Great Planes PT60 Kit

by Tom
(Pittsburgh)

The Great Planes PT60 is large enough to fly smoothly and provide good visual cues.

Mine was well powered on a plain bearing FP-60 engine. The wing loading is nearly as light as all but the best built Kadet Seniors (a great trainer to be sure) but the ailerons on the PT 60 add more potential for the pilot to develop.

Hint: Keep the aileron throw to a minimum for initial training but provide for a lot of rudder to kick the plane around. It was a gentle plane that landed easily and flew smoothly. (The building experience doesn't hurt either.)

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Great Planes PT60 Kit

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Interesting to hear
by: Michael from Oz

G'day

The PT60 is rare down under. Cheap Chinese ARFs have all but killed kit imports.

I am interested to see your comments about the PT. I built a PT40 as the second RC plane in my history and it was a very successful trainer. My teacher hated it because it was stable but I loved it for the same reason. It taught my then 13 year old son to take off and land in about 3 months. It took me about 12.

Do you have any experience of the PT20. A friend needs a small trainer to fit in a small car. He has a Kadet Senior that I built but he is handicapped and finds it difficult to get to the flying field without help. I was thinking of building him a Seniorita but the PT20 also could be suitable.

Thanks for any comments.

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was???
by: Matt

Thanks for sharing Tom!

I noticed you used past tense verbage to describe her...

Is she still with us?

Do you have a picture to share?

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Thanks for the feedback...
by: Tom

...my only planes now are a Kadet Senior and a Goldberg Cub (very easy to fly.) I stopped flying after crashing my Astrohog 5 years ago (I was working and in College both full time. I returned to flying 3 weeks ago and will not quit again. When I crashed my PT60, it was rebuildable, but I was moving on and did not keep it.

I am almost finished with a 40 Stinger which I can't wait to fly soon. Just won a GP 60 Extra on Ebay.

About smaller trainers, I like the Seniorita, but it is more of a build than a PT. I would bet that all the PT's fly very well. I have the Senior (taildragger, OS70 fs,) that I built with my son; and it is a sweetheart. I usually climb as the tank empties and let the nitro run out. It actually flies much better with the engine out. As aerobatic as a wounded duck.

I am very interested to know how it works out with you friend with disabilities. My brother is not a flier, but he is a stroke victim with limited use of his right (dominant) hand. I am thinking of surprising him with a Sophisticated Lady; but am not settled on power choices. (Leaning towards an electric motor in the nose. I like 1/2a powered gliders, but they can be squirrelly while under power.) Has your friend considered a powdered glider? They are great fun.

Last word: Never take a break from flying for interim periods because of school, work... I regret the lost years so much. Just keep flying.

Great landings everyone.

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Submitted by: Tom

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...my only planes now are a Kadet Senior and a Goldberg Cub (very easy to fly.) I stopped flying after crashing my Astrohog 5 years ago (I was working and in College both full time. I returned to flying 3 weeks ago and will not quit again. When I crashed my PT60, it was rebuildable, but I was moving on and did not keep it. I am almost finished with a 40 Stinger which I can't wait to fly soon. Just won a GP 60 Extra on Ebay. About smaller trainers, I like the Seniorita, but it is more of a build than a PT. I would bet that all the PT's fly very well. I have the Senior (taildragger, OS70 fs,) that I built with my son; and it is a sweetheart. I usually climb as the tank empties and let the nitro run out. It actually flies much better with the engine out. As aerobatic as a wounded duck. I am very interested to know how it works out with you friend with disabilities. My brother is not a flier, but he is a stroke victim with limited use of his right (dominant) hand. I am thinking of surprising him with a Sophisticated Lady; but am not settled on power choices. (Leaning towards an electric motor in the nose. I like 1/2a powered gliders, but they can be squirrelly while under power.) Has your friend considered a powdered glider? They are great fun. Last word: Never take a break from flying for interim periods because of school, work... I regret the lost years so much. Just keep flying. Great landings everyone.

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Me too.
by: MIchael from Oz

G'day Tom. I have been in and out of modeling since I was quite young. It seems that once you get it in your blood it stays there like Malaria.

My friend with the disability has the use of both hands though sometimes his control is not what he would want. He has lately been flying the Kadet Senior and even managing to land it though not always on the strip. His dad tried to taxi it after his last out landing and put it through a fence. Repairs were needed but were minor and are now completed.

I have two Kadets at the moment. One has a Saito 56 and the other a Saito 72 which is yet to run. I also have two kits (one for a friend) ready to build and hope to build one in a month or two. They really are that good but there is a lot of building in them. It is relatively easy building though.

I also have (among others) an Astrohog and two Goldberg Cubs - one in traditional yellow and one painted as a WWII Australian "Grasshopper". One is several years old and has seen a wide range of engines but the Grasshopper version is only a few months old and has a Saito 90TS twin cylinder engine. I now am looking for a way to build a more scale undercarriage for it.