I ordered a Extra 58 on 7 Oct and the great folks at VF said it would be shipped around this weekend and I should see it the middle of next week. This will be my first VF and from what I've read here probably not my last. I have an O.S. 91 Surpass looking for a home so that will be where it shall live.

I'm in Illinois also, so thanks for the info. My wife wouldn't let me put this one on the card, so I sent a Money Order. So I may be looking at a few additional days. It sounds like it will be worth the wait though. I am having a hard time visualizing its size though. I don't think I have found a photo anywhere yet that shows it with a person. Always hard to judge a Planes size in a photo when they are sitting alone. I have a Sukoi 31 .46 size Hanging in my Garage next to my 1/4 Scale Clipped wing Piper. Somewhere between those two I would guess. Most people at our Club Field are either flying .40 size or Giant Scale stuff. Not to many inbetweens. We do have a few .90-1.20 size flyers. There was a Funtana .90 at the field last weekend, and It really is easy to pick out in the air. I have a Super Sportster .40 ARF that is a ball to fly, but can be a strain on the eyes sometimes. I hope my new VectorFlight edge 540 66 is easier to see than some of my others that are smaller.

Im adding the struts for 2 reasons. A) strength and B)im going to be later doing a scale replica of the Zivco edge 540, and the full scale uses the struts.

All of you guys are going to love your planes. I loved my 66 inch extra. it was my favorite plane to fly. I had around 250 flights on it when it went in. I think that the 91 to 100 size 4 stroke engine is perfect. I never put struts on mine and had no problems with the tail. One thing that I would suggest is to can the wheel pants and order some from sig. The sig wheel pants are much toughter and will last much longer. The stock wheel pants that VF uses are junk and will not last unless you are flying off of a smooth surface. Other than the wheel pants these are the best buys in RC. I am going to order the 66 inch edge soon. Here are some pictures of my extra.

Rick

Your welcome. I just this last weekend put in my SS 40 ARF when I let it get too far out and lost orientation in the sun. I was thinking about this prospect when I ordered the up sized Edge just like you. I just wish it didn't come to happen so soon!

Ok, I'm convinced. I will be adding the struts to the bottom of the tail as well. Also, I talked to the local sign maker and worked a deal out for some cheap graphic additions to the wing bottoms. Probably just a simple line style design with a little text for personal preference. Just a few odds and ends and she should be flight ready by next week. I hope.

Primodus: Hey.. Tell me how things go out with the sign maker.. I saw a 29% edge with the words edge 540 on the bottom and I just had to do that. It looked too cool.

trroscoe: How does the saito 100 handle on the plane. Good vertical?

Just thought I would post my pics of my Extra 300 66". Love this plane. My favorite plane to fly! You really can't say anything bad about this company except that there directions are poor, and there wheel pants are garbage. The plane is solid. Rock solid. I really don't belive there is a plane out there in this price range with this quality!

RCFury

The saito will be killer in this plane. You will have great vertical. I had the Thunder tiger 91 4 stroke in mine and it was great. The TT and the Saito will turn the same prop at the same RPM so they should fly the plane about the same. I used an APC 14x6 or 14x4W. The MAS 14x7 scimitar prop also worked good. The only thing the saito has an advantage on is weight. The TT engine is about 3 or 4 oz heavier. It didn't make any difference in my plane. To balance I had to move the battery about halfway back to the tail. I just cut a hatch out of the bottom and stuck the battery in and put the hatch back on. Like I said before toss the wheel pants and order some from SIG. They are made of thick plastic and last forever. I glue the halves together with CA and then use epoxy and fiberglass cloth on the seam on the inside and they ar as strong as fiberglass pants and last much longer and take alot of abuse. Go on sig's web site and do a search for wheel pants and you will get a list with pictures and sizes. They are cheap too. A set for my extra only cost me $8.00.

Rick

More pics. Taken in my office, excuse the clutter. The yardstick is for size reference. It reads approx. 30" from wingtip to fuse side.

A couple shots of the tail with custom braces.[8D]

Looking very pretty Primodus, Guess the sign shop put on the small text on the bottom of the plane? How did it turn out. From the looks of it very sharp!!
Since im waiting for the plane Im building my 3dfoamy edge 540. Going to paint it the same design. My mini-edge.. heheh

Thanks for the compliment rcfury. I am very pleased with the results the sign shop produced. It is exactly as ordered and can even be changed at any given time if I decide I want a different look. I haven't gotten into electrics but it sounds like the way to go for practicing for the big boys. That's my next course of action.

Your welcome. I caught the 3d foamy bug about 3-4 months ago. Very fun. I really wanted something small so i can go out to the backyard and bash around. Great way to hone your skills in aerobatics. I rather crash a 20 dollar plane then a 400 dollar plane. Check out www.3dfoamy.com, levi is an awsome guy to do business with. He also flys scale IMAC so he knows what he's talking about.
When you get you plane up do share the results. YOu dont konw how bad i want to build this thing.

I moved this report to this thread to complete it af Vectorflight's request. I hope the information in this thread continues to promote VF and educate people about this great company!

"I took my recently completed VF Edge 540 out for it's maiden flight yesterday afternoon. The weather was absolutely perfect and the wind was an easy 5-10mph straight down the runway from the south. After solving a minor problem on the ground involving the fuel lines, I was able to get the Saito 120 started, and minor adjustments to the mix had it purring like a kitten (only it had that funny little blurble that a rich 4 stroke is famous for). Vertical test showed no hesitation, and transition in both axis was flawless.

Takeoff - Easing into the throttle the tail lifted easily and a smidge of right rudder had her tracking straight and true. The grass runway was no problem for the supplied 2.5" foam wheels during this phase of the flight. Liftoff was within 100' at 3/4 throttle using the 15x8MAS prop. The aileron trims were a bit further out of line than one would like, but it was manageable and under control in no time. Elevator trim was a mere two clicks down from neutral. All in all, an easy takeoff and trim session. Most of the flight was kept at 3/4 throttle or less due to the power of the 120. All throws were set to recommended, and low rates were used for all but a short period (more on that in a moment).

Flight - After the trim session was completed I remained on low rates and tried a few simple maneuvers. Loops were a bit large but stable on the recommended low rate throws. Elevator sensitivity was noted in all maneuvers. Rolls were very axial, even on low rates and very little altitude was lost during the 3-roll run. High rates were tested as well on the same tricks. On high, the loops got very tight, btu the elevator is extremely snappy. [&:] Rolls were awesome and stable throughout. No altitude loss was noted on high rates during the 3-roll run. At this time, I tried my first Cuban-8. WOW! Easy as pie![X(] Both sides were completed in the same manner and right on target for entry and exit altitude. Back to low rates now, as my heart needs a break from the excitement.[&:] Satisfied with my first sortie, I decided it was time to bring her in.

Landing - Hmmm....Where to start? My first approach proved unusable and was aborted. Glide path was extremely long as the Large Edge floated by at a blisteringly high speed, even at idle. Second attempt proved much better than the first. I extended the final approach, and cut the power sooner in the landing pattern (about halfway through the downwind leg). The turn onto final was completed at a lower altitude as well. And, although the landing still felt a bit hot, it settled down on the grass runway and eased to a stop before reaching the end of the 300' strip. No tendency to tip was noted as I used full up elevator (low rates) to taxi back to myself through the 1-2" grass.

Conclusion - I am impressed! Vectorflight has done thier homework, and produced a spectacular airplane. For those of you who don't like ARF's, I challenge you to try a VF plane. For the unheard of low price, the supplied equipment is very usable, and the kit is extremely well constructed. After only a few flights now, I am convinced in the quality of the VF products and will be saving for another ASAP![8D]"

I would like to say.. WOW, what a great flight report. Just making me eger to start building well as soon as i get it. Ha ha. I can probally tell you why you were comming in quite hot. That 15 x 8 has a big deal in that. Drop down in pitch and the plane should slow right down. None the less. Nice!!! I appload for a supurb job.. Sounds like the plane tracks wonderfully. All point and shoot. Just like its supposed to.

Well, I have a few bad things to say about my VF Extra 66". First, the sign vinyl covering looks like crap and I believe that this adds unnecessary weight to the plane. The white on the wing is sort of a milky color and the ailerons are stark white, not a good look. Also, the white "afterthought" pieces at the trailing edge of the wing looks like crap too. The ailerons are about 1/8" too wide so there is a mismatch at th t.e. And my left wing panel has some markings on the red leading edge piece where it looks like someone used a cleaner of some sort on it and it ate the shine off of the covering. Lastly, the wheel pants are a joke!! All of this was noticed about a week ago when I started the build. (Ive had the plane sitting in the box since may or so) All in all I still think it was a fair deal, but these are things that should be addressed. Sorry to rain on the VF party, but I've had fewer issues with some Chinese arfs that someone "threw together before lunch".

Does it really look like crap, or are you just having a bad day? If it really does look like crap, then I am sorry to hear that. I have a post here on R/C Universe titled "ARFS TO AVOID AT ALL COST", and I don't recall the name VectorFlight being tossed around in there, but there was quite abit mentioned about some of the Chineese ARFs you make reference to. Everyone is intitled to opinion, but so many good things have been said about the VectorFlight Planes, that your post really suprised me. And since I have one on order, I really do hope that you are in the minority of people who think this ARF is crap.

rcfury, thanks for the support. I already changed to a 16x6APC and it made a world of difference. Now she floats in like a trainer and I haven't even tried flaps yet. As for tracking, it goes exactly where you tell it to. Just watch the snap when you hit the elevator hard.

Fenton, sounds like you ran into a lemon. If the covering is that bad, why not talk to VF and see what they will do about it? As for the ailerons, they are designed to be offset. It increases the size of the control surface area for added stability in low speed maneuvers. I have to agree the wheel pants may need a bit of rethinking, but I would venture to say the plane looks good without them. On the weight issue of the covering, I don't think it makes that much difference. I'm not trying to "harp" on you about your misgivings with your VF plane. However, judging by my own personal dealings with them, and the reports of others, give them a shot at making things right. You may be pleasantly surprised.


Got another flight in yesterday evening! Motor problems solved and the new prop pulls it through all the moves with ease. I can tell this is going to be an awesome plane to fly for a long time!

Well everybody has their opinions. I think VF has a good product for the money (you get what you pay for) for me the plane looks great, the only draw back in my opinion is the weight of the plane, some of the wood is not the best and the push rods for the elevator other than that their a great value.

I would buy another one


later

I noticed this morning that the price has went up $10 on the 66" VectorFlights. They are still on sale, and $10 down from the Normal Price, but $10 up from where they just were. I hope that everyone who wanted one, got one ordered at the lower price.

I can tell you I did.. I ordered it at about last week.
I think i need to stay away from this forum. Everytime i check it i want to build that plane more and more. AHHHHHHHH!!! (ha ha)

Vector Flight

http://strato.net/~cooter/

Third flight report - - -

Let me start by saying a few changes were made since maiden flight and its immediate follow-up flight. Prop has been changed from a 15x8MAS to a 16x6APC, this helps slow the plane on landings to a nice respectable crawl. Also, it allows the plane to hold a more scale line with the extra power of the 120. Minor adjustments were made to the linkages to account for trim settings from the first flight being a bit further out of line than I am comfortable with.

Takeoff - The Saito 120 started just as easily as ever and with a quick test of the control surfaces I went straight into the takeoff roll. It didn't take much power or space to get the tail up and then shortly after the plane took to the air. Throttle management is vital to keeping the torque of the motor from pulling the plane off centrline. However, with proper throttle control, little rudder correction is needed to keep it on heading. Climb out was strong but graceful. This plane seems to have a larger prescence in the air than it does on the ground, without feeling heavy at the controls.

Flight performance - After making a few passes to reset and adjust trims once more, I proceeded into some of the moves I have been studying online. Cuban 8's, immelmans, Split S's, Hammerheads, Loops, Rolls, and one failed attempt at a flat spin. (failed only due to my lack of experience and courage) Let me add here, high rates were switched on immediately after takeoff. Loops were kept tight, some snap tendancy is noted, but only when large amounts of elevator are applied at once. Proper stick control seems to be mandatory, something you might expect from this type of aircraft. (Meaning it does exactly what you tell it to with out hesitation, so be ready for it ) It was during this flight that I began to notice a bit of push out of my loops. I attributed this to the elevators being slightly out of alignment. (a check at home later proved this to be correct) Rolls stayed close to axial, although they are not as fast as I would have expected on high rates. I will be adjusting throws to compensate, more on this below. Vertical performance is out of sight with the prop change and power of the 120. It doesn't even seem to slow down going straight up as long as I will let it.

Landing - As with the maiden flight I started my approach by cutting to idle (which is still a bit high during the continued break in period). The Edge floats nicely through the crosswind leg and then turns on to final with plenty of airspeed to spare. Touch down was smooth and simple on the mains with no tendency to tip stall. I feel it could have landed slower as the idle speed is lowered and I work on my flare a bit with this larger bird.


Adjustments to be made for future flights - I have increased high rate throws to maximum deflection for all surfaces. Expo remains in effect on both rates to help minimize the likelyhood of overcorrection. Larger, 3" foam wheels will replace the supplied for flying off the grass field. All in all, for what little flight time I have on it, the VF Edge 540 seems to be holding it's own. [8D]

When you were saying that the elevators were not perfectly alligned, I take it that you have 2 seperate elevator halfs? How are the halfs connected? I really hate dealing with seperate halfs becasue they are a pain in the living arse to setup. As you speak from experience of building the plane, would you have done something else to build the elevator.