ORIGINAL: bigedmustafa
An appreciation for "the Classics"
I have to confess that one plane that bugs the heck out of me right now is the Hangar 9 Pulse XT .40 ARF. I like Hangar 9 products, I think the plane is really good looking, I'm confident that it's well made and straightforward to assemble like almost all Hangar 9 products. It bugs me because it's a product that nobody needs except Hangar 9. It bugs me that so many pilots are buying them because they're shinier and newer looking than products that are better. The Pulse XT .40 is a nice looking plane from a respectable company, but I hate the fact that it's preventing pilots from flying some of the true classics of the sport.
To me, flying a Pulse XT .40 is like eating a veggie burger. It's a lot like the source it draws its inspiration from. There are some things about it that are even better than the original (zero cholesteral, a nice looking cowling). If you're hungry and you eat one, it will hit the spot. No matter what you do, no matter how much you dress up a veggie burger though, it's just not as good as the real deal. To me, the Ugly Stik (and all of its glorious incarnations) is the real deal. The Sig Four Star is the real deal. The Goldberg Tiger 2, by golly, that's the real deal. The Pulse XT .40 ARF? To me, that's a really well-made, tasty garden burger.
Well, That's a mouthfull. What is the point of this rambling? Does this mean that flyers out there have to buy and fly older planes just because they have been around longer? The Pulse is just a newer plane with fresher thoughts put into the design and obviously since it's designed different it's going to fly somewhat different and look different. I have owned both and flown both and would rather have the Pulse anyday. It has more features and is a newer design and doesn't look like an out dated crop duster. "Veggie Burger?" Yeah right! Whatever!