HANGAR 9 AT-6 Texan ARF

Model Airplane News, Feb 2004 by Leu, George, Davisson, Budd

HANGAR 9 AT-6 Texan ARF A .60-size sport-scale warbird with retracts!

I have always considered myself a kit builder, and I especially like to build scale airplanes. The distinctive shape of the AT-6 Texan is one I hadn't thought would lend itself well to being duplicated in ARF form. The new ARF Texan from Hangar 9, however, amazes me! It just doesn't look like an ARF that takes only a few hours to build. Hangar 9 got this one exactly right! If you've ever had any doubts about buying a prebuilt model, check out the Hangar 9 Texan. It made a believer out of me!

IN THE BOX

I was impressed with the packaging and the individually wrapped parts and pieces. The UltraCote covering was virtually wrinkle-free, and all the scale markings were already in place. The wing center section was the kit's most surprising part because the mechanical retracts come already installed and ready to operate. All I had to do was install a servo and connect the linkage. When I plugged everything in, the gear functioned properly without any binding.

The Hangar 9 kit comes with a very complete hardware package that includes the fuel tank, pushrods, wheels, cockpit interior, a dummy radial engine, a 55-page assembly manual and a beautifully painted cowl. All the control surfaces come prehinged from the factory, adding another nice touch to an impressive kit. A correctly shaped wing fillet is built into the fuselage, and a pair of factory-painted wing-joint fairings is also included. The greenhouse canopy even comes with the framework already painted. In all, the Texan is a very impressive package.

I started checking the parts fit by dryfitting the wing spars and the wing panels (without glue), and everything fit together perfectly. The wing's fit to the fuselage was also perfect. With a wood kit, you could spend a fair amount of time fitting these two parts together and still not get as good a fit. In about one minute, I had fitted all the model's parts together without any trimming or sanding required anywhere. This certainly motivated me to start gluing parts together.

ASSEMBLY TIME

The assembly manual is well written and illustrated, and I followed it completely to build the kit. The first step is to glue the hinges into the wing and ailerons with thin CA. Then I assembled the three wing sections using slow-setting epoxy. While the glue dried, I placed the entire wing on my bench and measured the dihedral at each tip. Both were exactly the same. The most time-consuming part was installing the wing-panel-joint fairing pieces. It took a little tape and some spring clamps to hold them in place while the glue dried.

After the glue had completely dried, I installed the aileron servos (one in each wing panel) and then screwed the aileron control horns into place. Before you install the aileron pushrods, make sure that the servos are centered and that the ailerons are set in the neutral position. Once this had been done, I installed the retract servo in the center of the wing. Since the pushrods driving the mechanical retract were already installed, this takes only a few minutes. I spent about an hour at the bench, and the wing was completely finished!

The next step is to install the wing-alignment dowels in the leading edge and the wing-attachment blind nuts in the predrilled holes in the plywood attachment plate in the aft section of the wing saddle. Attachment holes are already drilled in the wing's trailing edge, and you must glue the reinforcing plywood strip over the holes. Using the attachment holes as a guide, drill �-inch holes through the plywood strip, and then bolt the wing to the fuselage. Once the wing is in place, measure the distance from the tail to each wingtip and make sure that both measurements are the same. If they aren't, enlarge the attachment holes so you can adjust the wing accordingly. After the wing has been properly aligned with the tail, install the horizontal stabilizer.

Remove the covering from over the stabilizer slot, and slide the stab into place. Center it in the slot, and measure from the tips of the stab to the wingtips. The distance on each side should be the same. It should also be parallel with the wing when viewed from behind. When the stabilizer is in the correct position, use a pen to mark it where it comes out of the fuselage slot. Remove the unwanted covering from the stab's top and bottom, and glue it back into place with epoxy. Check its alignment with the wing, and let the epoxy cure. Install the vertical fin, and make sure that it's square to the stab. Use tape to hold it in position until the epoxy has cured.

Before you can hinge the elevator halves to the stab, you must install the wire elevator joiner. Mark the joiner's position, and then drill holes and cut slots in the elevator's leading edges. Slip the joiner through the aft fuselage, then epoxy it into the elevator halves and glue the hinges into place with thin CA.

Before you glue the rudder hinges into place, you must attach the tailwheel assembly to the rudder. Drill a hole in the leading edge, then slip the tailwheel wire into place. Glue the hinges into place, and then screw the tailwheel attachment bracket to the bottom of the fuselage. To finish the tail surfaces, locate the positions of the control horns, and screw them into place on the rudder and elevator.