It finally quit raining so I got to try out my new P-51 from S&B models. I've had a couple of foam planes before and they fly well but I don't think they are very durable so I wanted to try one of the EPP foam planes I've read about.

It has a Graupner 7.2V speed 400, with a 6.5 X 4 Graupner semi-scale prop as recommended by S&B. I have a 7-cell 600 mAh and an 8-cell 1100 mAh wattage pack everyone is talking about.

The 600 mAH 7-cell draws 8.5 amps and the 8-cell 1100 mAh 10.1 amps static. The compartment is a little snug but laid out properly everything fits OK. I'm using a Jeti 18 A ESC and a FMA Extreme 5 receiver.

Since this plane has no landing gear, it required my first hand launching which I was a bit nervous about. I started with the 7-cell pack since I was hoping the lighter weight would make it easier to launch. I gave it a good shove and she was airborne. Nice and straight. I climbed gradually and throttled back to check the trim. A couple of clicks on the aerilon and she was flying true. The first thing I noticed is this is a fast plane. This is my fastest plane and at full throttle it was scooting about 35-40 mph I'm guessing. I throttle back to 1/4 and she still flew great level but on banking she lost altitude which is to be expected. The pack started getting weak and brought it in at 4 minutes.

Next was the Wattage 1100 mAh battery. She was noticably heavier but had more RPMs so I let her go. It wasn't as good a toss this time but had no problem leveling her out. This time she picked up quickly and the motor sounded sweet. Almost silent until it gets close and then a nice buzzzzzz. I switched to high rates to see what she would do. The rolls were not as quick as I was expecting but another click on the dual rates will solve that. The extra speed helps the loops as the 7-cell would stall at the top. The 8-cell made it over the top with no problems. I then wanted to see how fast she would fly so I opened her up in a straight line. I'm guessing about 45 MPH but it seemed fast to me. I went with the 7.2 volt instead of the 6 volt motor because I didn't think I had an ESC with enough rating to carry the load of a 6 volt motor. I found a 18 amp ESC in my stash so now I'm thinking of putting the 6 volt motor in there. The watttage battery gave me 7 minutes of 1/2 to full thottle of adrenaline. I haven't made the plunge yet to brushless but after some experience, I see a Mega in my future. The glide rate was a bit quicker with the 8-cell and the grass I was landing in stopped the plane in about 2 feet. I was expecting to find something torn lose but no problems were found. Love that EPP

I only got two flights on the plane but so far I really like it.

Parkflyer

I have a S&B P-51 aswell....they are a pretty fast plane and nice to fly.

Yours looks nice too.

Cheers,

~Ado

congrats opn the first flight. I have two of the S&B models, the komet and the 262, and both fly great!!!! Try the 6v you won't be dissapointed.

Jeremy..

substantially faster than the other S&B birds?

what is the weight of your plane?


I have a JKaerotech P-51 @ 23oz, and i'm using a Rocket 400 with a 3.33 gear box and a 11X7 prop.

It does about +39mph and the thrust 17-18oz which gives me good vertical speed.

i was thinking of using a 6x3 folding prop with the rocket 400 which should provide 10oz at 12.3amp?

Just like S&B JKaero saids to use a direct drive setup, but the thrust is only 8oz to 10oz at best, on a 23oz plane. Is stall recovery ok? Is there power to get yourself out of trouble?

Hi Parkflyer,
Definitely try the 6 V motor. You will love it!

I got to start up my S&B Tempest today !
To bad it was too windy to fly..almost storm..

Got the props and spinners and some electric
stuff i needed yesterday so today I installed
the Mega 16/15-5 in the fuselage and added
the Kavan 7x4 prop and spinner. With a 8cell
600AE pack i got a bit more than 4 mins of
full throttle. Gotta order me som HECELLS...

Going to paint and attach the canopy and get some more
details on it....then I just need some nice weather....

Flight Report will follow...

Hey Mat,
I've been able to fly the Ta152 in some wind. She's pretty stable (but then again, she weights 570 grams). I've flown in winds up to 15mph. She really goes fast downwind and slows down nicely upwind...
Your Tempest is looking good! How did you mount the aileron servo(s)? Did you go stock?
G

Thanks!

We had something like 30-35 mph winds here today.
Figured that'd be a tad too much... :-)

AUW will be around 550 grams on the Tempest..
I went with two micro (9 grams) aileron servoes.

After the cable experiments... She flies much better now. I tried to hide the servos as best I can...
Did you do anything to protect the servo arms (I'm thinking about some plastic covering to keep the arm from getting dragged on the ground) Will sort of look like a hard point for rockets, bombs, or drop tanks.

Unfortunately this was done after the wings have been joined, taped and finished... I tried to minimize the visual impact...
It's easier to see the servo arm, pushrod, horn, servo wire and extension in this pic.