i want to get a new plane that isnt too hard to fly but can still do stunts. something fairly durable. and electric. i was talking to my local LHS guy and he directed me towards a katana ep. i dont know if its some sort of off-brand company or not because it was on the ceiling and i was in a hurry but it looked decent. here's the only picture i could find resembling it. its balsa frame flat sort of flatana-looking thing. about all i caught whilst trying to speak on the phone and listen at the same time (the guy wasn't listening to me[sm=spinnyeyes.gif]) was a 1300 mAh lipo with sensorless 25 amp ESC. from what i have does it sound at all decent? if you have any suggestions for an intermediate pilot please give them. with a price b/c i have a budget. in fact just give me suggestions on airframes as well as rtf's. im looking only at electric. hey thanks a billion.[sm=thumbup.gif]

Hi CoytAW,

There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of planes that you could choose from. Its a little hard to judge what to recommend without knowing what you are currently flying and what experience you have. The term "Intermediate" has different meanings for different people. The plane that you show on the photo is probably meant for expert level flying and, although you could probably fly it on low rates, there are certainly planes available that would be better suited for you.

Here are a couple of suggestions for you to consider:
1) Multiplex MiniMagistar (Minimag): this is a great foam (durable and easy to repair) intro plane for aileron control
2) ParkZone Typhoon 2: on low rates its a great flying aileron plane with lots of power to get you out of trouble and fairly slow to give you time to react. On high rates its a terrific intro to acrobatic and 3D maneuvers. (Also foam)
3) E-flite MiniUltraStick (MUS): a great performer that is a popular "first" wood plane.
4) E-flite MiniPulse: a smooth flying wood plane that is also capable of aerobatics
5) E-flite MiniFuntanaX: fully acrobatic and 3D capable wood plane that has a full body for excellent appearance

well my first plane was a low-wing spitfire foamy. it died because of a broken wing. so pretty muchly i'm open to anything. i'd like something i can toss around a bit but it doesn't have to be amazing.

How many flights did you have with the Spitfire before it died? If you were comfortable flying the warbird and were able to land it regularly without crashing, then you can pretty much fly just about anything.

If you want to stay with foam and want a plane that is more relaxing to fly than the Spitfire was, get the Minimag. If you want to experiment with aerobatics and possibly soime 3D, get the Typhoon. If you want speed, get the Stryker.

If you want to move over to wood, get the MUS.

oh i was doing some tricks high up. stuff like rolls and i tried getting a hover thing going a few times but the plane's dynamics were all wrong for that. i suppose i got in about 15-20 flights. landings are still hard but i havent crashed on a landing yet. and MUS is just MUS? its not an acronym that google wouldnt recognize? oh and if its an off-brand i wont get it. thats why my spitfire broke. crappy hollowed-out wingtips. oh and is the typhoon that one bipe with the wings in between the top and bottom ones? like spars that double as wings?

The Typhoon2 is made by ParkZone: http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...ProdId=PKZ4300

"MUS" is the acronym for MiniUltraStick: http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...ProdID=EFL2350

I have the original Typhoon that I've been flying for 16 months and I absolutely love it. My only complaint is that the plane flies so well upside down, that its very easy to loose orientation if it gets a little too far away from you. During the first three months, i crashed the plane three times because I lost orientation. I finally painted it two distinctly different colors: blue on the bottom of the fuselage and wings, red on the top. Haven't lost orientation since then. It slows down very well for landings and is capable of all types of aerobatics, including hover, knife edge, etc.

The MUS is a great flying plane. There are six flyers at my field who have it and they all absolutely love it. I bought a used one but have not assemblesd or flown it yet because I just hate the way that this plane looks, but it is a terrific flyer.

ok cool. the 'MUS' sounds up my alley. one thing about the spitfire is that it didnt do well inverted. my little sister kept insisting it had a gyro (she knows everything, by the way) because of the way it tried turning itself over. it didnt have a gyro but it was still fairly fast. anyways thanks a billion. oh and would you recommend modding the MUS? i want to know so i remember not to fly it into the ground too often. as if i can prevent that.