As you know I am new here and fairly new too the hobby, even though I have bought many airplanes that are out of my current skill level while my job is going well now knowing how the economy will be come new year but I have a Alpha 40 as my trainer with about 15 hours on her, and didnt crash it yet LOL, I have a hangar 9 camel with a .80 saito and a TF P-51 with a knight 100 which is my all time favorite plane and cant wait till the day I maiden her, she is just waiting in the basement for next season. Now as for my question after about another 10 or so hours on my alpha I would like to go too a Hangar 9 Pulse XT 40 PNP or a Hangar 9 Pulse XT 60. Would either of those be a good choice? If so which one should I go with? Also in your fellas opinion after I master my first low wing will I be ready for my P-51 yet or will I have too go with something else first so the P being my 4th plane? I do have a Hangar 9 Camel, would that be a ok second plane? Or a sundowner 50 for 2nd? Ive seen them fly and have heard that they are for intermediate and advanced pilots and since there wing loading is so low they can land at a nice slow speed. I have been on my real flight sim atleast 2-3 hours everyday practicing with the P-51 ( Does that fly similar on the sim as it would in real life?) I have not built any planes yet but would like too but I am a professional bodybuilder and Nutritionist and working on my 2nd book too be published so time is not something I have alot of and the time I have is used on my Alpha or spent with my fiancee or on the sim. Or tearing up the neighbors bushes with my supercharged Jato 3.3 LMAO... Thank you all for your help, any suggestions would be very helpful.

I dont know much about hangar 9 models but i would go for the pulse xt 40. I thinck you should be able to master the p51 mustang

Also I asked this in the sim forum but may get more responses here, are the aircraft on real flight for example my P51 realistic in flight characteristics to the actual RC Model? Because I have been practicing and practicing with the P51 alot now, but still am going to go with the Pulse XT first but just was wondering if they are close from sim to aircraft. I know it really helps with the muscle memory on sims but....? Thanks fellas.

The way the P51 on Real Flight react on landing is the way you should expect your TF P51 to fly. Notice the unforgiving nature on landing approach with the tendency to tip stall on final.

The Camel can be a handful on approach because of several things. The tall landing gear, effectiveness of the rudder when the noise is high, and the inherent drag of the plane make it a difficult plane to land.

The other planes you mention are sweet hearts to land and fly if the control throws are kept at conservative levels.

The big thing about a lot of the low wing planes is that you need to stay constantly on guard about keeping the wings level. You get accustomed to it eventually and never give it another thought.

THE best 2nd airplane you can buy is the great planes cherokee hands down..you will absoloutely love this plane check the link!
> http://www.greatplanes.com/airplanes/gpma1033.html

no,no,no..........the great planes Big Stik .60!!!!!


....and I have a hanger 9 P-51 and its the hardest to fly plane I have,but its had alot of repair work done to it before and while I had it. It takes alot of elevator trim to get it to fly level,and it noses over so easy during take off and landing its not even funny. I even got the landing gear kicked out front alot. I'd say make the mustang your 4th plane if your lucky,and have an instructor fly it a time or two first to let you know its characteristics. Mine also has an OS 1.20 4-stroke and it wont slow down for nothing!

I like the Hanger 9 Ultra Sticks

Some would argue for the four star series as the best second as well.

Certainly one of the most fun kits I've ever built and building a 120 is not that expensive for a truly monstrous plane.

I strongly recommend the Four Star series as a first kit build. They are laser cut and fit well and are simple with a low parts count.

The kits and the ARFs fly well also

BLHOLLO you read my mind, I was having a hard time deciding on my 2nd plane after seeing the Cherokee in the new RC plane mag, do you think it will be a better choice in getting me ready for my P-51? Also mentioned above you are right on the sim, but I have atleast 2 hours a day landing the P-51 and have it down on the sim, so hope it goes well when I maiden her...Also I dont know if I can post this but I am actually selling my Hangar 9 camel with a saito 80 for 575$ shipped all built an ready to fly, fully and professionally built. The person i bought it from got out of rc as he could not see good anymore, it was only flown 3 times.

Jacked69
The cherokee is a all around good flyer you will love it, its a sport plane that flys so stable, this plane has no bad habits at all its really fast and landings are about 7-10mph, you can even use flaps it you have a 7ch radio! I love this plane and hands down is the best bang for your buck, a p-51 looks nice but the cherokee will fly circles around it no doubt. The hanger 9 camel isnt a bad airplane but i think its a would be a difficult 2nd plane to fly, bipes take a little more attention. I would rather you get the p-51 over the camel. but wih the cherokee you will satisified, it flys like 3 planes in one.

also it will definatly get you up to speed for the p-51, the landings are most important

Jacked69,

Take baby steps. Re-use the 40 size engine, radio gear, battery and servos that's on/in your Alpha 40 and put it on a low priced TT Lazy Tiger, or even a low priced Avistar. You will crash them at some point. Join the club. It happens to ALL of us. No sense losing the farm because of impatience. You have the rest of your life. Don't be a shooting star and burn out because of bad choices. Take baby steps.

root aka Bob G

ps I have a Camel and Saito 82 now and could NEVER have landed or taken off right after my trainer period.

BLHollo, I already do have the P-51 from TF and just put it aside so when I can step up too it and root, I agree I am taking baby steps as I know I have much too learn, I did notice the tip stall on landings on the sim, I have mastered it down on landings with the P51 and have landed in 3,4,5 and 6 MPH head winds, down winds and cross winds. But my real airplane cert has really helped me out knowing just how much rudder too use pending on wind speed and exact direction being it 170 degrees or 40 degrees. BL That cherokee is dam sharp, BUT the only thing that really keeps me leaning towards the Pulse is it is a PNP and ready too fly, I have not built my own model yet but I am on here to learn too do that too, I would love to do my own. BL are you serious on the 7MPH landings, that is almost like nothing, at that speed someone can land that in there sleep, that is actually probably slower than my Alpha 40 can land but not sure on that but it must be really close in landing speeds. ALso on the camel I have, do you think it is a harder bird to fly than the P-51 I have? I thought Bis would be easier too land because of the amount of lift they have so you can do dead stick landings ( can you dead stick with a camel?) Also what aerobatic capabilities does the camel have and can perform? Will the camel out perform my P-51? So I made up my mind, its down too the cherokee which looks sweet as BL said and its weird as I just seen it the other day and watched a video on it, and I have flown those in real life and love the way they fly and land, they also do land very slow, not as slow as a cessna 182 but pretty darn close for a low wing plane. Now what do you fellas mean on landing the camel with its high landing gear? The thing I do not like on my camel is no tail wheel, so on landing I guess its going to go wherever its heart desires?? Or does it land somewhat straight? On Hangar 9s video on the camel check out their landing, it was a ruff landing and the right wing slammed into the ground, and I would assume that a hangar 9 rep was flying it, and I would assume he is a VERY experienced vet. The planes I would love to own after I master the hobby is one of my favorite planes of all time, the Corsair but that I heard is one handfull to land and fly in general due too the gull wing, the sundowner 50, The Pitts BiPlane and no doubt the TF AT-6. Thanks alot for all of your input fellas, its great to have people who are willing to help and understand I am buying the planes JUST to set aside while business is going well not knowing how it can be in the next months or so. But my itch was scratched after I got the P51 but got the itch for the cherokee or Pulse now LOL....Dam this hobby is going to be expensive, but all in all if I am enjoying it price means nothing. Thanks again.....

I just looked up the cherokee at tower hobbies, WOW only 159$ for a ARF? I noticed it can take a 40 size 2 stroke, should I take out all of the electronics and motor from my alpha 40 if I decide on this as my second or go with a larger motor to get ready for the P-51 etc? And with flaps you cant beat that, the pulse does not have flaps, that is why I went with the TF p-51 and not the Hangar 9 as I know in real planes flaps are a HUGE plus. I think the cherokee is my 2nd bird BL....Thanks for the input on that....

Jacked69, You hit the nail on the head with the camel, with those type wings at low speeds it will tend to rotate left to right because there is not enough air traveling over the wings laterally so landings are a bit tough as you saw in the video, a good friend of mine said that it the plans looks hard to fly by a experienced flyer then its probally VERY hard to fly. The best thing about the cherokee is that it has flaps, its the flaps that make landings so smooth and slow, its great. What did was i took out all the parts from my trainer (.46 engine, 4 servos,on/off switch,Recivier) and put it all in my cherokee and it flys great. Now I will say that it is somewhat easier to build than most ARFs but it will propally take 5-7hours and it will be done, the build is straight foward..it was actually the first airplane ive ever built and i had zero problems with it. As for your P-51 if you want to go with a larger engine then go for it, remember you can always throttle back if its too much but just be aware of weight and center or gravity =)

That cherokee will be a nice plane for you if you've really mastered your trainer. I would honestly highly recommend NOT taking anything(radio,servos,motor) out of your trainer to put in your cherokee if you can possible afford not to. Your at the point(2nd or 3rd plane) that your gonna want to fly a different plane or two and I garrantee you'd regret ripping apart your other plane because you'll want to fly it. Plus once you do put everthing back in it,then you have to retrim everything etc. which is a pain. Definetly go with a .46 engine too. Its always better to have extra power then not enough in case of botched landings and take offs. And like Root said....you will crash to some extent at one point or another,so really do take baby steps. Its better to mess up a beater plane then one like a nice P-51 that your REALLY prood of. And keep in mind that flying sims only teaches your coordination which totally "flies" out the window when your actually flying when your so nervous you cant stand it. And the nicer plane your flying(like your P-51)....the more nervous you get,thus your hands tend to forget what to do. I would actually suggest flying a 3rd plane before your 51,like maybe a more aerobatic plane. My 3rd plane was a hobbico sukhoi 31......and MAN do I still love that plane. Great 3rd plane. They should have never stopped making it. Ebay might still have one here and there.


But yes....Cherokee is good,and dont get too exited about that 51 yet( I know that hard to do,huh? lol)

jester21 is right, if you can afford to, put new gear in the cherokee, but if you cant just swap it from the trainer.

The Pulse XT 40 would make a fine 2nd plane for a new pilot that has mastered their trainer, IMHO. It`s only drawback is that it`s lightly built and won`t be tremendously tolerant of rough treatment. One thing I noticed is that it is an easy airplane to land, but is bouncy if you don`t land it JUST RIGHT. I found that it lands best if you fly it to the ground with some speed. In that respect it`s similar to a warbird. It lands best by letting it come in flat, controlling descent rate with the throttle and only giving it a slight amount of elevator right at touchdown.

I bought the pulse 60 as my 2nd plane ... after my first being a nexstar, and I LOVE the pulse 60. This plane is a dream to fly, but this is the second plane I ever flown so what do I know

FWIW, I went from a nexstar to a avistar to a tt lazy tiger to a sig mayhem to a andrews aeromaster bipe to anything i wanted to after that...it took about 2 years. Then in another 2 years I went to a H9 P47, an 9 sized ultimate, a CG chipmunk, a GP spacewalker, a sig wonder, a diamond dust, a GP combat p-51, a little ACE ultimate, a cermark sukhoi, a H9 texan, a Wrld Mdls clipped cub, a reg sized WM cub, a H9 sopwith camel, and a tiger moth. Yeah bouncing around from plane to plane as far as what my fancy was at the time. I have a DA50 and a H9 Extra260 calling for me in my closet.....maybe when the mood hits me. At the moment, I have a hankering to flying SLOW and using rudder as much as I can.....go figure....

There's a ton of stuff out there...Ask a load of questions, do your homework, read the forums with a grain of salt and have FUN choosing. This hobby is the greatest.

root aka Bob G

p.s. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

My second and third was the Four Star 40 and then the 60 size. I have sence built and flew several different planes. I keep comeing back to the Four Star series. Last week I orderd a four Star 120 BIY. My 60 size did everything I could do and did it great.
john

I really like both planes, the pulse and cherokee, but one question, would the pulse be better for me to get ready for the P51 since it is a tail dragger and not a TRI gear like the Cherokee? I did notice on the video the pulse likes too bounce and noticed on my sim that I have to aim the P-51 at the ground until the last minute than use throttle for altitude and very little elevator just before touch down to make it smooth, just like when I fly real aircraft, so it all applies and I am glad I have a bit of a head start knowing ALOT about how planes work and just how much each little movement matters, now when I am flying a real chopper my hands are sweaty, no room for mistakes I do have 4 RC helis but I think I may get out of those as I really like planes alot more, now in real life flying I can not decide. You have all been great, I will let you know what I will decide too go with, most likely it will be the Cherokee because above mentioned that the Pulse is built a little delicate, a strong landing gear is a must IMO. Now for those who have the P-51 how strong are the landing gear on those birds? Are they really built up or are they flimsy? ALso one more question, does anyone know where I can get snow skis for my ALpha 40? I love flying it in the winter and landing in the snow. I looked but cant find them anywhere and I know they make them as I used to have a Tiger Trainer 40 but sold it before I flew it the 5th time and got out of the hobby until I got back in with the alpha 40. Thanks again fellas.

Jacked69,

Dubro makes skis in two sizes, park flyer and .40 size. Their are lots of threads and vids regarding
skis. I believe Tower-hobbies carries them and you could also go to the dubro site. I plan on
getting a set for my Electristar and my Alpha .40 also. [8D]

Hemicuda

In my experience, the landing gear issue with the Pulse XT40 is no problem if you do two simple things:

1. Put some extra epoxy inside the fuselage around the landing gear block.

2. Instead of the metal cap screws that come with the kit to mount the landing gear, use 6/32 nylon bolts. You can get them at Lowe`s or Home Depot. In a "less than perfect landing", the nylon bolt heads will absorb the impact and shear off, thus saving repairs to the landing gear area of the fuselage. All you have to do is replace the bolt.

If you`re trying to prepare for a warbird, IMHO, the Pulse will prepare you better because it`s a tail dragger and lands best in a way that more closely resembles how you will have to land a warbird ( see earlier post ). This is not a knock on the Cherokee. It`s a beautiful airplane and is a great flyer. It`s just different.