Does anyone know anything about the Sonic .25 low wing by Phoenix Models? It is advertised in the Tower catalogue. I have a .32 O.S. sx that I'd like to put in a small airplane. With a pipe it should go quite fast. I am just wondering about it's general flying characteristics and quality of the ARF. It's cheap at $75.00! Thanks in advance....................J.T.

Hey Hammer ! My little Sonic is a great flyer. I have a GMS .25 with a 9x6 prop in mine and it has plenty of ZIP ! I had a GMS.32 standing by just in case, but found it not necessary. I had to add a little weight to the nose to bring the GG in line but that was all.
It's a well built ARF and goes together fast. And good looking too ! Well worth the money !!
Ugo

I have flown one with an OS 40FP on it, flew great. Nice simple sport aircraftl. My only two complaints are I thought it should be lighter than it turned out and the covering is not a standard Monokote style IIRC. The .32 will be a great engine for the Sonic. I would think it'd take a hot running .25 to make this a fun aircraft. The plain bearing .40's are perfect for this aircraft since they weigh about the same as a BB .25 and cost less. This is a good use for the 40/46LA you might have laying around. It's a good way to fly cheap.

for some reason the sonic is the trainer of choice here in taiwan. everyone and their mothers have started on the sonic. high wing followed by the low wing.

a ton of people put tuned pipes on their low wing sonics. i don't know why. but they do. and they love them. i've never flown one but that's probably because i learned to fly outside taiwan. otherwise... who knows... i might be giving first person advice! :-)

A wonderful plane. Able to do lots of aerobatics, yet is stable and easy to fly and a cinch to take off and land. My friend has the low wing sonic, and he powers it with a LA 40, which gives it lots of zip. He has flown the socks off the airplane and I have flown the same airplane several times. Recommend it highly. Also is easy to build, good quality construction, and you can use the hardware, tank and wheels supplied.

Thx Ugo and you other guys. That settles it, I'm going to order a Sonic .25 low wing. All good reports, so how can I go wrong! I was thinking of using 2 mini servos in the wing instead of one in the centre of the wing. This would free of some room in the fuse. Any thoughts pro or con on that?
Am really looking forward to this project.............J.T (Hammer)

If I were to build a new one and buy new servos for it, I'd probably get Hitec HS-81MG for the wings and HS225's for the tail with an HS81 or HS-56 for the throttle.
Add a AAA size 5 cell RX pack and you are good to go. Check the voltage before every flight (always a good idea).

Hammer, Two servos? Why go thru all that BS when one standard servo will do the job. However. I did not add the pieces under the servo plate to reduce the depth the servo goes into the fuse.( see attached pic.) I glued the plate directly to the wing.Plenty of clearance now. I placed the battery on top of the tank. You will be tail heavy !
Give a hollar if you need any help !
Ugo

I don't know exactly how much room there is in the Sonic .25 fuse, but I figure there'e not a lot. I often have trouble with pushrod clearance in small planes when the servo is in the middle of the wing. You don't seem to have any trouble Ugo, so maybe I'll leave it alone and go with the standard installation. I just ordered the Sonic from Towers this morning, and they are sending it airmail for no extra charge, plus I used the $5.00 coupon in the last flyer - so it turns out to be pretty cheap - not that I'm cheap or anything!! I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Hammer

I'll send you a pic of my installation as soon as I finish my lunch !! LOL !
[;Ugo

I've flown Ugo's Sonic and other than being under powered with a GMS .25, it is a great little plane. Takes off straight, does plenty of acro and lands nicely. With the .25, it won't pull a vertical 8 (one loop on top of the first one). That's the reason I call it slightly under powered.

I liked it so much, I ordered 2 and am making a twin fuselage twin out of the 2 kits. I did the same thing to a World Models Sky Raider Mach II and that is a great twin. From my experience, I would say the twin fuselage configuration is the best one for a twin.

I am using two OS .46LAs in the twin. I weighed them compared to a GMS .32 I have and there is only 1.5 oz difference. Overall, the plane is sort of heavy, as has been mentioned. I am going to cover the details of the construction in the Twins Forum. In case you are wondering why I don't use GMS .32s in the twin, I have used them before. I have 4 total and can barely keep 2 running reliably in a twin. Singly, they are great. Pair them up and they do strange things like quit for no known reason. the Twin Sonic will be my 23rd twin so I do have some experience in this area. OS engines keep running without flddling with them every flight, so I pony up the money and use them. Ugo has a couple of my .32s and I have mentioned he should yank the .25 and drop in a little more power.

Here's my installation Hammer...I used cable for my throttle and my friend used what came with the plane... both works fine. Hope this gives you some ideas.
Ugo
As you can see, Ed likes POWER !! LOL! However, He can sure fly the hell out of an airplane !

Those are nice clear photos Ugo - looks pretty straight forward. You are using the nice straight wire attachments on the servo horns. I prefer that over the 'z' bend method although the latter does give a bit more clearance if you need it. I noticed you are using the 311 Hitec servos. I bought a few last fall, cause they were quite inexpensive at the time. Are you happy with them? I personally don't think you have to spend big bucks for servos if you're just an everyday sport-flyer. Hey, you know that Ed Mooreman guy personally? I visit his site on occasion. I e-mailed him about my Easy-Sport mods with the Tower's .75. Hey Ed. you still there? Remember the pics I sent with me in profile looking terrified under the canopy? I'm also known as Terry...............J.T. (Terry) Hammer

To Ed Moorman: Good to hear from you again. I have modified a few kits/arfs for twins as well. My favorite was a Cermark 'Advance' designed for single. I hung 2 os .46 's on it and made it into a tail-dragger. Turned out looking like some kink of WWII fast bomber - sorry I only have hard-copy photos. I will follow your mods for the Sonic twin - sounds really interesting. I appreciate gobs of power,too!!!

J.T. (Terry) Hammer

I really like the Hitec 311's, especially the price ! LOL ! I ain't wore one out yet !
Yep, Ole Ed's been my flying buddy for years. The man's amazing !
Here's Ed's and Flaps latest creation the had out at the field this morning. Minor problems, besides the cold weather.. flight test tomorow...
Ugo

That's one swell look'n airplane! That wouldn't be a Dick Evans design, or perhaps a modified one? You're making me mighty jealous though. Way up here in Belleville, Ont, Canada, we got lots of snow and frigid temperatures in the minus's for days on end - in fact cold enough to freeze the _____ off a brass monkey for sure!! We won't be going to the flying field for at least 2 months. We fly off grass and it stays muddy until the sun dries it up sufficiently. I got time to put together a couple of easy new projects, i.e. the Sonic when it comes and a little Nitro Planes Skylane .15 when it comes - got a nice little os .15 cva, far to nice to just let it sit. Just finished a VMAR Extreme Stick low wing, and have a new os .50 SX on it. Yea Ed would tell me it needs a .75. Oh well what can I say. You got relax once in a while. Talk at you later..........J.T. Hammer

The canard is an original from the fertile mind of Carl "Flaps" Laffert with an occasional sanity check from me. That's his 9th canard and our 22nd twin.

Ugo and I fly together every weekend. He and Flaps are my two flying buds. Flaps is 85 so I drive him out every weekend. He has quit flying and now just builds.

But we have strayed away from the nice flying little Sonic. I have a thread started over in the Twin Forum on the twin fuselage modification. Prograss has been slow as my column is due to be mailed on the 15th and I am working on it. I have already removed the old, 1"-1 1/4" ailerons and have 2" aileron stock and 3/8" tri-stock for wider ailerons. They'll end up being about 2 1/4" wide and should (1) increase the roll rate and (2) lower the wing loading slightly. They add 50 sq in or so.

Flaps will build the new center section with a long dihedral brace. We'll also add a center flap for crow and a landing flap, if needed. I also plan a wider rudder, maybe up to 4" in width. I think the elevator is OK as is.

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As soon as I saw the Sonic on the Tower site, I ordered one, thinking about the same way about it as you are describing them being used at your field. Some models just have that certain "it". The Sonic appears to be one such model.

If my two Super Tigre .34's don't sell on eBay, one of them will power the Sonic (low wing). If they do sell, I'm going to start looking around for a Fox .25BB. Always wanted one. Had their .19BB in 84 and loved it. Very, very powerful and light.


Ed Cregger

Hey Ed - I have a Fox 40 R/C BB from the early 80's. I think it'd be perfect for this aircraft as it doesn't weigh much more than a typical 25BB. This may be the airplane that get my fox 40 in the air - good thought! I like the Fox's since it's something different at the airfield. I flew a couple of seasons with a Fox-74 on an Ultrastick-60 recently. had a heak of a time running it until it hit about 2 gallons, then it ran great.

Sounds like you fellows have a great time together. It's also reassuring to hear that 85 year olds can still maintain an interest and participate in this monomania of ours!

That canard is going to be blast to fly. I am going to check out the 'twin forum' to see what you've done,

Nitro Planes have that 'Long EZ Voyager' on for $114.00 - Looks kind of tempting. I have never built or flown a canard, but apparently they are quite forgiving when it comes to stalling.

I often increase surfaces, too. Since the advent of computer radios, I have become an exponential junkie. Just get as much deflection as possible and dial in a lot of expo. - The best of both worlds!!

Gotta go - take care........J.T. Hammer