What's a good first plane?
10-24-2006, 01:51 PM
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What's a good first plane?
I'm looking for some recommendations on what plane to get for my first electric. What I want it for is to fly near home or maybe during my lunch hour. I think I want something with an airfoil wing that can be landed without landing gear (belly landing) on a rough grass field? My experience is about two years of flying glow .40 size planes. I presently have a Sig Somethin Extra and a Hormon Rocket plus my trainer. I'm interested in getting more comfortable with 3D. I was considering the Great Planes Yak 55 with Flight Flex but I've read plenty of negatives about it. I do have the Hobico MKII field charger that has a selection for Lithium Ion. I've been told that this will charge Lipos. Is this true? I'm looking at spending about $250. I'm using a Futaba 7CAP transmitter. Thanks in advance! Keith
10-24-2006, 02:18 PM
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RE: What's a good first plane?
I just bought the E-flite byp yak. I haven't flown it yet, but there are some videos of it here on RCU. It'll fly awesome 3-d, and can fly really slowly if needed. I don't think the flight flex is such a great idea, if you want an awesome plane at a great price go to www.3dfoamy.com. www.hobbylobby.com also has a lot of good 3d planes, some with an airfoil. Good luck!
10-24-2006, 06:52 PM
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RE: What's a good first plane?
If you are looking for skill honing rather than how good the maneuver looks, than a biplane would do you nicely. Most travel fairly slowling, 3D well (but slowly), and are easy to setup and fly. AirfoilZ has "The Bipe" but it hasn't been released just yet, you might want to check it out.
10-24-2006, 07:54 PM
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RE: What's a good first plane?
Based on your experiance level, I'd recommend the Airfoilz YAK. They fly like a cross between a foam plane and a nitro. It's possible to keep the cost below $250 with the recommended set-up. Some people have a tough time transitioning from nitro to foamies. The Airfoilz make that transition a bit easier. There are some EPP planes have an airfoil but most of the depron planes do not. I just ordered an SX4 from www.funplanes.com, there's a thread on RCGroups about it. I think that the instructions might be a challenge for someone without previous foamie build experience, but it's a great looking plane, and from the videos it looks like it flies well, and since it's EPP, it's more durable than the typical depron foamie. Your Futaba 7C should work fine for any of the electric planes that are out there.
