I've struggled with electric RC flight for a number of years but never had great success due to using underpowered slow flyers to learn on. But that all changed recently when I stumbled upon a Carl Goldberg Eagle 400 in my local hobby store and couldn't resist the sharp look of this small balsa ARF. I'd been looking for a good aileron trainer and this looked like it would fit the bill. It flew alright on the stock motor, but I fortunately broke the propellor before I did any real damage to the airplane.

So I went back to the LHS for more props, and decided to ask the owner to recommend a brushless motor setup. (He owns the same plane.) He set me up with an E-Flight Park 400 Outrunner and a matching E-Flight brushless speed controller pushing a 9x7.5 prop. I had to make my own mount, but it was very easy to do. I didn't even bother to upgrade my crusty old 600 mAH NiCd battery packs.

Down to the field, put the bird in the air, and all I can say is wow. It is a completely different airplane. It has enough power now to get me out of trouble whenever I get into it, and cruises nicely at less than half throttle. I got more actual flight time in today than I've had in the past three years. I was actually surprised to find that I could pull back on the stick and have the airplane climb into the sky instead of having to slowly spiral my way up to a safe altitude.

So the moral of the story is, if you want to learn to fly on an electric airplane, make sure it has enough surplus power to overpower your mistakes. Throw that stock brushed motor away and spend a few extra bucks on a "real" power system.

That exact setup was my 'aileron trainer', and I'm very fond of the package. Still have one - had it over in Baghdad for most of the time I was there. Great fun.

Good luck with it!

Originally Posted by Bob Cosby

That exact setup was my 'aileron trainer', and I'm very fond of the package. Still have one - had it over in Baghdad for most of the time I was there. Great fun.

Great photo of a nice relaxing RC flight, in the middle of a war zone, no less. I see you have floats on yours - were you able to ROW with it? I have not tried to ROG since the motor upgrade, as my flying field is a bit too rocky/grassy for that. It might become today's mission...

I also have the eagle 400 with an eflite 370 on it. On 3 cells it screams..!!

I love the plane but it has had many "encounters" that have required repairs. The one thing I would do with a new one is to make the nose wheel steerable. Other than that it has been great.

Get the tcg tiger 400. That is a sort of sister to the eagle and it is also a great flyer once a brushless upgrade is performed.

The Fonz

Originally Posted by drvegetable

Great photo of a nice relaxing RC flight, in the middle of a war zone, no less. I see you have floats on yours - were you able to ROW with it? I have not tried to ROG since the motor upgrade, as my flying field is a bit too rocky/grassy for that. It might become today's mission...

Oh ya. If it was calm, it would take 40-50 ft to lift, but if there was just a little bit of wind, it would get off in a much shorter distance. Here are a few vids....apologize for the poor quality:

http://media.putfile.com/eagletakeoff
http://media.putfile.com/eagleflyby
http://media.putfile.com/eaglelanding

FYI, those are GWS floats. As for ROG....with wheels, it will lift VERY quickly. Easily less than 10 ft under full power. Doesn't take much of a clearing. It helps if you put somewhat larger wheels on the plane. I used foam 2" wheels. Worked great!

Ironically, I had a CG Tiger 400 over there for a while too. Only thing I didn't like about that plane was the very weak landing gear. Unfortunately, it wasn' the gear that did the plane in. LOL.

Best of luck.
Bob

Fonz: I would imagine that the 370 is probably an even better match for this airframe. I find with the 400 (on a 7-cell NiCd) that I rarely fly at more than half throttle. One modification I was considering would be to mount the wing with rubber bands instead of the supplied screws. The plywood mounting plates that hold the captive nuts keep getting pulled loose from too many hard landings, so I was thinking that rubber bands might absorb the shock better. (Afraid to use stronger glue since that'll just transfer the shock elsewhere in the airframe.) Yes, I know that this would be a downgrade, but rubber bands would have the added benefit of being faster to mount than those long screws.

Bob: Great videos! They show both the power and beauty of this setup as well as your skill as a pilot. I was thinking about trying larger wheels to help ROG; I've found that the wire landing gear gets bent easily on landing. The owner of the LHS has GWS floats on his Eagle, although he tells me he's never had a chance to fly on them. I may have to try that upgrade once I've mastered basic flight with this model and want to test my electronics underwater.

By the way, a very sincere Thank You for your service to this country.

I haven't had the problem with the blind nuts or plywod mount for the main wing and I have had some hard hits so if you need the rubber bands.........go for it. I just think strengthening the plywood would be the simpliest solution.

The 370 screams on this one for sure. It balanced fine for me at the recommended location.

Hey Bob.......

That tiger is totally repairable if you brought it back with you....


PS: From a friend in your neighboring Canada...............Thank you also for your contribution. God speed in the safe return of all serving members.

The Fonz

Appreciate the kind words, gents.

Fonz....afraid the Tiger was broken up for parts. Some of the balsa came in handy.

Bob

Originally Posted by Bob Cosby

That exact setup was my 'aileron trainer', and I'm very fond of the package. Still have one - had it over in Baghdad for most of the time I was there. Great fun.

Good luck with it!

Bob,

That's one of the coolest R/C photos I've seen to date. It's nice to see you're able to get out and relax while you're out there. You folks are doing a fine job, and y'all are in my prayers. Thank you for your service, and Godspeed to you and your fellow soldiers!

Appreciate the compliment. Here's a few more...the guy that took them did a good job!

Eagle Over Baghdad 1
Eagle Over Baghdad 1
Eagle Over Baghdad 1
Eagle Over Baghdad 1

Oh....I'm USN, not Army.

BTW...I have been back for a few months now, and will retire next June. Please do keep those that are still there (or yet to go) in your prayers.

Bob

Bob.....

Retiring.....? You look like a young man.

The Eagle looks great. Why did you take off the blue fuselage stripes? Was there damage on the fuse at one point.

Sorry to hear of the Tiger. I have repaired mine twice now and currently it has a whole new front end from the forward canopy. Had to add alot of lead at the tail but she flies nicely......still. Set up flaps (flaperons ?) with the ailerons on this one. It takes alot of strip to land so I needed to try and slow down on approach. Kind of neat to finally try it...........works well.

Take care


Ther Fonz

PS: Are those GWS floats ?

Yes, those are GWS floats. The stripes came off because...well...it took a swim or two before I put the floats on it. Several hours in the water doesn't do the stripes very much good.

Ya, I remember the Tiger being a fairly 'hot' lander, and it could really use some sort of flaps.

And thanks for the compliment....I am a quite young 42.

Bob

Originally Posted by Bob Cosby

The stripes came off because...well...it took a swim or two before I put the floats on it. Several hours in the water doesn't do the stripes very much good.

I was wondering about that myself... I'm sure several hours in the water didn't help the electronics too much either! Glad you got it back.