Had the chance recently to get another Hangar 9 Beast 100cc so I jumped at the chance. After I got it home and was staring at it thinking that it's such a great flying airframe but everyone has one like it. As I kept looking my EFlite Viking came into view, it was clear where I was headed.

Spent time finding all the graphics and artwork to make all the decals and graphics from. The Viking heads and radial engine are decals I made, the rest is vinyl graphics.

Disassembled the whole airframe and started to remove the covering. Anybody going to attempt this here is the easiest way. Cut the covering at a spot in the airframe that is open, this is where you will start. Heat the covering with a heatgun while you pull the covering to remove. Work slow and steady working out from where you started. Some residue will remain behind but usually very little. I used Gorilla Duct tape to remove the residue. Drag the tape over the residue and it sticks to the tape and comes right off.

While the airframe was in bare bones I went through the entire thing and fixed anything I thought needed it and reinforced any joints that were loose. Once this was done I jumped right in with Ultracote and started cutting and applying. All the painting was done with GlassKote epoxy paints.

Now the airplane is a Viking and sporting a DA100L with canisters. Falcon CF prop and Pete Model CF (painted) spinner. Spektrum guidance with Hitec and Futaba brushless digital servos. Can't wait to get it in the air!

Just got a chance to take my newest of the E-Flite lineup out to the field for some test flights. After 4 flights I doubt you will be able to remove the grin from my face.

Building was a piece of cake with only a handful of screws to install. Very minor fixes/repair/touch-ups needed to be done to this airframe right out of the box. Everything lined up and fit very well.

I did do a few mods to please myself. Most important one that I think should be done if you plan to keep the airplane for any length of time. The clevises are pretty cheesy looking, I replaced mine with 2-56 rods and name brand nylon clevises, the elevator I installed a metal clevise.

Less important and just saved time at the field was I installed Multiplex 6 pin connectors on all the wing servos. This way I plug in 2 polarized plugs at the field instead of 6 servo extensions.

I also installed a Castle Talon 90 ESC for my own personal liking. Stock one works fine I just like Castle ESC's.

All and all it flys extremely well and no surprises what so ever on the first flight. Made a couple of minor radio and clevise adjustments and took off again. It does all the full scale aerobatics with grace and style. The plane really presents well in the sky, looks very scale. Landing was interesting with full flaps on! You could do a very short approach with this setup. It touches down at a crawl like a feather.

I plan to do some scale detailing and fly this plane a lot. It is easy to assemble at...Continue Reading

I have been a little busy this winter with some new airplanes. Got rid of a bunch of smaller stuff last year, along with a lot of foam airplanes, to return to my true passion.....................................BIG and BALSA.

First I wanted another high quality 3D plane, this only leaves a limited number of manufactures to buy from. I went back to the trusted Aeroworks and bought the Extra 260 Freestyle 60cc. After all the reviews and videos out there to watch and read it made my decision pretty simple. This is a beautiful ARF, even though I gave it my personal touch. I removed all the blue trim and replaced it with black. To me this is more appealing. I have a DLE 61 in it for power and a high voltage Spektrum/Hitec system in it for guidance. Weather will be goo enough soon to get the maiden flight out of the way.

Second in the lineup this year was my new R/C Skydiving jump plane. As some of you know I use to manufacture radio control skydivers, this started with the passion to do the sport myself. I need a new scale jump plane this year to get back into skydiving properly and seriously. After many weeks of searching I found the beautiful Pilatus Porter by Flitework. This made a perfect jump platform, plenty of wing area, plenty of room for a big power plant, and a nice scale outline. I installed a built in drop box for the skydivers, and a 160 size motor with an 8S electric setup. This will give it the extreme power to get to jump altitude quickly. I also...Continue Reading

Well the title says it all, it has been a long cold winter in Ohio.

I have decided to get a sense of humor about the weather and work around it. Installed some skis on my Carbon Z Cub and tested them out today. 30 degrees and 5 to 7 winds I was off to the local park. Flew 4 batteries through my the plane with a pit stop for my hands to warm up in between. Had a blast, well needed stick time, touch and goes were awesome.

Pictures were taken by me while I was flying with my cell phone so be kind.

I got my 2 Carbon-Z Cubs all setup like I want, water or land, I am ready.

Both have Turnigy G60 Motors, Talon 90 ESC's, and custom graphics. The land version has Kavan 5" light weight wheels installed. I am running a Xoar 15x10 on the water version and will soon be switching the land version to the same.

These 2 planes are so much fun to fly on a daily basis, easy of assembly at the field really helps this. Don't let the "Cub" name fool you, these planes are fully 3D capable, even the float plane is not hindered from getting crazy every now and then.

Never have I flown such an easy plane to takeoff and land on water, this would definitely be a good trainer for float flying.

Just recently I decided to build a couple more Atomik MM450 Dirt Bikes. As some of you know these are no longer produced and are going to get very rare soon. It really is a shame that they no longer are being made. Seams to be the general consensus of the R/C bike community that this was/is the best dirt bike of all time.

I went a few different directions on this second build.

# 1, and probably the biggest, difference is I used 2 part Epoxy paint for all the frame and engine pieces. This paint is extremely durable and will hold up much better than anything else you could use.

#2, I used sticker kits, bought at 2wheelhobbies, for all the body graphics. This speeded up the build process by days.

All and all I love these bikes and plan to keep these 2 around for some time. I have horded some parts to keep around for general maintenance. Here is my salute to such a great bike!

Had this for some time but between getting kinks worked out with the mechanics, getting it assembled, and then finding a day in Ohio that the sun shines cans be rough.

Ordered this and received it with no issues. goes together very quickly if that is what you want. After first assembly I was test flying to make sure everything was OK before adding scale appearance. Good thing I did this because I had a bad vibration. In short it was coming from the head assembly and I had to wait on new parts from China. After the assembly of the new parts test flights started again. This time all was smooth and hassle free. I did some fine tuning on the flybarless unit along with some radio adjustments and ESC. I know have a super flying heli with a headspeed of only 1300 rpm's for the scale appearance.

Now it was time to do some scale detailing. The heli comes very scale with all rivets and such molded in, but I wanted more. I added the camera lenses to the nose, did some scale painting, added all the non-slip walk pads on all the skids and foot steps, 2 very scale pilot figures I received from Germany, and just little tid bits that gave it a personal touch.

Mechanics consist of recommended Align motor, Castle ESC, Skookum 540 FBL unit, and all digital servos for smooth flight. They recommend big batteries for balance so I went with 5300mah 6S packs (2 in series for 12S configuration). By the specs I am getting from the ESC during flight I can fly for 20 minutes with no problem!...Continue Reading

Well I just got my Habu 32 done. Very straight forward build that was very enjoyable, even with the few mods.

The powerplant consist of a TJ80 EVO rotor Neu 1412 2Y PNP unit from Tam's. This I will be running on 12S to get the most out of it.

Need some serious batteries for a powerplant like that, so we are running the Genesis 3300mah 6S 65C packs. (2 of them in series to get 12S)

I went with the Tam struts as well on the gear because not everywhere is a nice smooth surface to fly.

Hitec HS-5085MG's all around keep the surfaces under control.

I added the front gear door to hopefully get a little more speed out of it. This was an option but I believe well worth it. Took some time to get it to operate smooth and seal nicely. I didn't use a servo for actuation because I didn't want to add the weight, so we just use the bungee system....Continue Reading

Well after seeing the thread on the Flyzone Beaver here on RCG's, and noticing several guys doing makeovers I decided to give it a go.

I have always liked the de Havilland Beaver on floats. The full scale is such a cool plane with its versatility and all environment flying ability.

I bought the plane on a black Friday deal from Tower for what I thought was a very good price.

Right from the start I knew I would change it over to Spektrum DSMX so it will bind to my DX18QQ, not a big fan of the Anylink system. I got several ideas from the other guys that have done these makeovers before me, then I proceeded to add my own little quirks. I found a full scale Beaver that I liked to color scheme on and went to work. I hate to think how many hours I have in this plane, especially since it was suppose to be an ARF. I am very happy with the outcome and can't wait to get it outside on the water so I can get some nice pictures in the water and in the air. I guess even a foam ARF can be a lot of fun to build when you get creative.

Enjoy the pictures, the last one being the full scale that I got the color scheme from. Any questions please feel free to ask or visit the Flyzone Beaver thread here on RCG's for some very good information and some other very beautiful planes and video.

I have updated the pictures to outdoor pictures, I hate indoor shots....Continue Reading

Well I got an MM450 dirtbike on trade to try something new. Turns out these things are a blast. Smile from ear to ear while running the very large dirt bike. For some that are not familiar with the bike it is 1/4 scale, making it the largest bike I have seen to date. These are equiped with an electric gyro in the rear wheel, this makes it very easy to run compared to most R/C bikes. Best part about this particular dirtbike, you can run it just about anywhere. This is something that can't be done with onroad race bikes.

After only having it for one week and getting to run it only one time I have since ordered a second bike! I want to enjoy this experience with some of my friends and family. If one of something is fun than two is twice as much fun.

This one now has several upgrades on it along with some custom painting and decals. I have added the front brake, chain adjusters, micro chain, big bore shock, triple tree clamps, upgraded bearing, front axle, and balanced the flywheel. All of these are definately my choice, the bike runs very well without any of them.

This is a new part of the hobby for me that has really caught my attention. I ride full scale bike and use to do alot of offroad riding in my younger years. Now I can have the thrill and stay out of the hospital. If your looking for that something different in R/C than maybe try one of these!

Decided there was a cool part of the hobby that I wanted to explore, Rock Crawling. I love to build and fabricate, so these are the right choice for me. I have had alot of fun building this truck, even though it is not quite done yet. I started with an Axial SCX10 and ran from there. I think I ended up using the frame rails and the rear end housings! I added a DIG unit on the front axle so I can run it in 2WD or 4WD just as in full scale. I plan to get some high quality pictures in its envirenment soon, along with some video of it crawling.

Just wanted to post pictures of my new bike. The bike is mostly Nuova Faor with aftermarket brakes, tires, and rider. I am running a 6.5 Novak motor and Novak GTB 2 ESC. Digital servos and a Futaba 2.4 Fasst radio are in control.

Bikes are fairly new for me and I don't see giving them up anytime soon. These add a whole new excitement to the hobby.