stubthumb

Hey up,

I'm trying to decide which plane to buy for my first trainer...

Someone mentioned to me that the JP Prangster is ideal because it is virtually indestructible due to its construction from EPP foam.

Done a search on all the forums and can't find anything on the JP Prangster.

Anyone come across this or used it as their first trainer? What did you think of it?

Should I go for this or just a "normal" ARTF such as a Tutor Trainer 40.

Regards,

Stubthumb

wtb3886

Personally I think there is not much difference between most airplanes that are labled as trainers, until you start talking about indestructible which is a myth and let me explain.

Trainer airplanes that have this lable of indestructible tend to be on the heavy side and require a strong motor just to get airborn. Most people tend to purchase the cheaper motors and this is a handycap from the start.

Purchase a good quality kit that has a top mounted flat bottom wing, some diehedrel in the wing, make sure the covering is not the low temp covering and a good quality motor that has both high and low carb adjustment screws.

Have someone that you know already flies go with you and inspect what trainers are availiable at your local hobby shop.

Check out how well the kit is assembled, check for craftsmenship of the airplane if you are going to purchse a ARF.

The lighter the model weight the better it will fly on calm days which is what training weather is usually. This is also what gives your trainer a slower landing speed and that is what you look for when learning how to fly.

http://www.ashcom.co.uk/models/planes1.htm here is one link that I have found for the JP Prangster.

rider_89

I like the Hobbico Avistar myself, of course I might be a little byest on that comment...

RIder

DBCherry

My Feedback: (4)

I've never heard of the Prangster, so really can't give advice. (Many of the stuff you can get in the UK is not available in the States, and vice versa.)

EPP foam is about as close to indestructable as you can get. It doesn't mean that the aircraft will be though. Definitely check with others in the UK before buying. No sense throwing money at something that's unproven.

Welcome to RCU, and good luck!
Dennis-

Stratman

Hey Stubthumb

Are you still looking to get a prangster, if you are, post back and I'll give you first hand experience of this plane, what it flies like and recommended engine set up etc. We've bounced this thing around our field for a year and it just wont die. I think it will still be living when I'm old and grey.

plivez

Hi Stratman

Prangster sounds like the ideal trainer for my nephew.

I could really use some more info. Any photos would be appreciated.

Thanks

bigchap

i have seen a prangster flown practically flat out into the ground,it bust up the motor but the plane was fine!you can build it as a low-winger or high-winger,do not bother with the low winger,it can be a bit tricky to build though that's a small price to pay for the toughness of this plane.

Stratman

Got your email Pete, here is my experience with the prangster.

I was teaching a mate of mine to fly with his junior 60 but I could see this was going to be more repairing than actual flying.. anyhow one day he came round with a new prangster and I thought it was the ugliest thing I had ever seen.

My opinion of this plane soon changed when I was given the job of the maiden flight to trim it out etc. For me it was a doddle to fly very stable and predictable it had no bad habits at all and dare I say it "a lot of fun". I gave him the controls and it took him a while to get used to turning with ailerons and elevator which would be normal for anyone who had only had experience with rudder and elevator aircraft.

The fun really began when he started doing landing approaches, he would get confused and push the stick the wrong way then panic and I would see the prangster cartwheeling across the field.
This happened quite a bit in the early days and I was always impressed that the most he ever broke was a prop, apart from once.
One day he called "Landing" and I looked up to see the prangster dive straight in to the ground at full throttle, we laughed so much our sides hurt. So this brings me to my next point that on that occasion he did actually split the black plastic nose cowl and tore the exhaust off. He phoned the hobby shop and they sent him up another cowl for about seven quid.

They recommend a 25- 46 for this plane and he has a Thunder tiger gp42 on his and we agree this is a perfect set up for this model, the engine is cheap very reliable and more than enough power for when he had finished his learning. I would recommend not to install the engine as per instructions, instead, install the engine upright, it not only makes it easy to start and operate but the biggest advantage is you don't tear the exhaust off on every hard landing.

The under carriage is more of a cushion for bad landings than anything else, so you can forget touch and goes. When my mate learnt to land properly we the beefed up the legs to make it more usable. You can put a cable tie around both legs to help stop them spreading but in the end we went with a home made design.

Don't be shy with the tape as this is it's strength and the plane still flies great with a couple of extra ounces, also make sure you cover the nose end well as fuel soaked epp will be the only thing that kills this plane.
There is little point in putting a small light engine on the nose as it still needed a bit of led up front to balance.

The 11x 4 master airscrew propeller is good for this plane whilst learning as this diameter on the 42 will help keep the noise down and the 4 pitch will allow for some very slow walking pace landings. (and they are cheap, you’re gonna break a few)

I have seen that they recommend those orange bendy props for the prangster now, but I think the sizes are limited and the 10x6 that they do will be noisy and won't let the plane slow down for landings.

If you choose not to glue the two wing spars into the dihedral brace, you will have an advantage because if the spar breaks for any reason (hard pull up at full throttle for example, don't ask how we know this) you can simply cut the wing at the field, pull out the short bit of spar and reinsert the whole length thats left then re tape the wing and go fly.

Well I have waffled enough now; hope this is of some use.

Happy flying

plivez

Wow thanks Adam, I don't think I could have asked for any more!

I will go ahead and sort out a Prangster for the Nephew.
Actually I am tempted to get one myself, at least I could be sure of at least one plane in my hanger surviving.