ABC STEM Trifecta Group Build

[PoorManRC]

Yea you open full size plans as a PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader, and select "Poster". It should default to 100% scale and cutmarks at 0.005, and make sure that you gave cutmarks selected. It will also ask you at the top if you want to print all sheets, quantity of prints. I usually go with printing just the plans pages, not the title page or legend. If you want to scale up you can change that in the scale setting, then as you scroll through the pages at the bottom right hand quarter you will see how the printed pages lay out. Scale down you use less paper, scale up you use more.
If you are scaling up I would use the B pack for sure. If you want a slow flyer wobbly high alpha kinda unit that might be your ticket. Original size is good for the recommended F pack. What I did was left it at the original size and put a C pack in it on a 9x6 prop then eventually an 8x8 for speed, and it was fast! I have some vids on it on the thread and the YT channel. Even with the F pack on it will still run a 9" prop
9g's are what you need and the KFm wing is awesome on a couple levels, strength and performance

@The Hangar is printing it for me, standard size. It's cool, because I thought it was another Mini. Fine for many, I just prefer bigger Planes.
I do want to try 135%, if I ever get a Printer...

I'm looking forward to this!

 

[mayan]

It took a long time but I eventually got it built, painted and maidened. Like I imagined it would be, it is an amazing jet to fly. I build it as part of this group build but also as part of the Build Ruary Challenge so here is my review of the model, enjoy.\

FT-Build-Ruary: FT STEM Charlie Build by @mayan

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Build Rating: View attachment 160475
Fly Rating: View attachment 160476

Plans: https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?resources/ft-charlie-plans.35/

I choose to build this model because ever since I met Flite Test this model applied to me. It's not the only jet like looking model that FT has but it's one of the prettiest that they have that is until they release the new master series jets. It's also not the first time that I have built this model but never before was I able to get it to fly, so I was also eager to succeed this time around .

In terms of build process, most of the build is pretty straight forward but since part of the build does require practice I rated the building of the model moderate. The part which I found that needs more practice forming is the nose section, and canopy hatch. These are not complicated to build but are hard to get to look prefect if your like me and have a perfectionism issue. I've built this model 2-3 time before so this time around the nose and canopy came out better and were easier to make too. I would highly recommend using painter tape to help hold the pieces together like they do in the master series videos, this will help hold things in place without moving while everything dries up. It will also help get this to fit more tightly together. There is a bit of aftermath that I done in the past considering I've given my hand at this model before that I should have put into this build but I didn't just because I was stupid, more about that later in the post. Also I highly recommend you check out this group build thread "ABC STEM Trifecta Group Build" which is dedicated to all these FT STEM prop n' slot type models, check it out to get more feedback from other members before you build your own, a lot of useful information there.

This was this first time I actually managed to get this model to fly, and that is just because in previous times that I have tried I didn't have enough power so make sure the plane wants to jump out of your hand when you throttle up before tossing it into the air. Flying this model is fairly simple it's a 3 channels bank and yank model. It's glide slope is great, it will flies smoothly at all speeds and is very stable making it a great model to fly for pilots of all levels. It is slim and small which makes it super easy to store even in a small closest as well as easy to transport to the field. I balanced it with a 3S 1300mah battery because I wanted a bit more power but could have easily balanced it with smaller batteries down to a 3S 800mah or even bigger batteries up to I assume a 3S 2200mah or an equivalent 4S battery of the same weight. I had a lot of fun flying this model until I attempted something which I can't even explain and crashed. The nose section broke exactly like in previous times I tried to fly this model and now looks like this and needs repairs.

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Even though I didn't land the plane I think it is fairly simple just keep the plane leveled with a bit of up elevator, throttle off and let it glide pitching the nose up until you reach the ground.

To sum up my experience with this model. Very fun simple to fly plane, does take some time to build and has a weak point in the nose. Considering that the nose of the model is part of the fuselage makes it annoying if you crash and break it because it can't just be replaced without serious surgery. I would highly recommend using some sort of foam up spray in the nose to give it more durability something that I should have done with this build considering my past experience. I've always wanted a jet in my fleet and this is a easy to fly one that just looks absolutely stunning, so at least until the F-18 @Splinter189 is working on is released this is my go to jet plane .