NickW
May 09, 2003, 01:00 AM
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/cover.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/cover_t.JPG"></a><br>
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<p><strong>Specifications</strong></p>
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<p><strong>Type:</strong></p>
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<p>Electric Assist Sailplane</p>
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<p><strong>Airfoil:</strong></p>
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<p>Unknown Flat Bottom</p>
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<p><strong>Wingspan:</strong></p>
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<p>88”</p>
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<p><strong>Wing area:</strong></p>
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<p>698 square inches</p>
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<p><strong>Length:</strong></p>
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<p>45”</p>
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<p><strong>Weight:</strong></p>
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<p>58.1oz</p>
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<p><strong>Wing loading:</strong></p>
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<p>12 oz/sq.ft.</p>
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<p><strong>Motor:</strong></p>
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<p>Jeti Phasor 30-3 Brushless</p>
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<p><strong>Prop:</strong></p>
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<p>aero-naut cam 10x7</p>
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<p><strong>Speed control:</strong></p>
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<p>Jeti 40-3P Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller</p>
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<p><strong>Battery:</strong></p>
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<p>7 x Sanyo CP 1300</p>
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<p><strong>Radio Equipment:</strong></p>
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<p>2 Hitec HS 85 BBs, 2 HS 85 MGs, Hitec Superslim receiver, JR8103 transmitter</p>
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<p><strong>Manufacturer:</strong></p>
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<p><a href="http://http://www.scorpio.it">Scorpio</a></p>
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<p><strong>Available from:</strong></p>
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<p><a href="http://www.hobbylobby.com/">Hobby Lobby</a></p>
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<b><big>Introduction</big></b>
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My stable of airplanes has always lacked a large electric sailplane for those days when setting up a winch just isn’t practical. The Sport Palio is an ARF (almost ready to fly) two meter sailplane that builds quickly, flies well, and doesn’t break the bank. The Sport Palio can be built as either a pure glider, or in an electrified format. This review will focus on the electrified version. The kit and all of its components were graciously provided for review by the fine folks at Hobby Lobby.
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<b><big>Kit Contents</big></b>
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Hobby Lobby shipped the Sport Palio to me in a large cardboard box. Inside the larger box was a slightly smaller, well padded box containing the Sport Palio. Upon inspection everything had arrived in perfect order, and there was no damage to any of the components.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/everything.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/everything_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Kit components, accessories, and power system.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/majorairframe.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/majorairframe_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Wings, fuselage, stabs.</p>
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The first item I picked up was the fuselage. The fuselage is an Astra © epoxy fuselage with a smooth finish and considerable strength. It is very flex resistant, but does not feel brittle at all. Next up for inspection were the two wing panels. The flat bottomed wings arrived both straight and warp free. The wings are standard balsa rib construction with a fully sheeted leading edge, and are very nicely covered with an iron on film. The stab halves are lightweight balsa of typical stick construction, and the rudder is simply tapered sheet stock. Also included is a small hardware pack of control horns, pushrods, a plastic tow hook for the glider version, and all of the necessary joiner rods.
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<b>Power System</b>
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Hobby-Lobby’s recommended power system consists of one of the inexpensive Jeti 30-3 brushless motors mated to a Jeti 40-3P controller. Power comes from seven Sanyo CP1300 cells. An aero-naut yoke, spinner, prop adapter, and 10x7 blades finish off the power system.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/powersystem.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/powersystem_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Power system components.</p>
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The Sport Palio manual mentions using a 600 size can motor with a direct drive setup. In my opinion this would not be a valid option and would provide you with an underpowered beast. This sailplane would fly nicely on a geared brushed motor setup, but I have been very happy with the performance and price of the Jeti brushless motor, and I highly recommend it.
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<b><big>Assembly</big></b>
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Assembling the Sport Palio is not difficult, and a week of light evenings will have it flight ready. If you are really gung ho, there is no reason you couldn’t have it put together in a weekend. I’m going to just highlight some problem areas during assembly as most of it requires little explanation to anyone with a couple of models behind them. The manual is in Italian, and an English language supplement is included. The translation is poor, but easy enough to understand. Each step in the manual also includes a diagram to help make sense of things. The manual includes the instructions for both the glider and electric versions, so be sure and only follow the steps necessary to complete your chosen variety. There were several things on the Palio I considered modifying to improve its design. I built mine stock to be able to review it faithfully, but I will try and point out a few suggested modifications along the way.
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<b>Motor Mounting</b>
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The Sport Palio manual starts just where I like to start on an electric model, with the motor mounting. Be sure to include a couple of degrees of down thrust in the motor alignment, or your Palio will climb steeply at neutral elevator settings. The manual suggests cutting cooling holes in the side of the fuselage. I have not found these necessary with my power system, so I omitted this step.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount1.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount1_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Firewall with the Jeti 30-3 attached.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount2.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount2_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Nice spinner to fuselage fit.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount3.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount3_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Prop temporarily fitted.</p>
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<b>Fuselage</b>
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Once the motor has been securely mounted, the manual moves on to the fitting of the rudder, elevator, and the canopy. The rudder is simply hinged with CA type hinges, which the holes are nicely precut for. Once the rudder is hinged and free moving the stabilizer is next. The Sport Palio uses a full flying stabilizer which is operated from the outside of the fuselage via a pushrod. The first step in mounting the elevator is to epoxy the pivot rod into the vertical fin. The fit of the pivot rod is extremely tight and once in place will not move around even without epoxy. This is when I chose to deviate from the instructions. I wanted my Palio to be easily transportable, so I did not epoxy this rod in. The rod takes some tugging to remove or replace, but once in, it doesn’t move. The stabilizer halves then slide together over the pivot rod and are held together via a grub screw that tightens down on the joiner rod. This system is effective, but I would much prefer a full flying stabilizer that is actuated via an internal bellcrank, over the external linkage. Once the stabilizer and rudder are fitted the horns are added and the pushrods installed. I elected to not use the horn backing plates as I am not a big fan of ugly horn plates on the top of the surface. I simply epoxied them into the surface. The provided elevator and rudder horns are enormous. I would suggest replacing them, or cutting them down by about half. I left mine stock on the rudder and elevator, but I did trim down the aileron horns by about two thirds.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabrod.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabrod_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Stabilizer pivot rod.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabs.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabs_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Unique stabilizer attachment.</p>
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Once the tail end is complete the plywood servo / battery tray is assembled and installed. If I were to build the Palio again I think I would omit the entire tray and simply mount all of the equipment to the floor of the fuselage. The tray is not necessary for fuselage reinforcement, and simply adds overall weight. However since I was committed to following the instructions, I went ahead and installed it. Its presence does make mounting your radio gear and battery very simple.
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The remaining fuselage assembly moves to mounting the brass receiving tube for the wing rod, and the canopy. The wing rod is supported within the fuselage by a brass tube. This tube is provided over length, and some quick, careful work with a rotary tool will have it nice and flush with the outside of the fuselage. I slid the wing rod into the tube while it was in position in the fuselage, and carefully checked it’s alignment against the stabilizer. I had to remove some material with a rotary tool in order to reach the proper alignment. A little time spent here will save you a lot of trouble later.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingjoiner.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingjoiner_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The fuselage masked off to prevent damage while sanding the brass tube flush.</p>
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Last up in the fuselage assembly is the canopy. The canopy is a clear plastic molding that you have to cut to shape. I spent a great deal of time slowly trimming and trial fitting the canopy only to find that the pre-scribed trim line on the canopy was spot on. The canopy mounts to the fuselage with two screws or tape.
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<b>Wings</b>
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There is little to do to finish the wings other than to glue in the alignment dowels and install your servos. The folks at Scorpio have kindly installed two tubes to route your aileron extension wire to the servo pocket in. What they did not do was to make sure the tubes terminate inside the servo pockets. Both of my tubes were inside the sheeted leading edge, and were not easily accessible from the servo pocket. It took me about fifteen minutes to poke and prod around in there to fish the tubes out of the leading edge and into the servo pocket. A couple of strings passed through these tubes at the factory would have been a nice plus, and a big timesaver. All that aside, the rest of the wing construction is straightforward. The servos simply epoxy into the pocket and connect to the provided pushrods. I chose to cut my aileron horns down by about two thirds as they were far too big for the job. I also chose to epoxy them into the ailerons rather than use the include top plate. Included with the Palio are two molded ABS servo covers for the wing servos. These covers were obviously designed for much larger standard sized servos, and had a huge bulge in order to accommodate the extra servo sitting outside of the wing. My HS85MGs sit perfectly flush, so I tossed the covers and added some circles of trim sheet instead.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingservo.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingservo_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The intended covers, the trim sheet covers, and the cut down aileron horns.</p>
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The next step is to epoxy the large winglets on. I followed the instructions and glued them on at this point. Once they were attached I managed to knock them in to everything in the surrounding area. I would strongly suggest you adhere them last, just before you check your CG to avoid hanger rash incidents.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingletfit.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingletfit_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Winglets pinned in place while the epoxy dries.</p>
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The last part of the wing assembly is to install the wing rod retaining sleeves, similar to the method used on the horizontal stabilizer. The wing has two brass sleeves, one in each wing panel. A grub screw in this sleeve tightens against the wing rod and holds the wings in place. Although this method works fine, I suggest you use another method to hold the wing on. Tape, or some eyehooks in the wing root both come to mind. My biggest problem with the brass inserts is simply that they are aesthetically displeasing. I would also recommend replacing the hinge tape on the ailerons. The hinge tape on my model was dried out and was easily removed and replaced with tape from my stock.
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<b>Finishing up</b>
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At this point its simply a matter of finishing the radio installation, adding the decals, and final balancing and radio programming. The provided decals add a lot of color to the model, and it looks much sportier with them on. I made up some Liftzone decals on my PC and added those to the wing as well.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The naked airframe before decals, note the brass bumps on the wings top surface from the joiner sleeves.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete2.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete2_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Airframe after decals are applied</p>
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There is plenty of room to move the flight battery around to adjust your center of gravity, so no additional weight was added. My control throws were set as follows:
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<li>Elevator ½” up, ½” down</li>
<li>Rudder 1” in both directions</li>
<li>Ailerons ½” up ¼” down</li>
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<big><b>Flying</b></big>
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My Sport Palio sat on my workbench for four weeks awaiting appropriate test flying weather. Everything from snow, to rain, to 30mph winds prevented me from flying it. I had plans to travel to Orlando, Florida to compete in a sailplane contest, so I brought the Palio along in hopes that I would find time to get some flights in. Upon arrival in Florida I checked the weather forecast and was pleased to see mild temperatures and light winds, perfect test flying weather. The Orlando Buzzard’s field was enlisted for the test flights, and club member and friend Matt Fair was enlisted to help with the in flight photos.
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A quick range check with the motor on and off was completed without incident. The moment of truth had finally arrived. Full throttle was applied and the Palio given a nice firm level throw. The Palio proceeded to climb out smartly and some down elevator was quickly applied to keep the Palio from stalling. Once up high enough some down elevator trim was fed in and the climb settled down.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/finalcheck.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/finalcheck_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Last minute checks before launch.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/handlaunch.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/handlaunch_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Palio shortly after release.</p>
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The Palio climbs very nicely at about a 25 to 30 degree angle on the Jeti Motor. In approximately 45 seconds the Palio was at a very comfortable height. Power off glide looked right, but some aileron and rudder trim corrections were necessary. Next up was to try a few thermal turns. The Palio grooves around nicely as long as you keep it moving. When you do slow the Palio down too much in the turns it lets you know by dropping its nose and mushing about a bit. Let it regain speed and you are off and running again. Stall tests were straight ahead and without much incident. The Palio starts a stall by getting mushy and slow, then if you still don’t get the message it will drop its nose. Power was once more applied and it was at this point that I realized that the thrust angle of the motor was wrong. The Palio kept pitching up in the climb at neutral elevator trim. A couple of degrees of down thrust cures the problem. This time I climbed the Palio a bit higher and went out searching for lift. I spent much of the rest of this flight getting used to the Palio and checking its performance. After a third climb to alititude the BEC kicked in and I spent some time flying about and thinking about the landing. I set up my approach with a long wide circuit of the field to lose altitude. The Palio is slightly heavily loaded and covers ground fairly quickly. As it approached me on the upwind final leg I was beginning to wonder if I was too high to land before the other end of the field. Fortunately the uncut tall grass was enough to slow it down well short of the other side of the field. The first flight was a complete success.
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/inflight.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/inflight_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>An inflight shot.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/onapproach.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/onapproach_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>On final approach.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/afterflight.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/afterflight_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>After the completed test flight.</p>
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<blockquote>
<p>
Before the second flight I moved the center of gravity back a bit, removed some of the up trim, started my timer, and gave it another firm toss. The Palio climbed out without incident and this time did not pitch up as much in the climb. I climbed the Palio for just over a minute till it was starting to get really small and shut off the motor and went thermal hunting. After searching around for a bit I encountered a nice thermal and started to slowly gain some altitude in the light lift. Much of the rest of the flight involved circling in light lift, and climbing up to altitude again to start the process all over. When it was time to land the timer read just under twenty minutes. Subsequent flights have all fit this pattern with 15-20 minutes being the norm. Adding some down thrust to the motor has also completely removed its tendency to pitch up during the climb.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>
<b><big>Conclusions</big></b>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The Sport Palio makes for a great flying electric sailplane for any sport flyer’s stable. Although not suited to LMR (Limited Motor Run) type competitions, it will keep you smiling on those lazy Sunday afternoons. The Palio also makes for a nice change from your basic 3 channel polyhedral electric ARF. The Palio has no vices in the air, and with a little help would make a good second airplane / aileron trainer. Thanks again to the Orlando Buzzard’s for the use of their field, Matt Fair, and Hobby-Lobby.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<br>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/cover.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/cover_t.JPG"></a><br>
<p></p>
</td>
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<td align="center" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" colspan="2">
<p><strong>Specifications</strong></p>
</td>
</tr>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Type:</strong></p>
</td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>Electric Assist Sailplane</p>
</td>
</tr>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Airfoil:</strong></p>
</td>
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<p>Unknown Flat Bottom</p>
</td>
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<p><strong>Wingspan:</strong></p>
</td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>88”</p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Wing area:</strong></p>
</td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>698 square inches</p>
</td>
</tr>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Length:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>45”</p>
</td>
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<p><strong>Weight:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>58.1oz</p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Wing loading:</strong></p>
</td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>12 oz/sq.ft.</p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Motor:</strong></p>
</td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>Jeti Phasor 30-3 Brushless</p>
</td>
</tr>
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<p><strong>Prop:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>aero-naut cam 10x7</p>
</td>
</tr>
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<p><strong>Speed control:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>Jeti 40-3P Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller</p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Battery:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>7 x Sanyo CP 1300</p>
</td>
</tr>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Radio Equipment:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>2 Hitec HS 85 BBs, 2 HS 85 MGs, Hitec Superslim receiver, JR8103 transmitter</p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Manufacturer:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><a href="http://http://www.scorpio.it">Scorpio</a></p>
</td>
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<td align="right" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><strong>Available from:</strong></p>
</td>
<td bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p><a href="http://www.hobbylobby.com/">Hobby Lobby</a></p>
</td>
</tr>
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</table>
</td>
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</table>
</p>
<p>
<b><big>Introduction</big></b>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
My stable of airplanes has always lacked a large electric sailplane for those days when setting up a winch just isn’t practical. The Sport Palio is an ARF (almost ready to fly) two meter sailplane that builds quickly, flies well, and doesn’t break the bank. The Sport Palio can be built as either a pure glider, or in an electrified format. This review will focus on the electrified version. The kit and all of its components were graciously provided for review by the fine folks at Hobby Lobby.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>
<b><big>Kit Contents</big></b>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
Hobby Lobby shipped the Sport Palio to me in a large cardboard box. Inside the larger box was a slightly smaller, well padded box containing the Sport Palio. Upon inspection everything had arrived in perfect order, and there was no damage to any of the components.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/everything.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/everything_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Kit components, accessories, and power system.</p>
</td>
<td align="center" width="50%" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/majorairframe.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/majorairframe_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Wings, fuselage, stabs.</p>
</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
</td>
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</tbody>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The first item I picked up was the fuselage. The fuselage is an Astra © epoxy fuselage with a smooth finish and considerable strength. It is very flex resistant, but does not feel brittle at all. Next up for inspection were the two wing panels. The flat bottomed wings arrived both straight and warp free. The wings are standard balsa rib construction with a fully sheeted leading edge, and are very nicely covered with an iron on film. The stab halves are lightweight balsa of typical stick construction, and the rudder is simply tapered sheet stock. Also included is a small hardware pack of control horns, pushrods, a plastic tow hook for the glider version, and all of the necessary joiner rods.
</p>
<p>
<b>Power System</b>
<br>
Hobby-Lobby’s recommended power system consists of one of the inexpensive Jeti 30-3 brushless motors mated to a Jeti 40-3P controller. Power comes from seven Sanyo CP1300 cells. An aero-naut yoke, spinner, prop adapter, and 10x7 blades finish off the power system.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/powersystem.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/powersystem_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Power system components.</p>
</td>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The Sport Palio manual mentions using a 600 size can motor with a direct drive setup. In my opinion this would not be a valid option and would provide you with an underpowered beast. This sailplane would fly nicely on a geared brushed motor setup, but I have been very happy with the performance and price of the Jeti brushless motor, and I highly recommend it.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>
<b><big>Assembly</big></b>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
Assembling the Sport Palio is not difficult, and a week of light evenings will have it flight ready. If you are really gung ho, there is no reason you couldn’t have it put together in a weekend. I’m going to just highlight some problem areas during assembly as most of it requires little explanation to anyone with a couple of models behind them. The manual is in Italian, and an English language supplement is included. The translation is poor, but easy enough to understand. Each step in the manual also includes a diagram to help make sense of things. The manual includes the instructions for both the glider and electric versions, so be sure and only follow the steps necessary to complete your chosen variety. There were several things on the Palio I considered modifying to improve its design. I built mine stock to be able to review it faithfully, but I will try and point out a few suggested modifications along the way.
</p>
<p>
<b>Motor Mounting</b>
<br>
The Sport Palio manual starts just where I like to start on an electric model, with the motor mounting. Be sure to include a couple of degrees of down thrust in the motor alignment, or your Palio will climb steeply at neutral elevator settings. The manual suggests cutting cooling holes in the side of the fuselage. I have not found these necessary with my power system, so I omitted this step.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount1.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount1_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Firewall with the Jeti 30-3 attached.</p>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount2.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount2_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Nice spinner to fuselage fit.</p>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount3.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/motormount3_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Prop temporarily fitted.</p>
</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
<b>Fuselage</b>
<br>
Once the motor has been securely mounted, the manual moves on to the fitting of the rudder, elevator, and the canopy. The rudder is simply hinged with CA type hinges, which the holes are nicely precut for. Once the rudder is hinged and free moving the stabilizer is next. The Sport Palio uses a full flying stabilizer which is operated from the outside of the fuselage via a pushrod. The first step in mounting the elevator is to epoxy the pivot rod into the vertical fin. The fit of the pivot rod is extremely tight and once in place will not move around even without epoxy. This is when I chose to deviate from the instructions. I wanted my Palio to be easily transportable, so I did not epoxy this rod in. The rod takes some tugging to remove or replace, but once in, it doesn’t move. The stabilizer halves then slide together over the pivot rod and are held together via a grub screw that tightens down on the joiner rod. This system is effective, but I would much prefer a full flying stabilizer that is actuated via an internal bellcrank, over the external linkage. Once the stabilizer and rudder are fitted the horns are added and the pushrods installed. I elected to not use the horn backing plates as I am not a big fan of ugly horn plates on the top of the surface. I simply epoxied them into the surface. The provided elevator and rudder horns are enormous. I would suggest replacing them, or cutting them down by about half. I left mine stock on the rudder and elevator, but I did trim down the aileron horns by about two thirds.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabrod.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabrod_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Stabilizer pivot rod.</p>
</td>
<td align="center" width="50%" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabs.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/stabs_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Unique stabilizer attachment.</p>
</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
Once the tail end is complete the plywood servo / battery tray is assembled and installed. If I were to build the Palio again I think I would omit the entire tray and simply mount all of the equipment to the floor of the fuselage. The tray is not necessary for fuselage reinforcement, and simply adds overall weight. However since I was committed to following the instructions, I went ahead and installed it. Its presence does make mounting your radio gear and battery very simple.
</p>
<p>
The remaining fuselage assembly moves to mounting the brass receiving tube for the wing rod, and the canopy. The wing rod is supported within the fuselage by a brass tube. This tube is provided over length, and some quick, careful work with a rotary tool will have it nice and flush with the outside of the fuselage. I slid the wing rod into the tube while it was in position in the fuselage, and carefully checked it’s alignment against the stabilizer. I had to remove some material with a rotary tool in order to reach the proper alignment. A little time spent here will save you a lot of trouble later.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingjoiner.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingjoiner_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The fuselage masked off to prevent damage while sanding the brass tube flush.</p>
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</td>
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</tbody>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
Last up in the fuselage assembly is the canopy. The canopy is a clear plastic molding that you have to cut to shape. I spent a great deal of time slowly trimming and trial fitting the canopy only to find that the pre-scribed trim line on the canopy was spot on. The canopy mounts to the fuselage with two screws or tape.
</p>
<p>
<b>Wings</b>
<br>
There is little to do to finish the wings other than to glue in the alignment dowels and install your servos. The folks at Scorpio have kindly installed two tubes to route your aileron extension wire to the servo pocket in. What they did not do was to make sure the tubes terminate inside the servo pockets. Both of my tubes were inside the sheeted leading edge, and were not easily accessible from the servo pocket. It took me about fifteen minutes to poke and prod around in there to fish the tubes out of the leading edge and into the servo pocket. A couple of strings passed through these tubes at the factory would have been a nice plus, and a big timesaver. All that aside, the rest of the wing construction is straightforward. The servos simply epoxy into the pocket and connect to the provided pushrods. I chose to cut my aileron horns down by about two thirds as they were far too big for the job. I also chose to epoxy them into the ailerons rather than use the include top plate. Included with the Palio are two molded ABS servo covers for the wing servos. These covers were obviously designed for much larger standard sized servos, and had a huge bulge in order to accommodate the extra servo sitting outside of the wing. My HS85MGs sit perfectly flush, so I tossed the covers and added some circles of trim sheet instead.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingservo.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingservo_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The intended covers, the trim sheet covers, and the cut down aileron horns.</p>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The next step is to epoxy the large winglets on. I followed the instructions and glued them on at this point. Once they were attached I managed to knock them in to everything in the surrounding area. I would strongly suggest you adhere them last, just before you check your CG to avoid hanger rash incidents.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingletfit.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/wingletfit_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Winglets pinned in place while the epoxy dries.</p>
</td>
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</tbody>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The last part of the wing assembly is to install the wing rod retaining sleeves, similar to the method used on the horizontal stabilizer. The wing has two brass sleeves, one in each wing panel. A grub screw in this sleeve tightens against the wing rod and holds the wings in place. Although this method works fine, I suggest you use another method to hold the wing on. Tape, or some eyehooks in the wing root both come to mind. My biggest problem with the brass inserts is simply that they are aesthetically displeasing. I would also recommend replacing the hinge tape on the ailerons. The hinge tape on my model was dried out and was easily removed and replaced with tape from my stock.
</p>
<p>
<b>Finishing up</b>
<br>
</p>
<p>
At this point its simply a matter of finishing the radio installation, adding the decals, and final balancing and radio programming. The provided decals add a lot of color to the model, and it looks much sportier with them on. I made up some Liftzone decals on my PC and added those to the wing as well.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>The naked airframe before decals, note the brass bumps on the wings top surface from the joiner sleeves.</p>
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<td align="center" width="50%" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete2.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/complete2_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Airframe after decals are applied</p>
</td>
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</td>
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</tbody>
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</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
There is plenty of room to move the flight battery around to adjust your center of gravity, so no additional weight was added. My control throws were set as follows:
</p>
<p>
<li>Elevator ½” up, ½” down</li>
<li>Rudder 1” in both directions</li>
<li>Ailerons ½” up ¼” down</li>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>
<big><b>Flying</b></big>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
My Sport Palio sat on my workbench for four weeks awaiting appropriate test flying weather. Everything from snow, to rain, to 30mph winds prevented me from flying it. I had plans to travel to Orlando, Florida to compete in a sailplane contest, so I brought the Palio along in hopes that I would find time to get some flights in. Upon arrival in Florida I checked the weather forecast and was pleased to see mild temperatures and light winds, perfect test flying weather. The Orlando Buzzard’s field was enlisted for the test flights, and club member and friend Matt Fair was enlisted to help with the in flight photos.
</p>
<p>
A quick range check with the motor on and off was completed without incident. The moment of truth had finally arrived. Full throttle was applied and the Palio given a nice firm level throw. The Palio proceeded to climb out smartly and some down elevator was quickly applied to keep the Palio from stalling. Once up high enough some down elevator trim was fed in and the climb settled down.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/finalcheck.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/finalcheck_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Last minute checks before launch.</p>
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<td align="center" width="50%" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" valign="top">
<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/handlaunch.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/handlaunch_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>Palio shortly after release.</p>
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</td>
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</table>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>
The Palio climbs very nicely at about a 25 to 30 degree angle on the Jeti Motor. In approximately 45 seconds the Palio was at a very comfortable height. Power off glide looked right, but some aileron and rudder trim corrections were necessary. Next up was to try a few thermal turns. The Palio grooves around nicely as long as you keep it moving. When you do slow the Palio down too much in the turns it lets you know by dropping its nose and mushing about a bit. Let it regain speed and you are off and running again. Stall tests were straight ahead and without much incident. The Palio starts a stall by getting mushy and slow, then if you still don’t get the message it will drop its nose. Power was once more applied and it was at this point that I realized that the thrust angle of the motor was wrong. The Palio kept pitching up in the climb at neutral elevator trim. A couple of degrees of down thrust cures the problem. This time I climbed the Palio a bit higher and went out searching for lift. I spent much of the rest of this flight getting used to the Palio and checking its performance. After a third climb to alititude the BEC kicked in and I spent some time flying about and thinking about the landing. I set up my approach with a long wide circuit of the field to lose altitude. The Palio is slightly heavily loaded and covers ground fairly quickly. As it approached me on the upwind final leg I was beginning to wonder if I was too high to land before the other end of the field. Fortunately the uncut tall grass was enough to slow it down well short of the other side of the field. The first flight was a complete success.
</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/inflight.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/inflight_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>An inflight shot.</p>
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<p>
<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/onapproach.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/onapproach_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>On final approach.</p>
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<a href="/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/afterflight.JPG"><img src="http://static.rcgroups.com/articles/liftzone/2003/may/palio/afterflight_t.JPG"></a></p>
<p>After the completed test flight.</p>
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<p>
Before the second flight I moved the center of gravity back a bit, removed some of the up trim, started my timer, and gave it another firm toss. The Palio climbed out without incident and this time did not pitch up as much in the climb. I climbed the Palio for just over a minute till it was starting to get really small and shut off the motor and went thermal hunting. After searching around for a bit I encountered a nice thermal and started to slowly gain some altitude in the light lift. Much of the rest of the flight involved circling in light lift, and climbing up to altitude again to start the process all over. When it was time to land the timer read just under twenty minutes. Subsequent flights have all fit this pattern with 15-20 minutes being the norm. Adding some down thrust to the motor has also completely removed its tendency to pitch up during the climb.
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<p>
<b><big>Conclusions</big></b>
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<p>
The Sport Palio makes for a great flying electric sailplane for any sport flyer’s stable. Although not suited to LMR (Limited Motor Run) type competitions, it will keep you smiling on those lazy Sunday afternoons. The Palio also makes for a nice change from your basic 3 channel polyhedral electric ARF. The Palio has no vices in the air, and with a little help would make a good second airplane / aileron trainer. Thanks again to the Orlando Buzzard’s for the use of their field, Matt Fair, and Hobby-Lobby.
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