sxates

The "diode mod" is one I haven't heard about--what does that do?

micro_builder

My Feedback: (1)

PB_2,
the RX is from Nick Leichty, i'd say one of the leaders in micro RC electronics. his lightest RX comes in at a scant .1 gram, and thats with 3 proportional channels (its how the new record of a .87 gram airplane was made)! he even has a single channel RX that comes in at .05 grams. his planes are pretty amazing too, you can find it all here at his site: http://microflierradio.com/index.html

mine is pretty much like the 3-channel Mini, but its custom done for the thrust differential, and it weighs a bit less. i attatched a picture of it, but you can find it in his Recievers section on his site (2nd one down). i'm going to have to get a bigger magnifying glass when i get the RX, since its only 18mm long, soldering anything to it will be like doing surgery.

sxates,
check out post #391 on page 16 in this thread and it shows you how to do the diode mod. doing this modification will let you turn without using throttle. the plane can actually cruise around by just turning left and right, with no throttle input. it makes flying the AA a much more enjoyable thing, and its easier to regain control if the wind starts taking the plane away.

nick

diggs

Lost my AA!

Well I know where it is but I cant get to it. Like a dumbass I was drinking and just went out tonight and flew it in the front yard. We have a couple pretty bright street lights. UNfortunately they dnt shine too well in my neighbors yard where my plane ended up HIGH in his 30ft Palm tree....going to have to figure it out tomorrow. Not good though.

skypix

My Feedback: (3)

my favorite retrieve method is to tie 100 ft of weedwhacker cord to a small c-clamp and chuck it up and over the branch the AA is stuck in. the clamp brings the line back down to you after you''ve thrown it over the offending branch, then just yank that sucker holding both ends of the line until the AA pops free. good luck!

Hobie

I did the same thing 2 weeks ago but during the day and 20 ft up a pine tree [&o]. I knocked it out with a snow ball no problem . I guess that isn't an option for you [sm=lol.gif] . It wasn't dark when I did it but my hand eye cordination might have been a little impaired . For night flying get you 2 or 3 LED's from the sports section of Walmart that go in bobbers for night fishing and tape them on the wing works great .

gfl

Is anybody having difficulty making their AA ROG with landing gear? I have attached landing gear, both front and rear. Every time I hit the throttle, the plane tends to spin sharply on the ground. I have tweaked the gear many times but the AA still tends to spin either right or left. However, I was able to find a way to overcome this. Using about 8 feet of Hot Wheels track, I set the AA on the track (my version of a runway). The front landing gear straddles the track and the rear wheel rides in the middle. The AA taxi's straight and lifts off every time. I have removed the lower wing and added the Thill fishing lights that were suggested earlier in this thread. Makes for some great night flying. I have the black channel A plane with silver wings. My Thill lights are mounted beneath the wings which allows the lights to illuminate the entire wing - I have another light mounted to the front of the fuselage kinda like a headlight. Touch and go's are awesome and landing the AA is a blast. I was hoping to hear from somebody how I can make the AA taxi straight without the Hot Wheels track.

Barry2

The track is a good idea. That is how the Wright Brother's did their historic first flight. I think they used one rail from a rail road and for wheels they used the hubs of bicycle wheels which straddled the top of the rail. There were people at each wingtip to stabilize. Most of the rolling gear fell away as the plane took off. Landing was on skids.

I think you would have to make sure your wheels are of good enough quality that they each roll with the same rolling resistance, both wheels are perfectly smooth with no burrs and your "runway" is perfectly smooth, like the roof of a car (not bumpy pavement). If the plane consistently turns one way as it begins the roll, you may be able to compensate by inputting opposite turn before giving it the throttle. In general, larger diameter wheels are better than smaller ones.

diggs

That damn tree is so tall I cant even see my AA in it....that sucks!

Barry2

It may have blown out of the tree by now. Look around. And it helps to have a return label on the plane.

SLOMO

Well guys i saw this little plane at a toy shoppe and flown it right in the store. i did the looking and i found this thread . so i went and bought one. i love this little plane . very easy to fly. a friend of mine who has never flown an airplane took control of it right away. so adding the (bobber leds) dont weigh it down too much, cause i will have to try that

MikeFreas

Has anyone else had a problem with their TX charging? My second AA TX will not charge the bird even with fresh batteries. I would search the thread but 22 pages is a bit much to look through.

skypix

My Feedback: (3)

mine does occasionally. I disconnect the cord, turn the airplane on, then off again, turn the TX on, then off again, then reconnect. sometimes I have to do it a couple times before I see the green light. this has happened with more than one AA (I have 5).

I do remember leavingb it plugged in once without the green light lighting up. it charged anyway.

konatiki

Can someone please let me know where to get the info on getting more range out of my AA? I think I saw it somewhere on here but now I can't find it. I sure would like to be able to fly her higher and not have it go out of range. Thanks guys.

skypix

My Feedback: (3)

search "in this thread" for "antenna

flyingace451

OK real quick, this is for all of you guys who are going to "bigger" planes. I haven't read through this entire thread yet but I'm starting to get worried about some of you.

First off, the Firebird Scout uses much less room than other planes of it's size. Even though flying it in your front yard would be a bad move, it still takes up very little room. When you move on to bigger and better things than the AA and Scout, you will learn that.

And, The Parkzone F-27 Stryker is NOT and never will be a beginner's plane. To master it from the Aeroace, I would suggest moving up to an FB Commander2 and then on to an Aerobird Challenger. The Stryker uses lots of room, and when upgraded, uses even more room. I'm working on getting one to go up to 85 mph which is very slow compared to the other guys in the "Stryker Way Past the Limits" thread.

If some of you want to move up in this hobby, don't cry over losing a 30 dollar plane. It's an awesome plane, yes, but 1 of my HS81 MG servos costs the same as the AA.

I'm sorry for my ranting and rambling, but it was bugging me to see that.

P.S. IF you are a very experienced RC pilot, try flying your AA in 15mph winds. I did, and it was a blast. Just have it hover on the lowest throttle setting and as long as the wind doesn't pick up like it did to me, (close encounter with neighbor's roof, don't ask) than it will hover there forever. Fun fun stuff.

Tommyr

I recommend a Slo-V over the Scout. I have a Scout, it's fast and it needs a LOT of room IMHO.

Tom

micro_builder

My Feedback: (1)

i've been flying the Stryker F-27 for around 2 years now, and still love it, it was actually the very first plane i'd really ever flown. good thing it can take some serious punishment. flying inverted a couple feet off the ground at full throttle will certainly stand your hair on end (especially if you make a mistake!), as will doing a nose dive at full throttle, and seeing how close you can get to the ground before you pull out.

its true, the AA is a cheap plane at only 30 bucks. but, when you consider what you get for that 30 dollars, it is a bummer if you lose it (a 130mah cell, charger, two 6mm motors and a two channel, semi proportional RX will certainly cost more than 30 bucks if you bought it all seperately). plus, some folks on here are pretty young, young enough to hardly be able to afford the 30 dollars for their AA, so when they lose it, its even more of a bummer. i've yet to lose an AA, after owning 4 of them over the past 6 or 7 months. a lot of people seem to fly theirs way up high, where as i tend to be at head level or lower, and usually at a low throttle setting. this is probably why i havent lost any yet, lord knows i've come close though

nick

Tommyr

I usually fly mine no higher than about 15-20 feet for the first 7-8 minutes, then it's around head level until the battery poops out.

Tom

diggs

Got mine out of the tree!!! Basketball to the resuce.

Unfortuately its now on the OTHER neighbors roof. The highest part c'mon wind!

konatiki

Ok boyz!! I made my antenna longer today and I got lots of range now. Not too sure wow high I was able to fly it but it had to be around 200 to 250 feet and I still had control. Here is what I did to extend it.

I got some 30 gauge solid conductor insulated wrapping wire from radioshack.

I cut about a 2 foot piece and stripped one end. about an inch.

I took of the tail section. It slipped off with just a pinch from my plyers.

Then I was able to see about an inch of the existing antenna sticking out of the boom.

Then I used a T pin and put a hole in the boom close to the body of the plane.

Then I took the new wire and feed it in the hole and out the back where the existing antenna was sticking out.

Then I just wrapped the new wire onto the existing antenna and put a bit of solder on it then push it into the boom.

Then I took the rest of the wire sticking out of the hole I made with the T pin and wrapped it around the boom to the back of the plane.

I used some tape to hold the wire to the boom and put the tail section back on with a drop of CA. (make sure it's lined up with the wing)

This mod made my AA 200 times better. I loved my AA before this mod and now it's just the best lil toy I have.
Here are a few pictures.

schuh007

I plan to buy a new AA, how do you people think itll fly with extended winds top and bottom?

Barry2

I could get my first AA out past 300 feet and not lose control, which was as far as I wanted to let it go. But my current one seems to run out of range in less than 100 feet, so that is a little limiting, especially when I am cruising up high or trying to see how high I can go in calm air. Maybe I will try an antenna mod. I just don't want to add much weight behind the CG.

I did the diode mod, and it is interesting, but when those motors kick in, it really pitches the plane up, so you still can't get a nice smooth control in glide. But that is the AA, I guess. It's still good to have some heading control. It would be great if you could just get a whisper of power on one engine to turn in glide without much pitch.

Overall this plane has been a blast and I am planning to get more into RC with a real 3-channel trainer next.

PigBoat_2

barry,

good idea to move up to the 3-channels. look hard before you decide, and be sure to look at readytoflyfun.com . Take a look at the planes that they sell there because they have many and you need to decide which is best for you. I personally own the T-Hawk and have had one heck of a time with it. It has great control and is very durable, but flies very fast, so it can asily get very easy to lose which direction it is flying in, thus sometimes ending in a terrific crunch as it powers into the ground. Gets right back in to the air, though.


PB_2

SLOMO

hey have any of you tried the air hogs dominator yet and if so what do you think of it .i have been flying my AA indoors and flys great. especially when the winds here won't calm down enough to fly my ABC outside

Tommyr

I have that and the Defender but haven't had a chance to fly either yet. I know they need a lot more room...

Tom