During the summer of 1989, I had a rather long trip planned which would take me across the southern part of the country, up the California coast and back to the Byron Expo. And of course, I had to take a plane with me for the fly-ins along the way. This plane had to be easy to fly and RUGGED since I wouldn't be able to get to a workbench for about 12 weeks. I selected the Christen Husky by Byron Originals with a Super- tigre 3000 up front and this combination proved to be an excellent choice. The Husky put on 217 flights in 21 cities and flew in 8 fly-ins.

My kit arrived packed in the usual Byron outstanding manner. The kit was extremely complete with everything needed to finish the plane except for the radio, wheels, engine, covering and a spinner. All of the smaller parts were packed in individual plastic numbered bags which is really handy. The wood was first rate and the fiberglass was excellent with very few pin holes. Mr. Godberson obviously believes that when you spend your good money with him you should receive a kit with high quality workmanship and materials, plus packing which prevents damage.

The construction is fairly straightforward. The fuselage is fiberglass with builder installed bulkheads - and the bulkheads fit with little or no trimming required. However, one of the nicest parts was the formed windshield. In the past, cutting a Cub style windshield was enough to make me consider another hobby. The wing is foam with glued on cap strips so that after covering, it appears to be a built up structure. The tail is of conventional built up construction.

Byron has developed a great way to attach the struts. They furnish a plastic insert that fits into the streamlined aluminum strut. This then attaches to a brass U-shaped piece. Fast, easy and looks very realistic. Just be sure to rough up the inside of the strut before you epoxy in the plastic fitting for maximum strength and then pin through the strut and fitting. These wing struts are functional.

I followed the plans quite closely in building the plane with the exception of the elevator. I used one servo for each elevator with fiberglass for both pushrods. For the rudder Byron shows a nyrod push-pull arrangement. In this case, I chose to use a single fiberglass pushrod. I also chose to use standard control horns with clevises rather than the ball links in the kit for the control attachments.

The receiver is mounted on the lower side of the fuselage just to the rear of the back seat with the servos under the back seat. This is per the plans. The battery is located just aft of the firewall and everything balanced with no additional weight required. I then added the floorboard and seats which are in the kit. Small blocks were epoxied to the fuselage sides for the floorboard hold down screws. You might find it necessary, as I did to cut the floorboard into 2 sections to get it through the door with the seats attached. Instruments and a 1/4 scale Knights of the Air pilot completed the interior. The pilot is held in place with small velcro pieces for easy removal as an aid in getting the assembly through the door.

Since we all have our favorite method of covering and finishing, I won't dwell on this subject. Be sure to fill pinholes - there aren't many, but there are some. For covering material, I used Coverite Supershrink. I have found this to be an excellent material. Just follow the instructions: 1) Set up the iron with a thermometer; 2) Do not use hot air to shrink; 3) Shrink with an iron set as high as you can get without melting the fabric. I then filled with R-M Hydrosol primer. This is an automotive water borne acrylic primer. Spray a thin coat as a little goes a long way. It sands easily and dry, has no odor and has water clean up. The final color coat is Rust-oleum thinned 15% with mineral spirits.

The engine used is a Supertigre 3000 although a 2000 might be a better selection. I fly at about 1/3 throttle at which speed the plane looks very realistic. At full bore it could probably outrun a Spitfire.

The radio is a 7 channel Futaba PCM with S-148 servos. This radio has the very desirable ability of coupling in some down elevator with the flaps.

Now for the good part - how it flies. In a word - GREAT. Balance it per the plans and you can't miss. Of course, this isn't a pattern plane, but it will easily do anything that you would expect out of a Husky. On takeoff, watch the amount of rudder that you feed in. Once the tail starts to swing, you can get off your heading very quickly. Flying the plane is a snap. However, it is a rudder airplane and you will have to use some to prevent your turns from having that wallowing slip look. Also, any time that you are in a high power - low airspeed situation such as touch and go landings, takeoffs and go-arounds, you will see a real need for quite a bit of right rudder to prevent climbing out with a very noticeable skid.

You can expect a pronounced pitch-up moment with the application of flaps. I found that coupling in 8% down elevator with full flaps stopped the pitch at traffic and approach speeds. With flaps down and high power settings such as touch and go landings or go-arounds, be prepared to feed in a lot of down elevator. I suggest that you not do these high power - low speed maneuvers with flaps down. Unless you are quick, you are asking for a stall.

At the time of this writing, my Husky has well over 350 flights. I am currently installing a release mechanism so it can tow a 1/4 scale primary glider to altitude as part of an Airshow Team act.

I am very happy with both the kit and the finished plane. I would be hard pressed to find criticism with this offering from Byron Originals.

SPECIFICATIONS

   Name: Christen Husky Manufacturer: Byroit Originals; Ida 
   Grove, IA List price: $564.29 Factory price: $395.00 plus $1S.00 
   SckH Span: 10T' Cord: 16" Area: 11.9 Sq. Ft. Weight: 19 lbs. Wing 
   Loading: 25.5 Oz/Sq. Ft. Length: 68" Height: 20" Engine: Super- 
   tigre 3000 Propeller: Dynathrust 18 x 8 Spinner: Tru-Tum  Fuel: 
   Byron Supertigre blend Glow plug: Rossi R7 Covering: Coverite 
   Supershrink Primer: R-M Hydrosol Gray; Mfg. by BASF Color 
   Paint: Rust-oleum Radio: Futaba FP-7UAP 7 Channel PCM Pilot 
   Figure: Knights of the Air.