SIG CAP 231EX Assembly Manual

CAP 231EX ARF ASSEMBLY MANUAL
INTRODUCTION:
Congratulations on the purchase of your SIG CAP231EX ARF kit!
Properly assembled, powered and flown, this SIG ARF kit will
surely become one of your favorite models. Since the general con-
struction, sanding and covering have already been done at the fac-
tory, the only remaining tasks are those of assembly and radio and
engine installations. Note that due to the large number of
useable engines for this model, we simply cannot cover every
possible installation. However, the volume provided inside the
large cowl should be helpful when mounting any engine within the
suggested size range.
The SIG CAP231EX ARF contains some of the lightest, best-
engineered construction of any ARF on the market. This is one of
the reasons it flies as well as it does, using the recommended
engine sizes. You will find that the CAP has superb take-off and
landing characteristics combined with remarkable aerobatic
capabilities. The airframe has been specifically designed to
provide you with a "zeroed out" model. This is to say that the wings
and horizontal stabilizer sit at 0° in relationship to the
thrustline. In turn, this provides you with a model that is
completely "honest" in any attitude. We will cover more set-up
information in the course of the following assembly instructions.
For those of you who are interested in 3-D work, we have
provided the CAP with double beveled rudder and elevator hinge
lines. This means that the flying surfaces can be driven to throws
in excess of 45° for 3-D maneuvers!
We urge you to follow these assembly instructions closely to
produce the model as it is intended to be. Modifications are the
very nature of modelers and we're sure that many of you will be
tempted. Simply be aware that certain assembly procedures for
this airplane must be followed. We will make a point of telling you
what these are as we proceed.
REQUIRED EQUIPMENT, TOOLS AND SUPPLIES
FOR ASSEMBLY:
RADIO EQUIPMENT
We highly recommend the use of one of the modern
programmable computer radios, such as the excellent Airtronics™
RD-6000 system, used during our development of this design.
Such radio systems allow you to easily set and adjust every
R
function and additionally pre-program various flight functions to
suit your individual style of flying. Four channels are required to fly
your CAP231EX; rudder, elevator, ailerons, and throttle.
However, you will require a total of six servos; ailerons-2,
elevators-2, rudder-1, and throttle-1.
Since your CAP 231EX is a large, highly aerobatic airplane and
because the control surfaces are also large, we urge you to use
appropriate servos on all flight surfaces (ailerons, elevator, and
rudder). This model should not be flown with "standard" 40 - 50
inch/ounce output servos! The CAP is big enough to impart very
large air loads and standard servos will quickly fail, resulting in loss
of control. You should use heavy-duty ball-bearing servos with at
least 65 inch/ounces of torque or more to drive the ailerons,
elevator, and rudder. If available, use a servo with metal gears
instead of plastic. Specifically in our prototype models, we used
Airtronics™ #94731 servos for the ailerons, elevators, and rudder.
This is a dual ball-bearing servo, rated at 80 inch/ounces of torque.
Another good choice is the Hitec™ #605MG servo (77
inch/ounces) or Hitec™ #615MG servo (107 inch/ounces). These
servos or equivalent from other manufacturers, can be relied upon
to work well thoughout the CAP's flight envelope.
A "standard" servo is adequate for the throttle.
We also suggest that you consider using after-market reinforced
plastic servo output arms, such as the Du-Bro "Super Strength"
products. These output arms are available to fit any servo. They
are very strong and work well with this model.
recommend their use with the pull-pull rudder system used in this
CAP. Using typical plastic servo output arms with the braided steel
cables for rudder control, may cause problems due to the
potential of wearing of the plastic by the cables over extended use.
The Du-Bro output arms are molded from considerably tougher
material and these have held up extremely well in our CAP
prototypes.
In addition to the servos, switch harness, receiver, etc., used in
normal airborne radio installations, you will also need two (2) 12"
aileron servo extensions, one (1) aileron Y-harness cable for the
two aileron servos, and a Y-harness splitter cable for the two
elevator servos. Note that the elevator Y-harness cable is used to
electronically connect both elevator servos to a single connector
going into the receiver. Normally, this requires reversing one of the
elevator servos, making it the "mirror image" of the opposite one,
mounted on the opposite fuselage side. However, we found a
great product that not only acts as an elevator Y-harness
cable/extension, it electronically reverses one of the elevator
servos and has a centering adjustment pot. This feature lets you
dial in the elevators exactly to a neutral relationship with each
other. This product is called the "Miracle Y™", sold by MAXX
PRODUCTS, Lake Zurich, Illinois. It can be ordered with any radio
manufacturer's connectors you specify.
tested this product and found it to be reliable, easy to use and very
reasonably priced. In addition, it is a total of 24" in length - 12" of
elevator extension cables and a 12" cable lead to the receiver.
Perfect for the CAP! Please refer to the Manufacturer's Index for
further contact information.
Finally, since you will be using a total of six servos to fly this
airplane, we strongly suggest you use a large capacity battery
pack for use in this model. We have used both 1000 Mah and 1200
Mah packs with very good results. Using the light 1000 Mah pack,
we have been able to safely fly five or six flights during any given
flying session, a reasonable amount of flying time for most
modelers. Naturally, a larger pack provides more flight time but
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