From: plb@dcdwest.uucp (Phil Blais)
Subject: Goldberg Extra 300 - Kit Review
Organization: ITT Aerospace/Communications Division - West
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 7 Apr 92 17:07:44 GMT


I just recently completed the Goldberg Extra 300 and "for what it's
worth" I offer the following:

Construction:
Very straight forward and well "documented" in the instruction
manual. The trickiest area was the 1/32" ply turtle deck.
The turtle deck requires considerable "bending" and is
best done "wet". I sprayed the ply with water, rolled it up into
a tube and held it together for about 15 mins. with tape prior
to gluing. This worked well and resulted in a very satisfactory
job.

The canopy and canopy frame are a bit tedious to get just right
but I was careful and took my time and it came out quite nice.

The kit includes jigs for joining the two wing halves. Basically
a crutch for each wing tip and a saddle for the center section.
I highly recommend using the jig fixtures when joining the two
halves with weights placed strategically to hold everything in
place while the glue dries. This will insure a flat (no dihedral),
warp free wing.

<Flame on>
My only complaint with the entire kit was and is the main gear.
Two pieces of preformed 3/16" wire (one left and one right) form
the basic gear. The gear fairing is built up by laminating pieces
of ply together and attaching them to the wire gear. This results
at best with a flimsy and very springy main gear which IMO is a
piece of junk.
<Flame off>

I recognized the need for a stiffer gear in the
building process and initially figured I'd use a Hallco gear but
found, much to my delight, a composite main gear made specifically
for the Goldberg Extra 300. This gear is great. Its curved the way
a 300 gear should be and its stiff. A flying buddy who completed
his 300 the same time I did flew his with the stock gear, bounced
his first landing (about 5-10 feet) and quickly retrofitted the
composite gear. (cost of the composite gear was ~$40.00).

Finishing:
I usaully spray paint all my planes with PPG Dizler Acrylic Urethane
but for the 300 I decided to try the new 21st Century Fabric from
Coverite (dark blue, light red and white). Overall I was very
impressed with this covering. It handles well, has good shrink
charcteristics and can be trimmed with itself with no bubbles.
My only complaint was its lack of adhesion  especially to
plywood (lite ply) which comprises much of the 300 fuse. I ended
up using Balsarite on the entire frame and the adhesion problem
was solved.

The fiberglass cowl and wheel pants (obtained from T&D fiberglass)
and part of the canopy were painted with matching 21st Century
paint. Paint matched the fabric well and so far is holding up
nicely.

Engine:
I use the O.S. FS120 Surpass II with pump and APC 14x12 or 14x14
prop. This makes for a beautiful combination with the 300.

Flying:
The 300 with the above engine is an awesome combination. It flies
like a pattern plane and really groves like its on a rail. Stall
characteristics are very gentle and to date I have found no
bad characteristics what so ever. Landings are somewhat faster
than a trainer but not much. The only problem is airspeed. the
300 is so clean and the APC prop so efficient that it takes quite
a while to bleed off speed. My first few landing attempts ended
up in go arounds because I was much too hot.

Summary:
I've been building and flying RC planes for close to 20 years
and this is one of the most impressive planes I have ever
owned. I'm amazed that a ~$100+ kit looks and flies as good as
it does. Especially when I compare it to other planes in my
hangar which include $2000 jets and some very expensive
1/4 scale models.

-- 
phil blais  N6KXD (ex WD6ETL)    ITT    Aerospace Communications Division
dcdwest!plb@ucsd.edu           DEFENSE    10060 Carroll Canyon Road
						San Diego, CA 92131
						   (619) 578-3080