gws Slowstick best first trainer

[tallflyer]

I like the Gws Slowstick as a first plane trainer. the build is easy and the plane is a basic 3 channel airplane elevator,rudder and throttle. It fly's slow enough for the first pilot to learn without making a mistake. and can be flown in a smal enough area that you can fly it at the local ball park with no problem.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

Was that Fred Flintstone talking at the end?

 

[jetpackninja]

Gonna have to disagree on this one.
The slow stick a a good plane. You can teach yourself how to fly on one. That's how my son and I learned and it can be done that way if you are committed to learning the hobby and willing to put up with the downtime for broken parts. You are also going to have to research some things and find out what you need to get it going. Not necessarily a bad thing but is going to require some research and commitment.

My vote for the best first trainer is the Hobbyzone Supercub. Eveything you need is in one box and the plane can be assembled in the amount of time it takes to charge the battery. The plane is easily upgradeable to some very hopped up setup if you should happen to get bored with it. I love mine.

I'm not a Slow Stick hater by any means, I still fly mine a lot and it is a great night plane.

 

[PTRogers85]

I might have to agree with Tallflyer to a certain degree...I pretty much tought my self to fly with a Pico Stick then upgraded to the Slow Stick when it came out a few years later. It's a good flying plane but Stock form...it pretty much sucks.lol. originally I was flying them in early 2000s (i think 2002 or 2003 is when I got one)and that's when brushless motors were starting to become popular but I flew it with brushed motor and Nicad batteries. But a few years ago I stumbled acrossed a local hobby shop down the street from the Air Force base I was stationed at (Radical RC, Dayton Ohio)that made their own Slow Stick Hop-Up parts. Boy that made a HUGE improvement on how they flew, I added a new style motor mount that adds down and right thrust, so now with a bigger brushless motor it doesn't flair up. I added better more off road landing gear, stearable tail wheel,LED light, better wing mounts, Basically its only uses the wing, tail, and carbon stick from the original kit that's about it. So now I have a hot rod slow stick that that flies pretty quick and Super Slow,Now I use to help train new pilots via buddy box. It flies superb!
http://www.radicalrc.com/category/Slow-Sticks-&-Hop-Ups-249

 

[jetpackninja]

Can't disagree with you there. That's where the slow stick comes to life- with the mods-
With a little help from an experienced pilot- agreed. But there are also some slow stick mods that are essential in my opinion to make it durable enough for a first plane. Sounds like you've found a few of them My slow sticks get the shaft reinforced, almost never see landing gear, get better motor mounts (the stock mount is WAY too fragile), get the wing braced and get brushless motors. Just saying that for me as a newbie it was a bit overwhelming...

I resisted the Supercub route- probably learned a LOT because of the slow stick repairs and rekits. When it came time to teach another son to fly he got some stick time on the slow sticks but we selected the Supercub as his first plane. Until a decent all EPP trainer gets on the market, my recommendation to newbies is gonna be toward the Supercub.

BTW- I grew up in Dayton-
-Peace

 

[PTRogers85]

Yeah probably as a First plane the cub is where its at, bc everything in in one box. But once you start getting to know how to work on planes a hop up slow stick is a good choice too or if you want a relaxing worry free plane, I mostly use mine for night flying or training new pilots.
Also I like some of the micro park flyers as a good beginner plane too bc you can get a RTF ie Parkzones Champ, PiperCub, Ember and Night Vapor(its more fragile, but very forgiving)

 

[tallflyer]

I would never buy a RTF kit that has a free Radio!

Most of the planes come with a radio that has no adjustments (dual rates and digital trims are a must and can make learning faster and flying more enjoyable right from the start) plus you want a radio that lets you grow into the next plane without starting over and buying another radio!

Get yourself a good 2.4 ghz radio (I like the spektrum dx6i) as a good starting point there are other models that have good results

check the rcgoups for people selling uses ones or ebay if you want to save a little money.

then get yourself a good Charger and some battery packs. buy a bunch of extra props and make yourself a little field box or bag to carry some tape and rubber bands and some basic hobby tools so you can carry stuff with you to fix stuff when your flying!

I don't want to thread jump so I will post some of the GWS Slowstick pictures here from a build thread I did.

 

[tallflyer]

Here is a Video of one of my SLowsticks form a couple of years ago with a onboard video camera.. enjoy... this was before the new wave of mini HD camcorders like GOPRO and stuff still pretty cool

 

[jetpackninja]

It sounds like to me you have a similar approach and level of commitment to the hobby that I did when I started.

The newest version of the Supercub comes with a 2.4 Spektrum radio- It's not a computer radio like the Dx6i but is a "decent" radio that could be used on another plane.

The Supercub can also be purchased bind n fly so the Dx6i, DX7 or Dx8 could be used

Agreed that with the right level of commitment the Slow Stick could be a good fit for the beginner plane. But without that level of commitment it can cause frustration, I was very discouraged on several occasions with my learning process but had good support with good friends who provided encouragement.

Here's one of the pics of my Slow Stick last winter- Looks like it should be a picture on the GWS box
BTW- I like the green

View attachment 635

 

[jetpackninja]

It sounds like to me you have a similar approach and level of commitment to the hobby that I did when I started.

The newest version of the Supercub comes with a 2.4 Spektrum radio- It's not a computer radio like the Dx6i but is a "decent" radio that could be used on another plane.

The Supercub can also be purchased bind n fly so the Dx6i, DX7 or Dx8 could be used

Agreed that with the right level of commitment the Slow Stick could be a good fit for the beginner plane. But without that level of commitment it can cause frustration, I was very discouraged on several occasions with my learning process but had good support with good friends who provided encouragement.

Here's one of the pics of my Slow Stick last winter- Looks like it should be a picture on the GWS box
BTW- I like the green

 

[jetpackninja]

I don't want to sound like a slow stick basher-
I will continue to make positive comments about the Supercub on the Supercub thread

 

[PTRogers85]

Yeah a programmable radio is nice, I love my Dx8. You are better off buying a radio to aren't going to out grow anytime soon.

 

[Rcgary24]

the guys are right , the supercub is a great trainer , but i personally would recommend a slow stick , it is very forgiving and has alot of potential for future upgrades , as well as youve got to select your own gear , put the plane together which will help later on down the road for repairs... i sold mine to a guy a few months back and taught him how to fly on it , i need to get another one . One of the easiest upgrades to do is cut out the outlined ailerons and use packing tape to hinge them much like you do the rudder and elevator and take 2 9 gram servos and double-sided stick tape them to the bottom of the wing and use more packing tape to stick the servo wire to the bottom of the wing , its a basic upgrade to the plane but it flies even better with ailerons and is probably the cheapest easiest upgrade to do,

The other thing good about slowsticks is if you want to do a little expirimenting you can use some dollar store foam boards and design and cut your own wing and tail feathers and put them in place of the stock slowstick flying surfaces and then youll have a wild flying aircraft!!!!! ill have to take some pictures of mine , looks ugly but is a blast to fly!!!!!

 

[bicyclemonkey]

Ahhh, the old Slow Stick/Super Cub LP debate.

I too, started out on a slow stick. I'll have to say in response to the comment about it being horrible with the stock setup: Maybe with a NiCad battery but I've been using mine from the beginning with the factory 400c brushed motor and a 3s lipo and it's fantastic. I can use a 3s lipo with a GWS 9x5 prop or a 2s lipo with a GWS 10x6 prop and get in excess of 20 min. flight time on a 1300mah.

Pick any of the upgrades from radicalRC and it gets even better. I've never broken mine in a crash that wasn't repairable without parts except for the motor mount which is readily available online for cheap.

The Slow Stick is a great plane to start with BECAUSE you have to do some research.

 

[Brian fred carr]

Mmmmm seems to me if you learnt on a slow stick you will think that's best and if you learnt on a cub thats best. I am self taught
as I imagine most of us are and I smashed two...£60 3 channel eurotrainers in a week and was almost put off,,,but then I got a
parkzone firebird with a thing called ACT...(anti crash technology) and it sorta worked so I would say try one of them to any
beginner pilot....thats why we have a great hobby because we all have different opinions and differing experiences but our goal
is universal and that is to.......keep flying

 

[rc me]

no wild hawk from nitro planes.com

 

[jetpackninja]

The Slow Stick is a great plane. The airframe is flexible and adaptable. My feeling is that the amount of options are too overwhelming to be a great first plane.

It can be a good first plane. IF:

You are committed to doing alot research or have a Slow Stick guy helping out.

You do your homework and reinforce some parts.

You have a resource for extra parts.

You start with a sloper kit and put your own stuff on it.

I learned on a Slow Stick.
If I had to do it again I'd start with a Supercub.
I now guide new flyers to the RTF Supercub or the Bind nFly and a DX6i.

I might steer somebody who is committed to learning the hobby to a Slow Stick. But if they are truly committed to learning the hobby and are gonna be around for a while I'd probably try to steer them to a Crash Test Hobby EPP trainer.
I wish these planes were around when I started The 48" Albatross is a great flyer!

 

[glydr]

SS FTW!



I'm a fan and still fly mine! Even gave one to a mate as a first plane (already modded).

 

[jetpackninja]

Mine still flies and is my main night plane.
Most recently I used it for some wing testing a friend of mine was doing.