rharrismcse

I've had the Stryker just about a week and absolutly love it!
I've done a few mods to it already - a great high/low controller mod is posted on http://RC-Galaxy.com in the Stryker Forum
I'e covered the entire plane with clear packing tape which really secured it.
Also epoxied the rear fins on.
Very nice flyer.

dockman2

JJ- I was thinking the same about you.

My friends and I decided just to stick with the 7cell from CBP.com. One is a new pilot and the other has never had an electric. They are both happy with the speed for now. I think if I decide to try to get more out of the Stryker I will upgrade to a brushless set up. For now we are planning on going with the combat module so we are going to stick with the stock electronics.
Really I think its best to stick with the stock setup anyway. Its an inexpensive setup and cheap to fix and its probably better to keep it that way. If I want a higher performance plane I would go with one of the Alpha Models WWII fighters that Hobby Lobby sells. I think it would make more sense to spend the money on them and leave the Stryker as a more worry free and inexpensive Fun flyer.

kennydee

I ordered the 8 cell KAN brick pack from Cheap Batteries. I flew the Stryker with that pack over the weekend. It did fly a little faster but the flight time was dramatically reduced (down to about 4 to 5 minutes mixed flying). I'm getting 8 to 10 minutes mixed flying with the stock 7 cell pack and the plane still performs well. I'm not sure the extra speed is worth the cost in flying time. I've heard more about flyers having the deck and canopy come off in flight. You need to secure the rear portion of the deck with something other than the double sticky tape it comes with. I drilled a small hole in the canopy latch bridge and used a small servo screw to hold this deck in place, works well. If you don't do this, then the deck will come off, especially in warm weather. Also, if you don't make sure the canopy latch catches properly, the canopy will fly off as well. Push down and then forward a little to make sure the canopy is latched (pull on it to make sure). This plane also floats pretty well with the power off. You can easily extend flight times to 20 minutes or more by simply flying high and floating for a while.

rharrismcse

I get about 10 min of mixed flying with the Stryker.
Tonight if I get time - I'm planning on putting a 540 motor on the beast though. I would really like better vertical climb.
The 540 comes from my ABX wrecked fuse.
Results will be posted on http://rc-galaxy.com in teh Stryker forums.
I already posted a great little controller mod there. I got tired of nosing my plane while I was thumbing for that dang toggle!

dribbe

Keep in mind, the ESC on the ABX has double the FETs (power handling) of the Stryker ESC. Running a fairly hot 540 on the stock Stryker battery will abuse it quite a lot.
David

rharrismcse

It actually isn't going to work anyway.
I got the motor all ready for mounting - but decided to weigh it before hand. GISH! It's more than double the weight of that little 480 motor that's on there! While I think with the right mods it migh actually fly, I don't know that the benefits would out-weigh my perfect running Stryker! Stryker motor with mount = 4oz ABX w/o mount = 9 oz! No thanks!
I ditched the idea for a possible chance at putting a brushless 400 on it. More power there and same or less weight!
By the way - flew two batteries out of the plane tonight, I got about 14 min from each battery while at less than 1/2 throttle around 350 feet. And my controller mod works awesome! I was doing NOSE SPIN rolls with ELEVONS! The people watching were loving it just as much as I was!
YAHOOO!

jboomer

What batteries are you running? Mine won't stay airborne with less than 3/4 throttle, it starts losing altitude and definitely won't do any aerobatics with that throttle setting...even on high rates.

rharrismcse

I've got one stock and one from the Wing Dragon plane. EXACT same connector - but it's a 1000mha 8.4v Cell battery and only $16 from Hobby Zone.

kennydee

To Mr. Boomer, check your trim. Make sure it is neutral (the elevons are exactly on the same level as the wing) when the trim levers are in the middle. You may also have a bad battery pack, or one that loses too much voltage under load. The charger that comes with the plane is OK, but it will shorten the lifespan of your packs a little. If you don't have one already, invest in a good 2nd charger. Charge a new nimh pack at 1/10C or as near that low rate as possible. That would be .09 amp or 90 milliamps. If your charger won't go that low then use the lowest setting you have. After that first slow charge, then I would suggest charging at 1C or .9 amp (900 milliamps) for the Stryker pack. The pack will get warm but after charging, you should be able to comfortably hold the pack tightly in your hand. Also, to everyone else: I don't understand why people buy a good performing plane and immediatly won't to hop it up, I guess it's a youth thing. Also, about the rudders, the double sticky tape doesn't hold. I tried flying mine with the rudders just slipped in place and it worked OK for a while. This past week-end, one of them came off in flight so that night I used a little dab of shoe goo at the front of each rudder and that worked well. I'm not sure I would use epoxy because that would make it much harder to replace the rudders. The Shoe Goo is pliable and easier to pull off.

dockman2

From what JJ has being saying on the Ezone I dont think the problem is the batts. Its sounding more like a problem with the motor.

jboomer

Well, I just got back from flying again. About 8 minutes on my 1050 and 10 minutes on my 900 (gliding it quite a bit). So, maybe I'm just being pessimistic. It performed OK for me today, I guess I made a bit out of nothing yesterday. Although, after my first flight on the 1050's I checked to see how hot the motor was and was only able to hold my finger on it for a second before it burned too much. It gets really hot! Don't know if this is normal or not, but like I said, the plane flew like it was supposed to so I'm not complaining.

One question though, if you recharge the batteries more than once in a day, is this bad? Should you expect the same performance from them every time? I usually get three charges out of my batteries a day (if work or weather isn't stopping me)...in the last week or so anyway.

Keith Buckner

Well..I built my F27 "kit" today. I spent 4 hours with most of the time spent sloppily applying Econocote. Maiden went WITHOUT INCIDENT. She jumped straight into the air and performed amazingly. I flew a friend's stock RTF model earlier this week. Mine exhibited the same excellent flight characteristics, plus more speed and agility, due to the use of lighter, more powerful Li-polys.

I depleted 3 packs of KoKam 3s 1500s. Each 8-10 minute session began with an effortless hand launch and ended with a graceful landing into soft grass. Lots of acrobatics and low level, high speed passes filled the middle. Motor and Batts were VERY warm, but certainly" holdable.

I have never built and flown a plane this easy. It was fun and extremely rewarding. I have a new favorite! All other projects just got put on the backburner for a while, as I am currently going to spend ALL my spare time flying this thing!!

I can't imagine anyone being unhappy with this fun flyer!!
I need to figure out the best brushless upgrade for this baby, now!!

As seen in the pic, below, I'm still waiting on the hatch set.. worst case is I make my own (no problem).

Here is my setup
Stock Motor
GFS 20A ESC
Hitec HFS-05MG Receiver
Hitec HS55 Servos
KoKam 3s 1500 MaH Li-polys
Crude use of Econocote

dockman2

JJ- You can use them several times a day with no problem. Just make sure they completely cool before recharging. Usually on the second and third charge the run time will be a little less but not to much. Its normal and nothing to worry about.

Keith Buckner

Here is a video of my "kit" Stryker's maiden, as is obvious, by the fact that I had not yet adjusted the rates to attain a "proper" roll.

I launched her before the cameraman was ready, so you can't see how effortless it is to get started.. but it almost flies out of your hand by itself.

Close to the end.. that is not a crash, but rather, I dive into an area we call "the bowl".. pretty cool..... then come around for a pretty easy landing, that shows some of the bird's gliding capability.


You may get better results by saving the video to your harddrive before trying to watch it (almost 9MB).

http://alpinetek.netfirms.com/RC/F27/F27maiden.wmv

rharrismcse

LOVED the video - and your rolls are awesome! I know that speed is the key there! What motor are you running? I can tell that it's got alot more speed than a stock motor / batt setup. Perhaps you aren't running an 8.4 volt batt? Would love to know - your plane has alot of authority in the air!

Keith Buckner

Thanx for the pops.. I can't get enough of this plane.

That IS the STOCK motor on KoKam 1500 3s Lipos, actually.

I think I'm going to try the Wattage Cobalt motor on it, though... now THAT should scream!

Anyone know an appropriate ESC to use with the Wattage Cobalt?

Thanx,
KB

jboomer

Yep, your plane is cooking! So you're getting 8-10 minutes flying like that with those lipolys? That's awesome. What ESC are you using? I may have to copy your setup!

Never mind, I see it now!

dockman2

The only problem I see with the 3sLipos is the voltage. The 400 is not going to last long at over 11volts.

It didnt look to bad though. Ive thought about going brushless with mine but I really got the plane to do combat with 2 friends of mine. It would kind of be a waste since they wouldnt want to drop the coin on that setup and I would have a "slight" advantage.

Keith Buckner

Yeah... we don't care about the life of the motors, too much.. already bought several in case they die soon. We enjoy the speed factor most.
I think the Cobalt will be a better motor choice for this application, anyway.

Anyone here that can give me experience or suggest an appropriate ESC for the Cobalt?

davemartin88

The guys at my LHS said they've added a heat synch to the stock motor to shed some heat and are running 3 cell LiPo's and so far, the motors are holding up well?

rharrismcse

Just posted a new Video on my site
http://rc-galaxy.com/Video/F-27_Stry...ris_7-9-04.wmv

This was filmed yesterday with my stock Stryker. Winds were 15-20 mph as you'll see!

Rich

jboomer

What's this heatsink you're referring too? My motor is getting so hot I can't touch it but briefly after running a battery through it. I think I need to do something to direct more air through it.

KingCobra

My Feedback: (17)

Keith, I've got the Wattage Cobalt 400 mated to the Wattage 2.33:1 inline gearbox to use as a powerplant for a Ziroli-electric P-51 I'm working on. Using a 10-cell pack to spin a 9x6 prop, I'm seeing 120 watts with a 12-13 amp draw on my WhattMeter. Consequently, I'd say you'd need a 25-30 amp ESC if you are going to use it direct drive on the F-27. I believe all of the Wattage planes that use this motor are set up direct-drive, so you might see what ESC Wattage recommends. Be aware, though, that earlier postings on this motor branded it an "amp hog" and of questionable performance enhancement. Some posts claimed the motors got extremely hot and threw the magnets. I've got a Maxx Products Promax cobalt 400 that may replace the Wattage motor. The Promax motors are supposedly test-run and essentially already broken in. Carlton Campbell

Keith Buckner

KC,
Yeah.. unfortunately experience taught me this a bit sooner than your response

I've got both the Wattage and the Promax Cobalts and am not too pleased with either of them... for the money to get into them it is just s TINY jump to a respectable brushless setup.

Flying Weasel is running a mega 16/15/3 on a PHX45 ESC... we maidenend it today... This is a monster combo! I plan to emulate that in my plane. Awesome (really) performance.
He did the same thing on his Projeti.. scary fast!

rharrismcse

Just posted two new videos on my site of the Stryker flying -
http://rc-galaxy.com/?Q=Video

Rich