An ARF SV-11 just arrives today and I'm posting some photos of the parts with a few comments.
#06: The stab and elevators look nearly flawless, no warps and very light (qualitative "feel of it"; I didn't actually weigh anything). At least on this example all the major components felt lighter relative to the Score, Nobler or even T-Rex.
#09, 11, 12, 14: The fuselage presents a very "clean" appearance. It looks like the suggested mods in the tutorial on Brodak's web site (for beefing the belly pan and wing/fuse joint) have already been incorporated into the production kits. The top sheeting appears continuous past the TE rather than spliced over a former as on the T-REX. That should help strengthen this area. However, fuselage wood feels soft, almost too light, and looks much thinner than 1/8 inch. I like the fiberglass cowl and the way its attached, but it does spread outward between the bolts. Another set of hard points and bolts can be added to correct this.
#019: The fin/rudder are a very light 1-piece unit, warp free and neatly covered. It looks like there is a very small airfoil or offset bias as you move toward the trailing edge of the rudder.
#21, 23: Trailing edges of the flaps & wing are the straightest of any ARF I've inspected so far.
#031: Bell crank and lead outs are similar to the T-Rex, but the mount design and execution look better.
#031: I like the overall appearance of the wing & flap assembly. Both flaps are straight with good torsional resistance. I didn't view everything with a magnifier, but I saw nearly zero obvious flaws such as dents, wrinkles in the covering or poorly sanded framework. The trim is almost flawlessly applied and is the same on the top and bottom of the wing & stab. Overnight storage in a garage with the temperature near 100 F and very high humidity, resulted in zero wrinkling or sagging of the covering!
#032: Hardware package is complete and the quality looks a little better compared to some other ARFs.
#037: I still see a problem with the control horn braze between the wire and upright. As with horns from many other ARF's I've inspected, there is a tiny "snot" of braze on the front, but it doesn't flow around to the rear. Its that way on both sides of the upright and on both the flap and elevator horns. I always point this out to my customers (guys in the local club). I tell them I would not use this horn because it would not give me a "warn and fuzzy feeling" when banging a hard corner with a Castor belching sixty. Club members flying the large ARFs (Strega and T-REX) have re-brazed or replaced the stock horns, so I really don't know if these will hold up in actual service. I just wouldn't feel comfortable using them without a better braze.
The SV-11 kit I took photos of has already been sold. The buyer is an "ARF Expert" who puts these together quickly and does a good job. It could be airborne before Labor Day and I might get some stick time on it. Power will likely be a Tom Lay tuned ST sixty. I may post more photos and text when its done and flying.
I also ordered an ARF Legacy and planned to photograph the parts of that kit, but when I opened the box another SV-11 was inside. I guess the factory mistakenly put a Legacy lid on an SV-11 kit. Hopefully, it only happened once! Regards, EWP
Topic: SV-11 Parts (Read 2013 times)
