was faster than Tim's Predator 500.

My Shrike was not performing up to snuff, especially after I overhauled the engine. It needed some tweaking on the Y. S. .60's diaphragm pump stroke, where a little adjustment makes a lot of difference.

Before my Shrike headed to the ground, on the way down, inverted, I realized — too late — that I had lost control of the elevator. I was not able to tighten the turn as I could before. (Found out later the elevator servo gears were stripped, the others were not. The steel pull-pull cables and the servo arm are still intact.)

After I made that pump stroke adjustment I realized that it WAS doing much better and I could see that in its speed, which I estimate at 170 or so. Perhaps it was only 150 — most people OVERestimate speed.)

I just believe that the Shrike was going much faster than the previous weekend, and I wish I could have had another race with Tim... :(

Oh well... :crying:

I heard on the Art Bell late night radio show (William :wacko: could verify this) that scientists had recorded a mysterous jolt to the earth that increased it's orbital speed by about .0000000000000000001 nano meters per hour.

I noticed that the date/time of the earth jolt was same as date/time of Frits' Shrike crash.

We can find out what the mass of the earth is and if Frits still has Shrike remains, figure the Shrike mass and then mix all this into a formular where "X" is what speed the Shrike was going on impact to make the earth bounce to it's new orbital speed. :unsure:

It was that rip in space/time you created alvin........
(can you say topic hijacking?)

The only rip (and it was a real ripper, but did not coincide with time of mysterous earth jolt) I have created lately is the one in my drawers from eating too much Red Beans & Rice at ACMA meeting the other night.

Hoz that for a topic hijack? :P :roflmao:

Makes sense Frits, I just remember him being clocked and then seeing you guys flying fairly even...you know, while my plane was barrelling towards its death.


But at least you saved the servo arm, I had to buy a new one. :lol:

Yes, Mike, I feel your pain! :(

Right on top of mine... :crying:

Well :D it least I is back in bidnessssss with another Funtana :P :biggrin: