Hi,

I got a Easy Star for Christmas and I have it all together and I think ready to go. I am trying to figure out the CG?
The book tells me the CG position is stated as a distance wich is measured aft from the wing root leading edge,i.e. close to the fuselage.

Can someone please explain to me in english how do I find the CG. Also what is the best way to balance it. I have seen two pencils stuck in some styrofoam and the plane balancing on that.

Any help would be highly appreciated. Any other helpfull tips on getting up in the air would be great too...........Thanks

What it means is the CG is whatever distance it states from the front of the main wings back. It helps if you're closer to the fuse. For instance, if it's 4 inches from the leading edge, just measure 4 inches from the front of the main wings back, and put your fingers there on both sides and see if it balances. If not, move the battery in the nose until it's balanced. Velcro strips will help you move the battery where you want it.

Good luck. I started on an Easystar and it's a very forgiving plane. I love mine and still fly it on occasion.

As for getting it in the air, go to full throttle, point it into the wind and give it a good strong throw, slightly up. It helps to have someone throw it for you the first few times until you get a feel for how it flies.

Ahhhhhh........ I think I see.

So if I understand you correctly, there is a set CG measurment for this,or any,plane. Is this correct?

There is not a CG measurement for this plane anywhere in the manuals I got with this plane. I almost think it's missing something cause there are a lot of Fig. A,B,C's etc. in the manual but not one picture that corresponds with them.

Thanks for the reply Pete

Gimme a sec to find the manual online and I'll take a look.

The EasyStar, like any other aircraft, must be balanced at a particular point in order to achieve stable flying characteristics. Assemble your model ready to fly, and install the flight battery. The Centre of Gravity (CG) should be about 5 mm from the rear edge of the spar cover. Mark this point.

This setting corresponds to about 78 mm from the root leading edge, measured on both sides of the fuselage. Support the model at this point on two fingertips and it should balance level. If not, you can move the flight battery forward or aft to correct the balance point. Once the correct position is found, mark the position of the battery inside the model to ensure that the pack is always replaced in the same position.

Got It. Everything looks good to go. I will give it a toss tomorrow.

Thanks for the help Pete

Hold up Chief,, if you cant figure out the CG on a plane you aint ready for any tossin just yet..you need someone there with you to check out that plane and that has a buddy box!...Rog
are you a member of a club? the AMA? or do you have plenty 'o' land to fly on, its not like you can take a trainer to the school yard...
.OKAY nevermind apparently it IS a parkflyer..my bad I thought we were talkin .40 trainer

i would still recommend that you have a person that has some flight experience with you. the ezstar is a great plane to learn on and get a feel of flying but it does help if you have someone just take a look at it, maybe take it up and trim it before you start flying her yourself. the elapor is strong but it does break.

the one thing that will kill you is over-flying the plane. if you feel you are losing control, just let go of the controls completely. the ezstar, more than many planes, will right itself. don't try to do anything fancy until you can fly her around a circuit clockwise and counterclockwise. it's a fairly safe plane with it's pusher prop and it's a soft nose but still be careful.

good luck!

This is the best way to measure the CG in all airplanes and gliders. It is a cinch once you get the hang of it and well worth the $22.99.



Just go to the Tower Hobbies link below to order:

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXK259&P=ML

Cool, I will be making one tomorrow. I'm an R&D Tech and have access to a machine shop. Little over kill but it will keep me busy.

I have flown double prop gliders with no real problems and have been flying on a PC simulator. This model too. I went by the hobby shop my wife bought it at and the guy said everything looked good. So I feel pretty good about flying. There is usually a bunch of guys flying at the park. It was way too windy today though. Maybe tomorrow

Thanks for the input guys

Be very careful with wind with that plane. If you're using the stock battery, it doesn't produce a lot of power. Enough to fly, sure, but not well in wind. A little wind is awesome, since you can point the plane into the wind and cut the throttle to float around forever, but too much wind, and that little motor won't be able to push the plane through it and all you'll see is a little dot floating away.

Consider getting a slightly beefier speed control like a 20 or 25 amp, and get some good 8 cell, 2/3A CBP1150 packs from www.cheapbatterypacks.com or wherever you get your batteries from. A good charger will get them charged up in less than 30 minutes.

Also consider getting some better servos with metal gears. The stock servos on the Easystar will strip their gears if you sneeze on them too hard.

I told my wife she would regret getting this . LOL .......

I bought a simulator and am already looking for my next plane. Buddy stoped buy and I think he got sold too.

Gotta Love Your Hobbies.

Thanks for the tips Pete. I was looking to buy more batteries. Glad I read your post first.

I think the battery suggestion is a great one. I myself ended up with 1500mah 11.1V lipo packs that I ran at half throttle most of the time. I used the standard ESC, though. That gave it much better performance.

I didn't feel the need to go to a 25amp ESC though I'm sure it's better but it's also more expensive.

But as for the METAL GEARS servos, I think that's way overkill.

The one thing I would recommend is generous rudder travel. One main hack for the EZstar is the credit card stuck on the rudder. gives it much more authority.

If not metal gears, at least beefier than stock. I was stripping servos left and right, some even with slightly harder than normal landings. I put some metal gear servos in them and haven't had a problem since.

I wouldn't consider it overkill. Try it out with the stock servos for a while and see how it works out. I could have been a particularly unlucky consumer.

Have you had a chance to fly it yet?