Kelley

I know this question gets asked daily but here it goes again.
My son is an accomplished RCer with lots of glow powered war bird experience. He is in college now and has really enjoyed the electric P-51 I gave him for Christmas. To keep his interest up I would like to buy him a high performance electric ducted fan jet for his birthday in August. I would like a plane that is capable of taking off on its belly from grass.
I want as complete a kit as possible. His Mustang came out of the box and went flying and it was great!
Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

CTulanko

Kelley,

With the requirements you gave, the Alfa Mig-15 sounds like the ticket. It can take off from grass and with a brushless motor combo and lipo battery, will cut up the skies. It sounds like just what the doctor ordered, however, it is an ARF and not a ready to fly, so it will required some building. You will find it pretty much impossible to find a performance EDF jet that flies right from the box. I can tell you that www.hobby-lobby.com carries them, but I would suggest a better motor, ESC and battery than what they suggest.

Carl

Kelley

Thank you for the recommendation. Alfa also makes an F-86. Do the two planes have the same performance or is there something about the Mig that makes it the better choice? Also, Hobby Lobby recommends a complete list of components to go with this kit. Do you agree with their recommendation or do you have any better suggestions? As you can tell, I’m a glow power guy and am mystified by the variety of electronic components to go with these things. This will be great and I appreciate the suggestion.

CTulanko

Kelley,

Their setup is not that great as the AC 25/25-26 motor they recommend does not hold up very well and has problems flown in these planes. That is why I said I could suggest a better motor combo. I would recommend what has become the standard for these jets, a 3s Tanic 2220 or similar Lipo, a Himax 2025-5300 brushless motor and a Castle Creations Phoenix 25 ESC. This combo will give stelar performance and is tough.

Also, you asked about the two models and the Mig-15 is a better jet. It can take off of grass where the F-86 has difficulty. This is beause the Mig has a negative dihedral and uses the angled down wings as outside skiis for takeoffs from grass. You can also hand launch the Mig-15 while the F-86 for the most part needs to be hand launched because it is not as stable on grass. Moreover, the Mig is a better flier and performer...it is just how it is designed and worked out.

If you are new to the EDF arena, send me an email to [email protected] and I will email you a "Intro to EDFs" word document I wrote that should explain much, give you a solid basic understanding of eletrics and also give you some good recommendations on equipment.

Carl

Kelley

Carl,

Thank you again for all your suggestions. I have sent you an e-mail requesting your article. I will put the parts on order as soon as I have thoroughly read your Intro.


Larry Kelley