Splices in Brodak kits

I will say I have built many Brodak kits. They all have had issues. They also have had quality control issues with wood selection. Yes, I could call them and yes they will and have replaced what was deemed insufficient. The problem is that these kits are no longer $20 and I really shouldn't need to have kit wood replaced. It happens with regular frequency however. Many times the wood is considered punk wood and it's too light with no strength whatsoever. I've had ribs totally vibrate into pieces within the wing on some of these kits. I knew John Brodak personally and I had conversation in regards to some of the issues. Some issues were not quickly recognized and caught prior to the kits being packaged. John was a standup person and would make good over the phone.

Profiles that used solid leading edges in my opinion are far superior to the newer designed 3 piece leading edge wings. The problem with the solid leading edges was obtaining them straight and not heavy. Midwest used to provide 1" solid and they started to increase to $10 a piece for a 3' length and generally were corkscrews.

I have built 3 of the Brodak F-82's. This is a good flying plane however by design it too has flaws. I only have built the older die cut versions in which these were not designed for beam mount engines. The design has the fuse sitting within the center ribs. This is extremely weak and the entire center section flexes far too much. The center portion of the wing should have sheeting top and bottom. The beam mounted version has it's ply doublers too short which is great when your flipping your engines over. You break the noses off right where the doubler stops. This is common sense which they're aware of. I firmly believe this was designed for a wing mounted gear as the ribs reflect the cutout needed for doing so. They idea was scrapped for the POS wire gear which bends on first landing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKJU2VPA5qE John's wife requested that some of us send her a video of our Brodak models flying as a tribute to John. This was my son flying our F-82