Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Hello all,

I was visiting tower hobbies website and looking at their eletric RTF airplanes. Since they have so many to choose from, can anyone recommend a really good RTF to choose from?

Also, I'm looking for something with a run times around 10min minimum.

Just doesn't seem right to spend a lot of money or something that only flys for a minute.

Thanks for the info.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

If you're going to go electric. Then what you need is multiple battery packs. 10 min runtimes are possible with certain battery/motor types. But the secret to enjoying E-flight is to have many spare batteries and or a good field charger.

P.S. If you think electrics ares cheaper then Glow think again.

Goto ezonemag.com and take a look in the forums they specialize in eflight

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

I see from your profile that you already own a warbird. That tells me that you are probably already proficient with ailerons, so I would suggest a Sky Scooter Pro II. Flight times around 10 mins., RTF, and lots of bang for the buck. You get a nice reusable flight pack as well. Mine is currently awaiting a new fuselage (pilot error), but parts are readily available at a reasonable cost. In the mean time, the flight pack is operating happily in my slow stick. You won't get that capability with a Firebird or Aerobird, which are also fun planes that I enjoy flying occasionally. Good luck with whatever you choose.

Bud

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Thanks for the information guys.


Just FYI, if you're wondering why I would be inquiring about an electric when I have a P-51 mustang...well the electric is for my son.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Hadn't crossed my mind. I've seen several glow flyers inquiring about electrics just to try something different. You don't mention how old your son is, or if he has any experience. Assuming that he's totally new to the sport, I am now shouting "Slow Stick" repeatedly at the top of my lungs. These things are perhaps the best electric trainer ever invented. They're inexpensive, nearly indestructable, easy to build and repair, use standard radio gear, are easy to fly, and can be modified to become a four channel aileron plane if you get tired of it. Best of all, they're a blast to fly and you can take 'em indoors when the weather doesn't cooperate. Just my $.02.

Bud

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

How about a personal review of the Aerobird from a new RCer, me. I looked at two channel planes and three channel planes. Clearly With three channels you can do a lot more, so I went with the Aerobird as opposed to something like a Firebird XL.

I was not interested in building. If I spent a month building and then
wrecked it, I would be crushed. I wanted a RTF that could take some
punishment.

I am a first timer. However I am also one of these guys that goes into intense
research when I get interested in something. After several months of research,
talking to people, flyers and non, I bought an Aerobird. It is a super value
but there are other good starters. Here are the plusses and minuses in my mind
of the Aerobird.

Very inexpensive and rugged for a three channel starter - $130-$160
The plane comes complete and fully assembled. Charge the flight battery, put
on the wing, put the batteries in the transmitter and up you go! Even the
batteries for the transmitter are included.

New flyers like me are going to crash, so you don't want something costly to
start with. There is a full line of parts available at reasonable cost. You
can replace the whole main fuselage for $49 including the motor and all the
flight electronics. A wing is $15 and the tail is $9. So, if you crash badly
you can get everything for under $75 and you are back in the with a three
channel plane.

Batteries and charger:

The battery will run for a full 5-6 minutes at full throttle and 12-15
minutes+
at half throttle. Many planes in this class run 4-6
minutes. And unlike many of the 2 channel starters, it comes with a peak
charger that you can use in your car. If you pick up two spare batteries you
can stay in the air all day. A full charge takes about 40 minutes.

Another plane I liked was the Sky Scooter Pro, now the Pro II. You can get it
as a base plane and motor and add your own electronics or get it ready to fly
with a 72 MHZ Hittec 3 channel radio for about $160. This was my second
choice to the Aerobird. I like it a lot!

The Aerobird also has an X-Pak hop up kit available for $30. It includes a 7
cell battery (the basic is 6) and a larger tail. This makes the plane faster
and more maneuverable. So, once you get good you can soup it up! I bought the
X-Pak when I bought mine. I will use the 7 cell as my second battery and save
the tail for later.

WIND

All new flyers should start in winds under 5 MPH so that you are learning to
fly the plane rather than fighting the wind. I didn't do that and crashed a
lot because of the wind. However, now I am very comfortable flying this plane
in 10-12 MPH winds. Handles it very well.

27 MHZ vs 72 MHZ Radio

The Aerobird uses a 27 MHZ radio which is assigned to general use for planes,
cars and boats; mostly low end stuff. There are only 6 available channels. So,
if you have a kid with a RC car in the same area where you are flying, and he
is on the same channel you are on, and he is close enough, when he switches on
his transmitter, you will lose control of the plane and probably crash. Even
with 72 MHZ radio systems, this will happen if you get two flyers on the same
channel, but 72 MHZ is dedicated to airplanes. High end RC cars are on 75 MHZ
so they won't interfere.

The flight control is a single stick radio with rudder and elevator on the
stick. Throttle is on a slide on the left top. It is similar to a Futaba or
Hitec single stick arrangement. I find it very comfortable to use and other
flyers who have tried it say they find it easy as well.

If you are going to join a club, check with them. Some clubs will not admit 27
MHZ based planes because they can't be flown with a buddy box, a training
system, like a dual controlled car, that is used for pilot training. After
long consideration I bought the Aerobird, but these are things I took into
consideration. My club, www.lisf.org has many firebird pilots, so the
Aerobird was welcome The Sky Scooter Pro, mentioned above, is on the 72 MHZ
band set-up so you don't have any of these considerations.

Resources Aerobird, Sky Scooter Pro

Here is an internet site that sells the Aerobird. They also have a
link for a video of the plane flying:
http://www.parkflyers.com/html/aerobird.html

As I said, my alternative plane was the Sky Scooter Pro. It had been about
$260 RTF, but they recently released the Sky Scooter Pro 2 at about $160 so
you might want to give it serious consideration.
http://www.hitecrcd.com/Funtec/Pro2.htm

Videos
http://www.hitecrcd.com/Funtec/videos.htm

So, that's my evaluation of the Aerobird and why I purchased it. I fly as
often as I can. I have about 50 flights on my plane since the end of March.
I am fully self taught. At this point I am just loving it. My friend has a
Wingo and liked flying my Aerobird so much he bought one too. I have since moved onto a Great Planes Spirit Glider. I found the aerobird experience very helpful.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Cool. Thanks for the detailed information.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

who makes the Slow Stick? Trying to find it to see if it is something I would want.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

GWS makes the SS.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

rjeffers,

Even though its for your son.

I'd stay away from the junky "toy" store type planes (Firebirds, areobirds Airsurfers, etc) They just don't fly the way traditional planes do. Since your already in the hobby I think you'll appreciate the advice and lower frustration level.

The slow stick is by far the better parkflyer for your son to learn on (Dad will most likely need one also after trying Jrs)

Not to Criticize Ajear but he has no other frame of reference to base his comparisons and reviews on. Will he may have done much research his opinions were formed based on that and NOT real world comparisons.

For the past 19 year I've flown glow planes... Last summer I deceided to get into small electrics 1st plane fighterbird absolute GARBAGE Gave it away TOTAL waste of 160.00 2nd plane GWS Tigermoth LOVE IT Still fly it Let my 9,6 and two 5 year olds fly it
Third plane GWS P-51 90% complete.

The GWS Park flyers respond to the controls the way glow powered models do (albeit slower) the "toy" don't.

This is just my opinion based on experience with both type of models.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

I don't know if you have ever considerd a glider, but I can give you some great feedback on one.

My New Glider is the Great Planes 2 Meter Spirit Select.

The Spirit Select is completely assembled with all the electronics installed. It includes a 72 MHZ radio that is single stick. This is very easy to use and is very similar in look and fell to the Aerobird's radio so I picked it right up and flew. It is branded Hobbico, but it is really a Hitec radio.

Here is a link to the site where I purchased it for $139 complete!
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXVK55**&P=7

Here is a link to the ARF version where you can find links to two product reviews. If you want to do some building, the ARF is the route, but for an extra $40, I got the radio and the plane ready to fly. For me that was perfect.
http://www.greatplanes.com/airplanes/gpma1045.html

The plane has spoilers built in the wings, but you don't have to enable them. The Select model does not come with the spoilers enabled. I will do that part of the build soon.

I have about 20 short flights on it as I have been focusing on launching and landing. However, this plane has a reputation of being a great thermalling plane. I am looking forward to many long flights.

I would definitely recommend it ifyou have any glider experience or if you have experience help around you.

Our club, the Long Island Silent Flyers, www.lisf.org has a lot of parkflyers and gliders in it. Probably 6 or 7 Aerobirds and a few spirits in addition to more expensive and more exotic electrics and gliders.

Let me know if I can provide any more information.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but if you have never flown an Aerobird I would suggest you reserve your "toy" comments. I am sure your "toys" cost more, but they use the same flight principals as the Aerobird.

Throttle, rudder and elevator make the plane very easy to control. Actually one of our most expereinced pilots, also an AMA executive in our area, asked me about the Aerobird after seeing how I fly it after only three months and very little instruction. He has watched new pilots pick up the Aerobird and fly with great success.

He wants something to get his grandson interested in the hobby.

So, if you like something better, by all means recommend it, but don't think your TOYS are any better just cause they cost more.

The value in the plane, to the new pilot, is directly proportional to the success they have with it. Judging by the success I have seen with this plane, I would say it is a great value. :D


Oh, and I hear from people who have flown them that the Slow stick is a great first plane, primarily since it flies so slow. However I hear it does not handle crashes real well. But I don't know from personal experience.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Before I bought the Aerobird, I was real hot on the Sky Scooter Pro. now the Pro II. You can get it as a base plane and motor and add your own electronics or get it ready to fly
with a 72 MHZ Hittec 3 channel radio for about $160. This was my second choice to the Aerobird. I like it a lot!

It had been about $260 RTF so it would have been an extra $100. However they recently released the Sky Scooter Pro 2 at about $160 so you might want to give it serious consideration.

http://www.hitecrcd.com/Funtec/Pro2.htm

Videos
http://www.hitecrcd.com/Funtec/videos.htm

Electrics
 

I would also recommend perusing ezone.

There are a gazilion electrics out there, my experience is limited to a Megatech Merlin and a NSP Virus. I also fly glow, so let me echo that electrics are NOT cheaper than glow. Trying to support both habits can be expensive.

Anyway, my Merlin flies a lot like the Slow Stick, also, about 10 people at my old club had the SS. So I can recommend them.

Slowfliers, like the SS or the Tigermoth are fun, prett easy to fly and a good place for a beginner to start.

If you are really interested in electrics, do a lot of research and then check out the LHS and see which models they carry. You may need a few extra wings, props, etc.

For what its worth, I have not heard anyone who was serious about flying say good things about the Firebird or its bretheren.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

I'd give my vote to the GWS Slow Stick for the reasons cited by Bud (Earthdrill).

I fly primarily glow, but have tried electrics too. I liked my GWS Cub a lot, then my GWS Tiger Moth even more. Although I have not flown the Slow Stick, everything I've heard about it convinces me that it would be the best choice. (Cub and Moth require micro gear.)

Good luck,
Dennis-

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

AJEAR,

You might want to look into having that chip on your shoulder removed.

BTW I'm happy you enjoy your areobird. Judging from how many times you've posted that review here on RCU you must enjoy it alot.

If you took the time to read rjeffers posts you would notice that he is NOT a beginner and has experience with glow powered planes. The electric is for his son. My comments about staying away from the junky "toy" store type planes were based on the fact that I have tried both types (have you?) and the planes I recommended would make teaching his son easier IMHO since they would exhibit similar flying characterics to glow planes. Also Since he is already in the hobby it might be possible to use existing equipment rather then getting a RTF with a junky 27Mhz radio.

Slow Stick Crashworthiness
 

Based on my first hand experience, the SS is all but bulletproof. The first one I owned was a freebie from a friend of mine who had already bashed everything in the world with it. Last winter I used it to learn indoor flight and it hit everything from steel beams to plywood walls at W.O.T. The only thing I've changed is the gearbox. It still flys today and we use it as a backup plane should we break something on one of the "pretty" ones and can't fix it right away. The only reason I bought a new one is that I'm kind of picky and I like having a shiny new plane to fly. As far as performance goes, you can change the factory "d" gearbox to a "c" and install a 90-70 prop. That spices things up quite a bit. Just a couple more of my cents.

Bud

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Again guys, thanks for the spirited comments. :)

I think I will try the Tiger moth.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

GOOD CHOICE!!!!!

For Battery's I'm geting about 10 min full throttle on 300Mah Nimh packs.

Forget about the 150mah GWS Recommends.

Guys are also getting 20-30min on Lion batteries Ezone had some great threads describing how to make them from certian cell phone batteries also they had some good places to buy them pre-made.

There are some mods that I would reccommend

Use dental floss or thread to create flying wires for added strength or add some carbon fiber to the underside of the bottom wing to strengthen it.

I'll second that!
 

The Tiger Moth is a fantastic plane. Crashem is right about the lithium batteries. My lhs has a lithium pack and charger for only about $10.00 more than the NiMh setup. The downside is it's a three hour charger. But with two packs, I don't think you'll ever be bored. Thirty to forty minutes in the air is a LONG time. You'll be ready for a break pretty quick. The lithiums have no memory either, making them much harder to damage. Cheers.

Bud

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

You should love the Tigermoth. If you have an extra radio for your son, you should get into it very inexpensively.

Here is a review, if you are intrerested.

http://www.modelairplanenews.com/reviews/tiger_moth.asp

The Tiger moth is definately on my list of must have planes.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Hey, Crashem, no chip here. I am only concerned about getting unbiased info to those who ask for it. I am not the one who started calling other people's planes toys. I seem to read that that was you. So, where is the chip?

You are right, I have made similar posts many times. If different people ask the same question, I give them the same answer, factual and complete. In fact I have incorporated the information I think new pilots are looking for so they can make informed decisions. I think that makes sense.

Seems you have judged my three channel T/R/E plane based on your bad experience with a two channel plane. Frankly I am surprised that you were disappointed. Since you are an experienced pilot you should have known that a two channel plane would not handle like a 3 or 4 channel plane.

As for the 27 MHZ radio, you do have a point. There are only six channels and they are not dedicated to planes. That is certainly a consideration. However I have never had a problem and Long Island is a pretty densely populated area. We have five or six Aerobirds, 3-4 Firebird XLs in our club in addition to about 200 other electrics and sailplanes.

Personally, the fact that the electronics are dedicated to the Aerobird doesn't bother me at all. The package is cheap enough, and I plan to keep the Aerobird flying. It will be a great plane to introduce other people to the hobby.

With a half mile range and easy flying characteristics, the Aerobirds fly very well. In fact many of the "bird" pilots have moved on to 3 and 4 channel electrics and some are flying 7 channel sailplanes. We don't allow glo on our field. To noisy and smelly. We like clean, quite efficient planes.

By the way, in addition to the Aerobird's single stick transmitter, I have a Hitec Prism 7x dual stick transmitter for my Electrajet and a Hobicco/Hitec single stick that I like with my Sailplane. Somehow you assumed I had no basis for comparison. I think I have plenty of basis for comparison.

As for flying like a glo plane, why would anyone decide to buy an electric because it flies like a glo plane?

If you throw insults at people on these boards you should expect a reply. This is mine.

Crashman, I am very happy you enjoy your glo planes, but I have no interest in flying glo in the foreseeable future. Electrics and Gliders are just too much fun!

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

AEAJR,

Thats pretty funny since opinions are biased by defination :D


You may want to read my reply agian I didn't call them toys I called them "toy" store type planes there is a difference (BTW I think they are all toys)


No I judged it based on its cost vs value and performance. While the initial cost is lower but the replacement parts are expensive especially when you factor in the fact the radio is NOT reusable. Also the reviews I've read indicate that without the Hop up kit (bigger tail and baterry) the plane doesn't manueaver or perform as well as other parkflyers.)

What I expected was a plane that is similar (in both flight characterics and control methods) to other models That is not the case with these planes. Learning on these doesn't provide one with the basic skills neccessary to progress to more advanced models (glow or electric)

Agian go back and read my replies agian I wasn't advocating glow over electric WHAT I was advocating was getting a plane that has similar flight characterics (to mainstream models) and is controlled in a similiar manner. You may not understand this since you have based your conclusions on one type of electric. :rolleyes:

What I have found interesting from reading many posts here and on ezone is that the people who recommend These types of planes have NO experience with any others (glow or electrics) and the people that have flown other planes (either glow or electric) seem to recommend staying away from them I wonder why that is :rolleyes:

Being insulted because someone disagrees with your opinion and provides an alternative is just plain dumb. :rolleyes: If you are going to become insulted every time a difference of opinion arises maybe these boards aren't for you ;)

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

Crashem,

Thanks for the clarifications. A good debate is always worth while.

I any case I am happy with the path I am taking and you seem to be happy with ours. I think it is great that we can share out experiences and points of view with others in these forums.

Happy and safe flying.

Need Advice on Purchasing Electric RTF
 

AEAJR,
I have refrained from voicing my differing opinion over your constant "selling" of the Aerobird as a GREAT trainer. It has been obvious that you've had a terrific experience with your's, and you have posted significant information for that genre of airplane.

However, there truly is NO comparison between the airplanes you have flown to date, and glow powered aircraft.

I'll clarify that statement by asking if your Electrajet has a brushless motor. If it does, it becomes comparable to some of the sport glow powered planes. If it does not, it won't quite compare to a 40 size glow trainer in performance.

I am happy that you are satisfied with the stuff you fly. You are a great RC advocate, and your enthusiasm shows in the majority of your posts. But I also MUST concur with Crashem regarding the 27 mHZ planes falling into the "toy" category, simply due to the radio equipment and limited flight capabilities.

That being said, all of our RC stuff can be (and often are) described as toys by someone. I just find the 27 mHZ stuff to be more "toyish". ;)

Peace,
Dennis-