GREAT PLANES EXTRA 300S, 60 SIZE, ELECTRIC CONVERSION, 2019 BUILD ALONG
- Thread starter nhk750
- Start date
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
bracesport
Legendary member
I cried a bit too - it has been a journey watching the build and maiden, but incredibly the damage looks light compared to some - It really flew well and I am looking forward to seeing the second maiden! 
FYI - your thread has been one of the builds that have inspired me to do a balsa build!
FYI - your thread has been one of the builds that have inspired me to do a balsa build!
Sorry to see the maiden didn't end well, but the plane looks to be in very decent shape for a crash victim. Keep 'em flying!
Mr. Gandalf
Elite member
Nice flying! That was a nasty crash but the plane still looks great, I hope you have an easy time repairing it!
TooJung2Die
Master member
Glad it's repairable and will fly again. It sure looked really good right up to the last few seconds. On the bright side, now that it will have some band-aids you will be less nervous on the second flight. Once I get a few bumps on an airplane I can calm down when flying it. Those pretty maiden flights are nail-biters.
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
I made three big mistakes: to steep a bank angle on base to final, too slow and landed on the oposit side of runway from where I was standing. It’s also a really hard plane to see, orientation is strange and my eyes are not used to seeing this type of wing shape. I have a 3d foamie I’m working on and that should help train me to fly this one better.
TooJung2Die
Master member
Is it a profile 3D foamy? I was recently introduced to flat foam 3D airplanes. I'm surprised at how easy they are to fly. Even a fumble-thumb pilot like me can have fun with a very light 3D profile. I guarantee you'll become a better pilot for the Extra if you practice crashing on the profile airplane first.
I'm actually learning to fly inverted with the 3D profile. Two mistakes high is only 30 feet up!
TooJung2Die
Master member
That's what I'm talking about. They're amazing in the hands of a skilled pilot but easy enough for an intermediate pilot to fly.
They're amazing in the hands of a skilled pilot but easy enough for an intermediate pilot to fly.
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
I cried a bit too - it has been a journey watching the build and maiden, but incredibly the damage looks light compared to some - It really flew well and I am looking forward to seeing the second maiden!
FYI - your thread has been one of the builds that have inspired me to do a balsa build!
I'm happy to inspire others and thanks for the compliment. It's hard to not get discouraged after crashing a work of art you spend so much time building, but we just have to remember thats part of the hobby and to push on with repairs and other projects.
bracesport
Legendary member
I will show you my project when the CAD is a little further along (I wonder what it will be)?
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
I took a look at it last night and it's not too bad. I did have some fuselage breaks in the center area under the cockpit, probably when it pancaked and the shock broke the fuse (this part of the fuse is a weak point for the GP Extra), also the wing has some minor damage from the wheel pants hitting it when the gear sheared off. The redesigned gear with plastic bolts saved the entire plane from destruction and was great forsite from others that built this plane on other forums. The wheel pants are pretty much destroyed, but I really don't like wheel pants anyway and will remove them. If we had a paved runway they may be nice, but on grass they are a pain, plus the pants being silver it is hard to see the wheels during flight and I like to use them for orientation. The pull pull wires broke or something broke in there, but I haven't removed the wing yet to see what happened in there as I have two other projects on both my tables that I need to finish (rock crawler and a 3d plane) before I dig into repairs. I already feel better about flying it again as it has seen some battle damage and is no longer a pristine plane...it will be broke-in, literally!
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
Evaluation of repairs finally happening. Fuse damage: Motor mount box cracked, center fuse area has multiple breaks, minor damage to horizontal stabilizer, wing dowel mount area in fuse separated, the light ply separated in several areas caused by pancake impact and some cosmetic damage to belly pan framing, also pull pull cables snapped on impact and the servo mounting plate support on one side pulled the light ply fuse side apart. Wing damage: wheels punctured sheeting under wing and damaged covering, some belly pan damage, minor damage to fuse mounting area. The problem with light ply is it tends to come apart on impacts and especially Great Planes light ply as it tends to crumble when even touching it.
Im going to make some bracing and repair the fuse as best I can, but it was a bad, weak design to begin with, so I will do the best I can to get it airworthy again. The wing should be pretty straight forward for repairs.
Im going to make some bracing and repair the fuse as best I can, but it was a bad, weak design to begin with, so I will do the best I can to get it airworthy again. The wing should be pretty straight forward for repairs.
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Gabriel.Vvi
New member
Hay guys :
This kit has been discontinued for a long time, but I would like to build one.
The only thing i'm looking for are the die-cut patterns plans. Does anyone have it or knows where I can find it ? I would be very happy to find it.
Thanks from france
This kit has been discontinued for a long time, but I would like to build one.
The only thing i'm looking for are the die-cut patterns plans. Does anyone have it or knows where I can find it ? I would be very happy to find it.
Thanks from france
Gabriel.Vvi
New member
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
The kit builds into a nice looking plane, however it turns out heavy and the fuse has structural weakness around the center fuse area. I could actually twist the fuse a little, with my hands, after it was built. I still haven't repaired mine, but it will fly again. You may want to consider a different 300 build and there are several out there which you can get plans for to scratch build. Check the plans service and also look around the web. Great Planes aircraft always build heavy and especially when you convert to electric.
I found this plan page, looks interesting.
https://aerofred.com/search.php?search_keywords=extra
I found this plan page, looks interesting.
https://aerofred.com/search.php?search_keywords=extra
Gabriel.Vvi
New member
Thank you, this page is very interesting ! I’ll think about it...
But excuse me I don't understand English well, do you mean that electric planes are lighter?
But excuse me I don't understand English well, do you mean that electric planes are lighter?
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
Usually when you convert to electric it comes out about the same weight as the gas powered plane when full of gas, but for some reason, the Great Planes models always come out a bit heavier. I think Great Planes models are heavier than other models of same design, so I wont be building any more of them and they dont make them anyway, so no worries.
