Capt_Beavis
Posted a thousand or more times
Hobby Zone Champ RTF: This plane is obsolete with the introduction of the much better Sport Cub S. A lot of people have learned to fly on this plane but I wasn't one of them. My Champ would nose dive into the ground and not recover on almost every flight. I think I only had one or two short flights that didn't cause damage. My plane was finally destroyed by too much gorilla glue in one of the repairs. I got all the parts to fix it but never did I really didn't want to try it again. The Tx in the RTF kit is junk and probably cost me at least one UMX Radian. Others have had great luck with the plane but I say skip it and go for a Sport Cub S.
Update I finally put together all of the pieces and flew my little Champ this week. It is a fun plane. While it is only 3 channel the rudder makes the plane tilt in turns. Without AS3X the plane bobbles in the wind and without SAFE a poorly trimmed plane would be a frustrating for a beginner. The Tx it comes with is also a detriment.
I still say that the sport cub is the way to go, but if you have a smaller park to fly in this could actually make a good second plane. Flying without AS3X (and I am a fan of it) in a small plane with reasonable power is a simple joy.
All that said it is a blast to cut around in. The plane can be zippy. It can climb and glide like crazy when properly trimmed.
Hobby Zone Duet: This is the plane I learned to fly on. My first flight was great. I only had a real crash when, after a week of flying, I tried to do an inverted loop too close to the ground. With some glue and tape I got it flying again. Within a few days I could fly the thing in all wind its motor could handle. You may outgrow it but you will always love it. The plane got me hooked on differential thrust.
Eflite UMX Radian: I consider this to be my second plane since I really don't count the Champ. Out of the box my little Radian flew great. The plane can cruise on 1/4 throttle and climbs on half. You can hand launch on half throttle. The plane is mildly acrobatic, it will do tight loops and tight turns. When you let go of the sticks, the plane would generally recover quickly. The biggest problem with this plane is letting it get too far away and losing sight or orientation. This is a fun plane and great for getting 10-15min out of a 1S battery (with a lot of gliding).
Hobby Zone Delta Ray: This plane is a great size, it handles some wind and is extremely stable when trimmed out properly. I haven't gotten too acro with mine (I wrecked my first one trying it too low) but I have spent a little time inverted. The larger size comes with added weight. The weight makes landing and tricks a little...trickier. The extra size also adds satisfaction to the flight. This plane will make you feel like you are really flying something. SAFE gives added security to push your comfort zone and try new things (just make sure you have the altitude and have your finger near the button - mine got caught once) and is a great feature. I probably wouldn't purchase a plane above UMX without SAFE. I would recommend getting the Delta Ray in the RTF kit if you don't already have a DX4e. The button and switch layout on the DX4e is the most natural for noobs that will have to switch modes and use the panic button. The DX4e will also make a good backup Tx for many planes and can be buddy boxed. Landings are easy in beginner mode, just line it, cut the throttle and make small corrections left and right - SAFE will keep it above a stall.
Update: I have been spending a lot of time flying inverted and have learned to do a hammerhead stall that looks very dramatic. I have learned the weakness of the differential thrust is that it can cause a nasty snap stall in the wrong situation but it is fun to do with the right height.
Horizon Hobby Sport Cub S: You can already tell I like this plane, right? I bought the SCS too learn inverted flying for my self and to teach my girls. This plane is less intimidating than the Delta Ray. I had some early problems with mine. The RTF Tx was junk. It would lose signal and send the plane into a spiral. After a few frustrating attempts to fly the plane I had it spiral 700ft or so away. I had to run across a field to get it engaged and bring it in. I finally took it to the hobby shop and they diagnosed the problem. The DX4e worked great with the SCS with no programing or switching needed. Again, I recommend this as the Tx to use for noobs like me.
Once I got the Tx straightened out it took me some time to trim the plane. The rudder needed mechanical adjustment but once that was done, WOW, what a fun plane. My daughter flew the SCS and landed it on her own on the first try. She even flew in expert mode a bit. The cub design make this plane very balanced and it will self right quickly even with SAFE off. I forgot I was in expert mode several times flying this little guy. The plane handles inverted decently. It will loop but you need a lot of speed. I have done some knife edges but it loses altitude rapidly. Better pilots will have prettier results for sure. I have heard some say they like the SCS more than the UMX Radian. I am not sure I agree with that, but the SCS can be more entertaining. Being a four channel this plane gives a new pilot room to grown, while SAFE's "beginner" mode makes for a docile, three channel like response. This would be the plane I would buy most new pilots.
Update I finally put together all of the pieces and flew my little Champ this week. It is a fun plane. While it is only 3 channel the rudder makes the plane tilt in turns. Without AS3X the plane bobbles in the wind and without SAFE a poorly trimmed plane would be a frustrating for a beginner. The Tx it comes with is also a detriment.
I still say that the sport cub is the way to go, but if you have a smaller park to fly in this could actually make a good second plane. Flying without AS3X (and I am a fan of it) in a small plane with reasonable power is a simple joy.
All that said it is a blast to cut around in. The plane can be zippy. It can climb and glide like crazy when properly trimmed.
Hobby Zone Duet: This is the plane I learned to fly on. My first flight was great. I only had a real crash when, after a week of flying, I tried to do an inverted loop too close to the ground. With some glue and tape I got it flying again. Within a few days I could fly the thing in all wind its motor could handle. You may outgrow it but you will always love it. The plane got me hooked on differential thrust.
Eflite UMX Radian: I consider this to be my second plane since I really don't count the Champ. Out of the box my little Radian flew great. The plane can cruise on 1/4 throttle and climbs on half. You can hand launch on half throttle. The plane is mildly acrobatic, it will do tight loops and tight turns. When you let go of the sticks, the plane would generally recover quickly. The biggest problem with this plane is letting it get too far away and losing sight or orientation. This is a fun plane and great for getting 10-15min out of a 1S battery (with a lot of gliding).
Hobby Zone Delta Ray: This plane is a great size, it handles some wind and is extremely stable when trimmed out properly. I haven't gotten too acro with mine (I wrecked my first one trying it too low) but I have spent a little time inverted. The larger size comes with added weight. The weight makes landing and tricks a little...trickier. The extra size also adds satisfaction to the flight. This plane will make you feel like you are really flying something. SAFE gives added security to push your comfort zone and try new things (just make sure you have the altitude and have your finger near the button - mine got caught once) and is a great feature. I probably wouldn't purchase a plane above UMX without SAFE. I would recommend getting the Delta Ray in the RTF kit if you don't already have a DX4e. The button and switch layout on the DX4e is the most natural for noobs that will have to switch modes and use the panic button. The DX4e will also make a good backup Tx for many planes and can be buddy boxed. Landings are easy in beginner mode, just line it, cut the throttle and make small corrections left and right - SAFE will keep it above a stall.
Update: I have been spending a lot of time flying inverted and have learned to do a hammerhead stall that looks very dramatic. I have learned the weakness of the differential thrust is that it can cause a nasty snap stall in the wrong situation but it is fun to do with the right height.
Horizon Hobby Sport Cub S: You can already tell I like this plane, right? I bought the SCS too learn inverted flying for my self and to teach my girls. This plane is less intimidating than the Delta Ray. I had some early problems with mine. The RTF Tx was junk. It would lose signal and send the plane into a spiral. After a few frustrating attempts to fly the plane I had it spiral 700ft or so away. I had to run across a field to get it engaged and bring it in. I finally took it to the hobby shop and they diagnosed the problem. The DX4e worked great with the SCS with no programing or switching needed. Again, I recommend this as the Tx to use for noobs like me.
Once I got the Tx straightened out it took me some time to trim the plane. The rudder needed mechanical adjustment but once that was done, WOW, what a fun plane. My daughter flew the SCS and landed it on her own on the first try. She even flew in expert mode a bit. The cub design make this plane very balanced and it will self right quickly even with SAFE off. I forgot I was in expert mode several times flying this little guy. The plane handles inverted decently. It will loop but you need a lot of speed. I have done some knife edges but it loses altitude rapidly. Better pilots will have prettier results for sure. I have heard some say they like the SCS more than the UMX Radian. I am not sure I agree with that, but the SCS can be more entertaining. Being a four channel this plane gives a new pilot room to grown, while SAFE's "beginner" mode makes for a docile, three channel like response. This would be the plane I would buy most new pilots.
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