My first "Scale" build was a TopFlite Cessna 182 kit.Sadly TopFlite kits are not produced any more ;o(
One nice thing with this "N735PE" is that it flew the first time the same year I was born. TopFlite kits had very well made manuals with great pictures, each work step clearly presented and described. The structure here is light-plywood and balsa. Strong and light construction.
This picture outlines the structure well. The fuselage frame is constructed by first building the underside on top of the drawing, and coating with balsa. Then detach from the table and build the topside. The fuel tank is in a rather awkward place for maintenance. I also added lights to this plane.
I choose the OS FSa 110p 4-stroke engine to this plane. This engine has a fuel pump and the alpha series OS engines don't mess up much (comparing to Saito) The engine has plenty of power and scalable sound. The only thing I would add if I built now would be a remote glow system.
The fuselage and wing are completely covered with balsa, so I did the coating using 25g/m2 fiberglass fabric and epoxy (Z-Poxi Finnish Resin). I found the work quite easy, the fabric on the surface, blend the epoxy, pour the epoxy in the middle of the fabric and with an old credit card I started to apply the epoxy. I think this worked well and the plane didn't accumulate an awful lot of weight in any way.
Then it was time for some putty and sanding...
By the way, I have to thank my wife for long nerves during this work step...
I made the panel lines with 2mm masking tape strips, the spraying 2-4 layers of putty. When dry I removed the tape. Rivets are burned
For painting I used a spray gun and Oracolor paints. Coverage is good, easy mixing ratio of 1jar of paint and 1 jar of spray hardener. Black and silver stripes are still missing from the pictures.
Always before the first flight, the knees twitch "a little". I checked the movements, everything works the right way. Engine was run in, fuel tank full, battery full...
The TF Cessna 182 flies really steady, the OS FSa 110p engine flies at a scale speed with 1/2 throttle. At first it caused difficulties in landing, it seemed that the plane glides and glides and glides...
With a little practice, I learned to land the Cessna nicely with the flaps.
If you lands in crosswind, be prepared to use the rudder.
From this link you will see a small video of Cessna flying