HObby Zone Champ

lostcity

New member
Hobby Zone Champ

I just got my HZ Champ and managed to rip a wing off on the first flight... Second and thirds flights have gone better after viewing the RC Air Training Command Series. As others have noted, the Champ does not handle wind well beyond the most modest of breezes. That aside, I find that I have had to put in a great deal of nose down trim stop the porpoising. I have not been able to find a CG point in the manual. Is there one for this craft?

Thanks
 
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lostcity

New member
Got a bit over confident and flew the Champ on day with too much wind. Champ got caught in gust and was lost in the local woods. Sadly it is still lost.
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
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Wow -- bummer for your loss, but I'd think it be hard to loose a plane that yellow in some trees!

Best of luck finding it . . . but if it remains AWOL, given any thought to what's next?
 

lostcity

New member
Yes, in fact did a maiden on the FT Flyer today and am very happy with it. It is a quicker plane than the Champ but I think a good transition. Maiden went well. The Champ was all that the Air Training Command guys said it was, it just did not have enough power to manage breezy days IMHO. Also just got a plane called the Tuff Cub from West Michigan Flyers looks to be good indoor and outdoor bird.
 

lostcity

New member
I have gone looking for the Champ since I had a good idea where it went down. Got permission from the property owner to search but could not find it. You are right that bright yellow should have shown up in the green trees. Once the leaves are down I will do a second search.
 

Tally Reign

Junior Member
Good luck finding your Champ lostcity! Mine suffered a similar experience, but I got lucky and found it the first day while it still had a charge by wiggling the rudder and listening for the servo noise, but couldn't reach the plane. It spent two very rainy weeks in trees about 80ft off the ground. I thought for sure it was toast, but after the storms quit I went out looking again and found it on the ground. Battery was shot and the landing gear was gone but everything else was intact! It gave me an excuse to put over-sized 'bush gear' on it. Anyway, good luck with yours, maybe you'll get a helpful gust of wind too!
 

lostcity

New member
I had put in the trees a couple of times but always was able to see where it went and found it low enough that I was able to use a fishing pole to dislodge it. This time it really took off. I probably should not have had it out with wind as strong as it was. Glad you found yours. While the battery was toast, how about the electronics? They all okay?
 

Tally Reign

Junior Member
While the battery was toast, how about the electronics? They all okay?

The electronics survived the journey to recovery better than I did! In the process of finding it I lost the lens cap to my camera, the back cover for the Tx, and 'found' two different yellow jacket's nests resulting in 10+ stings. All it took to get the Champ back in the air was a new battery and a new set of landing gear. I was really impressed with how well it held up, so I've got high hopes for yours!
 

lostcity

New member
Weather here looks like a good week to hike in the woods for lost aircraft. Will let you know what I find. Sorry to hear about the yellow jackets, dang.

I have found a ball field flyer that is a replacement for my Champ. The Tuff Cub looks like a good substitute. I found a spectrum receiver that binds with the HZ transmitter so if I cannot find my Champ, this may fill its spot in the hangar. http://www.wmparkflyers.com/tuff-p-82.html
 
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Tally Reign

Junior Member
LostCity, any luck on your recovery ops? I almost talked a friend into buying a Champ last weekend for his first foray into electric fixed wing, then I realized I can save him the $90 for a week and let him fly mine this weekend to make sure he really wants to drink the kool-aid :D
 

lostcity

New member
LostCity, any luck on your recovery ops? I almost talked a friend into buying a Champ last weekend for his first foray into electric fixed wing, then I realized I can save him the $90 for a week and let him fly mine this weekend to make sure he really wants to drink the kool-aid :D

No, I think it is lost or someone else found it and picked up. I like the champ and with the right conditions it is good plane. I tried to fly when I should have put it back in the box and gone home. The Air Training Command videos on YouTube were a big help in understanding the plane and what to do. While I had done control line flying many years ago, RC is new. The videos were a good introduction to flying and operation of the plane. Mine never flew quite as well but it was blast. Anyway, letting your friend use yours is a good idea. If he decides on a his own champ there are a bunch of them on Ebay. I still have the Transmitter, so have been using it with a Mini Vapor which is hoot to fly. I am also in the process building a Tuff Cubb with a spectrum AR6100e. Take pictures.
 

FightHobby

Junior Member
Wouldn't it be cool if RC Planes were like golf balls and every time you lost one in the woods you found 3 others while searching...... alas.....
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
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There have been a few incidents in high crops bordering flying fields which have collected airframes. It's realy bad form to just abandon the plane, but there have been a few frustrated pilots who have offered the "if you can find it, it's yours!"

I know Hodges field (of SEFF and HHAEFI fame) has a cotton/peanut field to the east that likes to catch planes. He's been known on occation to fly out in his full scale cub to spot and tag a stranded airframe in that field, but marking it is only half the trouble! I have debated starting up an informal FPV downed model SAR service, however I need to get an FPV rig on my V-tail before I can go salvaging . . .
 

.XxBensterxX.

Intermediate Hobbyist
Yes, i put mine in a tree too and was terrified, and also broke the tail a few times. It is a great plane and I encourage you to stay with the hobby. Good Luck :)
 

lostcity

New member
There have been a few incidents in high crops bordering flying fields which have collected airframes. It's realy bad form to just abandon the plane, but there have been a few frustrated pilots who have offered the "if you can find it, it's yours!"

I know Hodges field (of SEFF and HHAEFI fame) has a cotton/peanut field to the east that likes to catch planes. He's been known on occation to fly out in his full scale cub to spot and tag a stranded airframe in that field, but marking it is only half the trouble! I have debated starting up an informal FPV downed model SAR service, however I need to get an FPV rig on my V-tail before I can go salvaging . . .

Okay, will go back and look again, I really do miss the little plane. I do have some suspicions about where it might have gone, but will look some more.
 

lostcity

New member
Yes, i put mine in a tree too and was terrified, and also broke the tail a few times. It is a great plane and I encourage you to stay with the hobby. Good Luck :)

My bet is that they sell a lot of parts for that plane. They have sold a bunch to me. My wing was the old off yellow/orange and the rest the plane was yellow. The nose was missing paint.

I have since maidened an FT Flyer and FT Old Fogey and am working on a Tuff Cub. My wife now complains about all the airplanes in the basement......
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
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Okay, will go back and look again, I really do miss the little plane. I do have some suspicions about where it might have gone, but will look some more.

LC,

Not a dig -- just struck me as a story to go with the "lost golf balls" comment.

The common courtesy is to perform due diligence -- after all, a .40 motor would do nasty things to a cotton picker, your champ, not so much -- but due diligence has it's limits.
 

Tally Reign

Junior Member
Sorry to hear that it's gone! Glad you've got the Mini Vapor to entertain you until you get your Tuff Cub done!

I got my friend to fly my Champ... for about 30 seconds :p . I set him up for failure though: it was way too windy but I wanted to get in the air anyway and I had it setup for way too much throw on the controls. He was actually doing really well until it started porpoising (again, my fault due to the "flaps" I cut into the wing to add drag and slow the plane down so I had more time to learn to fly it) and then tried to turn back towards us, got disoriented, and tried to do an outside loop :D . He would have made it too, if he was about 50 feet higher... end result was a broken starboard wing, and sorry, no pics of the flight. Would have given him a second chance but I left my repair kit at home, so that was the end of that. He wasn't too discouraged, and I showed him all the places I'd glued mine back together to make him feel better, so he should still be interested in getting something.

I still need to put the Champ back together, but I've gotten distracted doing my first readiboard scratch build (I'll post pics and vids of it eventually), and I just printed out the FT Simple Soarer so it may be a while before I get back to my poor Champ. Look forward to seeing your Tuff Cubb results!