elmissir

My Feedback: (9)

i got superstar and i am only getting 5 min flight with the 2100mah stock battery, i would like to get more time without going lipo.

would that battery below work nimh 3600mah or should i stay under 3000mah?

can i get 10min flight or is it only 1-2 min increase?

the battery weights 13.6oz which is heavier than 12.4oz stock, is that ok.

thanks

http://www.amondotech.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=1003

http://www.amondotech.com/index.asp...WPROD&ProdID=38

jkkrobbins

In the Superstar EP the battery is not anchored, even when attached to
the velcro. The battery freely slides. The landed on its nose from a
height of just a few feet and the front of the fuselage was damaged very
badly. I took the plane to the nearest hobby shop and was informed that
the majority of the damage occurred because the battery slid forward.

The product manual says nothing about anchoring the battery. It is
ironic that everything else in the plane is secured except for the
absolute heaviest object! I have looked and looked and see no way to
prevent the battery from sliding back and forth without modifying the
plane, which you say not to do!

Needless to say, I'm quite displeased with this poor design. But to answer one of your questions, I believe the weight of the plane should be 35 oz w/o the battery and 48 oz with the battery, or 13 oz for the battery. I've tried only the 2100 mah myself and found that it draws down quickly when doing a lot of taxiing and taking off from grass.

mmc205

I bought the superstar EP about a year ago and learned on it. I trained myself via a simulator and then did my first solo on it. I have since moved on to 3D flying and aerobatic electric flying but decided to modify the ol trainer and have some more fun. Initially i canned the original motor and put a reverse magnetic mayhem with a 2.5:1 gear drive and swung a 12x8 prop with it. I junked the stock battery pack and got some 3000 mah nimh 8.4 V packs from www.batteryspace.com for about $15 each. It flew pretty well like this. Powerful enough to ROG from short or tall grass, even light snow. I believe it weighed about 42 ounces and made about 25 ounces of thrust. After about 8months of unuse, i decided to change the power system. I left the old motor on, regeared 3.8:1, same 12x8 prop, and put 2 11.1 V 1800mah lipo packs in parallel for an equivalent 11.1V 3600 mah pack. I dropped about 6 ounces, added some capacity and some voltage. I also added ailerons just for the heck of it. The plane now weights roughly 36 ounces, and creates about 36 ounces of thrust. I added only $10 in hardware, and $60 in lipo packs for this performance gain. Remember guys, you don't have to have brushless to get good power. The magnetic mayhem is at 11.1 Volts and pulling 21 amps at full throttle. Every good old brushed motors can do the trick. In my opinion, its the power gain and weight saving that lipos offer that really make the difference. If you can only spend money on one thing, get the lipos, keep the brushed motor. If anyone would like more details on this transition, shoot me an email at
[email protected]
I'll try and post pictures if i remember.

mgrande11

how much flight time did u get with the nimh pack and the geared set up

Matt Kirsch

My Feedback: (21)

5 minutes is about right for the stock setup and a 2100mAh battery pack. More mAh is the answer to longer flight times, just make sure the cell count (or rated voltage) is the same for both your stock pack and the replacement, and that the weight isn't drastically different. 1.4 ounces in this plane won't hurt the performance a bit.

jkkrobbins,

Who says you're not supposed to modify the plane? Modifying the plane to suit your preferences and needs is a big part of the hobby, and should be encouraged. A block of foam, either styro- or rubber-, in front of and behind the battery will prevent and cushion any movement. However, in a hard crash, there is very little that will retain the battery and prevent it from damaging the plane. The wood is simply not strong enough to withstand the force, and building the plane that strong would make it too heavy. The simple answer is, planes are designed to fly, not crash, and planes that are designed to crash, do.