Mopar32985

Hello everyone. First i wanted to say how much i like this website, and how great the community is here. Everyone seems very helpful. Now saying that I am very interested in building my first plane. I am looking for something that will fly slow and can still be aerobatic. Also something that will not be very hard to build. My ideal p[lace to fly this plane will be a park and ride right next to my house. I was thinking about getting a ARF but from what i hear its almost better to build one your self for slowflying. Any suggestions would be great. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks for the help

Mopar32985

forgot to include that i would like to work with foam

BMatthews

Sounds like you're after a 3D electric flat foamie but with some landing gear on it. If that's what you're thinking then I'd just go for a kit in this case since finding all the carbon bits and depron generally isn't worth the shopping around.

And trust me, it's an odd thing to see me recomending a kit. But in this case it seems more right for your needs.

Mopar32985

Well thank you very much for your reply. The only thing im worried about with them is i know they can be very sensitive. Are there any particular models that are sturdy and durable. How about the light flite Bug.

BMatthews

I only got my first flat foamie myself this past year. Mine is set up for learning to 3D and hover and all that other good stuff. However I had to sneak up on the max throw issue. As first flown I set it up for less than max throw because I wasn't sure how it would be. I found that even with the huge control surfaces that it wasn't that bad to fly in a normal manner. If fact I was quite surprised at how docile it was for the type of model. The low speed these models typically fly at works well to reduce the control reactions. If you were to set it up with normal deflection angles instead of the 45-60 degree 3D throws I don't think you'll have any trouble at all. However keep in mind that these flat foamies do NOT tolerate higher flying speeds. The wide controls pretty much gaurantee terminal flutter if you push it. But for close in parking lot style flying you don't want fast stuff anyhow. This isn't to say that it's a trainer by any means. But if you've flown some sporty models already then I seriously doubt you'll have any trouble. Then as you gain practice you can up the throw angles towards the full on 3D region and shift the CG back and do the whole 3D thing.

Mopar32985

Thank you again for your input. As of right now i have not flown anything above a 3 channel plane. But i am always on my sim. But after looking at more planes i think im going to go with the light flite bug first and then move up to the flatouts.If you have not herd og=f the light flite bug check it out looks like an amazing little plane and its also very strong. Well thanks again man

BMatthews

Run it with the CG at the more forward end of the range provided. If only one balance point is shown or mentioned then start out with the balance point about 3/8 to 1/2 inch ahead of what they say. Also for your first few days out start with no more than about 1/2 inch of throw either side of center on the controls. With only some 3 channel experience you'll most likely manage OK but only with reduced throws and a more forward CG at first. It'll take a while to get used to the ailerons and flying inverted and stuff but stick with it and up the throws a bit at a time as you get comfy with the model and move the CG back in small amounts at the same time.

Don't try hovering at first. WIth the "trainer" settings it just won't have the control authourity or CG position to do it. Just learn to fly it in all the various attitudes. Once you've gotten the CG fully back and the throws up then it's time to try the hovering stuff.

Best of luck with the new toy.