Extreme Flight 104 Laser EXP ARF User manual

104” Laser EXP ARF
Assembly Manual
Copyright 2018 Extreme Flight

Please take a few moments to read this instruction manual before beginning
assembly. We have outlined a fast, clear and easy method to assemble this
aircraft and familiarizing yourself with this process will aid in a quick, easy
build. Please read the following paragraph before beginning assembly of your
aircraft!
THIS IS NOT A TOY! Serious injury, destruction of property, or even death
may result from the misuse of this product. Extreme Flight is providing you,
the consumer, with a very high quality model aircraft component kit, from
which you, the consumer, will assemble a flying model. It is beyond our
control to monitor the finished aircraft you produce. Extreme Flight RC will
in no way accept or assume responsibility or liability for damages resulting
from the use of this user assembled product. This aircraft should be flown in
accordance with the AMA safety code. It is highly recommended that you
join the Academy of Model Aeronautics in order to be properly insured and
operate your model at AMA sanctioned flying fields only. If you are not
willing to accept ALL liability for the use of this product, please return it to
the place of purchase immediately.
Extreme Flight RC, Ltd. guarantees this kit to be free of defects in materials
and workmanship for a period of 30 DAYS from the date of purchase. All
warranty claims must be accompanied by the original dated receipt. This
warranty is extended to the original purchaser of the aircraft kit only.
Extreme Flight RC in no way warranties its aircraft against flutter. We have
put these aircraft through the most grueling flight tests imaginable and have
not experienced any control surface flutter. Proper servo selection and linkage
set-up is absolutely essential. Inadequate servos or improper linkage set up
may result in flutter and possibly the complete destruction of your aircraft. If
you are not experienced in this type of linkage set-up or have questions
regarding servo choices, please contact us at [e-mail] or
770-887-1794. It is your responsibility to ensure the airworthiness of your
model.

Introducing the brand new Extreme Flight 104" Laser EXP! The word is out
that the Extreme Flight Laser EXP is THE machine for all things aerobatic.
Whether you fly precision aerobatics, low and slow 3D, XA or a combination
of them all our Laser series aircraft set the bar for modern aerobatic flight.
The 104" 120cc Laser takes it to the next level!
During the development and build up to each new release we work closely
with our factory engineers to update and improve our construction methods.
We listen closely to customer feedback and constantly strive to build the
perfect airframe. We are also very fortunate to work with the top RC
aerobatic pilots in the world and their feedback is invaluable to us. The Laser
EXP features the most up to date and modern construction methods currently
employed in an aerobatic model. It is available in the classic Leo
Loudenslager Oracover/Ultracote scheme as well as the stunning
RED/WHITE/BLUE printed scheme. A top quality hardware package with
genuine Dubro ball inks, composite control horns that ensure proper
geometry, carbon main gear and tailwheel assembly as well as a carbon wing
and stab tube are all standard fare. The Laser is very easy to assemble and
can easily be ready to fly over the course of a weekend.

5
Tips for Success:
1. Before starting assembly, take a few minutes to read the entire
instruction manual to familiarize yourself with the assembly process.
2. Go over all the seams on the aircraft with a covering iron on a
medium heat setting. Also, due to climate changes, wrinkles may
develop in the covering. These are easily removed with a little bit of
heat. Use a 100% cotton tee-shirt or microfiber cloth and your heat gun
and heat the covering while gently rubbing the covering onto the wood
with the cloth. Be careful not to use too much heat as the covering may
shrink too much and begin to lift at the edges. Take your time, and a
beautiful, paint-like finish is attainable.
3. Apply CA to high stress areas such as servo mounting trays, landing
gear mounts, anti-rotation pins, wing and stab root ribs, wing mounting
tabs and motor box joints etc.
4. By the time your aircraft arrives at your door step, it will have been
handled by a lot of people. Occasionally there are small dings or
imperfections on some of the surfaces. An effective method to restore
these imperfections to original condition is to use a very fine tipped
hypodermic needle and inject a drop of water under the covering
material and into the ding in the wood. Apply heat to the area with a
sealing iron and the imperfection will disappear. Deeper marks may
require that this process be repeated a couple of times to achieve the
desired result, but you will be surprised at how well this technique
works.
5. Use high quality, fresh epoxy for installing the composite control
horns and hinges. We highly recommend Pacer Z-Poxy 30 minute
Epoxy. We are very pleased with the results and ease of application and
cleanup of these products.
6. Take the time to properly balance and trim your aircraft and set up
rates with exponential values. Your flying experience will be greatly
enhanced once your plane is properly dialed in.
7. Extreme Flight now has their own Vimeo channel. There are many
assembly videos providing extreme detail on certain aspects of the
assembly. https://vimeo.com/extremeflightrc

Items needed to complete this model:
1. Gas motor, 85-120cc
2. Engine standoffs
3. Fuel tank, 34 ounce
4. Fuel line, approximately 6 feet
5. Fuel Dot
6. 5” EF carbon spinner with aluminum backplate
7. Propeller
8. Receiver, 8CH minimum
9. Servos, 7 metal gear of at least 500oz, 1 high speed for throttle.
10. Servo extensions, (4) 6’ RX to aileron, (3) 24” 2 for aileron to RX extensions and 1
for throttle, (3) (2) 48” elevators and 1 48” for the rudder
11. Servo arms, (3) 2” half arms for elevators/rudder, (4) 1.5” half arms for ailerons, (1)
1’ half arm for throttle, (1) 4” full arm for rudder if using pull pull rudder setup.
In addition you will need a basic set of hobby tools, Xacto knife, 30 minute epoxy or
equivalent, thin CA, drill and bits, socket head ball drivers, and other miscellaneous
hand tools.
Suggested items to complete this model:
1. Desert Aircraft 120cc gas motor
2. Blazing star DA-120 standoff
3. Flowmaster 34oz gas tank
4. Flowmaster Fuel line
5. Xessories anodized fuel dot (color match)
6. EF 5” color match spinner
7. Falcon propeller
8. Receiver
9. MKS servos, options are 777A+/599/380 or equivalent 500oz torque metal gear
servo
10. EF 20AWG extensions
11. EF anodized servo arms
12. EF black socket head servo screws 30 or 100pk
13. EF anodized washer set, color match
14. EF color match velcro, 2m X 20mm
15. EF servo safety clips
All items above are available from Extreme Flight RC.

Horizontal and wing assembly
1. Locate your horizontal stabilizer, elevator and associated hardware, see figures 1& 2.
Let's begin by removing the elevator and extract all pin hinges. You will notice the 3
hinges closest to the root of the horizontal stabilizer are clipped along their length, see
figure 2. This shorter side will go into the horizontal stab and in the first 3 holes from the
root, be sure to mark these in some fashion for orientation. Next I recommend to scuff the
hinges with sandpaper, but do not sand off the barbs, then clean with rubbing alcohol or
equivalent. This will help the gluing process. Now mix enough glue (highly recommend
30 minute epoxy) to install the hinges into the horizontal, we will glue to the elevator
later. We like to drop some glue into the hole, then swab it around the hole with a
toothpick or similar item to ensure the hole is coated, I find about 3-4 drops of glue is
sufficient. Then I coat the center of the hinge with a protectant from the epoxy, things
like Vaseline, lithium grease, 3 in 1 oil and other items work to protect the center pin
hinge portion from getting glue in it. If this process is new to you, we recommend
watching the hinging video on our You Tube channel. Once all holes are coated, we
apply a very thin layer of glue onto the bottom half of the hinge, then insert it into the
horizontal stabilizers hinge holes and twist them as you insert them into the hole. This
will help coat the hinge more evenly and ensure a better bond.
Figure 1

Figure 2
2. Be sure the 3 clipped hinges go into the first 3 holes from the root and that the hinge is at
its midpoint into the hole and allow to dry. Clean any excess epoxy with a paper towel
soaked with rubbing alcohol. Once fully cured, repeat this process on the elevator. Since
you cannot twist the hinge while installing the elevator, I push the elevator fully onto the
hinges then pull it about half way apart and make sure glue is coating that hinge, you may
need to pull apart and push together a few times to ensure the hinges are coated with glue
and allow to dry.
3. While the hinges dry I like to install the control horns and base plates, figure 3. We lightly
sand the bottom section of the control horn and the one side of the base plate then clean
with rubbing alcohol, this will help the glue adhere. Dry fit the control horns and base
plates into the slots on the elevator, if they fully submerse into the slot then you are ready
to trim the covering under the base plate. I normally just take an Xacto and lift the base
plate slightly to make some marks then remove the base plate/control horn and finish
removing the covering, figure 4, or you can place tape around the base plate which also
gives a nice guide of where to cut the covering, figure 5. Use either method, but do not cut
down into the balsa. If your control horn will not submerse fully into the slot then there is
some foreign debris in the slot, using an Xacto knife (#11 blade) will usually be sufficient
to clear the obstruction then continue with covering removal as just described. Now you
are ready to glue the control horns, so drop some glue into the slots, then coat the bottom
section of the control horns and the scuffed side of the base plate and install them into the
slots. Clean any excess glue with a paper towel soaked with rubbing alcohol.
4. Now is a good time to seal your hinge gap if desired.

5.
Figure 3
Figure 4
6. Next we will install the servo and linkage setup. Locate your servo, servo arm and all the
hardware, see figure 1, for the horizontal stabilizer/elevator. We begin by installing the
servo into the horizontal stabilizer, you will note the slot within the servo bay is oriented
to the trailing edge, this is for your servo wire as your servo output shaft will be oriented
to the trailing edge of the horizontal stabilizer. Secure your servo with servo screws
provided by your servo manufacturer, or we recommend using the EF servo screws as
they have an allen head and are black which gives a very nice finished look and much
easier to work with than a Phillip's head screw. Once you have the servo mounted, it will
require a 48” extension to plug it into your receiver, then center it. Now install the 2” EF
servo arm as close to straight up and down as possible, use your transmitter subtrim or
centering feature to ensure the arm is perpendicular to the hinge line and elevator at its’
neutral position. Now secure the arm onto the servo and we use blue thread lock (BTL) for
all bolts in this section. Now thread the ball links onto the pushrod, note that one end has
right hand threads and the other is left hand threads, this allows adjustment once the entire
linkage is setup. We found that the ball link must be threaded nearly all the way down the
threads.

Figure 5
Figure 6
Now take your3mm bolt, then insert a washer, then thru the ball link, next install the
conical then thread the bolt onto the servo arm and use BTL. If using an EF servo arm,
they have double thickness and a locknut is not necessary but can be installed if desired,
however on other brand arms a locknut is usually necessary as they are not as thick. Once
again check the servo for center and direction of travel, if correct you may hook the
remaining end of the pushrod to the control horns. See figures 7 & 8 for final assembly.

Figure 7
Repeat the entire processfor the other horizontal stabilizer and elevator.\
Figure 8

Wing Assembly
7. The wing assembly is nearly identical to the horizontal stabs. Start with hinging, I
recommend putting the hinges into the wing first then mate the aileron. Now move to
installing your control horns, both of these items use the same techniques as the
horizontal stabilizer and elevator. However the outboard control horns are slightly taller
than the inboard. You will need to hold the horns together to identify the taller horns, as
they are very close in size, see figure 9.
Servos are mounted next and oriented towards the trailing edge, begin with the outer
servo. Secure a 24” extension to the outboard servo, I recommend dental floss or heat
shrink to secure this connection as there will likely not be enough room in the wire tube
to accommodate other securing devices. Now run it thru the wire tube which ends at the
inner servo bay, but there is another short wire tube that gets it to the wing root.
Figure 9
Now install the inner servo and run the wire thru the short wire tube and exit out the wing
root, depending on your servo and personal preferences you may or may not need a short
extension. Reference figure 10 for a rough layout of the components that will complete
wing/aileron assembly. Now secure the servo and install the pushrod and servo arm as we
did with the horizontal stabilizer and elevators. I recommend leaving the outer servo
pushrod loose where it connects to the control horn, for servo setup later. Repeat for the
other wing and this will essentially finish the wing assembly.

Note: in the upper right hand of Figure 10 that is a MPX multi wire servo plug, it makes
aileron wire connections very easy. Available at Extreme Flight RC.
Figure 10
Tailwheel assembly
8. The tailwheel assembly begins with identifying your parts, see Figure 11. Apply some
BTL on your 3mm mounting bolts, with washer, and secure the tailwheel assembly to the
mounting plate. Snug the bolts but do not overtighten them into the blind nuts. Trial fit the
rudder onto the hinges and locate a place on the bottom of the rudder to install the ball
link. This is how you will steer the plane on the ground. I use about 1” onto the tiller arm
from its’ end, Figure 12shows the ball link at that desired location. Now drill a 3/16” hole
in the bottom of the rudder in that location and then scuff the ball link area that will be in
that hole, glue it and allow to dry. We will make this final tiller arm connection later when
we install the rudder. However the final assembly will look something like figure 12.

Figure 11
. Figure 12

Landing Gear
9. Locate your landing gear, wheel cuffs, wheel pants and main landing gear hardware
package. See figures 13 and 14 for parts identification.
Figure 13
Figure 14

Take a very close look at the landing gear, you will notice one side is perfectly straight
and the other side has a very slight angle. The straight side goes forward, if you are
having trouble seeing this, try laying the gear on a flat surface. Flip the gear to each side
and it will become easy to notice which side is straight and angled. Mount the gear to the
fuselage using the 4mm bolts, washers and locknuts. It does not matter if you put the bolt
head inside the fuselage or on the gear side, either way use a washer on each side and
tighten the locknut, use BTL. Now proceed to mounting the wheel cuffs. Trial fit the
cuffs by sliding them onto the gear and against the fuselage. The cuffs can fit either side
but the rounded portion goes forward and the more pointed end will orient to the tail.
Once you are happy with the fit, mark that spot with blue tape or similar on the gear and
glue them, tape them into place while curing, see figure 15. Next we will install the axles,
wheel collars, spacers, tires and wheel pants. Begin by installing the axle, washer and
locknut into the gear, be sure to orient the hex head of the axle bolt such that when tight
two of the sides will be up and down, this is necessary for the wheel pant to slide over
them. Next slide the wheel onto the axle, then trial fit the pant and see where the tire will
need to be such that it is in the middle of the opening of the pant. Once you have this
location mark it on both sides of the tire and that will be its’ location. Remove the pant
and tire, now slide a wheel collar onto the axle followed by the spacer and put the spacer
at the inner mark you made, tighten the wheel collar and use BTL. Now slide the tire onto
the axle followed by the spacer and wheel collar. Now secure the wheel collar and trial fit
the pant to be sure it still aligns as desired. If the fit is good use the 3mm bolts and
washers to secure the wheel pant, the pant already has the blind nuts secured inside the
pant, be sure to use BTL, see figure 16 for a look at the final wheel and pant assembly.
Figure 15

Figure 16
Engine and Fuel Tank Installation
10. If you are using the DA120 this step will be quite simple, figure 18 will help identify the
various parts. The firewall has marks that show the location of the holes to mount the
standoff. We highly recommend and use the Blazing Star engine mount for the DA120.
You will need to drill holes at the marks, we recommend starting with a nail punch or awl
to make a small indentation, then use a small bit and working up to a ¼” drill bit, see
figure 17. This method will help keep the hole centered. Trial fit the standoff and engine,
we used ¼” X 2.5” bolts (not provided) and both delrin spacers that are included with the
Blazing Star mounts to achieve the desired spacing. Once the fit is as desired, you may
secure the engine to the plane, but sure to use BTL on all bolts.
Other engine installations will likely be similar. However you may need to adjust the laser
marked holes in order to get the engine to center with the cowling. Also consider your
distance from the firewall to the front of the cowling for your standoffs. This distance is
185mm or 7 9/32”.
You may mount your throttle servo at this time. See figures 19 and 20 to help with this
process. A pushrod, ball link and EZ connector are included to help in this process. Also
included is a laser cut package that will aid in an alternate throttle servo mount.
Whichever engine you choose figures 20 and 21 will illustrate what a final assembly
might resemble. You will notice I bent my throttle pushrod to my preference, use your
past experience to decide what works best for your motor. Note I used a piece of velcro
and a simple servo mounting screw to secure the fuel line, this will keep the line from
interfering with the throttle servo or touching the hot engine.

Figure 17
Figure 18

Figure 19
Figure 20

Figure 21
11. A 120cc motor will yield a 10-15 minute flight using a 34oz tank, this makes the Extreme
Flight RC 34oz Flowmaster tank the perfect choice. There is a tray just over the wing tube
that is custom made for the fuel tank of your choice. We also used Flowmaster fuel line to
complete the plumbing for the tank. See figure 22 showing the Flowmaster tank and fuel
line.
Figure 22

12. Plumb your tank as desired and it will usually result in the need for a fuel dot, I chose to
use an Extreme Flight RC fuel dot, blue or black are likely choices see figure 23. I
mounted mine on the right side of the fuselage near the cowling. Figure 24 will show the
overall installation of the fuel tank.
Figure 23
Figure 24