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This Ultimate was bought as a replacement for a recently departed SIG CAP 231Ex ARF. The decision to get another CAP had been made until a local hobby shop owner opened the box containing the Dave Patrick Ultimate ARF. The box itself is very impressive. Even more excitement comes from seeing those two beautiful wings, finished, joined, and bagged right on top of the stack. It was apparent that this is a first class operation. Under the cardboard separator were an equally impressive fuselage, cowl and canopy, all already attached. Even before opening the plastic bags the Ultimate is 50% more complete than the SIG CAP 231EX ARF upon unpacking. An inventory of the hardware brought confirmation of what was already suspected; the same manufacturer in China produced both planes. The Chinese have proven themselves extremely adept at the model aircraft manufacturing business and these two kits are a perfect example. One of the disappointments in the hardware packages came in the form of the axles and wheels, the same as those included in the CAP. The CAP probably had fewer than 10 flights when one of the wheels separated from its two-piece hub, coming loose enough to destroy one of the wheel pants. SIG promptly replaced the pants at no charge but further inspection of the axles showed that both had already started to bend. The CAP was so easy to fly and land that there had been no hard landing at this point. The wheels and axles were replaced with units from Du-bro and this solved the problem. Since the CAP no longer exists, some parts were used in the Ultimate. Both planes use identical motor mounts and since the MDS 148 was used in the Ultimate, reusing this piece saved time and effort. One of the bags comes with six (6) white nylon horns. Another bag has four (4) composite horns and a number of other parts that were necessary to complete assembly. The inventory matched the manifest perfectly. To get an idea of the quality this product, one need only read the instruction book with its 47 plastic spine-bound pages, written in plain English and supported with black and white photographs. Too often instructions are hard to follow and sometimes leave the builder trying to determine the meaning of an instruction. This is not the case with these instructions. They are clear, concise, to the point and written in a conversational style, which makes them very easy to follow. Each page contains one or several clear black and white photographs that augment the written instructions should they be unclear. Construction starts with the stabilizer and fin. The parts fit tightly and precisely. There was no problem finding the center of the stabilizer or clearing the Ultracote away and centering the stabilizer in the pre-cut opening. Fitting the fin was equally as easy. The tail-wheel is of the same quality as the main gear and the decision was made to use it but it will probably be replaced later. A flat washer was soldered on the backside of the wheel axle to act as a bearing. The instructions say nothing of this but it is a simple do and saves a lot of problems later. A metal wheel collar was used rather than the supplied nylon push-on retainer. The stabilizer was double-checked and then glued with thin CA, per instructions. Since this plane is designed to perform violent maneuvers, there was some concern about its strength but the designer is a champion so the concern is probably unfounded. Some 5-minute epoxy was used on the thin edges of the fin and then thin CA was used according to the instructions. Hinging is done using standard CA-hinge methods. Using a little care, a toothpick and cotton swab in addition to the items the instructions state produce nice, smooth operating surfaces. The toothpick is used to apply some Vaseline to the center of the hinge and about both sides of the hinging surface to prevent the CA from gluing parts together that should not be glued. The cotton swab is to take it back off. As a matter of personal preference, most of the supplied control horns are not used. However, the pieces provided with this model seem stouter than others and the decision was made to use them. This model uses a pull-pull system on both the horizontal and vertical control surfaces in the rear of the fuselage. The author's first pull-pull experience was on the CAP rudder and the results were satisfactory. Based on this experience, it was a pleasure making it work on the Ultimate. The one important factor in a pull-pull system is the geometry. Using the experience gained while building the CAP, the distance between the Kwik-Links at the control surface must be the same as that between the connections on the servo. Since the halves of the elevators are individual and hinged that way, care must be taken in installing the control horns. One side was installed and this was measured for the dimensions for the other side. The instructions state that the horns should be "in line" with the servo arms. This can only be done by estimation. The rudder horns are supposed to be slightly below the holes for the rudder lines. The problem here is that this location interferes with the tiller of the tailwheel in the rudder. The other problem was that the rudder control horns are not tall enough. The holes in the horn must be positioned over the pivot point and when the surface is fully deflected, the bottom of the horn hits the side of the fuselage. On the rudder, the third hole was used and the horn was cut to remove the first hole and nearly the second. There is plenty of material left and full deflection can be achieved without the horn hitting. There was some skepticism as to the strength of only two (2) bolts holding the gear on but the plane comes with an aluminum brace inside the fuselage through which the bolts are attached. The wheel pant mounts are standard and the inclusion of an outboard brace for axle support is welcomed. One of the pants had a poorly cut opening that was not as symmetrical as it should have been. It will work with no problems and given the lifespan of most wheel pants, will probably be replaced eventually. The hinging process of the wings is the same as that of the tail feathers. The servo hatches were straight and accurate. The hatch mounting pads are 1/8" plywood and servo mount blocks come preinstalled. One common element found over the whole kit was the covering. The author's first of three (3) aerobatic ARF's was a Great Planes CAP 231EX. The Monokote covering was wrinkled and could not be completely smoothed in some places with any amount of heat. The second was a SIG CAP 231EX covered with Ultracote. Unlike the Great Planes CAP, and with only a quick pass over the edges with some heat, the SIG CAP covering job was far superior to the Great Planes' effort. Since the same company produces the Dave Patrick Ultimate and SIG CAP, similar quality in the covering was expected but not received. The covering on both the fuselage and the wings have been heated and reheated and while it seems that the wrinkles disappear, simply touching it raises wrinkles again. Although, the amount of time spent covering by an experienced modeler and the time spent on an ARF on the production line are significantly different, one of the basics of covering is the stretching of the covering before all corners and edges are tacked. By the looks of this job, the covering was laid on, tacked on the corners and edges and wrinkles were taken out with a heat gun. The servo hatches are held to the wing during shipping with a thin strip of masking tape. On one of the wings, the tape was very dried and brittle like masking tape that has been holding the binding of a book together for a long time; translucent, dried, brittle. This seemed odd for a new model. Hitec HS605MG servos were used on the ailerons and HS615MG servos were used on the elevator and rudder. The 605MG at 6v is faster than the 615MG and with 91 in/oz of torque, should be more than powerful enough. Another nice thing about this model is that a pull string is provided to get the servo leads to the center of the wing. The ailerons were hooked up using the provided pushrods and clevises with unsatisfactory results. There is not much that can be done incorrectly but the nylon clevises did not fit properly on the heavy-duty servo arms. Stock metal Dubro units were substituted. The fit on the stock threaded rod was not satisfactory so these were removed the replace with Hangar 9 pushrods and clevises. The servos mounted to the hatches without a problem but the provided screws were replace with #4 button-head screws for some extra thread engagement. With the cabane struts, top wing mounts, strut mount holes and struts all built, covered, and drilled, there is no margin for error. The strut mounts are screwed into the pre-drilled holes in the wings. Care must be taken to get this right. The openings are already cut in the struts. As all of these pieces are in place, there is little room for adjustment and the instructions make it clear that when everything is bolted together, it should be in line. A Robart Incidence Meter proved very useful here. Radio installation was done according to the manual with the exception of the throttle control. The position of the throttle on the carburetor of the MDS did not lend itself to the piece of piano wire provided. The angles were simply too great. The standard cable method was used instead. The Hangar 9 sport pilot from the SIG CAP had to be cut down a bit to fit properly in the cockpit but the results were great. The wire bracing for the stabilizer and fin are made from the excess pull-pull cable. The necessary clevises and accessories are included and make rigging the tail bracing simple, however the cable must be used conservatively so that there will be enough to complete the rigging. The Ultracote covering the fuel tank compartment should cut away to make tank installation simple. A pre-cut, pre-covered plywood hatch is supplied to take the heat in this area. Silicone was used between the fuselage and hatch since that will be exiting very close to it. The problem with ARFs is that they tend toward the homogeneous so some dressing up was in order. First, the white on the top of the fuselage needed something and some dark blue Ultracote checks were added from the rear of cowl to the tail. Finally, some "home-made" decals, done on the author's home PC with commercially available products, were made including the AMA number on the tail, the pilot's name, and some ".com" stuff. The Ultimate flies great. It is smooth, stable, and aerobatic. Anyone who has flown a Goldberg Ultimate and lamented a dead stick landing or how the plane simply falls out of the air when the throttle is reduced will need this plane. It tracks straight, is very maneuverable and lands like a dream. After about 20 flights on the plane, some discoveries are notable. On refueling after the third flight, the pressure line was tighter than normal. The tank hatch was removed it was found that the tank had slid backwards. Screw eyes were added and rubber bands were looped over them to eliminate this problem. When the pressure line was replaced, it was found that the engine moved. It turned out that the whole firewall was loose. Triangle stock reinforcements have solved that problem. The landing gear is simply too soft and springy. Even smooth, greased landings have flattened the gear out and rough landings have caused the wheel pants to hit the wings. They have been bent back but they are starting to lose their shape. A TNT gear has been purchased and although much stronger, they are also considerably heavier. A search has been started for a composite gear replacement. The tail wheel assembly should be replaced. The stock unit puts quite a bit of stress on the rudder when on the ground. This will be replaced with a Sullivan unit or maybe a Dave Patrick unit. While performing preventative maintenance on the plane, the flying wires on the tail feathers were being tightened. I noticed that the pin of one of the nylon clevises was already worn and nearing the breaking point. These need to be watched and replaced occasionally. Also, one elevator hinge had broken completely and another on the same side was loose. These were replaced with new CA hinges. Finally, during a contest flight, the canopy was lost although all four screws were still in place and tight. The only thing that could have happened was that, in the heat of the sun and cool of my basement, there was some slight deforming taking place, allowing enough air to get under it and cause it to rip off. A new one has been ordered. Overall, the Ultimate flies great. It has taken a bit more to become comfortable with than did the SIG CAP. It looks awesome doing inverted flat spins and will flatten out quite well inverted. Some pitch coupling is required in a knife-edge. Experimentation is still in process with throws and exponential rates. The changes described above were done as a matter of personal taste and experience. Dave Patrick is a champion modeler and consummate gentleman. He has thought out this plane quite well and I am sure it would fly as well if not better built exactly as he directs. 
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