Advice on new plane..ASAP Please

[pawankt]

Hey,

I'm sort of a newbie, and I have been reading up on what sort of a plane to buy and other things. My major problem is finance and I really cannot look to keep developing an RC Plane, thus I was hunting for a good starter plane that gives a good flying time and other specifications.

http://www.bananahobby.com/1376.html

I sort of like this one and I was wondering if i could get some advice if I should really get this or not. It has a 20 min flying time, a pusher and it sort of duals as a plane and a glider (i think so)..which makes it good to practice. I know it has a 380 brush motor which isnt the best, but perhaos I could upgrade to li-po and brushless in due time.

[firemanbill]

I would start by looking at the BBB page for Banana Hobby. They don't have a very good track record.

http://www.la.bbb.org/Business-Repor...bby--100075745

[pawankt]

oh? but that's the cheapest plane I could find, and it is a good one too...any other stores or ideas where i could find a similar one? i saw an identical plane for 139

[firemanbill]

Well you can take your chances, just be aware they don't resopnd very well to complaints.

How about here from Raidentech. I have bought from them in the past and had good luck with them. Looks like the same plane, and it's cheaper.

http://www.raidentech.com/rtfwiha54el3.html

[pawankt]

hey this one is cheaper too! and it's the same product...and you say you have dealt with this guy so it's alright? I wasn't too convinced of banana hobby either..

[pawankt]

but is the easy hawk a good idea to start with? it seems to be good since it has all features to use for a while, and a good battery life so i dont need to worry too much about recurring costs

[firemanbill]

Yeah I have never had any problems with them. Go for it. It looks to be an easy enough trainer.

[flydiver]

Or these folks:
http://www.nitroplanes.com/rtfwiha54el3.html
Compare shipping.

BH doesn't have a great reputation. I think they stay alive by single sales to the uninformed.

Looking forward be aware the anything in this kind of price range will have hopefully functional and ultimately dead end electrics. The WH is a clone of the EASY Star, a better plane, but more expensive, that can be purchased with decent electrics.

Do some reading here:
http://www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39903

[firemanbill]

Originally Posted by flydiver

Or these folks:
http://www.nitroplanes.com/rtfwiha54el3.html
Compare shipping.

BH doesn't have a great reputation. I think they stay alive by single sales to the uninformed.

Looking forward be aware the anything in this kind of price range will have hopefully functional and ultimately dead end electrics. The WH is a clone of the EASY Star, a better plane, but more expensive, that can be purchased with decent electrics.

Do some reading here:
http://www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39903

Raidentech and nitroplanes are the same company. Don't know why they have two different sites but they do. If you notice they have the same phone number for both...

[pawankt]

interesting, so it does have minor issues...would you then advise a plane that can sort of acct as a glider AND a regular plane? as far as i am told gliders' motors are strong enough to only allow you to use thermals to reach a good height, they dont really "fly" the plane as such...so is there another plane that can compete with the wildawk..i HAVE seen the easy star and that is almost the same..I preferred the wildhawk because in future i had crazy plans to attach solar planels (stick ons not bulky ones) and this one was perhaps larger in wind area..

[firemanbill]

That's not really a sailplane. It will glide well but it's not a true glider. You'll be doing mostly powered flight with it.

I think you will be fine starting out with it.

[pawankt]

yeah raidentech seems cheaper than BH anyway, and i live all the way in michigan (well, when im in the university...) so it would come up to 90 or so with everything which is good! i do like the flying time of 20 mins, and if i do upgrade to brushless and li-po i could push for more...

yeah i dont really need a sailplane, but something that i can occassionally use to glide using thermals..perhaps make a 30 min flying time or so..just for the heck of it..

the easystar is good..but it costs almost double..and i think tweaking the WH would still come out to be cheaper...

[firemanbill]

It's a good place to start considering your budget for sure. Good luck to you.

[TDisaster]

I've flown one. My friend started on one. Great plane.

He even beat it in nose first. 5min with the hot glue gun and we were good to go again. The pusher design really shines on a beginner plane.

It's a nice plane, floats pretty nicely too.

[firemanbill]

Well there ya go. first hand knowledge of the plane and a better, cheaper source to get it from.

You're all set now!

[pawankt]

excellent! thankyou very much

[Marc]

Hi, pawankt.

Here's my choice for a first plane. No glue gun necessary. It can take it on the chin and keep ticking like a Timex watch. Replacement parts are easily available if needed. The plane is $99.98. I recommend ordering an extra set of tail feathers and perhaps a second battery if you decide on this plane and your budget can manage it. Tower Hobbies is a very old and very reputable company with good customer service.

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXUVS3**&P=ML

Marc

[firemanbill]

Those are good beginner planes also Marc, thanks for adding that in.

[idealhobbies]

$79.99 from Harbor Freight!


http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=94774

They have been known to drop them to $50 during their sales....keep an eye out. Same plane as Bananahobby

[pawankt]

marc, i have looked at that plane, but my total budget inclusive of shipping shouldnt exceed 100$, i am an international student and thus cannot get a job in usa...

on the other hand, similar planes have been seen by me on ebay for 60 or so what do you think of those? and i think these planes have a lesser control range? i wanted a really long range. i think the wildhawk has a 500m range?

also, how exactly would you increase the range of an airplane? change controller? receiver? both?

[pawankt]

thanks idealhobbies i will look into it..by the way, i spoke to bananahobbies (before i joined this forum) and they said another twin of the WH is in the making, slightly more priced but with brushless motors, should be out in 1-1.5 months..

is there any place where i can get a skyfly2 for cheaper price?

[pawankt]

http://www.nitroplanes.com/j3pipercub.html

how would you compare the WH and this piper cub...the only thing i think is bad is the cub has a 300m radio range, i'm not sure..

or

http://www.nitroplanes.com/3charwidrpaf.html

it has a larger range and the flying time is 20 minutes..1km seems to be excellent

[firemanbill]

The wild hawk looks to be a better flyer. Some of these cheaper cub I have seen don't seem to fly too well.

I'd stick with the Hawk and go for it.

As far as increasing range, the only proper way of doing that is to get a good quality radio system.

[idealhobbies]

I would go with the Wild Hawk over the cub simply because the motor mounting. With the motor on top and behind, you will be less likely to hurt the motor or break the prop during a "less than perfect or unplanned landing".

For the range issue, it's a combination of the radio and the receiver. However, in my opinion, you are worrying too much about the range issue. Some of these planes are too small to fly too far away from you and be able to see them.


TAG BILL! You're it!

[firemanbill]

Good point on the motor. The pusher configuration will save you a lot of grief in broken props and most of the cheaper planes like that do not use standard size props and trying to find replacements can be somewhat of a pain as well.