From Avistar Rescue to Avistar Ressurection!
- Thread starter roversgonemad
- Start date
roversgonemad
Member
I managed to fly the Avistar err I mean Lazarus this morning. It flew great!! It's nice to have it back. First flight, I had to dead stick, but subsequent flights were great (I swapped glow plugs and had no issues afterward). With the pin hinges rather than CA hinges, I was able to coax a bit more travel out of the control surfaces. It makes for a nice roll rate with a bit more aileron travel. It still won't quite knife edge, but it's better than before. I know some people really dislike Zinger propellers, but the 10x6W I have on it really pulls it around nicely. I have an APC 10x6 that I will try, but didn't get a chance this morning. I'd go fly again, but the afternoon thunderstorms are rolling in, and the wind is really starting to pick up. I'll try to get a video next time I fly it. There wasn't anyone at the field to run the camera this morning...
roversgonemad
Member
I spent a couple hours this evening doing touch and goes with Lazarus (the plane formerly known as Avistar
). What a fun plane!
One of the old boys from the club was there too, and he gave me some great tips. This guy can land a plane better than almost anyone I have seen. I am amazed watching his effortless landings.
Tonight was great though, just a little bit of a breeze that would bring the odor of the nitro across the field with every touch and go. I think it almost smelled almost as good as women's perfume... I know that sounds crazy, but it was a good evening. I started out not quite feeling it, but after about twenty minutes of following the old guy in on touch and goes and everything settled into place. The sun was at just the right height in the sky that the trail of exhaust was visible as I came off the runway after a touch and go. After some stressful times at work lately, it was very relaxing!! What a great hobby!!
). What a fun plane! One of the old boys from the club was there too, and he gave me some great tips. This guy can land a plane better than almost anyone I have seen. I am amazed watching his effortless landings.
Tonight was great though, just a little bit of a breeze that would bring the odor of the nitro across the field with every touch and go. I think it almost smelled almost as good as women's perfume... I know that sounds crazy, but it was a good evening. I started out not quite feeling it, but after about twenty minutes of following the old guy in on touch and goes and everything settled into place. The sun was at just the right height in the sky that the trail of exhaust was visible as I came off the runway after a touch and go. After some stressful times at work lately, it was very relaxing!! What a great hobby!!
roversgonemad
Member
It is a little different, but it sure makes for nice landings. When it can come down and get into ground effect, the three pointers are just amazing! In the full scale world, that's exactly how it works, elevator for speed, throttle for descent. It's just my opinion, but I don't think enough RC pilots spend the time they should practicing landings. Like the old boy at the field said, landing is the one maneuver that every pilot has to know... I have seen guys that can do amazing things with a plane in the air, but when it comes time to put it back on terra firma, they bounce their poor plane all over the runway:black_eyed: They poke a little fun at me for the time I spend doing touch and goes, but I like my planes and being able to land is definitely going to prolong their lives!
StrutMonkey
Member
Lol learn to land and land well. There is nothing like a wood cracking prop shattering whale flop of a landing to ruin a great flight.
A pilot friend likes to say, "You can always choose not to take off. You can never choose not to land."
roversgonemad
Member
A rather poor video of resurrected Avistar flying. I didn't have cameraman with me, so I used a GoPro, not exactly the best camera for filming a plane from the ground... Probably much better suited to filming the ground from a plane... It's a little better if you have the bandwidth to make it full screen, but the plane is frequently a speck in the sky...
i picked up an avistar at a garage sale a few years back , it was the stock hobbico RTF , it had the OS .40LA in it , it flew good with that , then after a few flights i wanted something a little more , i had an Italian Super Tigre .45 laying around so i put it in , WOW , what a difference it made , it was my favorite plane to fly , then it met its end sadly...... Ive since switched over to electric , and found an original Hobbistar 60 ARF that was almost 20 years old NIB , put a .46 equivalent outrunner in it running a 5 cell lipo , flies just like the avistar only bigger , its a good plane and you did a Wonderful job with the rebuild and covering. my dad was always critical of his covering jobs but to all of us that look at it , all we see is a beautiful airplane! good job and id like to see your other build as your doing them!
roversgonemad
Member
Thanks Gary. It's been a fun plane. It's been repaired a few times since the last one. This is my go to plane. I have a lot of electric planes, but I like flying this one a LOT. I find that it's difficult to find the time to charge so many batteries. It's much easier to only have to worry about a flight battery and not charging 4 or 5 batteries for every plane. The glow fuel is a bit expensive, but to me it's worth it for the sounds and the smells!
The Avistar with the .40 definitely has to be flown on the wing. Mine has an FP .40. It's a good runner, but a .46 2 stroke or a .52 four stroke would definitely haul it through the sky a little quicker. I kind of like flying on the wing; I think it requires a bit more skill, and I need a LOT more skill. You really have to learn about momentum and conservation of energy to fly on the wing well.
The Avistar with the .40 definitely has to be flown on the wing. Mine has an FP .40. It's a good runner, but a .46 2 stroke or a .52 four stroke would definitely haul it through the sky a little quicker. I kind of like flying on the wing; I think it requires a bit more skill, and I need a LOT more skill. You really have to learn about momentum and conservation of energy to fly on the wing well.
