Great Planes Shoestring
Tom Sullivan
THE SHOESTRING is nostalgic and modern at the same time. Although the full-scale aircraft made its name as a pylon racer in 1949 and into the 1950s, even today it looks just as "mean" as any other modern-day racer.
Even though this model is an Almost Ready to Fly (ARF), it can be "scaled-out" if one wants to go the extra mile and add homemade details such as landing-gear fairings and an air scoop.
The full-scale Shoestring has a wingspan of 19 feet (228 inches), and this model has a wingspan of 61.5 inches. That makes it slightly larger than quarter-scale (1:3.7 to be exact) and eligible to participate in IMAA (International Miniature Aircraft Association) events.
Pros:
- The instruction manual is well illustrated and covers steps in detail.
- A solid, complete hardware package is included.
- The quality of prebuilding is very high.
- The cowling and wheel pants are fiberglass.
- Flying characteristics are very smooth and stable. The model flies like any 60-size sport/Pattern model.
Cons:
- The original Shoestring was chartreuse—not "Cub Yellow." I know this is as close a match as the current MonoKote® color spectrum allows, but it could present a problem if you enter the Shoestring in Scale events.
- There is no three-view showing decal placement. Instead, the decal sheet has notations "top left wing panel," "left fuselage side," etc. Although that's not a bad idea, there are mistakes in notes which can lead to decals being applied in the wrong places or on top of each other. Be sure to look at all photos carefully!
- Ground handling could be better. Even with the model balanced according to the instructions, it can nose over when taxiing in grass. Although the rudder control is fine in the air, it does not give enough tail-wheel throw on the ground, which makes maneuvering in short fields a bit tight.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
