ahaacobbler

I should probably give it another chance. The one that I had just kept flying in circles, and there aren't a lot of easy options for trimming that airframe.

I picked up the Estes Sky Ranger for $18 last week at K-Mart and it has become a real interest for me. You can see some photos here http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=627680 I am not ready to say that I like it better than the ace, but it is definitely fun to fly. When I opened the box and read the instructions, I thought that maybe I should just return it. The t/x has a timer on it, which cuts power to the plane after 2 minutes. Instead of having a voltage meter - cut-off circuit to save the Lipo, you just fly it for 5 2-minute flights and them charge the battery. Also the controller has an anti-over-turning feature which stops the turn input if it is held for more than a second or so. These 2 features along with the brittle foam used ont he body was enough to almost convince me that this plane was total crap. Eventually, I decided, that since I already have it, I might as well at least give it a try before taking it back.

All of those undesireable characteristics are still a problem, but this thing really flys. It handles wind better than anything else I have tried in this class of planes. It also has single prop control when the throttle is off - not just one faster than the other. taking the plane up and then giving a no throttle turn throws the pane in to a fast dive from which it is easy to pull off a loop.

I have only had it out for 2 sessions so far, but I have been having a lot of fun with it. It definitely flys differntly than any AH product.

It also comes with a spare set of props which are counter rotating. I have yet to try these on an AA, but they may be a good replacement option.

You definitely want to keep this one off the concrete. The one landing that I made of the grass took a chunk of foam out of the belly and knocked the prop right off the shaft. The prop is just fine, but note that there is almost no friction holding the props on. Make sure you gather up the props after a prop strike.

I need to get out my calipers and check the motors but they seem like they are smaller diameter than the AA, yet the plane is much faster. maybe it has something to do with the prop shape. Anyway, I think if nothing else, this plane is great fun and then provides some interesting spare parts.

Cobbler