Nice review, Mike. One item worthy of note that you were not likely to run into is cold weather, and it's effect on elevon freedom of travel. I flew mine for the first time last February, at 19 degrees farenheit. The elevon hinges (part of the airframe) were too stiff at that temp to move through their full range. Of course they were fine when I set them up indoors! If someone wants to fly year round in the northern lattitudes, I'd recommend more aggressive hinge sanding, or possibly even another type of hinge that won't stiffen up in the cold. All in all, I'd say the 'ray is a great flyer, and a bargain for the price since it has top-shelf EDF and ESC included.

Can't order anyways there out of stock

I did a build a thread a few years ago on the StingRay. It's a nice EPP wing.

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=538835

I slammed mine yesterday. Picked it and tossed her and flew off with no damage. Mike

Originally Posted by Jimmi

Can't order anyways there out of stock

Sent them a email. Mark said there would be more in two weeks.

Jason

Nice review gquiring, I read the entire thread. I'll wait two weeks to contact them, thanks ultralight. Jimmi

I have a few thoughts. Nice review first off.

Another alternative to using the CA is using the good old low temp hot glue gun for wing half assembly. I've built several EPP wings now, and I use nothing but the hot glue. When applied to one or both wing halves, it melts the EPP a bit, and when joining, they make a rock solid bond. Only unfortunate thing is you need to be very quick because the glue dries super fast, so having it planned out is a must.

For wings, I've just never been a fan of EPP elevons. I'd probably switch out those for a nicely cut set of light ply or balsa. Just IMO.

If you really want to make it bulletproof in terms of durability, use covering! As someone else wrote in a post earlier about not liking the looks of EPP, this will make that go almost completely away. You can use the colored tape, or the much better method of an iron on covering. Of course it has to be a low temp covering, so the choices are Solite, or Hanger 9 Ultracote. Both are very light weight. I only use the Ultracote, as I've found the Solite more difficult, mess and peeling wise, to deal with. If your new to covering, practice by cutting off pieces of the coating, and ironing them on the wing beds. Or any other piece of scrap EPP.

Capgun_Slim,

Please be careful when offering advice like this. The Stingray has several years of service under its belt at this point and benefits greatly from keeping the weight as low as possible to achieve the original design goal of a lightweight, easy to build, easy to survive parkflyer.

Of course it's fun to experiement, but so often we get calls from folks who haven't built, flown or even seen the original model, and ask "how to make it faster", or "how to make it stronger", or (insert your pref here.)

It will be very difficult to cover the plane and keep the weight low-- also the weight distribution as needed for a good CG will require adjustment in battery position and/or wing sweep. Furthermore, covering over the elevon hinge area will present problems in freedom of movement if also kept durable.

The plane owes much of it's durability to the fact that it is so lightweight (it doesn't hurt itself cause the energy is very low). Attempts to further bolster this often aren't worth the effort-- but we keep trying anyway!

We feel the kit as offered is plenty durable and have gone to great lengths to maintain a lightweight airframe. One or two ounces more makes the plane behave badly -- which is one reason we do NOT recommend paint from a spray can UNLESS applied using only one or two VERY LIGHT mist coat-- preferably NOT on the entire plane.

Also, while hot glue can be convient, it is NOT as light as the other glues we recommend, and for that reason we don't recommend it on the Stingray. We used hot glue for years in our glo powered combat planes to adhere things like servos or tail fins which we wanted to be able to attach or remove quickly, but in this application it isn't the best choice.

I agree that a skin over EPP is an excellent way to get more durability (in other EPP planes). However in order to get a skin of plastic film which will benefit =THIS= plane enough to actually improve durability, you'd need to add too much weight once the film itself and adhesives and any additional balance weights are tallied, and you'd sacrifice climbing and turning ability in the end product. In short, it would turn into "something else" which won't fly as well.

I think anyone who follows the current instruction manual will be pleased with the end results. Mike has certainly covered all the finer points very well and we appreciate his effort.

We welcome feedback on our products and =DO= incorporate many customer suggestions in ongoing revisions. (Tool Dip suggestion came from one of our customers, as did the use of "Quck Grip" glue). However, to warrant inclusion/alteration to the orignal design or construction procedure the suggestions should be well proven in practice and be in line with the original design goals -- else results will probably not be what one expects.

If you have any other questions or suggestions, I'll be happy to respond.

Joe (at TufFlight).

Originally Posted by Capgun_Slim

I have a few thoughts. Nice review first off.

Another alternative to using the CA is using the good old low temp hot glue gun for wing half assembly. I've built several EPP wings now, and I use nothing but the hot glue. When applied to one or both wing halves, it melts the EPP a bit, and when joining, they make a rock solid bond. Only unfortunate thing is you need to be very quick because the glue dries super fast, so having it planned out is a must.

For wings, I've just never been a fan of EPP elevons. I'd probably switch out those for a nicely cut set of light ply or balsa. Just IMO.

If you really want to make it bulletproof in terms of durability, use covering! As someone else wrote in a post earlier about not liking the looks of EPP, this will make that go almost completely away. You can use the colored tape, or the much better method of an iron on covering. Of course it has to be a low temp covering, so the choices are Solite, or Hanger 9 Ultracote. Both are very light weight. I only use the Ultracote, as I've found the Solite more difficult, mess and peeling wise, to deal with. If your new to covering, practice by cutting off pieces of the coating, and ironing them on the wing beds. Or any other piece of scrap EPP.

Joe I'm glad you covered the hot glue issue as thats why I use also and didn't know it would hamper this wing. But if I do get one and I'm seriously thinking about it I will go with ca instead. I know using them hot glue sticks sure add up, so using ca is the way to go. Thanks, Jimmi

The only time I use hot glue on EPP is to repair a hinge. It's the best way to keep the hinges together when they tear. You apply about 1" of glue at a time and quickly thin out the glue with a screwdriver blade. Hot glue flexes very nicely when thinned out.

Wind, they were just suggestions to possibly make the wing sturdier is all. I wasn't trying to disparage your product, if that's the vibe you got. In fact, I find it quite innovative.

Using the glue you suggest, and the stock elevons, I would like to see just how much weight would be added, using an iron on covering of Ultracote, or Solite. I thnk it would be much less than an ounce if done properly.

I don't doubt the durability of the wing, and have a better understanding of the how's and why's of the wing now. Those crashes in the video would've shredded your typical park flyer for sure. I just think that the very tiny bit of damage that was inflicted upon the wing due to the crashes, would not have happened at all, if some covering were applied.

Heck, I don't think you'd even need to cover the whole thing, maybe just the leading edge?

Again, please don't take this as I don't like your product. If I had the money, I'd buy one myself. Hey maybe you could send me a kit, I'll build it with the coating, and let people know the result? Lol, now I'm dreaming...

P.S. I hope your wing is, and continues to sell well.

No problem Slim. In theory, there's always room for improvement.

Just making sure folks don't get the wrong idea from the start.