RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Javier,

How did the flaps work for you!?

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

I still have mixed opinions. Flaps work. You have to use elevator to compensate for the new wing angle, but once you know that, you feel more confortable. But it is not that much of a diference with the stock setting, and landing distance keeps almost the same. So far the biggest gain is listening to all of your friends going "Wow!" when you show them your new flaps while on land.

Javier

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Javier, I just put on flaps and now have much more aileron movement than before. I left it this way without trying to go with the manual's limits. This gives me alot of throw for the flaps. It does slow the plane down but I still have a hard time landing without bouncing. I can land and stop in a shorter distance but not as much shorter as I had hoped. I still haven't gotten the landing quite right. I don't crash but it isn't pretty to see it bounce off the front wheel. I need alot more practice.

Carl

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hixx, I hope you were able to see the hinges on the pictures.

Carl, My best landings have been approaching the runway at about 6 feet and reducing the throttle to almost 0%, from there just maintaining the nose parallel to the ground and giving it a bit of elevator just before touchdown... That was harder to achieve with the flaps... Might have been my psique. I've found that landing the magister against the wind requires me much more distance as it takes forever to take her down, so I prefer to take the runway from the other side. I hope that helps, and that flaps work for you.

Anyhow, I'm glad I took pictures on Saturday. On Sunday I had a crash because of another broken motor mount when I was too close to the treetops. There was a tree I couldn't avoid. Nothing fatal, but it was violent enough to rip the wings from the plane. My home made motor mounts don't seem to be working for more than 6 flights despite the material I use... I think there might be a problem at my motor. I've made sure that the prop and spinner is balanced so the only thing left is the motor. I was trying not to post anything about my crash, but it seems to ease my pain to let it out. ;) It's hard for the wallet to remember what this hobby is all about.

Javier

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

I just received replacement plastic wing retainer straps and the plastic bolt that holds the strap and wing to the fuselage. The Multiplex part number you'll want to order is 224174. For some reason I couldn't find a part number for the Magister for this part. This is the part number for the Multiplex Twinstar II wing strap, wing hold down bolt, four of the plastic things that go into the control surface and attach to the push rod, and four of the metal gizmos that connect the push rods to the before mentioned plastic things. There was only one plastic tie down and one plastic bolt in my package and I received it from Hitec/Multiplex directly so before ordering I suggest you call them direct to double check that what you want is included. In the U.S. that number is 858-748-8440.

Javier, you had a nice paint scheme. I hope the damage wasn't too bad.
When I first received my Magister I had read a thread that suggested lowering the front wheel about 1/2 inch (raising the front of the plane) so that the wing collects more air and takes off more quickly. This may be the reason I hit and bounce if the front wheel hits first. I've moved the wheel up to the manufactures suggested spot (lowering the front of the plane). I'll see if this helps while trying what you've mentioned.

Carl

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Thanks for the tips. I might do a "Professional Mexican Repair" (Don't laugh, it is possible ;)) with local parts, as I wan't to avoid high shipping charges (Each time I order something I end up paying up to 50 dollars for shipping). I think this repair should fall on the 5-7 dollars category. I'll try to change the nylon screws and the wingnuts, and use du-bro wing screws... They are much easier to get down here, and they should work as well. I'll drive in a few more minutes to the LHS to buy them and start the repairs so that I can take my plane to Acapulco for the weekend. If everything is O.K. I might be posting some pictures of the repair between tomorrow and Friday.

Javier

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Javier - Yea saw the pics, cheers. It is a nice paint job BTW. I ended up cutting some of the EPP out from the hinges and the surfaces are alot easier to move. I think I will leave it at that as this is my first plane and I dont intend to stick with it longer than I need to - mmmm........dreams of scale warbird.

Carlrich - glad you got some wing straps. Mine came yesterday along with the output shaft. Which was bent !! I think they used a banana lathe. Hopefully another will be at home waiting for me and I can get my bird back together.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hixx,

A warbird is a big step up for a new flier. The Magister is a trainer, very docile and easy to manage. A scale warbird will be a major challenge. They fly very fast, stall easily and are very difficult to land. I would consider a moderate step to a mid-wing aircraft with a symetrical wing to advance your skills first.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hixx, I also cut our part of the foam to make the ailerons move more easily and further. Seems to be working great.
I will second what Javier said about the warbirds. I've had two Mustangs and they are a bear to fly as they need speed to stay up. Slow down a little and they drop a wing and that means a crash if you are close to the ground (landing).
If you have to have a warbird I might suggest a Corsair as they tend to have more wing area per weight than others. I have a GWS Corsair and really enjoy it. Even still you need to get as much motor in it as possible. The 350motor that came with it was a joke. I put a 400 in it and it would at least fly. I then put a 480 in it and it flew well. I've sense put in a small outrunner and 18A esc and it flies beautifully. Combo price for motor and esc was like $40 or less. Will find it for you if this is the route you think you want.
3D planes are alot of fun and are fairly easy to fly due to the large wing area and very light weight. The easiest flying plane I own is a big 3D plane called the Lucy 3D from Polkshobbies.
http://216.86.38.243/POLKS/itemdesc.asp?CartId={EA3AC125-7704-EVEREST4BE6-9A13-06A07E8593C8}&ic=PLK10055&eq=&Tp=
or try www.polkshobbies.com
5lb plane with batteries and everything ready to fly. 57" wing span. They have several balsa planes for $50 that are easy conversions to electric and come almost totally completed as an ARF. I put a $64 outrunner from balsa products in it and it will straight vertical out of site yet will glide very slowly for an easy touch landing. Low weight compared to big wing area. Something to consider for next plane.

Carl

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hi All,

I am new to this group. Even though this group is young, there are some great tips and upgrade info.

I bought the Magister RTF at the LHS yesterday after reading the posts here. So far, I have flown the Shun Da Piper J3 with no problems, the Aerobird Challenger with no problems no caused by trying maneuvers that were too extreme or hitting the occassional tre light pole at the big ballfield where I usually fly. The Aeorbird is very easy to fly stock and even more fun when you switch to the full v-tail control throw. I also have the PZ P-51 which I have flown successfully and crashed frequently - it looks great in the air but is very sensitive. So I bought the Magister to improve my skills on an aileron setup and to fly in stronger winds than the smaller birds can handle. Haven't put it together yet since I am re-reading all of the posts.

Since the stock setup sounds underpowered, I edited the FMS .par file to back off the thrust and increase to weight to values that give performance that seems consistent with what I have read here. I made the following changes: reducer the setting for Motorkraft (engine power in English) from 22 down to 18 and I increased the value of Masse des Modells in kg from 2.2 to 2.27 which is 5 lbs. The the FMS model now takes a longer roll to take off and flies slower at full throttle with a corresponding reduced climb rate and performance for doing aerobatics. This may useful for others who like to get a feel for the planes handling before going out to the real world.

After a few hours of air time I will upgrade the motor and esc to brushless with lipos. Lipos in the P-51 make a huge difference even with everything else left stock, so I am sure they will help with the Magister. Once I am very confident with the Magister I will go back to the P-51. My biggest problem with the P-51 is that it is fast and unless I am constant turning it gets out of good visual range very quickly. The Magister hould help improve my skill with a bird that is easier to see at a distance.

Well, off to the shop to start the build and checkout before heading to the field, weather permitting.

Randy

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Randy, glad you joined in. Aerobird challenger was my first electric and a fun plane to fly. I also bought the pz stryker and found it a really fun plane to fly and very good at take a bad crash with no to little damage. I then got a pz mustang and found what you have found. It is hard to fly slow. I found it difficult to land because you can't hardly slow down without dropping a wing and doing a summersault. You should find the Magister easier to fly than the Mustang but more weight per wing area than the AB challenger so it needs more speed to stay up (at least with the RTF I have). The 8 cell nicad will give you 6 to 9 minute flights depending on temperature. Here in cincinnati I can get 9 min because it is below freezing. At these temperatures my lipos are not happy and give a third of the duration they should. I found that 2 cell lipos in parallel for 7.4v and 5200mah will get it up but with little power available on the stock motor. 3 cell works really well. Anyway, good luck on your maiden voyage! Remember to give yourself plenty of takeoff space and even more landing strip space.

Carl

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Carl,

Thanks for the tips. I have two 1800 mAh lipos for the Mustang. If I got a lipo capable esc for the Magister, I could parallel the 'Stang's lipos to get good flight time with the Magister and probably still save some weight. I always belly land the Aerobird since I usually fly it a a sammler rock-strewn field near the house. When I haven't crashed the P-51 while trying something new or stupid, I have had no problems landing it. I just come in at half throttle about 18 inches from the ground and kill the throttle and give just a touch of up elevator to prevent the nose from dropping. The Shun Da Piper is so light that it just floats down like a feather - as long as there is no wind. In a 6-8 mph wind, I can hold the little Cub in one spot.

I haven't started building yet - been working on the wife's car with a dead battery. Had to buy a nice new auto battery charger to troubleshoot :-) So now I have a nice high current charger to recharge the big gel-cell that I carry in the car to run the charger for the planes. Now that her car is good to go, I can start on the MM. So I probably won't maiden until tomorrow.

You indicate that the Stryker is much easier to fly than the P-51 - or just more resistant to crash damage? The Aerobird is really tough - I flew it dead square into a light pole - it fell straight down but the only damage was that the receiver/esc board broke loose its mounting screw so the elavons were at full downward travel. A little 5-min epoxy and it is good as new (almost). Once I get the Aerobird up, my wife will fly it for a couple of minutes. She has no idea what she is doing and makes it do wild aerobatic maneuvers that have no names but look pretty amazing. If she gets it into a spin she just shoves the remote into my hand. For her, I get it three mistakes high before she takes over. But since she can 'fly' that one, she is much more receptive to my getting more planes. She never has understood my telescope addiction (3 Meade 10 inch SCTs, a five inch refractor, a 12 inch newtonian, and a couple of SBIG cameras). I think she likes the planes because I can do that closer to home instead of driving 90 miles and camping out for a couple of nights.

With luck I can report on my results by noon tomorrow.

Randy

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Randy, here is a lipo esc for use with brushed motor like what is in you magister currently.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXKBF5&P=ML for $39 and handles 35A. They also have a 50A for $49.
I use one from castle creations that cost maybe a little less. It can be programmed for 2 cell or 3 cell lipo as well as 4 cell to 16 cell Nicd/Nimh.

The stryker takes some getting used to but after a couple flights you'll be flying 4 feet off the ground doing big easy loops and using throttle to easily control altitude. Rolls quickly become fast and easy. Inverted flight takes only a tiny bit of push forward on the stick. Easily flies just as well inverted as right side up. You can use your pz mustang transmitter (rx and servos same also) for a stryker so you spend around $100 to have an additional plane.
I have found the AB extreme to be a little easier than the AB challenger and you can use the same Tx for both. You can build the AB X from parts for about $100 and use the AB C trans.

Carl

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Stayed up late last night to assemble the Magister RTF kit. Everythig went very smoothly although it did take closer to two and a half hours than the one hour the Greg Covey needed. But This is the first time I have assembled a plane wit this many parts. The instructions were good with only a couple of ambiguous points - the worst being the last step. It says to mount the prop and spinner as shown in the illustration - the is no illustration, at least that I could find. Since I have done this on other planes, it was easy to figure out but a novice might be stumped about the order of assembly and which side of the prop goes to the front. If anyone at Multiplex is reading this forum then this would be a good addition to the manual.

The only other issue was the nose and landing gear. all of the cuts on the wire had ragged edges which required filing to clean up so that the collets and wheels would go on smoothly. I could have used a Dremel tool as well but didn't want to wake the wife. The wheels were very tight on the axles so that the plane wouldn't roll until throttle was up to 60 or 70%. This morning I reamed the holes in the wheels with successively larger drill bits until the wheels spin smoothly on the axle but still are reasonably tight. For my plane I found that a #20 drill bit was the right size for the final reaming. Now the Magister rolls smoothly on asphalt with the motor just above idle speed.

The steerable nose wheel is a fantastic feature after flying planes, like the Shun DaJ3, with gear but no steering. The neighbor kids want me to take off right from the cul-de-sac.

Now if the cricket players will clear off the field before the rain arrives, I can maiden today. What's up up that anyway? Cricket players in San Diego? First all the kids quit playing baseball and take up soccer - they even let girls play! Now cricket! The globalization of sports is an outrage! Someone should do something, someone.

Wish me luck.

Randy

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Cheers for the advice on the scale bird. I wasnt thinking of going straight from the maggie to a spitfire.
I'm toying with an intermediate IC low-wing to see me through this year, while maybe building the spit ready for next year. You know, when I can stay in the air for more than 5 seconds :D

Raptor,
nice tips for FMS, your right about the cricket. For Gods sake dont let in become popular. Man its dull ;)

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hi All,

I still haven't had a chance to fly much but I have been getting in a lot of FMS simulator time. I played with the thrust setting in the par file while also runniing motor prop calculations. I determined that I will upgrade the motor to the new AXI 2826/12. It is a better match to a 12-8 or 13-8 prop and will have higher efficiency with those props that a 2820/12. I should receive the motor in a day or two and pick up 50 amp brushless esc and a couple of 4s-2p lipo packs tomorrow. At full throttle with a 12-8 prop this should give about 90oz of thrust, with current draw around 45 amps, and prop pitch speed of around 45mph providing about 10 minutes flying time. Running at 70% throttle should give close to 20 minutes with a 2p pack or 10 minutes with a single pack.

If the weather cooperates over the weekend (doubtful) I will maiden with the new power plant and post the results. I may also try using a 3s 1800mA-Hr battery that I use in my Parkzone P-51. Current draw will be limited to about 20 amps peak but this should be enough to fly with this light weight battery.

I wanted to use the AXI 4140/14 but the diameter is too large. It is a better match to 12-8 to 14-7 props and is significantly more efficient. Once I get some flight time with the 2826/12, I may make a new motor mount and try the 4140/12 if it will fit inside the cowling. Using that motor and a 12-6 4-blade prop gives 90 oz static and 81 oz in-flight thrust with 83 percent efficiency.

Note: I am using the on-line motor calculator at http://brantuas.com/ezcalc/dma1.asp for the power estimations. It gives good agreement with measurements people have done on the AXI 2820/10 motors, so it should be pretty close for the 2826/12.

More to come.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

I just got a kit Magister put together and a fellow at my LHS sold me the stock configuration motor set from his Magister.

So I have the Multicont M32 ESC.

When I hook it up to my receiver and give it throttle, the motor doesn't seem to start turning until half throttle on the control...

It seems as though it's getting to full throttle (at least from the sound of it) but the gap from 0-50% of the throttle control worries me.

I made sure the transmitter was set to the correct startup positions (throttle and trim at zero) but it's still doing it.

Does this ESC have any "reset" or setup mode??

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Not that I'm aware of. Do you have any other receiver/radio to where to plug it so that you can make sure it's the ESC? It seems weird. I've known of problems with the ESC, but it's usually on the high range... It just cuts. Never on the low range.

Just for fun you could take a look at the German multiplex site. It is much more complete than the USA one, and they might have a document for the ESC. The link is: http://www.mpx.speedkom.net/hp/

I Hope you have luck, but I can almost bet you'll be moving to a brushless setup faster than you think of. If at any point you have to buy a new ESC think about giving the full jump to an outrunner. It is a VERY DIFFERENT plane when using Brushless and LiPo's.

Regards


Javier

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Can anyone tell me if the stock motor can handle 14.4V? I have a bunch of liions(not lipos)..so I'm trying to figure out the best battery config, and how much power it can handle. (yes, power as in P=iV). I have tons of 1.0 and 1.1Ah's..3.6V each, and a few 1.3Ah. They come in at 1.5oz/cell.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

No :D If you try this, the motor will start burning after a few flights. A friend of mine tried to use a 10-cell-NiCadpack and the result was a smoking Magister :D Maximum is a 9 cell NiCd/Mh Pack, or without longer using full throttle and a shorter live expactancy a 3 cell LipoPack.

Greetings
Julian

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Have flown my Magister as a TUG for some time now. It works very well towing 2-meter gliders at more than 1 kilo. Have a Hyperion 3025-10 in the nose, power from 4S LiPo`s. Appr 600 Watt... With this setup it is easy to take off from grass even with the glider lying on its belly without a trolley.

Spoilerons works well for landing, but the ailerons of course have to be raised 12-14mm, not lowered as I have seen done in this thread!

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

Hmm...should I just screw the brushed motor and go right to brushless? This is my first proper plane, so crashing is inevitable...I do already have a 7.2-24V 60A esc...and liion batterys; so maybe it wont be too bad with brushed.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

The stock brushed motors just suck. Go brushless if you can, and shoot for at least 350 watts to make this bird fly with authority.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

If you are a beginner and your runway is of the hard type the original motor works. If you take off from grass and have flown a bit before a brushless upgrade is good.
Some friends of mine fly their Magisters on AXI 2820/10 and 3S LiPo. This is a good setup. But my setup is brutal, it climbs vertical! The only reason for using 600 Watt as I do is for towing...

If you never have tried towing small sailplanes in your club this is the time to build a TUG! With 600 Watt in the Magister you have a nice small TUG. Although I have been in towing a lot, on bigger planes, we find a lot of joy in towing EasyGliders to 300 meters (1000`) searching for thermals. The simple method using velcro on the sailplane end of the line works great, just looping the glider for releasing.

RE: Multiplex Magister RTF
 

wow, that sounds like an awesome plane. I also heard of another great park flyer series that is new in town and is very affordable and tested to make sure the design is 100% correct. Check out DYNAMICFOAMY.com to see cool foamy's at an affordable price!!! I bought one, it was the YAK. Sweet