I just recieved my E3D kit from Gary Wright Model products. I have to say the kit quality is good, I am eager to see it fly.
It is built very light, You have to see the videos to believe it.

Well,.. I have an E3D,.. actually I had the very first ones

Heyyy Greg, glad to hear someone has this kit. I am on the waiting list for a kit and it will be interesting having you go first.

Will Ultracote be too heavy to cover it with do you think ???????

Good luck and keep us posted, I was like you, saw the video and was sold.

Bob

Gary, didn't see your post when I sent the one above. You of course would be the perfect one to answer the covering question.

Thanks,
Bob

ultracote or monokote will be fine,..however, you'll pick up about 3 ounces by using these rather than the oracover lite that I use. That might throw you over the weight point to make it able to hover on the endoplasma. Mine,.. and the other 1/2 dozen or so locally will all hover with the endoplasma and 12/8 setup, there's just not much, if any , reserve for pulling vertical from hover. Mine's worse than the others,..they will all pull out of hover, but mine are a bit heavier than the production kits are turning out. I've been playing with this new "C" case Hacker brushless and it, with a 14X7 (gets you to 40 amps,..same as endo with 12X8) will actually stop the plane and pull vertical from a tailslide. It's pretty impressive, but it's a lot more money. The endoplasma with a 14X7 performs the same, but pushes the motor harder than I like (50 amps)and sometimes gives thermal shutdowns on the GP 50 amp speed control.

Well I framed up the E3D wing tonight while watching TV.
This has been the easiest wing I have ever put together. It is all self jigging with notched interlocking alignment strips built into it so you dont need the plans to glue it over. Just sitting on the bench it is straight and true, no need for a bunch of weights to hold it down while you glue the sheeting on. I've got to hand it to Gary on the design of this one, I am eager to see his next one, the "Big E3D".
I ordered a Hacker C40 12T from Garys helpful wife today, This is gonna be a blast.

Thanks for the positive comments. Untill this plane I've never built a straight wing in over 20 years of modeling,.. except for the foam ones, sheeted in the "shucks". I wanted to design the structure so that it would be straight, and no plans needed. Although there are plans for the wing included, very few people even put the assembly on the plans. I built several prototypes, and did them all in my lap basically. The next kit,.. the "kwik-E" will not have plans included. I've gone a couple steps further in the self-jigging tab and notch type of structure. I've built 3 prototypes of it,.. the design is ready to be cut for kitting now, and the last two were framed up in one evening each, under 2 hours time. It is a much smaller plane, which explains some of the quicker building, but it does go together rather quickly. The last one actually took about 2 hours, but I was stopping to take pictures at each step for the instructions. All the parts are labeled with laser-etched numbers/names on the parts also. A couple pics are at http://y42.photos.yahoo.com/garyw3 under the kwik-E folder. The pink/blue one is the original, the white one is the final production version It's 40X7 on the wing, 10% thick, endoplasma, direct drive, 6 or 7 cells, 6X6 folder prop. It's the other end of the spectrum,.. although loops/rolls are good with it,.. it's for "cheap speed". about the speed of a SP400 pylon plane, but extremely easy to launch and land. I'm hoping we might see a one-design sport racing class started with it. 6 3000mah cells, 6X6 scimitar folder, 70~80mph, 7 cells gets it really going.

How much more is that Hacker?? I've been toying with going electric... can't seem to make the jump just yet..... The battery chargers are really expensive.... But I like the idea of not having to clean the goo off after every flight and not having to mess with fuel or glow plugs.....

The hacker goes for $170US from Gary or Aero-model. And then you need the brushless speed control for $99 on top of that.
The biggest plus for me to Electrics is the convenience and quiet. You can drive to the field with a few charged packs, Get out of your Car and walk to the flightline and go ( after range check of course) Compared to IC, no gassing up, getting out the glow driver, fiddling with it, having some way to hold it back so when it does roar to life it doesnt eat you alive. Switch it on and your flying.
I figure I will be able to fly it anywhere there is space , It opens up possibilities for many quick flights where otherwise I would have to drive 30K to the gas field to fly IC.

What do you think of the E3D as a foray into electrics?? I've flown allot of glow, mostly seriously overpowered fun fly stuff...

Is the performance really there?? I know those video's are cool... but what's the real world experience?

The videos are all with the Kyosho Endoplasma motor ($25). If you want more performance, the hacker gives it to you

Hi Gary, any idea of when you are going to have some E3D kits ready ???

Not trying to rush ya

Bob

We've shipped a few hundred allready. We're working our way down the "list", but we're getting orders almost the same speed we can get kits produced, so we're making headway on the backorders, but slowly.

I've built 2 of the E3D's. Easy to build. Flys great. I'm a total beginner with batteries and electrics in general. I'm actually a very beginner airplane pilot also. I only soloed with my Senior Telemaster a few times before flying the E3D. I had no problems flying the E3D right from the start. I do have several years of experience flying helicopters so I'm not a total newbie to RC. I'm just a newbie to airplanes.
My first E3D only lasted one week. It was cut in half by a giant Extra 300 pulling into a vertical take off. I don't know who did it. The canopy survived and I'm using it on the new one. Kinda like paying tribute to a fallen friend.
My second E3D is going strong after several weeks of flying. I can't get mine to hover. I'm sure it's something I'm doing wrong with either the batteries or motor.
Scott

strange to see this thread pop up again,..been quite a while, and over 1300 E3D kits shipped since I last posted to this thread .

I've played with another motor recently, trying to find a lower cost solution to get performance up to hacker levels without the cost. The Mega 22/20/2 motor, 4.0 gearing with an MEC superbox and a 14X7 prop works really well for any that might be interested. It's not as efficient as the hacker, but doesn't cost as much either. It can be found most places online for $89 versus $170 for the hacker C40. It's a notch down from the C40 in efficiency, but gets the job done at less cost. The C40 at 5.0 gearing and 14X7 draws roughly 35 amps. The Mega 22/20/2 turns the same prop the same revs with the above stated gearing, but pulls 40 amps to do it. So,.. flight times are lower than the Hacker solution but cost is almost down to 1/2, so it's a good "middle of the road" solution in my mind.

Gary,
First, I wanted to thank you for continually developing the options on the E3D. It's nice to know that you're out there thinking of ways to make it better and respoding to people's questions.
With that in mind, I have a question: Would the GP gearbox suggested for use with the Endoplasma be too weak to use with the Megamotor brushless you suggest above? I like the idea of going brushless, I was just wondering if it would be possible without modifying the front end of the plane for a new gearbox.

Thanks.

I'm using one of the mega's with the GD600 box in a sport-e-stick and it works fine. The only problem is that you can only go down to a 13 tooth pinion due to the large (5mm) shaft on that motor, so the gear ratio is not high enough to swing a really large prop. I'm turning a 12X8 with that setup on the stik. There is a "new" firewall for the E3D that allows both the GD600 or the MEC superbox to be bolted right on without modifications. That's been in the kits since around last august.

I also have an E3D and have been flying it for a couple of weeks now wx permitting. I have to congratulate Gary on a fine kit. It builds quick and is easy to repair in case of a mishap.
I covered mine in monokote and am using a MEC turbo ten with the monsterbox at 6:1. Take off is easy with a 13/5 prop and I get about 7 min of flight with 10 3000mh nimh cells. The aircraft will do most of the stunts but will not hover. I suspect this is because I left the turbo 10 timed for max flight time. I will try the power setting on the timing later and let you know how it works out.
Thanks for the great plane Gary.


John McKinney

Gary,
How does the Mega motor, GD600, and the 12x8 perform? Is it much better than the Endoplasma?

noticably better than the endo. However, if you change to an MEC gearbox at 4.0 ratio with it, you can swing a 14X7, then things start to come alive in the hover/unlimited vertical department.

Hi Gary,
I have been flying the E-3D with the C40-12T running the 6:1 MEC box as you suggested and the performance is out of sight. I continually get the OOH"S and AHH"S every time I fly it at our local field in Dunnellon, FL. I first saw you fly yours at TOC and then again at Cape Coral 6 days later. Your research into the various power plants is greatly appreciated. Also, I tried the 2600 MAH NiMH Sanyo Cells and had them zapped. They are definitely an inprovement. Thanks again for a great design and for following up in the power department.
Jerry
PS: Watching your Funtana was a great experience to say the least. Are you still flying this combo?

I've went back to 5.0 ratio with a 14X7. I keep switching back and forth between that and 6.0 with 15X8. They're close, I think the 14X7 is a bit better in power, but draws a touch more current, so you have to decide which setup gives you the best"balance" of performance and flight time. Keep in mind, it's not a huge difference,.. maybe 2 or 3 percent,....that's why I keep going back and forth between them .

Still flying the funtana. Have it re-geared spinning a 22X12 now instead of the 20X8.

I hope to get my current project finalized to debut the kits at the SEFF event in georgia in June. You'll probably like it. Due to the "best new product" award at SEFF,.. I can't give much information in a public forum,..but suffice it to say,.. it makes the Funtana look small .

How would the Mountain Models MiniFlash compare to the E3D as far as 3D flying goes? I realize the E3D is quite a bit larger.

Wade

I just saw this picture of this plane. Looks like it's called the E3D5. Anybody know anything about this plane, like the wingspan, price, motor size, etc.? This plane looks pretty big in the picture.

The picture won't post right now, keep getting an error. I'll try again later.

Wade

the miniflash is a great little airplane. I flew Doug's for him in demo flights at the san diego event. He makes great kits. It's not, however, a 3D plane. More of a very aerobatic sport plane with large control surfaces. Comparing it to an E3D is sort of like comparing a 1/2A plane to a 46 size funfly plane . Both are good planes, but different types of planes with different flying characteristics, and in very different sizes.
What is an E3D5? and where is a picture?