Newbie help?

[Griffo]

I've only just stumbled across the indoor pattern phenomenon and I'm already hooked.

I've been flying slope gliders for years now but I'm thinking it's time to brach out a little and was hoping for a little advice from the more experienced members of this forum :)

The Flatana by Great Planes has caught my eye but I need to know what gear I'll need to get myself started?

I currently have a JR 3810 transmitter and some JR-371 servos that like I would like to use. I'm guessing I'll need a reciever to match but am not quite sure what my options are here since the light weight stuff is all new to me.

Also I was wondering if it is worth going for the brushless Electrifly Rimfire option?

I'd really appreciate some advice!

[ChrisBowker]

I flew a flatana for a while, the brushless upgrade makes it a totaly difrent plane and much better. Im not sure the flatana would be your best bet for f3a, there is some debate on weather the flat outs are worth it. IMO there more fragil than other depron planes. I flew my flatana with both the rimfire and the brushed motor it comes with, with the stock motor it would barly hang on the prop for the first few min of the flight, with the rimfire it would hang on the prop at less than half power, and i got much longer flights with it than with the stock motor.

Chris

[Griffo]

Thanks Chris,
the Sukhoi SU-29 from Fancy Foam Models looks good and they seem to have a package deal for $315.
Is this a good deal and would the SU-29 be a little more durable than the Flatana?

[IWC]

http://www.3dhobbyshop.com/detail.aspx?ID=3

[ChrisBowker]

Ive never seen a fancy foam model in person but from looking at there page it does look like its built better than the flatana, the combo doesnt seem bad for praticly every thing you need for the model.

Chris

[Cubber]

Personnally, I really like the Flatana and the other GP flatouts. Some people complain about the building and fragility of this model. I don't. I like the way it builds and after 50+ flights, I have not bumped it, so I can't complain on fragility. The best things going for it are low price and availability. If for indoor use, there are numerous other choices better than the Flatana, but at 40 bucks, it's only an airframe, the hardware should be able to follow you to other planes later on.

The Rimfire, 3s 700-830 mah, BL8 ESC and 9x3.8 prop is an excellent combo for anything in the 9-10 ounces range. My own Flatana with the above is 9.5 ounces.

The JR RS6UL micro RX is an excellent RX, not only for JR users but for Futaba owner as well (it's available in positive or negative shift). I have a few of them and they are light enough for shockies. Still, I prefer saving a bit of weight and I am using GWS pico rx on the lighter stuff.

Hope this helps.

Edit. I would not fly it with the brush motor, opting for BL instead, but I really like the fact it includes geared motor and prop. I have 3 flatouts and I am only one motor short for equipping my big Constellation foamie project :D

[ChrisBowker]

i liked how the flatana flew. ive been depating all day about picking up a reflection...

Chris

[Griffo]

Thanks everyone.... I think I'm closer to understanding what I need now :)

[Aio_1]

I've only just stumbled across the indoor pattern phenomenon and I'm already hooked.

Hi Griffo,

The planes and equipment being discussed here don't look like the makings of an indoor pattern plane to me! I'm not an experienced indoor pattern flyer but I've been looking at it in a little detail recently and the basics seem pretty clear.

Unless I'm looking at the wrong plane the SU-29 is a designed to weigh about 370g (13oz) with a wing loading of about 16g/sqdm (5oz/sqft). That's FAR too heavy for an F3P type plane of the type that seem to work well. If you look at the various successful designs you'll find they are around the same size as the SU-29 but weigh half as much or less. The vast majority of models seem to be under 200g and many of the best are about 150g.

I think you should have a look at some of the posts by Jurgen Helig and others from the German and French competition scene as they know precisely what they're talking about and have provided a lot of very helpful data on this forum already.

It seems to me that the ideal setup at the moment for indoor pattern is 2s cells from 300mAh to 480mAh, sub 5g receiver (4 or 5 channel), sub 15g motor (such as the Flyware MicroREX 220/3 which weighs 12g) and three ~5g servos.

I'm designing my own attempt at an F3P plane at the moment and since I'm using a 21g motor and 3s TP480 cells I regard my setup as slightly overweight. However the SU-29 looks like an elephant in comparison.

I do not think the SU-29 will be suitable.

Aidan

[Griffo]

Thanks for the advice Aidan, I'll take this on board.
I agree that 370g is quite heavy but since I will probably be using it outside more often than not I think a little extra weight might come in handy.
Has anyone had experience with the Fancy Foam planes?

[Aio_1]

I agree that 370g is quite heavy but since I will probably be using it outside more often than not I think a little extra weight might come in handy...
It's true the heavier and more powerful plane will handle wind better but I don't think you can go that heavy and still have a plane that is managable indoors. Some pilots would manage it indoors but I wouldn't be happy and if your background is mostly slope soaring I think you'll have problems too. A large part of flying anything but the slowest planes indoors is the ability to hover. I can't do it well and I suspect you can't either if you're background is on the slopes where flying styles are rather different.

Perhaps I'm wrong but I think it might be worth either focusing on indoor flying and accepting that more than 5mph wind will be a bit much outdoors or build a plane for outdoors like the SU-29 but be aware you might find it too much to bring indoors.

Aidan

[Griffo]

Thanks again Aidan :)
I guess if I go wrong I can rip the gear out and build my own.
Can anyone else comment on the fancy foam models.... ie strength, flyability - Indoors and out?

[Jerry Combs]

If you want to go with a Fancy Foam model, look more towards the Chitty Bipe or the Ellipse Bipe. They are designed more towards the AM type of flying but are light and will fly well indoors. I have seen both fly although I have not flown them personally.

Jerry