ORIGINAL: kulgan
I'm a newbie looking to buy a plane. I have been playing around with an Areoace and having a lot of fun. One of the problems I have (other than being old) is that I live in Nebraska and it is rarely "wind free". When I am first learning I will wait for calm conditions but I wonder which trainers are better in the wind. I've read that the Megatech Freedom Flyer is OK in the wind, not crazy about the brand but it seems like a decent plane. Others I'm considering are the EasyStar, Areobird Challenger and T-Hawk. Is one of these OK in 10-ish mph winds after I have some experience or is there a better choice. Thanks.
The biggest problem you are going to have is the weight of the plane. MOST electrics are pretty light in weight. For windy/gusty conditions heavier is better. A semi-symetrical airfoil that is thinner is also better. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, this combination does not exist with an electric trainer.
The semi-symetrical wing is usually found on the higher performance planes. While it is entirely feasible to convert a 40 size trainer to electric, the cost, in most cases, is high. To convert a 40 size trainer to electric you are looking at something like an AXI 2826-10 series motor ($100 ) plus a decent size ESC (40 amp about $75 - $100 ) plus a 3S lipo of 2200 mah for a decent flying time (15 - 20 minutes ) plus a lipo charger. To this you will still need to add the plane.
If you wanted to go with a glow trainer, I would suggest the Hobbico Avistar coupled with a decent ball bearing 46 engine.
Sorry I can't provide better news. A big plus to the glow plane trainer is that once you learn how to fly that, the majority of electric planes will be no problem.