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AeroCraft Pogo: My choice for this series is Craig Wagner's AeroCraft Pogo. It is available direct from AeroCraft for $89.95 plus $6 shipping charges. New York state residents must add appropriate tax. Kirk Massey of New Creations R/C offers this same kit. Kirk supplies the complete electric power system as described last month.

The Pogo is intended for geared Speed 280/300 power or Speed 400 direct drive. The smaller geared motors can keep the model weight down to roughly 12-13 ounces, but the performance can be somewhat marginal, especially in winds exceeding 5 mph. My choice of a Speed 400 motor provides a power reserve that can make flying more comfortable for the beginner pilot and his/her instructor.

When dealing with model aircraft, certain design parameters are important. Wing area is of primary importance. The Pogo has 216 square inches (sq. in.) of wing area. Total model weight is also significant. With the recommended eight-cell 1100 mAh NiMH battery pack discussed last month, the Pogo ended up at 15.8 ounces, which is actually more than its nominal design weight.

If you integrate wing area and weight, you come up with another vital parameter: wing loading. It is expressed as ounces per square feet (oz./sq. ft.). At 15.8 ounces, the Pogo has a wing loading of 10.5 oz./sq. ft. Because of the generous wing area, this wing-loading figure is well suited for a beginning RC pilot.  

The ample power from the Speed 400 will allow you to throttle back considerably during flight; that will reduce your motor-current drain, therefore extending the motor run time. Normally at full throttle this combination, motor, propeller, and battery could provide approximately a five- to six-minute run time, all at full throttle.

With some throttling back during the flight, it is possible to get the motor to run upward of 8-10 minutes. That would be comparable to what could be expected from a fuel engine on a normal-size tank.

What Will You Still Need to Buy? A thick, or slow-setting, cyanoacrylate glue (CyA) along with an accelerator is required. This is available in many brands. My choice was the NHP medium gap-filling CyA formula that I obtained from Balsa Products Inc.

Also important is a five-minute epoxy cement. Again I used the NHP brand from Balsa Products. Some double-stick, 1/2-inch-wide x 1/16-inch-thick Mounting Tape (Scotch brand 110) can be helpful in attaching the servos, receiver, speed controller, and the motor to the fuselage.

Several nylon ties from RadioShack hold the motor in place. They can also be used to bundle up some of the excess wiring. A few small rubber bands will be needed to attach the servos, receiver, and battery pack. You can find a good selection of rubber bands at Staples or Office Max.