lt1956

Seems like a nice setup On Ebay its pretty cheap and it comes with a 72mhz radio and Brushless motor! lol 2 wing sets also. Has anyone tried this yet?

lt1956

So no one has tried this plane? It looked like a good plane to start with? I liked the Idea of 72mhz and Brushless motor.

bruce88123

Chinas best?
http://www.made-in-china.com/showroo...00-SP006-.html

Never heard of it before.

lt1956

I think its new for this Year, I never heard of it before Either, But it seems they put a serious effort to make a MUCH better plane for your money than normal. The 950Kv Brushles Motor with 25A ESC , 4 CHANNEL Transmitter 72mhz, 2 wings one for training other for 3D. Its Lipo Ready if you get that style of battery. Wings tear down for transport and used a 3 blade prop.

It Seems to have alot of good features, plus it used the traight tail with Linkage, not the V with Fishing line. It does "SEEM" to be a good First/parkflying Plane for the cost, but you never know thats why I ask........

I hope someone hear has used or heard about it, as it looks like a better investment than the T-hawk and some others as its already has a brushless motor.

bayward

Looks pretty good to this novice. I might order one to stick in the back of the closet until I master my Slow Stick. It looks like I could put an AR6100 receiver in the plane and use my own transmitter, what do you think ?

Bob

lt1956

I think you could as its seems to be upgrade friendly, on their site they mention upgrading the motor battery etc if you wanted. I like the Idea of 2 wings of 2 different types and the fact they give a good brushless motor, and a common RC transmitter instead of the 27mhz stuff. The ABS body I like because of durability and the fact I can screw into it without worry of it falling out like Foam. Its new so I doubt many have tried it, but for the money it seems the best ones out there for the price range its in. They also sell a slew of additional parts, though the shipping costs dont make them as cheap as your local hobby store. But still 2 wings, all that is needed is another battery and a couple props, they may not even be needed seeing its mounted on the BACK of the plane. I like white also as its easier to color

bayward

lt1956, you sound like a commerial for this plane. Are you in any way connected to the seller ? Just curious.

Bob

lt1956

No but if I am that Good then maybe they should give me a FREE plane. lol No I am New AS you can see from some of my other posts.

I noticed this plane on Ebay for 114 +40 shipping so about $155 which is cheaper than the T-hawk and has more better electrical parts. I am stuck between the 2 but T-hawk company wont let me get their trainer set and minus one of the transmitters. I would prefer a 72mhz system than a 27mhz. But I dont want to get something that doesnt work etc.

So until someone tries or has tried this plane, I may be the first, which scares me. lol BUT the brushless motor makes a difference and almost everything is from China nowadays. I am still thinking between the 2, the raised the price to 169 for the T-hawk pkg from when it was 149 not too long ago as I seen some threads.

You tell me, $155 or $169 Both come with 2 wings one with a brushless outrunner motor & 72mhz transmitter, and the other 380 motor brush can, 27mhz transmitter, but 2 batteries and 3 Props and another pair of tails.

Problem is I dont think a Back prop plane would damage the props too much, so I think those extras arent as needed and having to pay $13 for a 480 motor can, isnt a great idea as extra cost and the fact its still a canned motored.


Disclaimer: If at anytime in my post I sound like I know what I am doing this is NOT true, Beware I am a noob who has been reading threads to learn. end of warning. lol

bayward

I am a rank novice as well. I have a Falcon 3D heli I am learning with. Also a Slow Stick that has made three feeble attemps at flying. Way too much wind for the feather light SS to fly in every time I have the time.

The way I read the description of the Phoenix, it comes with an extra set of tail feathers in addition to the extra wing. The T-Hawk looks like a decent plane to me as does the Phoenix. The 27mhz radio is the only negative I can see for the Hawk. I like the idea of being able to change the wing position on the Phoenix. The Phoenix looked good enough to me that I ordered one. So you and I might be the Phoenix Guinea pigs. You will most likely get yours in the air first though. As I do not have as much time for hobbies as I think I should - a time demanding job. [] Spare parts might be a problem, as I do not see any listed for the Phoenix with the seller.

Bob

lt1956

I already checked with him he carries spare parts, so that isnt the issue, more the cost of them since they are overseas.

But really I dont think too many spare parts are needed for this plane. I plan on getting a extra battery later and a DC charger for the field. I plan to fly only using a 800mw wireless cam, I think its the only way to go. Another minus for the T-hawk you forgot is that is has a brush Can motor not brushless.

And it looks like only 2 sets for the MAIN wings not Tail. No big deal over all it seems to be the better deal and I like the tear down you can do for transport.

I wont be flying mine until I get the Cam system in from China which will be about 2 weeks. lol So you may be flying before me. Lets keep this thread posted so others can see the plus and minus of this plane from new people like ourselves.

bayward

Do you know if the T-hawk has a separate receiver / ESC, or one of the integrated ones ? By integrated I mean the receiver and ESC all on the same circuit board. If the T-Hawk has the all in one type I would consider that a negatve. As I like the separate ones, makes it easier to upgrade should you decide to do so.

The radio transmitter for the Phoeix looks to be better than the one that comes with the T-Hawk. From what I can tell by looking at the pictures anyway.

Hopefully the Phoenix will be able to handle a little breeze better than the Slow Stick I am currently trying to learn with. I do not know how all the people fly their SS's. I tried again yesterday afternoon with what I considered just a slight breeze. When the SS got about four feet off the ground a diagonal force breeze came up and pushed the plane at a 45 degree angle for forty or fifty feet before the plane settled back to the ground. Then while the SS was sitting on the ground while I walked over to it, another gentle gust came along and flipped the plane over twice. More than I can deal with given my lack of experience. I know I was told the SS needed calm to fly, but I did not think that meant dead calm. Or more likely it is my complete lack of experience in handling the plane.

Try to take some pictures of your Phoenix assembly process to post here in this thread and I will do the same.

Bob

lt1956

Not sure I think its seperate but I am not sure on the T-hawk. But I will try to get some pictures to post, I think its a good first plane for us beginners. I hope I am right. lol

But the Motor wont have to be replaced for a long time, unless one upgrades to a faster one. It also can be converted to Lithium pretty easy which is a plus. I like the simulator its suppose to come with, its free and I hope it works. I plan to test the tranmitter out and see what REAL range it gets. I hope its farther than the Cameras.

bayward

My Phoenix 2000 arrived today. Pictures to follow.

My initial reaction is that the Phoenix 2000 is well made for the money and I made a good buy. Overall quality looks good as well. The only negative I could see was a few of the stickers were not pressed on real tight. Some of the edges were loose, which took about one minute to fix. The English portion of the manual was even written by someone fluent in English grammar. For those of you that will read the Chinese portion I cannot help you.

Hopefully I can keep this plane in one piece while I improve my flying skills. Then I can put the second set of wings on and use the plane as an aileron trainer. Unfortunately I will not be putting the plane together real soon. As I have still not pulverized my Slow Stick I am learning how to fly with. Once I am a little more confident with the SS I will put the Phoenix together and give it a try.

Bob

lt1956

Same here, I got mine in also. But my CD for the simulator was damaged and I got no reply from the Ebay guy and a copy to replace it. lol Over all its a nice system, I removed the stickers on mine as I plan to paint it. The motor has ALOT of power. just in testing the servers and motor it moved at half throttle. without wings! lol

It has PLENTY of Room for a camera setup and the linkage only needed some slight adjusting for the length to match. It comes with 2 Props! and 2 Wings! Great deal for the money, makes me wonder if they will raise the price after a while, you do get alot of stuff for the money and its seems to all be quality stuff.

I have never built one of these planes before, and it was easy, letting you know they took the simple approach for new people. Everything fits and no defects. Over all I am really pleased. I am going to see if I can test fly tomorrow, but I have no idea if the weather will be good. Battery is nice, and the charger is slow about 200ma so no worry of over charging to fast. tHE LANDING gear seems to be solid and over all I think this plane can take a beating, I guess I will see, or actually hope I wont. lol


The transmitter I got for the camera was nice and small about the size of a lighter but 1/4 the weight. Its suppose to reach 2000ft. The Plane seems like it can carry alot of weight and the Motor seems strong.

bayward

lt1956, how are you coming with your Phoenix ? Have you flown it yet ?

Mine is still sitting in the box.

Bob

daniirwan

Hello fellas,

Here's a linky to a video of the Phoenix 2000 flying..it's probably made by the manufacturers, so it kinda looks like an advert.

This model retails for about USD180 over here. Initially, when I thought of taking up RC flying, this is what I had set my eyes upon..but eventually I went the route of the 'slimers'..or fuel planes =)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrxNkxIgneo

greg booth

I bought this plane and flew it with the trainer wing - no ailerons, and it did not fly very well in my opinion. It was easily upset by wind. It has lots of power and survived 4 crashes with no damage. I think it will do much better with the 4-channel setup. I plan on setting it up with a FMS co pilot to help me get started. http://www.fmadirect.com/

lt1956

Well I am rubbish with mine. I cant fly worth Beans, I am willing to sell to anyone who wants my plane? I would sell for $100 including shipping costs. I have the Box etc. Only the trainer wing has some damage from 4 crashes. lol But the plane can take a beating for sure without damage. Onely reason the wing was damaged was a rock took a small piece off the rear side of the wing. Doesnt effect flight. ALL OTHER ITEMS ARE IN MINT condition including the other wing set. I live in a windy part of the country and I just cant fly around here.

If anyone is interested in the Plane let me know? I can tear it down more if you only want it for Spare parts. BUt I WOULD LIKE TO GET A LITTLE of my money back out of it. I paid $160 + shipping.

$100 flat rate and I can send pictures before the sell and can go through Ebay and Paypal for the transaction. My lack of skill can be your gain if you want a nice plane with good power or extra parts for an existing one.

Email me at lt_1956 "at" yahoo "dot" com

Vulture

Greg Booth you seem to be the only one so far who has actually assembled and flown this Phoenix 2000 plane so I hope you won't mind a couple of questions on its assembly and performance.

Hoping to use it as a platform for aerial photography, I purhcased a Phoenix 20000 "RTF" plane from BananaHobby.com, but started to get uneasy about its build quality even as I assembled the plane. Instructions call for the horizontal tail fin to be attached to tail with two tiny screws that are pretty close to impossible to allign properly and tighten into the 2 tail-fin attachment posts once they are inserted through the hull, so after a prolonged but unsuccessful effort at that task, I finally opted to tape that fin on with duct tape. The result was a slightly lopsided tail which did not look as though it would fly straight if at all. Feeling I hadn't much to lose at this point, I decided to hazard a test flight.

With the battery fully charged I decided to try and hand launch the Phoenix 2000 plane, but each time I did so with full up elevator and wide open throttle, the plane simply nose-dived into the dirt as though it were made of concrete. The general impression I got was that the plane was not built sturdy enough to withstand even moderate flying stresses, and came equipped with insufficient engine power and wing-span to overcome gravity no matter how it was launched. Now I concede to being pretty much a noob to RC flight, but from what I have seen of it so far, I find it very difficult to remain optimistic that the Phenix 2000 plane is in fact capable of flight.

Greg please let me know how on earth you were able to get the tail of your Phenix 2000 plane fixed straight with the provided tiny screws, and also of course how easily the assembled aircraft took to the air. With the way my Phoenix 2000 plane dropped like a stone as soon as it was launched, I am toally baffled as to how anyone got that same plane to actually fly in its stock configuration. Did you install a bigger motor to get it to fly, or did that same stock engine, which seemed so underpowered as to amount to a joke in my plane, actually work as advertised with your Phoenix 2000 plane ? But for your post on a successful flight with this Phoenix 2000 plane, I would have been certain that it is a scam product which is not capable of flight at all.

greg booth

Hi Vulture,
Yes I have a trick to help with the tail assembly. They did not provide the holes in the bottom of the fuselage so I had to drill two small holes. To help align the holes with the plastic extensions I put two thin rods or stiff wire all the way through the fuselage and into the plastic extension holes where the screws go. I then inserted the plastic extensions through the fuselage and pulled out one wire and then without moving anything I put in one screw. Then I pulled out the other wire and put in that screw.

Regarding hand launch. From my experience this plane will not hand launch. Maybe with the trainee wing but defiantly not with the aileron wing. You must take off from the ground. I think this is due to the thrust pushing down on the nose.

Other issues I found with the plane: The servos are very weak. The servo wire extensions are too weak and bend when in compression. To help them out I cut the foam hinges and made hinges with wide plastic tape. I plan on replacing the tape with real hinges in the future. I made a little fairlead out of a tiny loop of stiff wire and put it between the tail and where the servo extension exits the fuselage. This prevents the servo extension bending when in compression. A stronger extension would have probably been the best solution but mine worked. After a complete servo failure I decided to replace all of them with stronger servos. The landing gear is really a joke. I have ordered new stronger landing gear and bigger wheels from Tower hobbies because I have to land on rough grass. I found that the motor got hot and the speed controller totally fried. I do not think they programmed it for the li po batteries that came with my plane. I replaced the speed controller with a waypoint 25 amp and was happy to find that the motor now runs cool.

Regarding flying. I have hade more successful flights with the aileron wing. I think you must have calm wind for the trainer wing to work and I have not had calm enough weather. I think they intended to use the heavier ni mh batteries in these planes. Mine came with much lighter li po batteries and it was tail heavy until I enlarged the battery box and put in two batteries. I have been told that balancing planes is critical and tail heavy is the worst. Because I am a beginning pilot I installed a FMA co-pilot receiver and infrared sensor. This greatly helps a novice like me control the plane with the aileron wing but it cost as much as the entire plane!

Over all I find the plane has nice features but the electronics and the fit and finish is abysmal but repairable if you have the time and money. The crashworthiness is outstanding.
Good luck and tell me how you do.
Greg Booth

Vulture

Thanks very much Greg for all the very helpful advice on this plane. I'm printing out your post to serve as a guide when I get to making the needed modifications. It really is an eye opener to learn that a hand launch is actually impossible with this model.

bruce88123

Sounds like a great plane with the exception of the wings, tail, fuselage, motor, servos, battery, ESC and landing gear. What's that leave, the prop?

bayward

My experience so far is not all that good either. After sitting in the box for several weeks, last weekend I decided to put it together and give it a try. Charged the Nimh batteries and attempted to test the plane on the bench. The motor will not spin. I email the Ebay seller I bought the plane from and explain although I have had the plane about seven weeks this is the first time is has been out of the box. The response was along the lines of "I do not have any idea what might be wrong." That was it, not even a hint of an offer to help. The Ebay seller was: annm913 ([email protected]) Ann Menendez Overland Park, KS 66213 United States.

Turns out the ESC was bad. So that cost me another ~$30.00. The plane is now ready to be flown, but it looks like it will be too windy all weekend here.

Bob

greg booth

Hi Vulture,
One thing I forgot to mention. The tail screws first go through the little holes in the tail skid wire that functions as little washers. A helper to hold everything still as you remove the guide wire and put in the screw may help this delicate task.

Vulture

With a little more of a patient approach than at first, I was finally able to fit both screws through that wire loop which serves as a "tail wheel", and then into the two posts of the horizontal tail fin, Greg. The tail is now absolutely straight, that unsightly duct tape is gone and I am about ready to try another takeoff roll. By the way, could you give a rough estimate of the number of yards of taxi distance that your plane needed to build up enough speed to get airborne ? Also does the tail leave the ground first as the plane nears take off speed, or does the craft just transition to flight when the speed reaches "V1" and the elevator is pulled back ?

Despite the rather poor quality of the electronics in this plane, it really would be an ideal craft for aerial photography with that nearly 4-foot wingspan, all that unused space in the cockpit and that nearly indestructible plastic fuselage. If mine does actually take to the air, I will be encouraged enough to change and upgrade whatever components it would need to become more reliable.

I thank you again for your responses here. I am finally past my initial hair-pulling frustration with the Phoenix 2000, with my brain re-engaged in some constructive thinking for a change.