Goblin versus... Versa.

model3113

Member
TL;dr version: I just want to get a list of pros and cons between the FT Goblin and a Blunt Nose Versa.

90% of my flying is with a UMX Radian. I have other planes, but that's the only one I can readily carry on the bus or on my bike while I travel to various sites here in Baltimore to fly and film. However, it is always gusty here and well the UMX planes weigh less than a mouse fart. This is why, as much as I like the Nano Goblin and its perks, I started looking at the Versa--since a pure wing handles wind better--and wondering if it could adopt the Nano's best features of long run-times and quiet operations. Planks are cool, but during my PicaSim practice sessions the wing always seemed to be more intuitive to handle. However, the plank design has a wider speed envelope, wings only have stability for very specific weights and velocities.

As you may gather I'm feeling incredibly ambivalent about my next plane. Ultimately, I just want a fpv plane that I can carry around on public transportation, and fly for a few hours at a speed that's more casual than sport, that doesn't get blown around in 12mph gusts.
 

sprzout

Knower of useless information
Mentor
Well, I have one of the Strix Nano Goblins at home. They're small. Like, the size of a football with wings small (the wingspan is just shy of 2 feet wide). They're VERY versatile, and SCARY fast. They'll hold up well in the air, but like anything that's a smaller size (as I'm sure you've experienced with your UMX Radian) they're more susceptible to wind, so it is a little trickier to fly in gusts. The plus with the Nano Goblin is that you can fly with a 2S 18650 cell Li-Ion battery, and it'll stay up for a good amount of time (I've had mine up for over 20 minutes, and ended up bringing it down because I got tired, and still had charge to go for at least another 10 minutes).

A Versa Wing is a reasonable option, but it's a larger wingspan, at 38 inches, to the Goblin's roughly 22 inches. I personally don't like the Versa Wings because of the way that they launch, at least in pusher configuration; I'm always afraid I'm going to clip myself launching it or I'm going to roll it the wrong direction on a launch and end up hitting someone. I probably just need to learn to launch it better, so it's more of an "idiot at the controls" thing than anything else. Still, a pusher wing has that potential when it swings a bigger prop than the stock 3052 that the Nano Goblin uses.

I know this probably isn't much help, but hopefully it gives you a little bit to work with. :)
 

CapnBry

Elite member
I've never built a blunt nose versa before, but as sprzout said, they're kinda big. My FT Goblin I destroyed and rebuilt 3 times over before I lost orientation on it and it went down in the woods and I never found it (or the way I like telling the story is that it became sentient and is still flying somewhere). Note that the FT Goblin is great and fun and stable but not nearly as efficient as the Strix Nano Goblin. The strix uses a PW-series airfoil which is a very efficient semi-symmetrical with an extremely thin taper in the trailing edge to give it virtually 0 pitching moment (no reflex needed). The FT version is the standard flat bottom airfoil and has undercambered tips. It adds up to a lot more drag, but a lot more lift too.

Don't forget there's also the 75% FT Goblin, which is like one sheet of foam and is the exact same size as the Strix Nano. I flew this on 2S 900mAh for 12-15 minutes using the same motor as strix uses (1407 3500KV, 3.0x5.2 prop). It seems like comedy small and around 220g with FPV camera but it is great at a variety of speeds and is incredibly strong (at least the wings) and nimble. Be prepared to snap the nose off any FT Goblin-based design on a hard landing unless you reinforce it where the nose meets the wing hole. It does suffer a bit in the FPV stability due to being so small; you will experience some rolling.

If you can't tell, I love the planks since they look so much cooler to me than the wings.
 

skymaster

Elite member
Me too i love the versa. it is one of my oldest builds that i still have and have survived many crashes had it for over 2 years. i like to give you guys a like heads up on the servos. i had the versa on the wall for a while cause i thought i had a bad servo and it was causing me to loose control and crash. well finally a got around to replacing the servo and found out that the servo was not the problem, the problem was that the paper were the servo sat got loose from the foam and that was causing me to loose control. so if you can remove the paper and glue the servo directly to the foam and not the paper or cut the paper reglue it and then glue the servo on the paper.
 

donalson

Active member
the blunt nose really is a LOT bigger than the goblin or the non blunt versa... this is my LED night blunt nose, my FT goblin (yet to fly) and a spec wing

IMG_0716.jpg


the blunt really needs a C pack motor... it's pretty docile compared to standard versa wing... but it has an amazing glide slope... the original versa was one of my early planes (one of my first 3 or 4)... it took a while to learn to launch as mentioned above... but a big part of that was proper CG... in fact i'm still working on finding the right CG for the spec wing... getting close 1 penny at a time (2.5g)

for wind handling I've always been amazed at how the versa and other wings I've flown fly in high winds... at least until you get into very heavy turns or loops in which case the entire top or bottom of the wing gets caught by the wind... not a big deal except in pretty rough wind though... I flew them happily in 20mph winds at FFTX last year.... I'd assume the goblin will be not too far off but I don't know yet.

for your wish of transportability and FPV though I think you are really looking at the FT arrow or the FT goblin... but that's just my thinking.

on a side note... I just ordered the nano goblin... I can't wait for it... but I'm still planning on a long range blunt nose versa build... I'm just fighting with myself over the versa or the spear.
 

donalson

Active member
recruit is a very easy flying plane... I stole the gyro for my LED night flyer blunt nose versa and even without the gyro it flies great... again make sure the CG is right... I lean a bit towards the nose... with the v1 version I did find the 2204 motor wasn't very happy on 3s with FPV and HD cam... it was still smooth but seemed like it needed a lot more motor... a different pitch prop prob would have helped a good bit on that... with the newer bigger motor it may be even better... I have a few other motors I have and need to try on it still... check out the differing groups on facebook (ar wing 900 and rmrc recruit)... also some good stuff on youtube....

also I'll add... the ft goblin I posted above has the recruit power pack... I hope to get out to fly it this week... along with the strix nano goblin I got in a few days ago