Shortly after the Battle of Midway, Jamie Thach (inventor of the Thach Weave combat tactic) and other pilots who had participated, met with Grumman personnel at Pearl Harbor to give input into a new carrier fighter design, specifically with maximum climb rate for interception. The resultant plane, the Bearcat, had the same engine as the F6F Hellcat, but was about 5 feet shorter. This, combined with a lighter airframe and a thinner wing, allowed the Bearcat a 50mph advantage over the Hellcat and a record setting climb rate. There is speculation that the testing of a captured German FW190 interceptor may have influenced the design. While arriving operationally in the summer of 1945 to the Pacific, the Bearcat was immediately busy being a Kamikaze Killer of the top rank.
After the war the Bearcat filled out 24 squadrons and outperformed the early jet fighters, until being replaced by the F9F Panther and F2H Banshee during the Korean War. Subsequently the Bearcats went on to serve with the French in Vietnam as well as Thailand.
In civilian use, surplus Bearcats dominated the Reno Air Races for decades. A highly modified F8F named Rare Bear set the world speed record for propeller driven aircraft at 528mph in 1989.
Arrows faithfully recreates the F8F in exceptional realism. Despite its compact size, the realistic landing gear, retracts, panel lines, functional flaps, pilot and auxiliary fuel tank were all replicated realistically. The preinstalled 40A ESC and 3536 850kV power system is adapted for scale and sport flight maneuvers. For scale lovers, the Bearcat awaits!
I’ve gotten about 20 flights on this bird I’ve had a lot of soft and hard landing and its very durable out of the box plane was really trimed we’ll just had to adjust down elevator about 6 turns on the connector this plane is really really fast on 4s and it slows down really good with half flaps I have a 2200 all the way to the front half throttle you can fly upside down with out giving it inputs it also has a fast climbing rate I wanna say it flys like a Trojan t28 on steroids but when landing you have to be good with that rudder due to it having a short tail bit over all this is my favorite plane right now I recommend this plane to everyone also customer service is great here
What a nice airplane. This model not only looks the part, but also flys stable and with the flaps deployed, it lands scale like. I use 3S 2200 batteries in it and get about 6 mins airtime. This is one of the nicest planes in my hangar. Also the customer support here is top notch.
I have been flying RC planes since 1980. First I have a 1200mm Flightline Bearcat that I love. I got this Arrows Bearcat when it had a $40.00 off sale. I have a lot of 3s batteries and hoped this one would be half as good as my Flightline Bearcat. The price was right and I said what the heck. The finish on this plane is fantastic. The decals are applied nicely and are not peeling anywhere. The only complaint about the Arrows Bearcat is the paint comes off extremely easily all over the plane. I took a trip to Home Depot, and got matching touch up paint for $ 4.00. That is really the only reason I did not give it 5 stars. The finish is a semi gloss and looks fantastic. To my surprise the Arrows Bearcat does not fly half as good as my Flightline one, it fly's every bit as good! It's probably the easiest war bird to fly I have ever owned. Ground handling is fabulous.Like others have said, the CG is critical on this plane. Too much elevator throw will make it snap in a heartbeat. Get that correct and this plane will make you smile every time you fly it. The only thing better than owing a Bearcat is owning 2 of them.
The product was delivered within a week packaging was satisfactory after my build I Maiden it the next morning the plane flew well and stable I flew with a 3500 3s and the wait was distributed very well needs a little Expo but overall a great plane to fly this is my Fourth plane from hobbyzone I would recommend this plane to anyone who wants to learn or know how to fly once again great work hobbyzone thanks Dan
This is one of my very favorite models of the 70+ planes I'm currently flying ; Fit and finish is one of the best I've seen . Flies like a dream, battery compartment is very large and can accommodate any size battery and can fly even a 4000mah pack with ease, check my YouTube review here https://youtu.be/u3LjpnrMDn0
Absolutely one of the best looking warbirds! Very pleased with the detail and quality. Have flown this plane 3 times and cannot be more pleased. Installed Ar637t receiver and works like a charm. Dan at Hobby Zone is the best!Street left fifth Street along OK I will follow you
Nice model, everything fits nice, paint and finish excellent.
Maidened and flown now 3 times. After placing a 3300-4000mah 3s as far foward as possible the plane flies perfect and locked in. A little sensitive on the elevator, so low rates were used all around except rudder. I am using a gyro receiver so this bird flys so smooth. If you use a smaller battery nose weight must be used. Landings were a piece of cake using full flaps and a little bit of power. Nice Super Wicked looking bird. Customer service was excellent. Arrived missing the horizontal stab. Contacted customer service and it was taken care of right away.
Picked up a Bearcat when they went on sale and am very pleased with the appearance. I have yet to fly it but am hoping to get her up soon. From past purchases I have found Hobbyzone to be very responsive to any questions or concerns. The Bearcat is definitely worth buying.
Quality is excellent and is a great flyer. Highly recommend
This is my third plane from Hobbyzone and I am not disappointed at the quality of the Bearcat. Have not assembled it yet as I am running out of room lol. The fit and finish is great.
I was really blown away by the the Husky and the Bigfoot so I figured I would see if Arrows's attention to detail, value and ease of assembley would hold true in one of their war birds. At let me tell you , they did NOT dissapoint. The F8F Bearcat is a joy to fly, it needs next to no trim right out of the box, assemby is a snap,and I could not be happier with my purchase! Go here for my maiden: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIwXazxT_kc
Now I have ordered the Marlin and it should arrive any day now. Thanks Hobby Zone!
LOOKS AND PERFORMS GREAT WHEN BALANCED CORRECTLY.EXCELLENT VALUE FOR SURE.MY OPINION VERY TAIL HEAVY WITH STOCK SETUP.I HAVE FOUND JUST OVER 75MM TO BE THE BALANCE POINT.AT 90MM BARELY FLYABLE.HARD TO ACHIEVE BALANCE JUST WITH BIGGER BATTERY EXTENDS TOO FAR BACK.I REMOVED DUMMY MOTOR AND ADDED 2 OZ OF STICK WEIGHT WITH 3300 BATTERY.FLYS GREAT STILL DECENT WING LOADING.THE BEST PART IS THE CUSTOMER SERVICE(DAN IS GREAT)
This plane flys great on 3 cell 2200mah battery and supplied 4 bladed prop. The only additional thing I did for the first flight was add 2 ounces of weight in the cowl area. Landings are a dream with or without flaps . It also handles well in windy conditions. Best of all, no tip stall! Flys well with 11x7 (2) blade prop too.
Pros. 3 cell power is all you need . Recommend control throws and cg are spot on. Regular receiver works just fine ( no gyro required) .
Cons: Pray this one doesn’t go out of stock .
Enjoy this beautiful Plane however be prepared to replace servos as they are plastic gear
Appeared to be packaged well but there was some slight fuselage damage once once I got the contents out nothing bad though. Flies pretty well and looks really good in the air, I'd buy another but would recommend paying extra for shipping by a better carrier and NOT Fed Ex.
While I am overall satisfied with the bearcat by arrows. There were a few issues I found on the plane. One of my clevises was bent and no longer works right...have to replace. And the paint seems to chip easily, especially around the nose. Biggest problem is with the prop hub which does not close fully on the prop. Seems to be too small. It still works however, and the plane flys great on a 3 cell. Balancing is a bit tough. I would say leave it a little nose heavy for better flight. Otherwise the elevator becomes to sensitive. Dial up your expo folks. This bird is highly responsive with its large control surfaces. That said.....beautiful airplane. I am thinking hard about getting all the arrows warbirds, which are a great price for a quality product.
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