Newbie experience with Firebird XL  
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Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/3/2003 7:42:25 PM   
foghead



Posts: 23
Joined: 12/9/2002
From: Somerset, KY
Status: offline 		Took my FBXL up for it's maiden flight over the weekend. Yes, it is easy to fly (if you have the tail trimmed properly). But, it flies very fast for a beginner. (Which I am) Landing is another thing. Per the instructions: "Cut the power at 10 ft and it will glide in. Yes it will. And mine hit the ground hard. Hard enough to bust a 2" piece out of the trailing edge of the wing. I quickly repaired it with packing tape, and I was ready to go again! I thought Upon re-entering the wild blue, I discovered that it would not turn right. At all. So, I circled left in effort to bring it back in. And chopped half the tail off on a power line. It dropped like a rock. What I had missed was that on the first "landing" I didn't notice the left tail "flap" had torn lose from the styrofoam surface, making it too week to initiate a turn.

What I learned here:

a. check EVERYTHING after a hard landing. Thoroughly!
b. Flying without elevator is nutz!
c. I think I'm gonna like my Slow Stick much better!

_____________________________

I just turn this thing on and move the sticks around? Cool!
       Post #: 1

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/3/2003 8:27:30 PM   
sierra gold


 

Posts: 341
Joined: 1/8/2003
From: Foresthill, CA, USA
Status: offline 		I've seen a lot of positive posts about the AeroBird. However, when I see the quantity of spare wings (not many sq. ins. there) that my LHS carries, it makes me wonder!

The Slow Stick is a nice airplane. Be prepared to replace your wheels with some foam ones... the spokes on the stock wheels are quite fragile. If you fly with a larger battery(1100mah Nimh, 8 cell) the weight gets to the wheels early on.

Make sure you balance to the recommended CG point. The SS is prone to be tail heavy as built by most following the instructions. Sliding the battery pack forward to the landing gear bracket will usually fix this. A tail heavy plane is a handful to control.

It's always best to fly at first with a more experienced flier. If N/A, then altitude is your friend and fly the plane in front of you!

Have fun!

Sierra Gold

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 2

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/3/2003 8:45:55 PM   
foghead



Posts: 23
Joined: 12/9/2002
From: Somerset, KY
Status: offline 		Will be flying the SS with the stock battery that came with the flight pack for starters (7.2v 400mAh) CG is set, fomies have been ordered.

btw, I have the rudder set for max. throw and the elevator at a much lesser throw. Is this correct? I've heard the rudder is kinda soft on turns.

_____________________________

I just turn this thing on and move the sticks around? Cool!

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 3

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/3/2003 9:22:48 PM   
sierra gold


 

Posts: 341
Joined: 1/8/2003
From: Foresthill, CA, USA
Status: offline 		Yep, it is. I have my servo end set in the last hole out on the arm and the control horn has 2 new holes drilled in it and I'm in the one closest to the rudder.

Also make sure there is no movement of the control rod on max throw, it absorbs some of the rudder movement.

When just "floating" around, the rudder is soft due to the lack of air movement over the rudder surface.

If you have trouble with the stock LG spreading... I added a piece of wire across the gear about half way up tied to each LG leg.

The 6 cell pack should work OK, probably short duration.

Sierra Gold

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 4

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/12/2003 6:19:15 PM   
goofup



Posts: 222
Joined: 12/10/2002
From: Yukon, OK, USA
Status: offline 		I think that after you get your Slow Stick up and flying you'll find out why everyone calls Firebirds (and others like it) "toy" planes.

Pick a calm day, double check the CG, and try to go easy on the sticks. And don't grin too hard- you'll strain your facial muscles!

Goofup

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 5

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/12/2003 7:06:08 PM   
moodier



Posts: 754
Joined: 10/5/2002
From: Yuma , AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Really surprise at the way that little "toy plane"flys.Firebird is kind of neat plane.Have to be careful or it would go out of site and if in good thermals up there little hard to get to come back home.Never thought the little things could fly like that.Will easily fly 20 minute flights get tired of standing out there like the glider fellows found a chair to be helpful.Thru bad judgement burned up the 900Ma battery you would be surprised how muchsmoke can get in a truck cab when you stop for breakfast and leave the quick charger on it.In Towers catalog when thinking about replacement found a 1100Ma battery for a Hyper-Fly basically same size had to remove some of the foam around the back of battery area and change to plug as although it looks alike isn't the same.I am not an electric flyer bought this thing at a swap meet couldn't pass up something different and cheap.It has given me a new repect for the field of electrics and won't be my last!

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 6

Newbie experience with Firebird XL - 3/12/2003 10:20:35 PM   
BillK


 

Posts: 114
Joined: 12/3/2002
From: phoenix, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		The Firebirds given a little wind can also climb fast and get a beginner into trouble. I went out the other day with a friend who bought an XL and after almost crashing it into me his next flight he accidently pushed the throttle trim all the way up without realizing it. Before he knew it the XL was a dot in the sky and starting to fly away. He yells for help and at the time my Slow Stick is about 100 ft in the air, rather than risk him crashing my SS I go into a power dive and manage to land it within a few seconds and take his controls. Sent the XL into a tight spiral dive for a couple hundred feet (I really thought the wing was going break or rip off) and managed to glide it in right in front of us. He's lucky I was there though. If beginners must get a Firebird type plane at least get the Aerobird so have some better control.

(in reply to foghead)
       Post #: 7

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