I have a brand new OS .91FX laying around and I wanted to try my hand at Pattern flying (I usually try and fly my 3D or IMAC planes pattern like..). I think the best option for ARF is the GP Venus II since the Excelleron 90 is gone?
Anyway - I see that most folks are using a YS110 or a OS 120AX. On a 8 - 8.5 lb plane the OS 120AX seems overkill (I have one on my Funtana X100). Am I wasting my time trying to do pattern maneuvers with a .91 2-stroke on the Venus II?

-Jeff

Jeff,
If it actually comes out at 8 lbs. the 91Fx would be OK. However, having helped someone with one of these planes I don't know how easy that would be. We ended up using a 120Ax and it came out around 9lbs. There's no such thing as too much power in a pattern plane. You don't use the excessive power to fly fast, but rather to improve the response. With a 120Ax you will almost never use full throttle for any extended period of time. If it's windy out, you may need to apply full throttle briefly however. If you're just starting out you will probably be flying Sportsman. The Sportsman sequence is not as demanding on the airplane and power system as are the 402-404 schedules. Having flown my friend's Venus 2 with the 120 and also a Groovy 90 with an OS 91Fx I think you'll be OK with the 91 for Sportsman IF YOU KEEP THE WEIGHT DOWN. The problem you'll run into with the Venus is that they seem to turn out nose heavy. The 91Fx will help here. Plan your servo installation accordingly. You may find that you need to put all the servos in the tail as suggested in the instructions. I would say go with the Venus 2 and the OS91Fx. The 120 is almost a bolt-in so if you find that you need more power, you can always get one later. In the meantime you can fly with what you've got. The Venus flies great - very little mixing required to make it almost perfectly neutral. If you like to set things up nose heavy, you may need some rudder-elevator mixing for knife edge, but it has almost no roll coupling tendencies. A very good, honest airplane.

John Pavlick
NSRCA 3815

In my area I know of four Venus 2 models that fly in competition. Even the one that's powered with a 91 OS has ample power for the intermediate sequence.
They seem to come out around 8 1/2 pounds except for the electric one which is 8 lbs.
A very good introductory pattern model. Flies true, no bad habits.
Just remember to put the servos as far back as you can.
mine has all HS225BB servos in it, and they seem to work just fine.

Thanks John.

On a side note... I just found an Excelloron 90 forsale for $230. Which model would you (or anyone) recommend.. The Venus II or the Excelleron 90?

I'm kinda leaning toward the Venus II due to parts availability and the ability to mount the engine at a downward angle to get the stock muffler in the pipe opening (2-stroke). However, I have read lots of praise on the Excelleron 90..

-Jeff

One the guys from the club sez the V2 is lots and lots of fun. He's powering his with a 120 AX and is doing the Masters sequence with his.

For starting out in pattern you don't need that level of performance so your 91 would work fine especially if you use a pipe on it. It wasn't that long ago we used 60s to power 8 1/2 pound airplanes all the way to F3A class, so you won't have difficulties

MattK

And it's 8.75 lbs with the 120AX.

If you can lay your hands on an Excelleron 90, grab it!

Can you fill me in on reasons on how the Ex90 is better than the Venus II? I have found very little info comparing the two...

-Jeff

The Ex90 seems to present more like a 2 meter plane in smoothness and appearance, especially with a 'Hideout' canopy from precision aero composites.

I just purchased a Venus II new and planned on using the OS 120 4 stroke. So far no one has mentioned that engine. Is the OS 120 2 stroke better?

Mike

Here's mine with an inverted OS 120 FS. 8.5 lbs. unlimited vertical and the truest plane I have flown next to my Typhoon 2000, and you can't beat the 4 - stroke sound

Mike,

I'm on my 2nd Venus II. Lost my 1st one in a mid-air. I ordered a new one the same day. I'm flying mine with an O.S. 120 surpass III 4 stroke, which is a very good engine for this aircraft. You will want to put the rudder and elevator servos in the tail or it will be nose heavy with that engine.

The Venus II is a very nice flying plane, perfect for pattern flying. Every time I fly, people comment on the nice lines it draws.

Hope you enjoy yours!

Dennis

Thanks. I'll go with the OS 120 4 stroke.

Mike

If you want to invert the engine and your using the non - pumped engine you should dremel out the formers a bit and turn the tank sideways. It lowers it about 1" and makes all the difference. If you want to exit the muffler under the plane - like I did - the in cowl hearder and flex pipe are available from OS. It makes a slick install as you can see in post above.

Well.. I made the jump and went with the Excelleron 90 with a new OS 1.20AX. Does anyone know if there is a header pipe for this engine yet?

Jeff

Contact Karl G. Mueller

E-mail Address: [email protected]

He has built several headers for me and they are a work of art!

Greg

I have both the Venus II and the Excelleron 90. Both have the OS 1.20 AX engines. Both fly much better than I am capable of flying them, at least right now. I seem to use the Venus II more lately, but don't have a reason for doing so. As I said, both planes fly just great and I don't really have a preference.

Now with regard to setting up the CG on the Venus II, since I am fairly new to all of this, I was happy to see that it was nose-heavy, but probably would not know the difference if it was less nose heavy (not neutral, but slightly nose heavy). I put all servo's in the servo compartment using Sullivan 4-40 carbon composite rods to the rear for both elevator and rudder setup.

The Excelleron, however, used all pull-pull system for all tail control. I am using Sullivan Kevlar cable but they tend to fray after a while. I have some of the new vinyl coated kevlar which may make a big difference when it comes to this fray business. I am going to replace all lines with that vinyl coated as soon as I have the time. Probably won't fly the Excelleron 90 again until I swap it out. I am just afraid of that fraying business. now that I think of it, perhaps that's the reason for my current preference, eh?

Meanwhile, back to the Venus II. Since I am running a pair of 1200mah NiMH batteries (over kill.. way over kill, but I had them and they fit just fine) perhaps I could move them back somewhere to shift that CG a bit? What is the overall effect with a more neutral CG?

Thanks.

DS.

PS. I like the OS 1.20 AX so much that I bought one for my current build, which is a play plane, the new Goldberg Tiger 120. I am searching RCU for a forum on the Tiger 120.