Warning

My Feedback: (5)

Hello Everyone . . .


I am currently a glow pilot looking for a foam electric . . . something I can fly in my back yard . . . im interested in the flat outs the seem pretty inexpensive . . .ive priced it to be about $200 dollars with a new motor and all ( i already have a Jr Xp8103 radio and a trition charger) so im all set there . . . is there anything else im going to need besides a new motor and esp? . . . what do you all think of them?


If you all do like the flat outs what plane do you like the best . . . what’s your recommended set up?

Zagiflyer576

Well, theres alot of people that like them and alot of people that dont. If you dont mind building a little bit and following the instructions, you will like them. Really they are all pretty good, except for the mat chapman cap 580. Be sure to stay away from that one as it flys like garbage because of the low wing. I have the RCU Bipe now and I love it. Its very easy to fly, tracks strait both level, inverted, and in knife edge!

What motor and speed control are you getting?
Other than that, your going to need a 3 cell 800 mah lipo, a micro reciever (GWS nano 4 channel), and 3 micro servos, like hs 55's. Thats pretty much it.

bdavison

My Feedback: (1)

That question has long been debated.
It is my opinion that the flatouts are indeed fine airplanes IF and only IF the person building it builds it correctly.
Complaints about them normally come from inexperienced builders, and poor building methods. The flatouts are a little more time intensive and difficult than other foam kits, but are not impossible.

Here are some tips to make your flatout successful.

1. DO NOT FORCE ANYTHING. All of the parts should go together easily. If they dont you need to trim them to fit correctly.
2. The z-bends. Get a pin vise, and a 1/16" drill bit. Drill ALL of them out so that they will easily slide on the carbon rods.
3. The control horns. Use and X-acto to clean and ream them out. The Z-bends should fit in them easily.
4. Use proper glue. Foam safe CA AND accelerator. Its a two part process. Foam Safe CA wont cure properly without accelerator unless you wait days for it to dry.
Some FoamSafe CA's will never cure without accelerator.
5. READ ALL the instructions BEFORE assembling the plane.
6. Dry Fit everything. NO exceptions. Think ahead. Many of the pieces are easy to glue on backwards. Check alignment and the directions for proper installation.
7. Take your time. Dont rush it. The box says 2 hours....plan on 8 hours for a good build.

If you follow these instructions you should end up with a very fine flying airplane.

I would recommend you get either the Reflection or the RCUniverse bipe. They are the two best flatouts, and each one is a real performer if built correctly.
The RCUniverse bipe is georgeous when finished and is a real bright great looking airplane. Excellent colors.


Here is my recommended set-up.
Rimfire motor.
Castle Creations 10A esc
Berg Microstamp 4L rx
Futaba 3110 servos
VamPowerPro 3cell 620mAh lipo

You will have to cut the tabs off of the servo plugs, but thats not a major issue.
This set-up will give you unlimited vertical, and flight times of around 6 min or so depending on throttle usage.
Weight will probably end up around 10-11 oz or so.

cosmic

My Feedback: (2)

The reflection flies great.. The hinging system works good if you can get it together correctly.. If you have problems with the hinge clips just trash them and use tape (way faster and way,way easier.)

Loswave

The Turmoil flys great as well as the two bipes. For the hinges if one or two snap on you, just trim the inside of each clip so it doesn't need to open as wide to get the cf rod through there. Let me reinterate here because this will have a big affect, bdavison said to drill out the z-bends, DO IT. If you don't your going to waste alot of time trying to get it right, and perhaps even break the plane or pushrods. As long as you follow those tips though, you will probably love your flatout. Don't expect to do it fast though, it won't happen. I find it's best to give yourself two nights to build the plane. It can get a little tedious, and you'll do a much better job if you take your time and split the work up in my opinion.

rmenke

My Feedback: (13)

Warning:

Forget the hard to build junk and go to a proven winner for both flying and being tough. Go to rcx planes.com and look at their lilneup. I have been flying the extra 330L for about 3 years almost exclusively while some high dollar planes gather dust. Its just more fun to fly, just stick it in the car and go. Their Illusion is the best overall flyer, the 330L loves to hang and elevator. Great show off bird. When you get ready to do it, call Bud Wilikinson for his recommendtions for equipment and maby a good package deal. You will not be sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Loswave

I may point out that anyone who doesn't like FlatOuts generally love to bash them. Which is half the reason alot of people think they suck.

ryan_t888

Very true, I've had one for nearly a year. They are half the price now. - $19.99. I'm still using the brushed setup as I don't have any problems with it.

Ryan

sabre1205

I have the Reflection and it does fly very well. I have yet to try the Extra 300s. But if it flys anything like the bipe it should be fun

team3d

I flown many people's (never own one) Flatout foamies. I like the turmoil the most
out of all of the series. Many people complain about the hinges so either tape the hinges
or do it in your way you want.

I love the Ikarus Shockflyers more though. I love the F3A version alot. Flys very percision
and at the same time it can 3D. You can also get the F3A down to around 4 ounces all ready
to fly. My second favorite is the Yak 54. The Yak fly 3d great.


If you want to go with the Flatout foamies here is the best setup (for outdoors) that I like...

Motor: Axi 2208/34
Battery: Thunder Power 3 cell 1300 pack
ESC: Jeti 18 amp
Prop: ?? Don't know, but I think the prop was a like a 10 something. I will have to
check for you.

On the F3A and Yak 54 here is the setup I like the most

Motor: Axi 2208/34 or Axi 2204/54
ESC: Jeti 18 amp or jeti 8 amp
Battery: Thunder Power 2 cell 1300 pack (for both setups)
Prop: 10x 3.8 or a 9x3.8

Team3d

rc-sport

My Feedback: (12)

I have the Redbull Edge and it's a blast to fly. I'll get another when the time comes.

SS2P

I have a GP reflection and I like it. It 3d good. Hinges are hard to built but I've seen that they just pop off in a crash and thats a good feature. Get it! as for battery, I think 1320 TP is too much. I tryed it, it flys heavy. I'm using a 900 pack and I've also heard ppl using 720 TP pack.

Paul

bhole74

I had a Red Bull Edge and although it did fly well, it was a pain to build and not very durable. Destroyed it pretty quickly (3 doinks). I have had many foamies since and all are still flying. Of all the foamies I have, the HL Yak is the most durable and easiest to build and flies excellent. Heck of a deal for $19 on sale.

trevormatney

Hi! I went from a slo-v, to the 330s flat-out, which was quite a different experience! After a couple of unplanned landings and an impact with the garage, I settled down and now love my flatout. I'm not real experienced, so I only do basic aerobatics. I plan on trying the reflection next! Hear much good about it, and I think building flatouts is not real difficult.

mflander

Well due to this board I think an RC Universe bipe will be in my future. Thanks for the posts and opinions!

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

BDA:

I read with interest your discussion on building and flying the flatout's.

I have tried several with mixed success. They all fly ok, in fact, they all fly great, however, my abilities are in the learning stages for these types of aircraft. I fly glow pretty well, intermediate to advanced I would say, so I am not a beginne. My problem comes with determining the proper engine/battery combination to get more than a few mintues of flying time. The combination I have right now allows me to fly 'normally' for two or so minutes with performance degrading rather quickly after that, never allowing me to fly more than about 4 to 5 minutes before I have to land or else!

I have three different outrunner motors, each increasing in performance levels. I am flying the Charger foamie/flatout. Currently, I have a Frio 10, a 25amp ESC with BEC2, and two different battery packs: Ultraflight 1500 mah 8C and a 2200mah 20C, both 3 cell lipo's. I reserve the larger battery for my Kangka 3D and my Brio 10. The smaller batteries are the ones I use for the foamies. I think my basic problem is not capacity but discharge rate. So, I ordered a 1300 mah 20C 3 cell lipo and it should be here today.

As far as I can tell, I am doing things right, but, as I said, I just don't get the flying time nor performance I expected out of this combination.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

DS.

ryan_t888

Dude, those batteries are HUGE for this type of plane. I was using a 700mah 3-cell with about a 5min half throttle flight time.

I would never recommend anything over 2.5oz's for this plane or else landing can be a problem with the weight impact.

BTW: I have heard those Frios overheat very easily reducing performance. Is this happening to you by chance?
1500mah @ 8 C would yield 12 amps which is more than enough for the stock 370 brushed setup, not sure what the frio draws.

Ryan

skipusmc

I have the flatana and I like the way it flies, but I don't think I selected the correct motor. I have an E-flite BL300, a Jeti 12 amp ESC, and a thunder power 730 3 cell battery. It simply does not have enough power. Understand this is my first shot at an electric, and thought I chose compatible stuff, but apparently not. I am thinking of switching the motor to an AXI 2208/34, and keeping the rest of the set up. Do you guys think this will work?

SS2P

Can somebody tell me which HL yak are everybody talking about? I know that its from Hobby lobby but there are tons of yaks out there.

3DSAVAGE

FO's would be good if they make them with 6mm foam ( make one electrifly!!!!)[sm=biggrin.gif][sm=biggrin.gif][sm=bananahead.gif]

bhole74

[link]http://www.hobby-lobby.com/yak55.htm[/link]

They are at regular price right now but are on sale quite often.

Edgeomatic

My Feedback: (2)

The Bipes, turmorial, and flatana fly good but, I would say get a shockflyer yak 54 or the f3a. The edge flys the best of the older ones but they are not much cheaper.

bdavison

My Feedback: (1)

Ive flown most of the flatouts with anything from a 3cell 640mAh to a 3cell 1250mAh lipo. Obviously lighter is better, but they will fly even when heavy.

The set-up that works the best is surprisingly the recommended one. A simple Rimfire and ESC. You can get about 7min from a 640mAh, which is plenty, and there should be no heat build up if you prop it right. I can easily fly back to back flights on mine no problems with heat issues. It runs nice and cool.

Dyehard

I'm flying both the Turmoil and the Reflecton with the stock setup, Rimfire motor and Electrafly 8 amp speed control. For batteries I have a 730 mah Thunder Power and a 900 mah Impulse. The 730 pack is .2 ounce lighter than the recommended 640 Electrafly pack, the 900 is the same weight as the 640 pack. Both packs are working well with my two foamies. The Turmoil is more laid back than the Reflection, but it knifeedges better. Other than knifeedge, the Reflection is all around better flying plane. It is insanely quick, but still manageable. My son and I have had a blast learning to hover it with the tail foot off the ground. It will get in troube in a heartbeat, but get out of trouble in a third that time. My only complaint is that they, especially the Turmoil, are a little bit fragile. It isn't that they fall apart, but things like the landing gear on the Reflection pushing the foam back from the leading edge on a rough landing keep you constanly making minor repairs. They seem to be effort though, they are a ball to fly.

bdavison

My Feedback: (1)

Dyehard...

Ive got the tip for you!!!

Take some thread and tie the landing gear on the reflection to the carbon leading edge of the bottom wing. Wrap it real good with thread, and then hit the thread with CA.
It will NEVER yank the landing gear through the wing again....