Originally Posted by Emdev2

Hey Guys,

Just ordered a sky surfer with the brushless upgrade. Great forum. I'm completely new to the RC plane part. Have a RC car. While I'm waiting for it to arrive I would like to plan the mods mentioned here but I have some questions. I'm going to place a order with hobby king with the needed parts.

What is the max size-capacity batt and recommended c rating for this plane without making it too heavy or hard to fly. What's the sweet spot size and weight? This is with stock brushless motor and esc.

What kind of avg. flight times can I expect with the stock 1300mah batt?

I see most people are going with either a APC or a TGS 6x4e prop upgrade as it's mentioned the stock one sucks. Is one of those props better than the other and are they a direct replacement? What is the size of the original prop?

I'm looking to get the carbon fiber stuff to reinforce everything. Is the 3mm carbon soild rod or hollow tube the ideal one to get for the plane reinforcement and how many pieces of the hobby king 750mm length are needed?

Will the 5mm tube from hk fit in the original 6mm spar to make it stronger and will one 750mm length be enough?

I would like to replace the all the control horns as mentioned but im looking at what hk has and there are many sizes. Which is the correct sizes for the plane and how many do I need?

Are the stock servos and arms ok or should I replace those also? If so which ones and size should I get that are low cost but reliable?

Where can I buy landing gear for this plane and what kind is the best to use?

I think I might also upgrade the ESC later to the Turnigy tr_s25a 25A with BEC. Is this a good choice and will it be able to handle it if I ever upgrade the motor?

Anybody know the kv rating of the original motor?

Sorry for all the questions but I would like to get this right the first time.

Thanks

Before you throw a lot of big $$$ at this plane and to make sure we can protect you from yourself (I need protecting from me all the time), I highly recommend that you assemble the SkyS and fly it "right out of the box". Then, you will be much more knowledgeable about what you might or might not want to do in the Mods category. To jump right in with all the mods is an invitation to disaster IMO. The only change I would suggest prior to maiden is to take out those washers in the front of the nose. That additional weight will cause more damage if you happen to have a "less than perfect" landing (crash). The other side of the coin is that the extra weight does make the plane more stable and thereby easier to handle in the air. The washers are your choice. The weight does is make it easier for you to change the battery. If you choose to remove the washers, move the 1300mah 3S1P LiPo all the way to the front of the plane. I know this does not answer all of your questions. But, I am leaning toward keeping you out of trouble and helping you have a fun experience with the SkyS.
AJ

Originally Posted by ajbaker

I will be interested to hear your flying experience with that LG compared to stock (no LG). There might not be any difference at all. But, at 2.7 oz (13.2% increase in weight-My plane weighs 20.5 oz. AUW), I think there might be a noticeable difference. Please let us know.
AJ

So I suppose this is out of the question...

Originally Posted by 2500GENE

So I suppose this is out of the question...

Now those are some rough terrain wheels! Might be a tad heavy though.

Jack

Originally Posted by ajbaker

Before you throw a lot of big $$$ at this plane and to make sure we can protect you from yourself (I need protecting from me all the time), I highly recommend that you assemble the SkyS and fly it "right out of the box". Then, you will be much more knowledgeable about what you might or might not want to do in the Mods category. To jump right in with all the mods is an invitation to disaster IMO. The only change I would suggest prior to maiden is to take out those washers in the front of the nose. That additional weight will cause more damage if you happen to have a "less than perfect" landing (crash). The other side of the coin is that the extra weight does make the plane more stable and thereby easier to handle in the air. The washers are your choice. The weight does is make it easier for you to change the battery. If you choose to remove the washers, move the 1300mah 3S1P LiPo all the way to the front of the plane. I know this does not answer all of your questions. But, I am leaning toward keeping you out of trouble and helping you have a fun experience with the SkyS.
AJ

Perhaps he should leave the washers in with the 1300 battery and remove them when he uses something bigger like a 2200.
Also tape the wings so they don't flap like aj's lips in one of his videos.




Jk aj, jk.. you know I love your vids... Prof told me to say that.

Thanks for the input guys. I'm 100% certain that this plane is going to be crashed by me within the first 2 flights so I thought I should at least do some of the reinforments to minimize damage? It seems you guys don't agree? I just want to make this plane stay in good shape for as long as possible. Thoughts?

On another note can someone please answer my questions as I'm still going to need those answers even if it ends up I do these mods in the future?

Originally Posted by 2500GENE

That's not what it says when the video starts.

I should go back an edit again and state the disclaimer or warning up front. Beware, bad video ahead.

AJ and Gene,

I pulled the washers. With the 2200 3S it flies much better with less ballast.

Bill

Originally Posted by Emdev2

Thanks for the input guys. I'm 100% certain that this plane is going to be crashed by me within the first 2 flights so I thought I should at least do some of the reinforments to minimize damage? It seems you guys don't agree? I just want to make this plane stay in good shape for as long as possible. Thoughts?

On another note can someone please answer my questions as I'm still going to need those answers even if it ends up I do these mods in the future?

I didn't mean to ignore your questions, was letting the guys who have these in the air speak up first. I have the kit version but haven't had it in the air yet. But I'll comment on what I know to start you out to kill time...

Originally Posted by Emdev2

Hey Guys,

Just ordered a sky surfer with the brushless upgrade. Great forum. I'm completely new to the RC plane part. Have a RC car. While I'm waiting for it to arrive I would like to plan the mods mentioned here but I have some questions. I'm going to place a order with hobby king with the needed parts.

What is the max size-capacity batt and recommended c rating for this plane without making it too heavy or hard to fly. What's the sweet spot size and weight? This is with stock brushless motor and esc.

Batteries are cheap at HK. Look at the 1300-2200 3 cells nano-tech which have a high C rating. You don't need more then 15-20C but having more will help in the future with motor swaps or other planes. 2200mAh is a nice size.


What kind of avg. flight times can I expect with the stock 1300mah batt?

10 to 20 minutes depending on how much gliding you do. You can even drag it out longer if your real easy on the throttle.

I see most people are going with either a APC or a TGS 6x4e prop upgrade as it's mentioned the stock one sucks. Is one of those props better than the other and are they a direct replacement? What is the size of the original prop?

Same size as the stock EZ star. The stock prop is rather weak and prone to fail. I like APC. I'm sure others will comment.

I'm looking to get the carbon fiber stuff to reinforce everything. Is the 3mm carbon soild rod or hollow tube the ideal one to get for the plane reinforcement and how many pieces of the hobby king 750mm length are needed?
Prof has a nice set up a page or two back. Inserted a CF rod into the stock spar. I'm gouging it out to 8mm and using a CF arrow shaft. I'm weird that way.

Will the 5mm tube from hk fit in the original 6mm spar to make it stronger and will one 750mm length be enough?


I would like to replace the all the control horns as mentioned but im looking at what hk has and there are many sizes. Which is the correct sizes for the plane and how many do I need?

I only use Dubro. Again look in Prof's blog.. You need 4.


Are the stock servos and arms ok or should I replace those also? If so which ones and size should I get that are low cost but reliable?

Most stock servos and arms are good enough for now.

Where can I buy landing gear for this plane and what kind is the best to use?

I think I might also upgrade the ESC later to the Turnigy tr_s25a 25A with BEC. Is this a good choice and will it be able to handle it if I ever upgrade the motor?

For the price difference get a 30-40amp esc. It'll handle anything you put into the SS and almost any other plane in the future.

Anybody know the kv rating of the original motor?

BL is around 2000kv.

Sorry for all the questions but I would like to get this right the first time.

That'll never happen.

Thanks

Q

Thanks for the info. I did read through all the mod posts and everything else Sky Surfer. I'm looking for specifics because I would like to order everything from HK if possible so I want to order the right stuff. The horns for example he has a picture of them and a brand but no size. I don't think hk carries that brand. They just list by size like 13.5x16mm. Not sure which is the right one. If anyone else can help with specifics I would be greatful.

Originally Posted by Emdev2

Thanks for the info. I did read through all the mod posts and everything else Sky Surfer. I'm looking for specifics because I would like to order everything from HK if possible so I want to order the right stuff. The horns for example he has a picture of them and a brand but no size. I don't think hk carries that brand. They just list by size like 13.5x16mm. Not sure which is the right one. If anyone else can help with specifics I would be greatful.

Well, you have some work to do. I provided the Dubro package of control horns with part number. You need to go to your local hobby shop and either buy the Dubro or measure the one he has in the store and then order the same size from HK. The package has the part number. The key is make sure they have screws long enough to go through the foam. The horns I used were cut down.

The carbon fiber tube that reinforces the standard CF tube is 3/16". Someone posted he used HobbyKing 5 mm. When he measured their "5 mm" CF tube it was 3/16". The stock motor is fine if it's wired well. Mine wasn't so I replaced it with a HeadsupRC.com 2200 kv inrunner. The only inrunner he sells. 3 mm or 1/8" CF can be used for all additional reinforcement.

Taping the hinges I use 3M Extreme tape available at office supply houses.

Take out the weighty washers and use 2200 mah 3S 30C pack. It balances just fine.

For a replacement ESC buy a Turnigy 30 amp switchmode ESC. I would find a Hobbywing Pentium because I believe they are better. In mine I am using what I had in stock, a 32 amp PowerUp ESC I bought from HeadsupRC.com.

CG is 68- 72 mm from leading edge.

The pictures at the beginning are from my Rcgroups Blog.

The servo pot failed on my elevator servo so I replaced the elevator and rudder servo with HK HXT 900 9 gram servos.


Anything else, just ask.

Yesterday late in the day was great day for flying -- clear blue skys and calm. I flew several packs and used both on board video and a hat cam using two key chain video cameras. Videos need editing but require a special processing software to use with AVItrimmer. I need to buy the processing software. AVItrimmer allows the user to quickly select the footage you want to keep then processes it into a separate file. The beauty is it doesn't recode the video, it just trims it.

Stay tuned, off to work. I will work on it tonight.

Great flyer this plane.

Bill

UPDATE: I had problems with processing the Mjpeg format of the key cam and finally found simple editor (AVI Splitter) to trim out all the useless footage. The results are below.

A couple of days ago it was a perfect late afternoon for flying. At the field was the young Ryan Clark who flies for Extreme RC. He's an amazing flyer. I had on my trusty hat cam (with one key fob camera) and plane had the other. So, I thought I'd have Ryan put the plane through its paces. The flight was 13 minutes but I edited it back to about 5 minutes. Enjoy the hat camera view. Enjoy Ryan's flying. Ignore my banter. The on board video with other key fob is not included. If interested I will trim the on board video and post it.

BTW, I used AVI splitter to edit the raw video.

Skysurfer on calm day (5 min 37 sec)

Originally Posted by Prof100

A couple of days ago it was a perfect late afternoon for flying. At the field was the young Ryan Clark who flies for Extreme RC. He's an amazing flyer. I had on my trusty hat cam (with one key fob camera) and plane had the other. So, I thought I'd have Ryan put the plane through its paces. The flight was 13 minutes but I edited it back to about 5 minutes. Enjoy the hat camera view. Enjoy Ryan's flying. Ignore my banter. The on board video with other key fob is not included. If interested I will trim the on board video and post it.

BTW, I used AVI splitter to edit the raw video.
http://vimeo.com/14496733

wow, excellent flying, enjoyable video. Thanks for sharing. What did this flyer think of the plane (couldn't hear him responding to you).

Originally Posted by TorontoR

wow, excellent flying, enjoyable video. Thanks for sharing. What did this flyer think of the plane (couldn't hear him responding to you).

Thanks. His flying skills are superb aren't they? He flies 100 + inch aerobatic planes. He has these huge planes and small indoor foamies. Ryan can fly anything. Some of maneuvers I left in are the IMAC maneuvers. He was doing rolling circles with the Skysurfer! I really like the high speed inverted tight circle.

He likes the plane. Ryan also has a Radian and said this plane, with more power, has more capability.

Pretty amazing.

Here I am trying to fly the Skysurfer in my backyard. My yard is pretty big but the 4 foot farm fence on the east and tall trees on the north, south and west make landings a challenge.

Enjoy.

Backyard Skysurfer flight 8-28-10 (5 min 21 sec)