yes turbo, chuck's correct - the control surfaces will move further, with more authority.

Good luck.

... Lennie

This past Sunday was a bust as regards another flight with my still-new Stratos... so, I was up early and just jumped in my Optima turbo and took off on the quiet north Texas roads, heading for the donut shop...

Driving Texas - Sunday (7 min 40 sec)

(sorry, off topic)

does anyone know the best set up!
I guess independent lights with velcro led's !

Originally Posted by turbogtz

does anyone know the best set up!
I guess independent lights with velcro led's !

I velcro'd a LED visor flash light to the battery hatch and I use a rubber band to hold glow sticks to the airframe. The plane does not even notice the extra weight.

bad news from here.
Was out at best weather conditions and had bind failure during flights.
Motor cut and without control from 40meters high back to the ground
Wings throw away and fuse made spins on the ground...hard to see...but-only one cut from the propeller in my fuse and dirt on the fuse...that's all-no damage and also the front gear is in position.
Thumbs up for that great construction- HH did a good job !
Now I'm in contact with my seller-want to change the model.
Next, we will see...

It should not have come unbound. And TX/RX range is rated at up to 400 meters, not 40.

Does your transmitter have fresh batteries?

Sorry you experienced the crash.. but glad the airplane is okay.

... Lennie

It's either TX has no power or there could be interference from from a cell tower or something. High power lines? Mine has never lost a bind in way over 100 flights. Yes, the FB Stratos is a very tough bird.

Firebird Stratos in high winds. (13 min 24 sec)

Firebird Stratos in very high winds. (12 min 9 sec)

Two videos a buddy and I made of our day of flying.

we are both flying with USB sized cameras taped in the battery tray with no battery door.

Hey there, Kurt...

We shared a couple notes on YouTube awhile back - good to see you on the lines here!

Hope all's well with you.

Got my Stratos about three weeks ago but have only had two brief maiden flights two weeks ago - weather's been a factor.

... Lennie

Originally Posted by .quietguy

It should not have come unbound. And TX/RX range is rated at up to 400 meters, not 40.

Does your transmitter have fresh batteries?

Sorry you experienced the crash.. but glad the airplane is okay.

... Lennie

Lennie...I used the batteries from the kit-original pack of 4 ea- the red LED from the TX flashed bright- it seems o.k.
After the crash, I mounted the wings again and made a distance check between TX and RX....full power and left the model position by going away. After 20 meters there were the first motor cuts, moved the TX and the motors started again...suddenly new cut and so on...
I can't imagine that the batteries are low or empty but can check this once before I give the plane back to the dealer.

I posted something about negative elevator adjustment occured the crash recently- that was not the reason !!!- that was a result of a bind cut !

Again, sorry you're having problems with your Stratos, Count.

You may indeed have a faulty craft... I hope you can get it replaced.

Keep us updated my friend, and good luck.

... Lennie

Originally Posted by SLK Count

Lennie...I used the batteries from the kit-original pack of 4 ea- the red LED from the TX flashed bright- it seems o.k.
After the crash, I mounted the wings again and made a distance check between TX and RX....full power and left the model position by going away. After 20 meters there were the first motor cuts, moved the TX and the motors started again...suddenly new cut and so on...
I can't imagine that the batteries are low or empty but can check this once before I give the plane back to the dealer.

I posted something about negative elevator adjustment occured the crash recently- that was not the reason !!!- that was a result of a bind cut !

sorry to hear about your crash count.

I thought i'd mention, that if possible try and charge your battery using another car or some other means. this is because for some reason, my own car (1 year old) will not full charge the battery even after hours of charging. But I believe that there is not enough current from my cars outlet, or it is connecting to the battery properly.


I have charged it for over 2 hours and the LED is still blinking (according to the battery section of this forum, it can be because the charger has gone into an infinite balancing state and it should be charged anyway and ok to fly on). however that is not the case. because when i have gotten to the field, the LVC came on after 2-3 minutes, which sounds exactly like what happened to you.

This happened to me twice, though it was close by and i could hear the noise, so i was able to land safely.

Now i am charging in my wifes car and after 1 hour, the LED is solid and my flight times have been between 15-20 minutes (50-75% throttle).

i give it 100% throttle every minute or two and observe the rate of climb, when i notice this is greatly reduced, i bring the aircraft closer to me so that i can listen for the LVC and land as appropriate.

so try a different car or charger, your stratos should climb well with no elevator input at full charge and 100% throttle straight from launch, if it is not, the batteries may not be charged fully.

Originally Posted by .quietguy

Hey there, Kurt...

We shared a couple notes on YouTube awhile back - good to see you on the lines here!

Hope all's well with you.

Got my Stratos about three weeks ago but have only had two brief maiden flights two weeks ago - weather's been a factor.

... Lennie

Bummer to hear about the weather keeping you grounded. I live in the flattest part of Texas, and with all the Gulf winds we get, I just have to deal with it... but you can gather that much from those videos. Jimmy, my counterpart in those videos, and I will be making some more around the first of the year. Hopefully to include some with the bigger Parkzone warbirds and such. Thanks for the comments!

Originally Posted by jack3auer

sorry to hear about your crash count.

I thought i'd mention, that if possible try and charge your battery using another car or some other means. this is because for some reason, my own car (1 year old) will not full charge the battery even after hours of charging. But I believe that there is not enough current from my cars outlet, or it is connecting to the battery properly.


I have charged it for over 2 hours and the LED is still blinking (according to the battery section of this forum, it can be because the charger has gone into an infinite balancing state and it should be charged anyway and ok to fly on). however that is not the case. because when i have gotten to the field, the LVC came on after 2-3 minutes, which sounds exactly like what happened to you.

This happened to me twice, though it was close by and i could hear the noise, so i was able to land safely.

Now i am charging in my wifes car and after 1 hour, the LED is solid and my flight times have been between 15-20 minutes (50-75% throttle).

i give it 100% throttle every minute or two and observe the rate of climb, when i notice this is greatly reduced, i bring the aircraft closer to me so that i can listen for the LVC and land as appropriate.

so try a different car or charger, your stratos should climb well with no elevator input at full charge and 100% throttle straight from launch, if it is not, the batteries may not be charged fully.

You need to be checking your volts with one of these:



Also, you really need to time your flights and check the voltage isn't below about 3.75/cell on landing. Flying to LVC isn't recommended as it's not great for the pack and landing dead stick isn't ideal either.