Thanks for the replies,

yes am getting back on the horse - with a shiny new Avistar and a OS .46 motor. (I spotted the shopping opportunity and my wife is NOT happy but she will forgive me eventually!)
I will get a battery tester ASAP and as I was the one supposed to charge the batteries I have chalked this up to pilot error.
Should have the Avistar built next week and will take her up on the weekend, in the meantime I am going to spend some time on my G3 flight sim.
It is not easy getting the models you want here in South Africa. I was hoping to buy a H9 alpha trainer but could not get one anywhere. Have any of you had experience with the Avistar? Is it a good plane? I ordered it unseen as it was the only trainer I could get at short notice other than the direct import Chinese models and I wont go that route again (no instruction, poor quality hardware and covering that peels off before you even get it in the air).