Anyone have any experience with the park zone Slow V. My girlfriend's little brother wants to get into rc and I was hoping to get him something that looks like an airplane (i.e. not an aerobird).

Should be a good first time bird, as it flies so slow.
Recommend the 7 cell pack vs the 6 cell.
And must fly in little or no wind!

I disagree. As a newbie who is flying and crashing an aerobird and a slo -v. The slo-v is slow, but it is too delicate. The slowest nose crash from a height of 6', or a nose tumble when it comes along the grass and the gear catches, and the propeller shaft bends, and or the boom in front of the engine breaks. This then requires a full rebuild. Too delicate.

The aerobird challenger has been very forgiving. My friend and I both who knew nothing have taught ourselves how to fly, and occasionally land. Well we always land, but the rate of deceleration is sometimes extreme.

The fuselages of our birds look like they are from Iraq. We have replaced a few wings and rubber bands, and that is it. This despite direct assaults on trees, roads, a neighbors house, etc.

My 0.02.

You're kidding right!.............This is what you said......"My friend and I both who knew nothing have taught ourselves how to fly, and occasionally land. Well we always land, but the rate of deceleration is sometimes extreme.

The fuselages of our birds look like they are from Iraq. We have replaced a few wings and rubber bands, and that is it. This despite direct assaults on trees, roads, a neighbors house, etc."

How can you put down a great trainer like the "Slo-V" when you addmit to crashing into tree's and people's personal property? (which is unacceptable) You need to learn to fly before you post negative information about a certain aircraft! And what does Iraq have to do with anything.........The Slow-V is a great trainer for a beginner as welll as the Slow Stick which I have both. My S.S is set up with 3 cell lipo and outrunner which I'm sure someone with limited experience would destroy also! To me the "Chalenger would make a good Xmas presant for one of my kids!

If "IHTFP_RC" would like to P.M me I would be glad to help on any mods and info pertaining to the Slow-V.....it was my first trainer and a great one at that!

"This is my opinion only, thank you"

I am not putting down the slo-v. I live in a rural area with no clubs near us. My friend and I are trying to learn with our own experience our only teacher. The slo-v not standing up to our abuse is our experience. The challenger looks like it has been in a war (hence the Iraq reference), but still flies.

I have parked the slo-v for now until MY SKILLS improve. It is a nice plane, but landings that are easily tolerated by the challenger, break the slo-v.

Sorry you were offended by comments.

i have a slo v i crashed it into a pole in about 15 mph winds and it dented the wing and losened a nut on the prop shaft now that is pretty sturdy to me i love my slo v it is a great trainer and i will just upgrade when i need a faster plane

I have another post detailing my newbie exploits with the Slo-V. I would just like to add that I fly it a couple times of week and since I have now learned to fly, I have had no durability problems in the last 3 months or so. I might occasionally break a prop but that is it. The most important aspect is when your learning to fly the SLo-V is to make sure there is NO WIND! After you get used to it you can fly it in a bit of a breeze but anything more than 7-10mph in the stock setup is a major fight. I really have enjoyed this plane for what it is and I'm going to transition to something else in the next week or so. I recently got to take the sticks on a brushless profile plane(Insane Foamies something ..tana) a few weeks ago and it really got my juices pumping.


Happy flying!

Why only in P.M? Why not help someone in the forums so others needing help can also see?

RCDuggiedug

Yes! Please Post. I'm intrested as well. Thanks!

Well it appears the original question asker, got his answer. Noticed no other posts by he.
So I'll pitch in for you guys. What would you like to know.
How about a repower set up? Fly better/faster and way longer.
Fixes for the weak tail fins?
How not to break so many props/gear boxes?
Vertical launches from your hand?
Ask away and I'll try and help you.

Thanks for your help!

I would like to get better power and longer flight times. I have seen some rumblings about a Venom Racing motor is that a good swap?

The Venom was a great brushed motor upgrade to the Cub, should work well with the stock electronics on the Slo-V.

I posted a PM to Glaciar Girl with this question but it is better here in public.

How is it that the venom motor is an upgrade over the stock motor if they both have the same power rating (370)? Am I making an incorrect assumption about the meaning of that number? How does that number system work?

I would like to improve the performance of my slo-v also but don't want to go the brushless route yet.

That number gives you the size, not the rating. All 370 motors are about the same size but can be different in performance. Bushings vs ball bearings. Different timing of the brushes on the same motor can give different results from speed to torque.

YEP!!!!!

At Glaciar Girl's suggestion I just intalled the Venom Racing 370 motor in my Slo-V and the improvement was dramatic and considering in only cost $15 I'm really impressed. Thanks Brad!

I find the stock motor even with the 7 cell battery to be rather anemic. I always had trouble getting much altitude out of it unless I had it carefully trimmed and managed the throttle and turns well. Not anymore! I just maidened the new motor and was able to climb several hundred feet very fast with no trouble at all. You can't get something for nothing of course and I noticed that the battery drained that much faster as well but it was a worthwhile trade off.

In fact the difference was so great, I would guess a good 30% or more of extra power, that I would wonder if my stock motor were not in fact defective, were it not for the enthusiastic response others have had putting it in their J-3 Cubs, another PZ plane that uses the same motor as the Slo-V.

It makes you wonder why Parkzone didn't just use the Venom motor and charge an extra $5 for the plane as that is the price difference between the stock 370 and Venom Racing's version.

The Venom motor is the same size and fits the motor mount perfectly. You will have to remove the pinion (the little metal gear on the stock motor's prop shaft) and intstall in on the Venom. I was able to pop it off easily using a screw driver as a lever and then empoxied into onto the Venom motor.

I highly recommend this inexpensive hop up.

I should also add that I don't see any need for more power on my Slo-V than this new motor provides. I did buy it as a SLOW flyer after all. One I can fly at the small elementary school playground three blocks from my house. There is a brushless motor in my future but it will be mounted to my Stryker!

Something about power, it doesn't always mean speed. More power can also mean, ability to fly in higher winds, and the use of less throttle for same performance.
My brushless version can putter around for up to 30 mins. with lipo power. Can handle winds that the stock version can't. And seeing a Slo-V go verticle is just too cool.

You can also use the same motor and different props for more speed or power. a 9x6 can give you speed and an 11x4.5 can give you power but a lower speed. Like gears in a car. A larger prop and/or better motor can take off the ground easier or get you out of a stall easier and can take up a payload like a bomb drop or camera.

RCDuggiedug

points taken

i vote Slow Stick. that way he can use the elecronics in other planes as he progresses

Thats what I fly. I don't think anyone could go wrong with a Slow Stick. I carry a bomb drop or camera with mine.

rcduggiedug, did you have to go brushless to be able to do aerial photography? im interested in it and my funds are limited. i already have a whole 4 channel radio system...just need the Slow Stick. i flew the wing off of that thing. lol

i also found another plane that is EPP foam. (EPP=nearly indestructable) its called the Push-E-Cat made by Garrison Aerodrome. its about $100 with shipping but it will pay for itself over time. plus again reusable electronics. it requires a 3 channel radio with micro reciever and 2 micro servos. http://www.polecataero.com/

It came with a 300 motor and I think the gear ratio was 5.5 to 1 swinging a 11x8 prop. I used that at first with a 8 cell tyco AA pack and it lifted the tiny camera powered with a 9 volt battery with no problem. climb out was slower but it still climbed good.