Terry Gamble
Apr 01, 1996, 01:00 AM
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<head>
<title>A Mini Review of Some Popular ARF Electric Sailplanes</title>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<pre>The experienced R/C glow power flyer may get his introduction to electric
flight with a great variety of sport or scale models. For the beginner
though, the sailplane is often chosen because of it's slow gentle flight
and ease of flying. Even many "experts" can't get sailplanes out of their
blood and there are a wide variety of high performance (and high dollar)
electric sailplanes available. For the Beginner, the choice is simpler and
somewhat more limited.
For kit builders, the Goldberg Electra and Great Planes Spectra are two kits
that have established a good reputation among beginning modelers. Less well
known, there are a few ARF (almost ready to fly) saiplane kits that may be of
interest to the modeler who choses not to build a kit. The following is a
brief summary of the ARF kits I'm familiar with.
BEGINNER DISCLAIMER---All of these airplanes are suitable for a beginner,
but an instructor is really mandatory for all of them. Everybody knows
they should find an instructor, but most want give it a try by themselves
anyway. If you fit into this category, you are much better off going with
an unpowered glider. Chances of sucess are much higher because the
nonpowered gliders fly and land 1/3 slower than the powered ones. They are
also a lot more durable for a beginner. While these electric airplanes are
pretty tough in normal use, a nose in often causes severe damage because
the battery pack can become a projectile and hurl itself through the front
of the airplane causing tremendous damage. Also, your run the risk of
bending the motor shaft thereby having to replace the motor. Unpowered
gliders are much more user friendly if you want to try it alone.
Having said that, I've divided the airplanes into price categories.
At the low end, I like the new Thunder Tiger Windstar EP. All balsa, a bit
slower than the more expesive ones. (Actually, this is an advantage.)
Should be right at $100 with motor and prop. A very nice airplane that
flies well. Also good airplanes but no longer in production are: The Royal
Electrosoar and Hitec Challenger. There may be still a few on the shelves,
so keep your eyes open.
Next, the Kyosho Stratus and Soarus are both very impressive airplanes. I
have one of each and they are truly a cut above the standard ARF. The
Stratus is an airplane with a polyhedral wing which features rudder and
elevator flight control. The Soarus features straight wings and adds aileron
control to the rudder and elevator. Both airplanes have the same tail and
fuselage, and both come with a very good quality ferrite motor (ball bearings
and replacable brushes), and a top quality folding prop. Flight
performance is spectacular for a 6 or 7 cell craft. (The big, expensive 10-16
cell ships will, of course, eat them for lunch.) About $150 with motor and
prop from Tower Hobbies.
A bit pricier, becuase they're imported form Germany are the Graupner
kits. These are high quality kits available through Hobby Lobby in
Brentwood Tennesse. Of most interst to beginners are the Electro Junior
and Electro Junior Sport. You purchase the motor and prop separately, and
the combined package with airplane will be a little over $200. However,
these are very nice airplanes. A Hobby Lobby catalog is worth getting
because they also offer several other airplanes and lot's of electric
goodies.
The best performance for the dollar are the Kyosho kits. These perform as
well as the Graupner kits, IMHO. Best decent airplane for the dollar has
to be the Thunder Tiger. While the Kyosho planes will out perform it
slightly, it actually flies very well and is a bargain for $100. The Thunder
Tiger is probably a little slower and more stable also, which is an advantage
for learning.
None of these are two hours to fly type airplanes. (Which actually exist
only in the minds of their advertisers anyway.) To set one up the first
time will probably take 20 hours, ten for subsequent airplanes. You do get
out of building the stucture and covering it, so the time savings is
substantial. You also have the advantage of having a dead straight
airplane. Some, like the Kyoshos, are happier with miniservos, although
you can shoehorn in standard servos.
When you also factor in the flight batteries, on-off controller, and
chargers, these airplanes represent a significant investment over non
powered gliders. As such, they are probably too heavily marketed towards
beginners. If you have an instructor and the desire, these planes are a
lot of fun and very easy to fly. (The instructor mostly just keeps you
from crashing long enough for you get the hang of it.) If you're just
looking to try R/C to see if you'll like it, you might want to stick with
the unpowered versions. Thunder Tiger makes the Windstar in an unpowered
version for about $70-$75. An EXCELLENT place to start if you're unsure.
MORE ON GENERAL FLIGHT CHARACTERISTICS AND THE KYOSHO PLANES
Many people don't realize that an electric sailplane is twice as heavy as
it's non-powered version. (25-30oz vs.50-55oz) By doubling the airplane's
weight, you also double the wing loading and increase the stall speed by 50%.
Therefore, the airplane lands (and flies) quite a bit faster than a
non-powered version. While not a big deal for someone who already knows
how, this increased speed does make it quite a bit trickier for those that
are trying to teach themselves. The extra weight is also important in case
of a severe crash. There is a greater likelyhood of substantial damage.
The Kyosho airplanes feature a polyethylene, blow moulded fuselage that at
first may seem a little "cheesy". This type of plastic won't take paint or
even normal glue. Everything is screwed or bolted onto the aircraft. These
fuselages are very tough however, and If you avoid flying into the ground
nose first, these airplanes will sustain little damage other than scratches
in the plastic. (Since the color goes all the way through, the scratches
don't show.)
The Kyosho Stratus, because of it's polyhedral wing, is very stable in the
roll axis, almost like the Gentle Lady. It's about halfway in between a
Gentle Lady and a 40 size glow trainer in landing difficulty. It's more
stable in roll, but it's almost as fast as a glow trainer at landing.
While this still isn't very fast, it can be difficult for beginners. The
Soarus has straight wings and ailerons, so it's performance is very
much like a glow powered trainer on landing. It's a bit slower and a bit
easier, but not much. That's why it's the wrong airplane to teach yourself
to fly without an instructor. Also, the glide paths are very shallow,
which takes some getting used to. It's very easy to overshoot.
Another big difference is how much the speed changes with pitch changes.
These gliders are very slow and stable in the climb. (Almost boring
compared to a glow airplane) In the glide, they fly about as fast as a
glow airplane at half throttle. Easily managable, but still 35-40 mph. The
big difference is when you point them downhill. They are so clean that the
get to going very fast, very fast, if you catch my meaning. This is also
what makes them so much fun to fly. You can dive at the ground fron
200-300 feet, pull up, and go screaming across the flight line at about
100mph. You then have enough stored energy to pull into a loop and still
have enough altitude left to circle the field before landing....Neat.
It's my opinion that these airplanes are oversold to beginners. Adding a
motor adds a third dimension that really makes these airplanes shine, but
they're are also a bit advanced for the beginner. To fly these airplanes
well, you have to get good at airpeed/altitude management. They'll do
loops, hammerheads, cuban 8s, and even fly inverted. The trick is trading
altitude for airspeed which requires some judgement to develop. The
ability to "go around" and do "touch and goes" makes the whole experience
more fun, but also more difficult. I think it's much more fun to go up to
100 feet ten or twelve times on a flight, than to go to 500 ft 2 or 3
times. The airplane stays closer and is more fun, but of course it adds to
the challenge.
HOW ARF IS THIS ARF? (KYOSHO)
The structure is complete, no sanding or covering at all. There are,
however, about a jillion little pieces to put together. Because of the
ailerons, the Soarus has 2 jillion pieces. Mostly nut and bolt....a few
wood pieces are glued. Directions are excellent. Fitting everything in is
time consuming, and of course you have to adjust all the control throws.
Mini servos make the process easier. Fifteen to twenty hours should get
the job done nicely. Also you need an electronic on-off controller. I use
Hitec's model 1003, a real bargain at $30 because it has additional
features like a prop brake, BEC circuit, and safety arming switch. The
airplanes fly well on standard 6 or 7 cell R/C cars packs, which is a big
plus.
If you have further questions about this, feel free to drop me a note.
Terry Gamble
terrantula(at)aol.com
</pre>
</body>
</html>
<head>
<title>A Mini Review of Some Popular ARF Electric Sailplanes</title>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<pre>The experienced R/C glow power flyer may get his introduction to electric
flight with a great variety of sport or scale models. For the beginner
though, the sailplane is often chosen because of it's slow gentle flight
and ease of flying. Even many "experts" can't get sailplanes out of their
blood and there are a wide variety of high performance (and high dollar)
electric sailplanes available. For the Beginner, the choice is simpler and
somewhat more limited.
For kit builders, the Goldberg Electra and Great Planes Spectra are two kits
that have established a good reputation among beginning modelers. Less well
known, there are a few ARF (almost ready to fly) saiplane kits that may be of
interest to the modeler who choses not to build a kit. The following is a
brief summary of the ARF kits I'm familiar with.
BEGINNER DISCLAIMER---All of these airplanes are suitable for a beginner,
but an instructor is really mandatory for all of them. Everybody knows
they should find an instructor, but most want give it a try by themselves
anyway. If you fit into this category, you are much better off going with
an unpowered glider. Chances of sucess are much higher because the
nonpowered gliders fly and land 1/3 slower than the powered ones. They are
also a lot more durable for a beginner. While these electric airplanes are
pretty tough in normal use, a nose in often causes severe damage because
the battery pack can become a projectile and hurl itself through the front
of the airplane causing tremendous damage. Also, your run the risk of
bending the motor shaft thereby having to replace the motor. Unpowered
gliders are much more user friendly if you want to try it alone.
Having said that, I've divided the airplanes into price categories.
At the low end, I like the new Thunder Tiger Windstar EP. All balsa, a bit
slower than the more expesive ones. (Actually, this is an advantage.)
Should be right at $100 with motor and prop. A very nice airplane that
flies well. Also good airplanes but no longer in production are: The Royal
Electrosoar and Hitec Challenger. There may be still a few on the shelves,
so keep your eyes open.
Next, the Kyosho Stratus and Soarus are both very impressive airplanes. I
have one of each and they are truly a cut above the standard ARF. The
Stratus is an airplane with a polyhedral wing which features rudder and
elevator flight control. The Soarus features straight wings and adds aileron
control to the rudder and elevator. Both airplanes have the same tail and
fuselage, and both come with a very good quality ferrite motor (ball bearings
and replacable brushes), and a top quality folding prop. Flight
performance is spectacular for a 6 or 7 cell craft. (The big, expensive 10-16
cell ships will, of course, eat them for lunch.) About $150 with motor and
prop from Tower Hobbies.
A bit pricier, becuase they're imported form Germany are the Graupner
kits. These are high quality kits available through Hobby Lobby in
Brentwood Tennesse. Of most interst to beginners are the Electro Junior
and Electro Junior Sport. You purchase the motor and prop separately, and
the combined package with airplane will be a little over $200. However,
these are very nice airplanes. A Hobby Lobby catalog is worth getting
because they also offer several other airplanes and lot's of electric
goodies.
The best performance for the dollar are the Kyosho kits. These perform as
well as the Graupner kits, IMHO. Best decent airplane for the dollar has
to be the Thunder Tiger. While the Kyosho planes will out perform it
slightly, it actually flies very well and is a bargain for $100. The Thunder
Tiger is probably a little slower and more stable also, which is an advantage
for learning.
None of these are two hours to fly type airplanes. (Which actually exist
only in the minds of their advertisers anyway.) To set one up the first
time will probably take 20 hours, ten for subsequent airplanes. You do get
out of building the stucture and covering it, so the time savings is
substantial. You also have the advantage of having a dead straight
airplane. Some, like the Kyoshos, are happier with miniservos, although
you can shoehorn in standard servos.
When you also factor in the flight batteries, on-off controller, and
chargers, these airplanes represent a significant investment over non
powered gliders. As such, they are probably too heavily marketed towards
beginners. If you have an instructor and the desire, these planes are a
lot of fun and very easy to fly. (The instructor mostly just keeps you
from crashing long enough for you get the hang of it.) If you're just
looking to try R/C to see if you'll like it, you might want to stick with
the unpowered versions. Thunder Tiger makes the Windstar in an unpowered
version for about $70-$75. An EXCELLENT place to start if you're unsure.
MORE ON GENERAL FLIGHT CHARACTERISTICS AND THE KYOSHO PLANES
Many people don't realize that an electric sailplane is twice as heavy as
it's non-powered version. (25-30oz vs.50-55oz) By doubling the airplane's
weight, you also double the wing loading and increase the stall speed by 50%.
Therefore, the airplane lands (and flies) quite a bit faster than a
non-powered version. While not a big deal for someone who already knows
how, this increased speed does make it quite a bit trickier for those that
are trying to teach themselves. The extra weight is also important in case
of a severe crash. There is a greater likelyhood of substantial damage.
The Kyosho airplanes feature a polyethylene, blow moulded fuselage that at
first may seem a little "cheesy". This type of plastic won't take paint or
even normal glue. Everything is screwed or bolted onto the aircraft. These
fuselages are very tough however, and If you avoid flying into the ground
nose first, these airplanes will sustain little damage other than scratches
in the plastic. (Since the color goes all the way through, the scratches
don't show.)
The Kyosho Stratus, because of it's polyhedral wing, is very stable in the
roll axis, almost like the Gentle Lady. It's about halfway in between a
Gentle Lady and a 40 size glow trainer in landing difficulty. It's more
stable in roll, but it's almost as fast as a glow trainer at landing.
While this still isn't very fast, it can be difficult for beginners. The
Soarus has straight wings and ailerons, so it's performance is very
much like a glow powered trainer on landing. It's a bit slower and a bit
easier, but not much. That's why it's the wrong airplane to teach yourself
to fly without an instructor. Also, the glide paths are very shallow,
which takes some getting used to. It's very easy to overshoot.
Another big difference is how much the speed changes with pitch changes.
These gliders are very slow and stable in the climb. (Almost boring
compared to a glow airplane) In the glide, they fly about as fast as a
glow airplane at half throttle. Easily managable, but still 35-40 mph. The
big difference is when you point them downhill. They are so clean that the
get to going very fast, very fast, if you catch my meaning. This is also
what makes them so much fun to fly. You can dive at the ground fron
200-300 feet, pull up, and go screaming across the flight line at about
100mph. You then have enough stored energy to pull into a loop and still
have enough altitude left to circle the field before landing....Neat.
It's my opinion that these airplanes are oversold to beginners. Adding a
motor adds a third dimension that really makes these airplanes shine, but
they're are also a bit advanced for the beginner. To fly these airplanes
well, you have to get good at airpeed/altitude management. They'll do
loops, hammerheads, cuban 8s, and even fly inverted. The trick is trading
altitude for airspeed which requires some judgement to develop. The
ability to "go around" and do "touch and goes" makes the whole experience
more fun, but also more difficult. I think it's much more fun to go up to
100 feet ten or twelve times on a flight, than to go to 500 ft 2 or 3
times. The airplane stays closer and is more fun, but of course it adds to
the challenge.
HOW ARF IS THIS ARF? (KYOSHO)
The structure is complete, no sanding or covering at all. There are,
however, about a jillion little pieces to put together. Because of the
ailerons, the Soarus has 2 jillion pieces. Mostly nut and bolt....a few
wood pieces are glued. Directions are excellent. Fitting everything in is
time consuming, and of course you have to adjust all the control throws.
Mini servos make the process easier. Fifteen to twenty hours should get
the job done nicely. Also you need an electronic on-off controller. I use
Hitec's model 1003, a real bargain at $30 because it has additional
features like a prop brake, BEC circuit, and safety arming switch. The
airplanes fly well on standard 6 or 7 cell R/C cars packs, which is a big
plus.
If you have further questions about this, feel free to drop me a note.
Terry Gamble
terrantula(at)aol.com
</pre>
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</html>