I couldn't resist the exceptional value of this little plane from Hobbyking - I went in with a few people for postage and it only cost about $40 delivered from the Australian warehouse AND includes a battery.
I was going to get one of these when they originally came to the Aus warehouse a few months ago. I was too slow. This time around, I moved a bit quicker and scored one.
For those unfamiliar, the Atom is a micro sized glider - 750mm wing, a brushed pusher motor just behind the canopy, really nice foam and, as cream on the top includes a 250mAh 2s. Assembly takes about 3 minutes, most of which is waiting for the hot glue gun to heat up to glue the tail feathers in. While you're waiting, plug in and screw the wing in place, plug in the rx and you're done! The included battery balances the plane nicely on the spar, which seems to be as far back as you can get away with. One flaw with mine is the rudder servo, which doesn't centre completely unless you go slightly past neutral - it's not so bad that I can't live with it, but something to keep in mind when handing it over to other people.
Power from the motor is adequate rather than impressive. It also used up the stock battery in about 4 minutes and there's no beep from the ESC to warn you! If you've got enough height, that's OK, but I'd been doing low passes when the soft cutout kicked in. The landing was less than graceful and I admit I cartwheeled it, though there was absolutely no damage.
I was initially going to add ailerons to this plane, but honestly they're not missed. Combining rudder and elevator in the turn moves the nose sharply. You could easily fly this plane indoors and it'll probably handle a bit of breeze. Not as floaty as I was hoping though, and I doubt it'll thermal. All up, stunning value but not convinced on it being a complete beginner's plane (which I think is the intention).
I was going to get one of these when they originally came to the Aus warehouse a few months ago. I was too slow. This time around, I moved a bit quicker and scored one.
For those unfamiliar, the Atom is a micro sized glider - 750mm wing, a brushed pusher motor just behind the canopy, really nice foam and, as cream on the top includes a 250mAh 2s. Assembly takes about 3 minutes, most of which is waiting for the hot glue gun to heat up to glue the tail feathers in. While you're waiting, plug in and screw the wing in place, plug in the rx and you're done! The included battery balances the plane nicely on the spar, which seems to be as far back as you can get away with. One flaw with mine is the rudder servo, which doesn't centre completely unless you go slightly past neutral - it's not so bad that I can't live with it, but something to keep in mind when handing it over to other people.
Power from the motor is adequate rather than impressive. It also used up the stock battery in about 4 minutes and there's no beep from the ESC to warn you! If you've got enough height, that's OK, but I'd been doing low passes when the soft cutout kicked in. The landing was less than graceful and I admit I cartwheeled it, though there was absolutely no damage.
I was initially going to add ailerons to this plane, but honestly they're not missed. Combining rudder and elevator in the turn moves the nose sharply. You could easily fly this plane indoors and it'll probably handle a bit of breeze. Not as floaty as I was hoping though, and I doubt it'll thermal. All up, stunning value but not convinced on it being a complete beginner's plane (which I think is the intention).
