RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

True that.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I love Aussie slang! :D All of my "junk" Chinese engines sure make my planes fly "Flat out, like a Lizard drinking". See, I know some of that Aussie stuff.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

yes , could not agree more !! I also had magnum , love the 4 strokes and then found out that the original enginer from OS went to work for Magnum lol !
This is what is interesting that so many dont realize , even the American companies that are so called manuafctures have 70% and more of brands being made by others either in the USA or overseas. The problem is not just cost its the consumer has a very short attention span (on avg ) two years . So imagine investing in a major CPG (consumer product trend ) onlly to have it disapper in two yeras ?
So what we do is outsource trends , to someone that can make that item and you know what happens ? You tripple your size in sales people , sales support , marketing and product development !! Yes its true , not manufacturing but sales and marketing at a signifgantly higher dollar per hour rate . Yes less jobs , but more per capita growth , more per captica revenue and more cash flow back into the USA .
I can name at leaste 10 companies in the Food industry that were struggeling to make ends meet as pure manufactures and then outsourced to address trends and there entire models turned around .
What we are seeing in the hobby is somewhat differant , there were very few manufactures in the USA , as a fact they were kit manufactures and the trend grew to arf .That was a huge shift in trend and consumer behavior .
Then the hobby in the USA moved to a mostly distributor business and the very distrbutors that sold hobby shops now reached out to the hobbiest (me and you ) .
Now the final piece of the puzzel is occuring , master international distributors at a lower % are getting factory direct to the global hobbiest (IE -HobbyKing As one example ) .
You should have seen the price on DLE engines before Hobbico got the USA rights , they were about $75 and more cheaper per engine !!!
Many USA hobby shops are becomeing direct suppliers on international parts ect because the USA hobby Distributor is no longer passing on deals that were meant for the USA hobby shop , so now the good shops are staying competitive by going direct with new options .
If you visit MN , you will see 4 great shops in a span of 20 miles from the airport , two of the 4 have a major import presence in parts and models that is both competitive , interesting and profitable !!!

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

You are right about when US distributors get hold of distributing rights, prices go through the roof. You mentioned DLE. I saw the first DLE engines with the side card selling for $50 something dollars on a Chine site. There were also Buggie Cars 30cc with engines for $75 and some 30 CC aerobatic planes all under $100. How ever there was a minimum number to buy on most of the items. I googled the name of the Buggie car and found it selling in a US car Hobby shop for $1000. The same exact car with the engine. Now when I tell folks on other threads the the prices were seriously outrageous they basically say that I am crazy. Now why is it do folks think HK stop carrying quite a bit of stuff. It happens as soon as A US distributor gets the rights and its all over. They mark up 1000% and force the manufacturer to stop selling to HK. AND that is fact. Same thing happens to Nitroplanes. You notice they no longer carry CMP planes. What do you think is ESM?

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Wow and I miss CMP war birds. Got a CMP Spit, P40, Zero, and BF109. As I have only been flying a little over 2 years these birds seem great for the momoney so I see HK is Cloneing Robart looking retracts for the AT6. I love Robart but I always felt like I was over paying. Any one put some landing on these retracts yet?<br type="_moz" />

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I had the retracts for the HK 89" spitfire. Everything about them screamed Sierra giant clone and the supporting gear like the air valves, fill valves, etc were exact duplicates of robart. I tesed the gear myself and they worked flawlessly. Since a club friend of mine actually bought the HK spitfire, I decided to sell the retracts to him so he could get started on the build. I really still do want to get one of those Spitfires. Gorgeous plane and very well built.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

You sure have - fair dinkum ;)

And there's nothing wrong with "junk" Chinese engines - most of my fleet runs them... :D

BJ:)

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

From what I've read, it isn't the junk that people get that is thier biggest problem, it's that HK customer service is lousy to just about non existent. I've read so many posts about this that it tells me just to not go there.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

kahloq, what size/brand of wheels did you put on your Spit? i bought the last Kondor Spitfire at last years WOTR event. I have been on other projects, so haven't finished it.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Maybe a miscommunication here....but I dont own the HK spitfire though I want one. A friend bought it and i sold him the gear for that specific plane. I wanted to see what the gear looked like before I bought the plane. Since he had acquired the plane, I was trying to help expedite his build by selling him the gear. It looks like the plane takes 4.5" mains. Vqwarbirds sells a few different 4.5" wheels/tires that are specific to Spitfires. A 5" might fit as well, but without a wing in front of me to see, I can answer that.

The only spitfires I currently have are the 60 size H9 and the 90size Kyosho...and thats whay I would like to get this HK plane since I have a 50cc gasser not being used.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

91 zulu , again I agree , and I know the business model of the factories as we import toys ect.
Its really simple , any one of us can be a USA distributor very quickly.
You go to China , tour the factories , have the funding and confidence in the product your want to import and you committ to a MOQ .
Minimum Order Quanity . Now if you have big cahonies , you demand exclusive distributorship but it comes with major committment on your part in firm numbers with the factory .
The reason why Nitro lost its right to FMS was that they were not making there numbers .
Hobby KIng lost DLE because Hobbico convinced the factory they could do more volume .
If in the long run Hobbico falls short , the contract ( I am sure will move to another distributor ) .
CMP was originally imported by Giant Scale Planes in Cooperstown Pa , they lost the right on volume to Nitro Planes , AK Models and one other player . The demand for CMP has deminished because when KMP lost the rights to ESM for the USA the price dropped by $200 on avg on a KMP plane now sold as the supplier name (ESM) .'
THe new price was $299 and higher , CMP was $200 to $300 !
That was too close in my opinion for CMP to be in demand , because ESM is such much better and trust me I own many CMP planes

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Yes I had a few, now down to the P47 71"WS. Nice flying plane. It will be my beater this year to shake the rust off my fingers. :D. But also looking to get a Easy Tiger Stuka. Saw it last week and fell in love. Same size as the Ziroli but lighter of coarse. Hmmm going to have to fix that. Like my warbirds with some weight, they fly smoother.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

if your referring to the 50cc spitfire....these are the right size...4.5" ......they have 3 spoke, 4 spoke, and 5 spoke british wheels.
http://www.vqwarbirds.com/product_in...66e30e4da4f9fa

If your talking about the 73" or so size, they also carry 4" britich wheels, however, on this size, ESM does offer a 4" aliminum hub wheel thats 1/3rd the price:
http://www.vqwarbirds.com/index.php?...66e30e4da4f9fa

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Ummmm...the ETM stuka looks generally ok EXCEPT for the cowl. That part is all buggered up. Not close to scale apperance at all. Maybe you can source a fiberglass cowl for a Zirolli and make it fit. But.....if it doesnt bother you, then meh.....have at it :)

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Yea you are right that cowl got to go. Would like to make it into a D though.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Basically nothing we buy in this hobby is US made, so you aren't supporting the US no matter who you buy from.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Ok...the wife has authorized me to buy the HK spitfire. So....when I get the plane...I can take some in depth pictures for anyone interested.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Yeah... I am! I'm thinking of getting this myself. If I do, I'm doing it electric.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I would normally do Electric as well. I did both the 82.5" ESM fw190d9 and ESM do-335 with 65cc rimfires on 12s......however....I've had a 50cc turnigy gas motor sitting in basement for a couple years not doing anything.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Yuk! lol Maybe now Kahloq is seeing the light! Check out what I got yesterday. All for warbirds! No electric in my future. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_11...m.htm#11410111

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I would love to go gas if someone could make an engine that sounds like the KOLM 2cyl that was affordable. I just can't stand the sound of a chainsaw buzzing around in the sky.http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/js/f.../sad_smile.gif

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I dislike that sound too.....but the Pitts muffler I got for the turnigy gassed is baffled so should quiet down the annoying 2stroke sound.

And...NO......vertical.....I have not "seen" the light as u call it.....I'm merely using a motor I've had lying around for years just to make some use out of it.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

By the way.....there are only 3 sets of the retracts for this spitfire left on hobbykings site......so if u want the plane....I'd suggest not waiting to long.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

I just checked that out myself. Yesterday there were 6 sets left.

RE: HobbyKing 50cc Warbirds
 

Say - what sized warbird would suit a HK FS400AR radial donk?

Those things sound awesome :D

BJ:)