Hi All,

I am new to this group. Even though this group is young, there are some great tips and upgrade info.

I bought the Magister RTF at the LHS yesterday after reading the posts here. So far, I have flown the Shun Da Piper J3 with no problems, the Aerobird Challenger with no problems no caused by trying maneuvers that were too extreme or hitting the occassional tre light pole at the big ballfield where I usually fly. The Aeorbird is very easy to fly stock and even more fun when you switch to the full v-tail control throw. I also have the PZ P-51 which I have flown successfully and crashed frequently - it looks great in the air but is very sensitive. So I bought the Magister to improve my skills on an aileron setup and to fly in stronger winds than the smaller birds can handle. Haven't put it together yet since I am re-reading all of the posts.

Since the stock setup sounds underpowered, I edited the FMS .par file to back off the thrust and increase to weight to values that give performance that seems consistent with what I have read here. I made the following changes: reducer the setting for Motorkraft (engine power in English) from 22 down to 18 and I increased the value of Masse des Modells in kg from 2.2 to 2.27 which is 5 lbs. The the FMS model now takes a longer roll to take off and flies slower at full throttle with a corresponding reduced climb rate and performance for doing aerobatics. This may useful for others who like to get a feel for the planes handling before going out to the real world.

After a few hours of air time I will upgrade the motor and esc to brushless with lipos. Lipos in the P-51 make a huge difference even with everything else left stock, so I am sure they will help with the Magister. Once I am very confident with the Magister I will go back to the P-51. My biggest problem with the P-51 is that it is fast and unless I am constant turning it gets out of good visual range very quickly. The Magister hould help improve my skill with a bird that is easier to see at a distance.

Well, off to the shop to start the build and checkout before heading to the field, weather permitting.

Randy