Hobbyking 35cc slick 540. Astro 120 motor, castle Hv 110 esc, 10s 5000 mah cells. A little under 14 lbs. Flies like a dream.

Fist picture is of the old style connectors. These fit only the flightpwer balancer. The newer style connectors in picture two fit most balancers, including the astro blinky.

E-sport 10

About four years ago, Rob Smith designed a pair of sport planes, the E-sport 8 and 10. Their names are indicative of the time period; 2003 was a transition point between the use of nicad/nimh battery packs and lithium cells. The “eight” and “ten” in their names refer to the minimum number of cells needed to fly the planes well. Both were published in Quiet Flyer magazine, and were reasonably popular plans-build airplanes.

In 2004, Kinoma Publishing offered the E-sport 10 as an arf, and although it was an economic failure (cheap ARFs must be produced and sold in large quantities to make a modest profit), it remains a fantastic ARF for the sport flyer. These planes were available for $100 shipped at one point, making them just about the best value in “40 sized” electric designes. I bought three, although my original is still flying, with the other two sitting in a box.

The plane is not a 3-D machine, but is based on the dimensions of an early 2000’s 2-meter pattern plane (newer pattern planes have a wider fuselage). The fuselage is narrow, tall, and long, aiding in knife-edge flight. The wing area is generous, and the airfoil is a good compromise for low drag, medium-speed flying, as well as slow landings. The plane is absolutely neutral, and makes a fine pattern trainer. It will knife edge with very little trim or mixing needed- just roll 90 degrees, hold 3/4 rudder, and give at least half throttle.

I first flew mine on a 550 watt direct drive system (...Continue Reading