Hey guys I've been practicing my 3D flying with a OMP Edge 540 V3. I have been doing alot of low flybys and just as the plane gets in front of me I do a wall and get into a hover. I then practice hovering with the canopy facing me and see how long I can hold the plane in a hover before things get a squirrelly and then I usually punch out. Well I have come to find that I do fairly well at holding the plane steady in a hover as long as the plane is ever so slightly climbing. When I feel that the plane is climbing too much I try backing off the throttle a little to hold her steady. But it seems that when I back off too much is when I usually lose it, is this because there is not enough air flow hitting the surfaces. If so will I need to retard the throttle a little slower and less? Also I have been using Hitec HS-311 servos on everything with a 4.8V battery pack. The specs for the speed are Speed: 0.19 sec/60° at 4.8V and Speed: 0.15 sec/60° at 6.0V, well I feel that the servos are a little slow. Is it just my inexperience at this or is it alot easier to learn this stuff with faster servos? With that being said, should I switch to a 6V battery to get that extra speed?

try to stay ahead of the plane anticipate what its going to do before it happens. if u think its getting away from u usually alittle blip of the throttle ill get enough air over the surfaces so u can correct. what motor and prop r u using? u should be fine on 4.8v but if the servos can handle 6v do it, it can only help. just my 2c

I also like to work the throttle. This is the only way I can get one to back down.

David

I have a OS 46AX with a APC 12.25x3.75 prop. Just curious as to what servos you guys are using and how fast they are?

Servo speed won't make a great big difference. Get a foamy, once I got a foam Pluma and flew every day a pack or two at lunch or in the dead end after work, my larger plane flying improved considerably.

Is the pluma an actual plane? Whats a good foam plane to learn 3D? I already have a spektrum 6300 micro reciever and some servos to go with it.

I have an OMP Edge 47" (KIT version) and have flown it with an OS 46. That engine is barely enough for that plane in the vertical. It will hover and even pull out, but not with authority which you need when you are coming down and need to hit the brakes. I changed out my 46 for an OS-50SX helicopter engine (not hyper). That made a HUGE difference in vertical control. Totally different plane. It can stop a quick decent on a dime, I mean right now! I changed out the APC 12.25 x 3.73 with a Zoar 12x4 wood prop to get better control of the throttle as it spins up faster and is quicker to respond with just a little loss of power. I already had the heli engine on a UCD 46 I crashed or I probably would never have done this. The death of the UCD brought life into the Edge. I am thinking the OS-55 might be just as powerful as my heli engine.

When you come down you may need to really crank the elevator to keep the nose up.

Another lesson is to always hover directly into the wind.

Good Luck!

Smaller planes are more difficult to back down and easily fall out.Try some other different props too,they make a big diffeence in thrust management,Make sure the low end is dialed in for good clean transition.

yep its an actual plane, it flies pretty well. i like my kalteisen su26 better though http://kalteisen.com/index.html if u want something super durable get a tufflight 4d lite http://www.tufflight.com/ thats what i learned on saved me alot of $ in new kits, it sure can take a beating. both have airfoiled wings and fly well

Yup, foamies are the way to go for sure!! Between foamies, sim's, and fuel.....you'll be a master in no time. Unfortunately, there's no simple trick (that I know of, anyway).

Be sure to check your CG also. Nose heavy will be a bugger to hover. For the best hovering, a plane that is slightly tail heavy is best.

Oh, and about servo speed....you'll never dream of noticing a difference, until you try a faster servo. I've had two similar sized planes, one with S3004's all around, and the other with fast, high-torque, MG servos. The difference in feel, connection, and response is incredible. It really makes a world of difference. Buy yourself a 6v battery, and then get a better (yet still inexpensive) servo on rudder down the road. An example of that kind of servo is the Hobbico CS-64 for 23 bones. The servo isn't really necessary, but you'll fly that rudder like a foamy's, no joke.
I definitely believe that quicker servos help, even my very opposed (and stubborn) father realized that faster servos really make a difference on the feel of an R/C plane.

Ideally, you should really learn your rudder before trying to hover!!! Practice slow rolls using ALL inputs to keep it perfectly level. Pracitce knife edge flight-belly in and out until you are perfect at it. Practice harriers-upright and inverted until you don't have to think about control inputs on the rudder (especially while inverted). Then, practice hovers belly in and out-when you have to bail out, you won't have any surprises as you will allready mastered the unsual attitudes that will surely be encountered. I use only 6V. and good servos-makes a huge difference!!

http://www.rcuniverse.com/magazine/a...rticle_id=1032

The key to a stable hover (and stop the plane from gaining altitiude) is definitely learn to "pump" the throttle. Each burst of air rushing over your tail feathers actually helps to keep the hover stable. The hard part is to learn to pump the throttle AND use your rudder at the same time. Takes some getting used to, but as you move on to more complex 3d, the throttle pumping becomes even more of a necessity.

Learn to fly a heli, it will teach you all about using both thumbs

Yep,being able to 3D planes to some degree probably helped me to get a grip on Helis alot faster.Same may work the other way around.

CofG is the most important thing imo.

I have been watching guys on youtube hover and they are not pulsing the throttle. Infact the plane in the link below seems so stable in the hover I'm thinking he must have a gyro or two on the go? What do you guys think?

[link]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMrUuRL7vBg[/link]

Please tell me he isn't using gyros as this vid is my inspiration for perfecting the hover.

Well, that's a 50cc gasser.....the bigger the plane (We're talking 3d planes here) the better they hover.

Check out this guy fly. He is a good example of throttle management:

[link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7X9I7ZsXxc&feature=related]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7X9I7ZsXxc&feature=related[/link]

defiantly no gyro on the profile hes a bro and he can sure fly

Another one to add to my favourites. Awesome.