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This thread is privately moderated by OBXGyrene, who may elect to delete unwanted replies. |
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Discussion
Second Plane: E-flite Valiant, 1300mm
I just completed my second plane, an E-flite Valiant, 1300mm. The kit was nice and easy to assemble. Although I am partial to scale aircraft, I chose this plane for use as a trainer due to its forgiving nature and ability to fly a slower speeds.
I made a few cosmetic changes by removing all the ugly decals and replacing them with a custom set I made and had printed on water-slide decal paper. I limited these decals to just registration numbers, a few indicating the type (Valiant 480E--since that is how it is listed in the instruction manual), and some blue and silver striping on the wheel pants. I also painted the propeller tips in white. By removing the decals on the blue colored surfaces quite a bit of paint was pulled off. To remedy this I used some matte acrylic Apple Barrel Cobalt-Hue paint to cover the bare surface, and then sealed it with clear satin water-based Polycrylic Minwax. I came out to a perfect match and is very difficult to tell from the original finish! I also purchased a set of floats for this plane which I am in the process of modifying by adding a set of water rudders and a waterproof steering servo. |
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Last edited by OBXGyrene; Sep 15, 2020 at 08:22 PM.
Reason: Typo
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Very nice!
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First Flight
This was the plane I used for my first flight. On September 7, 2021 I went to the field to finally get into the air. Our club president conducted a preliminary shake-down flight of my Valiant. Jim never flew one before and really liked its stability and ability to preform aerobatics when he pushed it. After landing, it was my turn to take to the air with Jim serving as my flight instructor with a wireless buddy-box system. My flight went just fine and got even better the second time around with SAFE engaged.
Since then, I have taken this plane to the field two more times. It has earned a reputation as being such a good training aircraft, that I let my club use it to teach others and let guests try their hand at flying. It's had about 18 flights now (using the buddy-box with new pilots) with at least 10 people and has performed flawlessly each time. The last time I took it I let a retired USAF pilot take it for a spin since he showed up at the field without any of his planes. He really pushed it hard and told me he REALLY like flying it. The only drawback is that flying from a grass field, getting it moving is a bit difficult. Too much throttle until airspeed is built up results in the propeller striking the ground. I plan on removing the wheel pants, and replacing the tires with slightly larger 3-inch ones. |
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