New guy. First post. Some questions.

[frankg]

First post. I'm looking at buying and building the Mighty Mini Explorer and I have some questions.
First and most important question is I want to know if anybody already knows if the Mighty Mini Explorer with either the trainer wing or the 4 channel sport wing lends itself well to flying slowly in a tight space with frequent turns, better than the Aeroscout 1.1m. If it is no better than the Aeroscout 1.1 then there isn't any point to continuing down this particular path.
Mighty Mini Explorer Wingspan is 948mm and weight is 400g
Aeroscout Wingspan is 1098mm and weight is 639g
I have a small field next to my house. If I can fly in that little field I can practice every day. I need practice time. I can use the local club field which is a lot bigger but it is 25 minutes away and I need to meet somebody else there to use it until I'm qualified.
I need a plane that is pusher prop, belly land, slow enough until I get better, and controllable enough in tight turns. (I don't want to pull any more planes out of trees.) I've had smaller planes I could fly well enough in that field but I need a different solution. Maybe the mini explorer could work.

Thanks.

 

[bisco]

welcome!
approximately how big a field?

 

[frankg]

welcome!
approximately how big a field?

It's triangle. maybe 125 yds x 60 x 75. Something like that. The angles mean that the turns have to be tight in the corners. The 600mm Hawkeye worked well enough but the inexpensive plane has a sort of fragile electrical system. I flew the first one about 40 10min flights until it broke and couldn't be repaired. I replaced it. Second one flew about 40 flights, broke exactly like the first one. But I did fly it. Little 4 channel pusher prop on wifi. It's entirely possible somebody more experienced could fly the Aeroscout in that field just fine. I can't. I put in a lot of time on the simulator with the same model and my actual transmitter. First time I tried the Aeroscout it got to the trees WAY faster than the simulator. 2nd attempt resulted in a turn/land/crash. 3rd try made it one pass around the field only barely managing to keep it from just falling out of the air. I decided to quit before I destroyed it.

 

[bisco]

with the aeroscout, you can fly straight and slow once it is launched. on turns, you need a little more speed so you don't drop a wing. (ask me how i know )
why a pusher only? i'm not familiar with the explorer characteristics, but it sure looks like it, according to josh. ft-mighty-mini-explorer

 

[frankg]

with the aeroscout, you can fly straight and slow once it is launched. on turns, you need a little more speed so you don't drop a wing. (ask me how i know )
why a pusher only? i'm not familiar with the explorer characteristics, but it sure looks like it, according to josh. ft-mighty-mini-explorer

Because I'm in a mowed field I'm definitely going to sometimes hit tall grass or little bits of brush and stuff. It would not be an issue if I was a perfect pilot, I'm not. The pusher prop is protected from most of that stuff. A prop on the front will get bead up and maybe destroyed. And the ground is not smooth enough for wheels, so it needs to be a belly lander. Sometimes a belly crasher, sort of. Once I'm skilled enough to manage that area reliably, I can get above a lot of those trees and things become easier. But I still have to be able to get back in that field and land without ending up in a tree or smashing into the woods.

 

[Houndpup Rc]

with the aeroscout, you can fly straight and slow once it is launched. on turns, you need a little more speed so you don't drop a wing. (ask me how i know )
why a pusher only? i'm not familiar with the explorer characteristics, but it sure looks like it, according to josh. ft-mighty-mini-explorer

I think @Mr NCT has built it....

 

[Houndpup Rc]

Because I'm in a mowed field I'm definitely going to sometimes hit tall grass or little bits of brush and stuff. It would not be an issue if I was a perfect pilot, I'm not. The pusher prop is protected from most of that stuff. A prop on the front will get bead up and maybe destroyed. And the ground is not smooth enough for wheels, so it needs to be a belly lander. Sometimes a belly crasher, sort of. Once I'm skilled enough to manage that area reliably, I can get above a lot of those trees and things become easier. But I still have to be able to get back in that field and land without ending up in a tree or smashing into the woods.

I fly in a pretty small area and it doesn't matter as long as you can up above the tree's fast enough (I shouldn't fly close to the ground when first flying anyways as flying higher gives you extra time to correct for any mistakes)

 

[Mr NCT]

I think @Mr NCT has built it....

Yeah, I did a mini explorer and had a completely different experience with it than the flite test crew did. Not a big fan.

 

[Houndpup Rc]

Yeah, I did a mini explorer and had a completely different experience with it than the flite test crew did. Not a big fan.

Simple Scout is a good one though! (XL version flies even easier)

 

[Mr NCT]

In that size field I'd do mighty mini DR1 without wheels and run a 2S battery. It's not a pusher but it's a lot of fun

 

[Houndpup Rc]

In that size field I'd do mighty mini DR1 without wheels and run a 2S battery. It's not a pusher but it's a lot of fun

And the smaller foam board planes have a higher weight to strength ratio so even if the landing isn't pretty it doesn't matter! (Usually your first few landings won't be pretty anyways😂👍)

 

[frankg]

Yeah, I did a mini explorer and had a completely different experience with it than the flite test crew did. Not a big fan.

I don't like the sound of that. I don't need a plane that is hard to fly. I wonder why the difference. It could have something to do with a change in manufacturing or something. Thanks for the heads-up.

 

[RickHunter]

In that size field I'd do mighty mini DR1 without wheels and run a 2S battery. It's not a pusher but it's a lot of fun

The mini DR1 is a good little plane. I've gone through two myself. The Simple Cub might be a good one too. Easy to build and repair, and you can upgrade the power and wings as you get better. The Cub is what I learned to fly on. It should also be okay for that size of field.

 

[Houndpup Rc]

I don't like the sound of that. I don't need a plane that is hard to fly. I wonder why the difference. It could have something to do with a change in manufacturing or something. Thanks for the heads-up.

There are also free plans for it and the simple scout if you are interested!👍

FT_Mini_DR1_v1.1_AIO.pdf

goo.gl

FT_Simple_Scout_v1.0_AIO.pdf

goo.gl

 

[Houndpup Rc]

The mini DR1 is a good little plane. I've gone through two myself. The Simple Cub might be a good one too. Easy to build and repair, and you can upgrade the power and wings as you get better. The Cub is what I learned to fly on. It should also be okay for that size of field.

Funny, my brother and me found the Simple Cub not so great... (It seemed to tip stall easy and it ALWAYS noses forward on landing!😆)

 

[RickHunter]

Funny, my brother and me found the Simple Cub not so great... (It seemed to tip stall easy and it ALWAYS noses forward on landing

Never had those issues. It always was a belly lander for me so maybe that's why on the landings, but no tip stalls that I can recall. Still have one in my hanger but haven't flown it in a few years. Might have to go old school and take it out to see now. 🙂

 

[Houndpup Rc]

Never had those issues. It always was a belly lander for me so maybe that's why on the landings, but no tip stalls that I can recall. Still have one in my hanger but haven't flown it in a few years. Might have to go old school and take it out to see now. 🙂

Maybe it wasn't balanced right....(It was windy when I flew one last😂)

 

[bisco]

comparing factory built models is reasonable. but comparing diy built is difficult. too many variables, amount of glue not the least, but also technique and skill are important to flight characteristics.
then, not everyone uses the same electrics. and flight conditions are a big factor.

 

[bisco]

Because I'm in a mowed field I'm definitely going to sometimes hit tall grass or little bits of brush and stuff. It would not be an issue if I was a perfect pilot, I'm not. The pusher prop is protected from most of that stuff. A prop on the front will get bead up and maybe destroyed. And the ground is not smooth enough for wheels, so it needs to be a belly lander. Sometimes a belly crasher, sort of. Once I'm skilled enough to manage that area reliably, I can get above a lot of those trees and things become easier. But I still have to be able to get back in that field and land without ending up in a tree or smashing into the woods.

were you using the 3 levels of gyro to learn with the aeroscout? with the high level, short radius turns are difficult, and you need more surface throw, but it is difficult to get in trouble.
medium is pretty good, allowing for more pilot control, but still provides some protection, and expert still has as3x, which is a nice feature. but i can understand the difficulties flying a one meter plane in a relatively small field.
you can also use a prop saver for landing without gear.

 

[tomlogan1]

I don't like the sound of that. I don't need a plane that is hard to fly. I wonder why the difference. It could have something to do with a change in manufacturing or something. Thanks for the heads-up.

+1 on the Simple Scout. Either size. Very durable and forgiving. Easy build, too.