Wiki F3-RES 2m

Firstly my compliments to Neil who I have ordered from for years and has never disappointed.

The wiki build may seem unconventional but anyone with average building skills can make this plane. The kit is very complete but there are no written instructions. The builder should be able to use plans and photos. Some dry fitting and preplanning is required but nothing unreasonable. Laser cut parts are accurate, but numbers are burned outside the parts and not on. After being built the plane does in fact meet suggested build weights.

As far as flight performance wiki has a wide speed range and flies well both empty and ballasted. I would suggest a more forward CG as I have been flying in front of the suggested 83mm. My plane with some full weight flourescent Oracover was about 390 grams and although dead air min sink is amazing, the wing loading is probably too low for any kind of active air. The wing really comes alive with some ballast and in active conditions. Great plane.

Superbly fast delivery.

Kit was well packed, with nice quality parts. As others have said, the only negative to the kit was the lack of building information. I've been building all types of models for 40yrs and there were some tricky areas to figure out with this kit. (Some I only figured out after construction was complete!)

Still, the model built to 364g easily and flies superbly. Looking forward to some completions this year!

Wiki covers ground quickly with its clean lines. Keep the speed up a bit; too slow and it gets loose. I set the CG slightly forward of the recommended range and bumped up exponential. Low roll inertia from its light wing panels clearly signals air currents and helps the plane core itself similar to free flight models. This plane seems to know what it's doing and flies best with minimal stick inputs from my thumbs. Spoilers are nicely sized with a small amount of 'up' elevator mixed in when they're deployed. Makes for stable, predictable approaches.

I have not started this build yet, but have to say that it looks amazing. Most of the balsa is in one pack in the kit. I was astounded when i picked it up checking everything out. So light. I have built many many kits but have never had the opportunity to build with wood like this. It will be on the bench soon. Now if i can just get my hands on a mini Kiwi all would be right with the world! Thanks Neil.

Just completed my Wiki build and the plane came in at 15.5 oz. It's a very clean design and I look forward to getting it in the air. I'm a serious, experienced builder but this one was more challenging than it needed to be simply due to a lack of build instructions. Some of the structure is a bit unconventional and written instructions would have helped clarify sequencing of the fabrication.

Two towhooks are included in the kit. I went with the plywood version since it looks bullet proof. The 3D printed hook is nice and I would have used it but the positioning nut easily rounded out its plastic slot. Since its inaccessible once the fuselage is closed up I didn't want the grief that would have ensued from a spinning nut. Use the plywood version.

This kit is very different from anything else I've built. It was more challenging than the usual hollow carbon spar design common on F3Res planes, but the result is a spectacular looking aircraft that flies as good as it looks. I would recommend getting the ballast kit as well, as the plane builds out quite light.