This item is discontinued.

GREAT PLANES GILES G-202 46
PRODUCT REVIEW
by Stan Kulesa

Name: GILES G-202
Aircraft Type: Aerobatic Sport Scale
Mfg. By: Great Planes Model Mfg., P.O. Box 9021
  Champaign, Illinois 61824-9021
  Web site: www.greatplanes.com
Mfg. Sug. Retail Price: $189.99
Available From Retail Outlets:
Wingspan: 59.5 in.
Wing Chord: 10-3/8 in. (avg.)
Total Wing Area: 617 sq. in.
Fuselage Length: 55.5 in.
Stabilizer Span: 22.5 in.
Total Stab Area: 132 sq. in.
Mfg. Rec. Engine Range: .46-.61 2-stroke, .70-.91 4-stroke
Rec. Fuel Tank Size: 10 oz.
Rec. No. of Channels: 4
Rec. Control Functions: Rudder, Elevator, Throttle, Aileron

Basic Materials Used In Construction
Fuselage: Ply, Balsa & Birch
Wing: Balsa, Basswood & Ply
Tail Surfaces: Balsa & Basswood
Building Instructions on Plan Sheets: No
Instruction Manual: Yes (52 pages)
Construction Photos: Yes

RCM PROTOTYPE

Radio Used: Airtronics Spectrum PCM w/5 Servos
Engine Make & Disp.: O.S. Max 61 FSR w/12 x 6 Prop
Tank Size Used: 10 oz. (Great Planes)
Weight, Ready to Fly: 100 oz. (6 lbs., 4 oz.)
Wing Loading: 23.3 oz./sq. ft.

SUMMARY

WE LIKED THE:
Outstanding flight characteristics, self-aligning interlocking construction, above average quality of wood, and quality of instruction manual.

WE DIDN'T LIKE THE:
Second half of the wing construction, and access to the battery pack.

The Giles G-202 is one of the newest releases in the Great Planes sport scale aerobatic model line. It was designed by Mike Cross (two-time U.S. IMAC National Freestyle Champion). He also engineered the kit and drew the blueprints.

As for the full-scale aircraft which Great Planes is modeling, pilot and designer Richard Giles noted a trend in the International Aerobatic Club (IAC) competition toward bigger, heavier, more costly "super monoplanes" and he wanted to do better. As a result, the full-scale Giles G-200 and G-202 were designed specifically with low wing loading, unlimited level performance, and were powered by reasonably priced four cylinder engines.

The yellow, blue, and white Giles G-202 you've seen advertised in RCM replicates Bob Stark's color scheme from his 1998 full-scale aircraft which earned a position on the U.S. Advanced Aerobatic Team and competed for the 1999 Advanced World Champion title. Bob opted for that color scheme because it offered eye appeal on the ground and visibility in the air.

Construction:
The Great Planes Giles G-202 is rather square-shaped with well-defined lines. This makes it exceptionally easy to build and cover - especially for the sport scale modeler. Framing the model is straightforward. Much of the building features self-aligning interlocking (slot and tab) construction, and the kit goes together quickly.

The kit box measures 49-1/2" long, 6" deep, and 9" wide. The lite plywood and balsa pieces are die-cut into above-average quality wood. I had some minor warping in three of the balsa sheets used on the leading edge of the wing but this was easily fixed with a straightedge and X-Acto knife. The quality of the die-cutting was also above average in quality. Sheeting was rubber-banded together in bundles, as were spars, cap stripping, etc. The molded white plastic cowling halves and wheel pants' halves, clear plastic canopy, one-piece aluminum landing gear, and hardware were neatly partitioned by a cardboard box within the kit box to eliminate damage to the wood during shipping.

The two sheets of rolled blueprints are well-detailed and clear. The first sheet exhibits the fuselage (left side and bottom views) and fin construction. The other sheet details both wing panels, the stabilizer, elevators, and the rudder. If you get stuck and need help, Great Planes' e-mail address and telephone number are prominently identified. There is also a small sheet of stick-on decals (instrument panels, etc.) included in the kit.

The quality and detail of the 52-page instruction manual is superior. The wording is easy to follow and the picture quality is excellent. I was particularly pleased with the extensive information on precautions, building tips, comprehensive listing of provided and needed equipment, the stress on safety issues, finishing/painting tips, and radio/engine installation recommendations. It even includes a metric conversion ruler (for kits sold abroad?), the AMA Safety Code, and over two pages devoted to trimming an aircraft. Wow!

I chose to use Satellite City's Hot Stuff UFO thick and thin cyanoacrylates (CA) for most of the construction. For those of you who are sensitive to the odor of CA glues (or have someone in your household who is), "UFO" stands for user-friendly odorless. For high-stress areas (firewall and landing gear mounting, wing joining, etc.), I used Great Planes 30-minute epoxy.

Construction begins with the empennage, where 3/16" x 1/2" balsa is used for the leading and trailing edges. Six 3/16" x 1/4" balsa stab ribs and a preformed balsa leading edge brace and center section are provided. For added strength, a basswood stab spar is glued to the front of the trailing edge. The framed stab is then sheeted with 1/16" balsa.

As with the stab, the fin utilizes 3/16" x 1/2" balsa for the leading edge, trailing edge, and base. Three 3/16" x 1/4" balsa fin ribs round off the construction. The framed fin is then sheeted with 1/16" balsa.

Unlike the stabilizer and fin, the rudder and elevators are built using a frame which is not sheeted. The perimeter of both control surfaces is built with 5/16" x 1/2" balsa. However, the rudder is designed with a 1/8" x 5/16" balsa cross trusses and 1/4" x 5/16" balsa ribs, while the elevators use only 1/4" x 5/16" balsa ribs. The cross bracing for the rudder represents good engineering because of its large area. The elevators are relatively small and don't need the cross bracing. I used the thin CA for all framing and the thick CA to attach the sheeting to the frame.

[Please note: a tech notice is available to correct step #6 on page 28 of the manual.]

Wing construction follows completion of the empennage. After assembling the 1/16" balsa leading edge wing sheeting, the next step is building wing spars. Four 1/8" x 1/2" x 30" balsa spars are doubled on one end by four 1/8" x 1/2" x 13-3/4" basswood spars. (The photo in the construction booklet erroneously indicates that the balsa spars are 32" long. It should read: 30" long.)

The wing panels are built one at a time and upside-down. After one of the spars is pinned in place, two die-cut 3/32" balsa webs (main web and aileron web) which run the entire length of the wing panel are pinned into position. This die-cut webbing is slotted to neatly fit and align each wing rib in place. The second wing spar is then glued in place along with a few assorted pieces (aileron end cap, control horn support, aileron servo tray, etc.). The 1/16" x 1/2" x 30" balsa trailing edge sheeting and the 1/16" x 2-3/8" x 24" aileron sheeting is applied. Shortly afterwards, the leading edge is sheeted with 1/16" balsa. (I found it very useful to have a second set of hands to hold down the leading edge sheeting while the CA was setting.) The center section of the wing is also sheeted with 1/16" balsa. To complete the first half of the wing construction, 1/16" x 1/4" balsa cap stripping is added.

At this point, the partially constructed right wing panel is removed from the building board and the left wing panel is constructed up to that same level of completion.

Three 1/8" die-cut plywood center spar joiners are glued together and trial-fit into both wing panels. The wing is then turned upside-down since there is no dihedral on the top. Once it is properly aligned, the center spar joiners are glued in place. I used 30-minute epoxy for this job.

As you may have seen under the Summary section of the Specifications box in this Product Review, I noted that I liked the first half of the wing construction, but disliked the second half. The process of self-aligning interlocking construction utilized for the first half of the wing construction minimizes the potential for accidentally building a warp into the wing. It is very effective. However, the method used for building the second half of the wing was not up to the same standard. In essence, the builder must carefully remove the excess 3/32" balsa web material away from the bottom of each wing half and reuse them as jigs for the completion of the top half of the wing. While this can be done, it's just not as "user-friendly" as the method used to build the first half.

The completion of the top portion of the wing is similar to that of the bottom. I used the thin CA for all framing and the thick CA to attach the sheeting to the frame.

Construction then shifts to the fuselage. The firewall consists of two die-cut 1/8" plywood formers glued together. (I used 30-minute epoxy for this.) The firewall comes with punch marks to designate the exact location for 1/4" holes through which the fuel tubing, screws, and blind nuts pass. Likewise, several formers have punch marks to indicate where 3/16" holes are drilled for pushrods. This made it easier to know where to drill.

The fuselage sides are 1/8" plywood. Since most of the fuselage construction is plywood, I used thick CA. (I find that the "soaking effect" of thin CA isn't as potent on plywood.) The fuselage construction is superb. The self-aligning interlocking construction works very effectively. There are a total of seven formers (including the firewall) of which three are aft of the trailing edge of the wing. The turtledeck behind the cockpit and the front deck in front of the cockpit is sheeted with 3/32" balsa.

A belly pan (made of 1/8" plywood) is constructed and ultimately attached to the bottom of the wing flush with the fuselage. The firewall is not attached during the early stages of fuselage construction. As such, easy access is provided when mounting the wing to the fuselage and drilled for the two 1/4" wing dowels.

The kit is designed with two 1/4" x 1" x 5-3/4" birch plywood rails to mount the landing gear. This design will more effectively absorb the shock of landings than the traditional method of bolting the gear into the bottom of the fuselage. I used 30-minute epoxy for this because of the high stress it must absorb. I really liked the one-piece aluminum landing gear that comes with the kit. However, I replaced the screws that came with the kit which were to be used as axles and replaced them with a pair of Du-Bro 1/8" diameter x 1-1/4" long spring steel axle shafts. I used a pair of Great Planes 2-3/4" treaded rubber wheels and a Du-Bro 1" tail wheel.

The fin and stabilizer are attached to the fuselage before covering. While this makes covering slightly more challenging, it's needed to get the fairing effect when the turtledeck sheeting is added.

Covering:
To cover my Giles G-202, I chose to use yellow and light purple Top Flite MonoKote. The base color was yellow and the trim was purple. I wanted to have a sleek design to complement the lines of the model. In total, I used about two rolls of yellow and one roll of light purple to finish the job, and I utilized one roll of 1/4" Great Planes yellow stripe tape to trim the design. Finally, I used Kirby's Kustom Graphics for the vinyl lettering on the sides of the fuselage, wheel pants, and the graphics on the cowl. Dennis Kirby can be reached at (513) 932-2422. He does great work.

In order to get the best possible match with the MonoKote, I used Top Flite LusterKote yellow spray paint on the cowl, wheel pants, aluminum landing gear, and canopy trim. (I was pleased to see a warning in the instruction manual that LusterKote may cause curling on the clear plastic canopy and should be tested first. I used the LusterKote on the canopy and got minimal curling which was easily undone when I affixed it to the fuselage. The secret here is to apply several very fine mist coats.)

A Quarter Scale Williams Bros. pilot neatly fits into the cockpit. My son, Jay, got some scrap wood and metal together and created a headset for added realism.

Engine:
This model offers you alternatives for engine size. You can power the Giles G-202 with anything from a .45-.61 2-stroke engine or .70-.91 4-stroke. Personally, I think it would be a shame to select this type of model and intentionally minimize its potential for superior performance with an engine on the lower end. Clearly, the larger engines will offer greater vertical performance.

I should point out, however, that the instruction manual warns against powered dives or other maneuvers which may "push the envelope" without additional precautions to "beef up" certain structures. It recommends against prop pitches higher than six. The manual goes on to educate the reader about "flutter." Candid comments in the instruction manual like these are what make it such a superior document.

For power, I chose an old "Anniversary Edition" gold head O.S. Max .61 FSR. (Many of you know that this engine went out of production years ago but it just keeps on running well. O.S. Max makes a great product and you can extend the life of an engine with good, regular maintenance). My engine is swinging a 12 x 6 Master Airscrew prop. You will need a "Pitts-style" muffler for this model. I chose to use a Tatone brand which fit very nicely inside the cowl, and installed a black 3" Great Planes nylon spinner. (While I like Great Planes' spinners, I always throw away the Phillips-head screws that hold it together and replace them with socket-head screws. You will appreciate this recommendation once you accidentally strip the head of a Phillips-head screw while it's still holding the two parts of the spinner together.)

I used a Great Planes Easy Fueler (remote fueling valve) and I installed a 10 oz. Great Planes fuel tank. One of the many "smart" pieces of engineering you'll find in this model is that the fuel tank sits on a plywood platform that can easily be removed once two small sheet metal screws are loosened.

The kit comes with an adjustable engine mount.

Radio:
For control, I installed an Airtronics Spectra PCM radio system into the Giles G-202. There is plenty of room in the fuselage within which to work. The kit comes with a plywood servo tray for the fuselage into which the rudder, elevator, and throttle servos could be placed. (The builder may also choose to put the rudder servo all the way at the end of the fuselage bottom and get tighter control over that surface but I chose to keep the rudder servo with the other two.)

Each wing panel has its own dedicated aileron servo. As with the fuselage, the kit comes with plywood servo trays for each wing panel. It was fairly easy to run the aileron servo leads through the wing to the center section so that I could connect them to a "Y" harness.

Pushrod stock for all servos is provided in the kit. The pushrods are solid metal and, for the rudder, elevator, and throttle, encased in a nylon tube that fits through pre-drilled holes in the formers running through the fuselage. A single pushrod activates the rudder, but the elevator pushrod splits and controls both elevators separately. A solder joint for the elevator pushrods is required just aft of the servo.

The remaining nylon tube serves to protect the antenna and route it through the interior of the fuselage.

The receiver is neatly stowed just behind the fuel tank and the battery pack is placed behind the cockpit under the turtledeck. (This is required for balance; otherwise, the model would be very nose heavy.) Nonetheless, access to the battery pack is unnecessarily difficult.

Flying:
I used my Great Planes C.G. Machine to validate that the model balanced properly and no additional weight was needed.

For the initial take-off, I throttled up to full and the tail of the model slowly lifted off the ground. Very little right rudder was needed for just the first few feet of the take-off roll. After a roll of about 75 feet, I gently fed in some up elevator and the model came off the grass runway.

To achieve straight and level flight, I found that I had to add two "clicks" of up elevator. That was the only trim adjustment necessary.

Overall flight characteristics on the Giles G-202 are exceptional. Wherever I pointed the model, it stayed the course as if it were on rails. It was docile throughout straight and level flight but responsive to any control command. The flight characteristics were quite predictable.

The landing approach was very stable. I simply throttled back, lined it up with the end of the runway, and let the model settle. I held in just a little up elevator to flare it in just as the main gear touched the runway. The tail stayed up for about 20 feet before the model slowed to a stop. Landing speed is a bit quick but manageable.

Subsequent flights have been equally excellent, irrespective of wind conditions. Penetration is surprisingly good despite the model weight being only 6-3/4 lbs.

Aerobatic capability is superior. The Giles G-202 was easily able to do a 100 ft.+ loop without dropping a wing panel or slowing down. In fact, it made it look effortless. Square loops were well defined and predictable. Snap rolls to the right and left are crisp and quick. Stall turns were very distinct. The model easily climbed and stayed on course and the huge rudder turned the model over "on a dime." The roll rate is very quick with the recommended high rate setting (5/8" up and down) but excellent for snap rolls. Setting the controls to the low rate setting (1/4" up and down) gave more realistic roll performance. Spins in either direction were very tight. Inverted spins were predictably a little wider, and the Giles G-202 will fly knife-edge with very little rudder.

When you read in the Great Planes advertisement that the Giles G-202 is competition-ready for MiniMAC and IMAC scale events because of its versatility and aerobatic potential - believe it! It's the truth.

Conclusion: I'm very impressed with this model. The self-aligning interlocking (slot and tab) construction makes the building nearly "foolproof." The quality of materials is above average and it is one of the best flying machines I have ever built.

I'm struggling with not trying to sound like a commercial for Great Planes but the Giles G-202 is noteworthy. After my friend, Bob Schlacter, was done taking the airborne photographs of the model, he took the controls and, within a few minutes, stated, "I'm gonna get me one of these." He's not alone. To date, several other guys from my club have flown my Giles G-202 and have been equally impressed to the point where they have placed orders for this kit. This should speak for itself.

The Great Planes Giles G-202 is a winner.