Best FT Slow Trainer

[TexMechsRobot]

I only have a small field to fly on and it would be perfect for a slow and docile trainer. I just finished building the FT Commuter from plans and realized that even though it's modeled after the Cessna 150, it is anything but slow. I'm wanting to fly in an area about the size of a little league baseball field (think coach-pitch or t-ball) so a slow flier would be great.

What would the community recommend? Something with free plans preferably.

 

[JasonK]

sounds like you need something that can fly fairly slow (so generally something on the light wing loading side), the following might be worth checking out:

• FT Mini Scout
• FT Mini F-22
• FT Mighty Mini Sparrow

Plans Index: https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?threads/sp0nz-plans-index.17136/

 

[JasonK]

the FT Dart can also fly fairly slow, but the H Power Pack isn't available any more [it is on the plans index]

However, you might want to go even smaller to something like FT EZ Glider and put a small motor (H pack size works) & 2 servos on it, that setup can fly slow enough.

 

[TexMechsRobot]

The Scout and Glider seem like good fits. and very simple builds. I was thinking the Tiny Trainer might fit the bill as well. Thanks for the response

 

[Matthewdupreez]

i would suggest then mini speedster... scaled up to 120%...

 

[Byrdman]

Old Fogey isn't the best flyer out there, but it is big and fly's slow. Also you may want to look at the FT Flyer.

Both of these can be flown in small spaces and from what I have heard, the FT Flyer is about as tough as it gets from a trainer standpoint.

 

[TexMechsRobot]

Old Fogey isn't the best flyer out there, but it is big and fly's slow. Also you may want to look at the FT Flyer.

Both of these can be flown in small spaces and from what I have heard, the FT Flyer is about as tough as it gets from a trainer standpoint.

"Tough as it gets" meaning "hard to fly" or "takes a beating"?

 

[Byrdman]

"Tough as it gets" meaning "hard to fly" or "takes a beating"?

Takes a beating very well. I have not built one yet, but from what I have read, they are hard to beat up and easy to fix. I'm going to make one this weekend so I can teach my wife to fly.

 

[FoamyDM]

i would suggest then mini speedster... scaled up to 120%...

Despite it's name, it is not super fast as the wing is undercambered. And a wide speed envelope. If you print a second wing and make it a Bi-plane. you move one wing to the bottom of the fuse, and the other you set vertically above. (vertical when resting as a tail dragger see picture). This slows it down, but is still tons of fun to fly in a small area. I tend to keep mine over about half the runway area when I fly.

What am I doing this Article says it all;
https://www.flitetest.com/articles/best-upgrade-for-your-ft-speedster-biplane

 

[cbf123]

For small areas and a trainer you want something that flies *slow*, which means making it have a very light wing loading. I've seen an "old fogey" style airplane made with DTFB but the paper stripped off both sides. It flew very slowly even though it was large.

A Tiny Trainer might be a bit much for a baseball field, though it does okay on a full-sized football field.

Have you considered a Nutball? Better to build it based on the plans over at rcgroups.com though. The swappable pod is just added mass.

 

[Mr NCT]

I'm a huge fan of the DR-1. It was my third plane and I think more docile than the tiny trainer.

 

[FoamyDM]

A fogey at 1/3 or half the weight could fly crazy slow. CF Reinforcing would be required, but worth it

 

[Matthewdupreez]

A fogey at 1/3 or half the weight could fly crazy slow. CF Reinforcing would be required, but worth it

Sounds very appealing... I've got the speedster wing lying in my pile of STUFF..
Maybe I should build an old folks.

 

[Byrdman]

Sounds very appealing... I've got the speedster wing lying in my pile of STUFF..
Maybe I should build an old folks.

I built an Old Fogey and I was not impressed with the way it flew. IMO, it flew okay, but not great. Not near as good as the Mini Scout. The Mini Scout flew like a real plane vs a purposing balloon. Both were 3 ch setups and the Scout was 100x better flyer. Any amount of wind the the Old Fogey was pushed all over the place. I know I had it set up properly, too. My esc burned up while it was flying and when I lost all control, it landed in the lake behind my house. The glide slope was perfect, lol

 

[checkerboardflyer]

I know you asked for the Best FT Slow Trainer. This is not that, but it may be exactly what you are looking for. It's by Multiplex and is called the Funnycub. I think you might enjoy watching. Good luck! More tips and resources for foam board RC modelers on my blog at: https://foamboardflyers.com/

 

[Byrdman]

I know you asked for the Best FT Slow Trainer. This is not that, but it may be exactly what you are looking for. It's by Multiplex and is called the Funnycub. I think you might enjoy watching. Good luck! More tips and resources for foam board RC modelers on my blog at: https://foamboardflyers.com/

Pretty cool! That would not be hard to make one out of DTFB