Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

Advice and guidance needed ...

**** Regarding ****
what to buy? (1) Potensky Eagle or (2) Parkzone Typhoon

I am looking for the right "intro to aerobatics park flyer" and a plane that will give me some basic 3-D experience. It's important that I get a plane that I can continue to grow into over the long run.

**** My Current Experience & Equipment is ****
For the last two years I have flown a Graupner Mini Piper (on my second one. I destroyed my first one) and I now can take off confidently (if there is a light head wind); land in pretty small areas; do loops; do touch downs; 40 foot spurts of very shallow dives - near inverted flight; etc. I have a Hitech Flash 5 radio and am very happy with it.

**** My situation ****
Over the last couple years I have read some good reviews on the Potensky Eagle and a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to buy the ARF Eagle, motor, speed control, and prop for $89.00 (on clearance from $135) and I jumped on it. I was committed to buying the Parkzone Typhoon for $220 for the RTF; which seems like a great deal to me. When I look at the performance stats for both planes it looks like the power, wingspan, etc. are bit bigger and better on the Typhoon.

Yesterday at my local hobby store I got to see the Typhoon up close and I am really impressed and am now considering returning my Potensky Eagle with buyer's remorse.

The plus to the Eagle is I can use my computerized radio with it and adjust the settings as I learn to fly so I will be less likely to crash. The other upside is that I have read great reviews on the Eagle, but none are written on the Typhoon yet. I have a charger already that will work for the Eagle. But then again, the Eagle will cost $80 more to get in the air.

My question is, when it comes down to long term performance and short run learning which plane is better. It's possible that the Eagle will out perform the Typhoon when flown by an experienced pilot.

Should I have buyer's remorse or should I keep my Eagle and be happy and excited with my Potensky plane?

Any advice to stop my obsessing would be helpful...

Thanks in advance.

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

Are you planning on upgrading the Eagle to brushless right off the bat? It's an okay performer as-is, but not 3D.

Same goes for the Typhoon. LHS had one for demo, gave it to a friend of mine to test out. With the stock battery pack, it's another okay performer. Definitely not 3D, though. The stock pack is a 7 or 8 cell NiMH, but the recommended upgrade is a 3S LiPoly, which is equivalent to a 10-cell NiMH, only lighter. By going to the higher-voltage LiPoly, you increase power by 75% and decrease the weight a bit. We'll try it once the LHS owner gets us the right connectors.

Having flown the Eagle only briefly, I would rate both planes about the same as far as their stock performance.

Frankly, I would go with a plane I could set up myself over RTF any day. Plus, the Eagle is EPP foam while the Typhoon is made from fragile coffee-cup foam.

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

Thanks for the feedback Matt.

I plan to start off stock and then upgrade to brushless & lipoly. From all of the feedback I am receiving the Eagle seems like the best choice for me in the long haul.

I was under the impression that the Typhoon was also EPP.

Jeremy

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

Matt,
You are ussually pretty accurate... but where did you get your info on the Typhoon foam????[X(] WOW!

Z-foam is a hybrid... similar to EPP, but stiffer, and more accurate in holding shape.... Still VERY tough. An engineering grade of foam..... No where near a coffee cup!! :)

Have Fun,
David

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

From personal experience with the Typhoon, I can back up dribbe's comments. After handling the plane during the build for a friend of mine, giving the plane it's first test flight and watching my friend plow the plane into the field several times including cart wheels I can give you assurances that Z-Foam is 'tuff 'nuff. It is definitely stiffer than EPP but I can't say for sure whether it's stronger but I'd certainly bet that it's as strong. The only damage to my friend's Typhoon after his less than stellar performances is a broken cowl, a battery pack holder and canopy clip anchor that need to be reseated and a plastic wing tab that needs to be re-glued. Yep, they were hard crashes but the Z-Foam has absolutely no damage, just plastic parts breaking or coming loose.

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

dribbe, Jeffrey:

I've had a Typhoon in hand on several occasions. It ain't EPP or Elapor foam, and didn't feel particularly tough or flexible. Granted, I didn't try to break it because it's not my plane, but the texture clearly said "coffee cup" to me... Just my observations.

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

i own and fly the parkzone typhoon.. im a beginner/started flying during summer. its not coffee cup foam :D. since im a beginner i havent done every 3d manuver in the book.. but have seen a video on here by a clearly talented pilot and im sure it could do everything 3D and did a lot of prop hanging manuvers on a 3cell lipo... even with stock pack it can hover out of the box. i browse quite a few posts on different planes i own and this is just my opinon. the lipo gives you some more power.. and ofcourse more run time but 75% more power ? the potensky eagle ive seen sold by hobby lobby.. i thought about buying it and hobby lobby showcased it well in there videos.. the cobra looked cool to. im sure its a nice plane and will help your learning curve to aerobatics. you can always purchase a typhoon down the road if your still interested in one.. you cant beat it for the money and it flys well and is 3D ready by the time you finish charging the battery :D.

RE: Potensky Eagle vs. Parkzone Typhoon?
 

Matt,

I'm not sure what kind of coffee cups you drink out of but if they're anything like Z-Foam you definitely don't have to worry about the cup breaking :D! I agree it's not EPP or Elapor foam, it's a different animal altogether, but I'd have expected the typhoon to break into at least a couple of pieces the way my friend crashed. However, as I mentioned in my previous post there was no damage to the foam, only the plastic parts. With my friend's permission I did give the fuse and wing halves pinch, fingernail and flex tests during the build to get a feel for the Z-Foam since I had no idea whether it was merely a marketing ploy or the real deal. After performing those tests on the Z-Foam and having performed similar tests on EPP, which, by the way, responded similarly, I concluded the Z-Foam was as resilient but stiffer than EPP. It was after witnessing my friend's "flying circus" that I concluded that Z-Foam seems to be at least as strong if not stronger than EPP. Now, if only ParkZone could work on the plastic parts and the anchoring systems the plane will be indestructable ;)!