Phoenix 2000 EPO Composite Glider. Unofficial Unboxing.

...back to the future

The Phoenix 2000 was the very first RC plane I purchased, and so this is very much a back-to-the-future episode for me.

The Phoenix 2000 is, as it was back then, a very well build and affordable RC plane. It has a sturdy plastic moulded fuselage, which it shares with its sibling the Phoenix 1600, which comes complete with plywood battery tray and rear servo deck.

The fuselage comes with the rear control rods pre-installed and, on PNF versions, the servos installed and connected.

The wings are good-quality EPO with moulded-in reinforcements, and a carbon joiner rod is supplied as well. There's also a sleek moulded plastic canopy which clips onto the fuselage.

The wings have substantial ailerons, with servos installed on the PNF package, although control rods have to be fitted yourself. There's provision for flaps including moulded recess for servo and linkages included - you just need to cut the flap free where they're moulded to the wing.

The kit comes with a folding prop and spinner with collet adapter, and there's a fixed nosecone in case you just want this as a pure glider.

So the Phoenix 2000 comes highly recommended as a high-quality entry-level glider, sturdily constructed yet elegant and capable in the air...

Turbo Porter PC6. Wing Cam.

...an intriguing viewpoint

I decided to give the Turbo Porter a go with a wing cam - I’ve only tried this once before on the Raptor glider, and I thought that the Porter would be a good candidate to handle the imbalance that the weight & drag of the camera creates.

I also thought I’d try a ground, putting the mobius on a mini tripod to capture launch and landing action.

Well it turns out that the latter is a bit trickier than I expected; it has to be located far enough away that the plane has lifted off, obviously, so there’s running back & forth to set it up. Secondly, when I have to fly to fixed cameras my flying goes to pieces. I crashed the Rarebear doing this after having flown it twice without incidence beforehand.

Despite the incumberences of the wing and ground cameras, I still managed to get some nice footage, with the wing cam providing intriguing fixed footage of the Porter as the scenery and lighting revolve around it.

And I managed to capture about a second of takeoff from the ground cam. At least I didn’t hit it...

GeeBee R3. Flying Around.

...having some fun

The little GeeBee is kind-of strange to fly, as I may have said before - it appears to be dragged around by its engine and has the very characteristic forward-jutting undercarriage.

However, despite odd characteristics, it does fly quite sweetly, although don't fly it too slow or you'll have it upside down in the grass from a tip stall

One thing it does for you, almost without trying too hard, it knife edge. Maybe not exactly perfectly, however very stable and most entertainingly.

So, while I was buzzing it around, I put it into increasingly steep turns and had it knife-edging around for my amusement.

A fun little plane, except when you try and land it on grass...

Trainstar Tough Trainer. Flying Around.

...a little fun Trainstar-style


For a while now the Trainstar has been grounded due to increasingly-bad prop vibration.

Initially I thought the front fuselage was flexing from fatigue and installed stiffeners, which made no difference. Then I got a prop balancer & did the prop which likewise had a nominal effect.

It turned out that it was just the bell mount grub screws which, although I'd tightened them, were a little loose as the hex drive had stripped. Fixing this was tricky and painful as I couldn't get the originals out, and I couldn't tap new holes for fresh grub screws as there wasn't enough depth.

Eventually it has been fixed, well enough anyway, and now the Trainstar is back in the air again, still full of character...

Art Tech Pilatus Porter 1700mm PNF. Unofficial Unboxing.

...lovely plane & lovely kit

The Art Tech PC6 Turbo Porter is a high-quality kit all round - well boxed, accurately moulded and well put together.

All the servos and linkages are installed, you just need to connect the tail linkages to the control horns, and all the decals are pre-applied as well which I like as ones like the windows can be tricky.

The servos for the drop cavity (bomb bay) and tow hook are also installed. There's a convenient access hatch on top of the fuselage to get to the tail servos if required at some stage.

Overall the Art Tech Turbo Porter looks like an excellent aircraft; now's here's hoping it flies like a PC6 should...

Firstar 2000 V2. Quality Issues.

...a rather disappointing introduction to Volantex

I recently purchased a Firstar 2000 V2, my first Volantex product, and am sad to say that I was very disappointed in the quality, the EPO in particular.

I've previously had several Lanyu products (Phoenix 2000, Trainstar and Phoenix 1600) which have all been very good quality.

The Firstar has several issues:

Ailerons Warped - extreme warping. I had to add carbon fibre strip to try and straighten! They are now better but still not completely straight.

Wing Bases Warped - curve where the wing halves join together. I have to force the wings together try and get the mounting screws in.

Protruding Wing Reinforcement - aluminium tube protruding so the wing could not be joined. I had to cut this off with an angle grinder (my new plane!!)

Dented Wing - minor blemish but another sign of poor Volantex quality.

When contacted for comment regarding the poor quality, Volantex advised that "...weather of humidity and temperature will affect the plane deformation, also transportation will have influence."

I get the feeling they don't really care...

GeeBee R3 750mm TRILOGY. PART 2: The Build

...so how does this work?

The GeeBee is a nice-quality kit, with solid EPO fuselage making it a smarter-looking proposition than a Rarebear, for example. While having a simple screw-together construction, it does however its construction poses a few questions.

How does the battery setup work, and where's the best spot for the receiver?

The first question is a puzzler, for me anyway having only had planes with unfettered access to the battery. Obviously, unless you're happy remove the wing every time you fly it, you need the ESC lead to remain in the battery hatch so it's accessible through the small hatch opening.

This I found achievable by mounting the ESC against the side of the fuselage, preventing the lead from falling back into the fuselage. This setup seems quite reliable, although packing the battery in and then feeding in the lead and connectors is still squeezy and awkward.

Regarding the receiver, in this case a twin-antenna Orange R615x, I mounted it in the central fuselage cavity which corresponds to a cavity in the wing moulding above. And, connecting all the servos from the back and the ESC from the front gives a very neat installation.

Next challenge is the bracing wire; five pairs of different length wires needing to be clipped into tiny hooks. Fifteen tediously fiddly minutes later I was finished.

The last trick was spinner and propellor. The latter simply gets tightened with a nut, with the spinner base in behind it. Then the spinner is installed; it comes with double-sided tape but, really, that's never going to hold. So I superglued it in place, with cardboard slipped in behind the base to keep it spaced off the cowling.

With everything in place the little GeeBee was looking good...

GeeBee R3 750mm TRILOGY. PART 1: Unofficial Unboxing

...a great-looking little plane

I’d had the GeeBee sitting in the corner for a while and finally got around to unboxing it.

It’s a nice quality kit, coming safely boxed and individually wrapped so that all parts were in perfect condition. The fuselage is even secured in place with velcro straps, a first for me.

The GeeBee comes in the classic Texaco livery which looks great and the decal application is nice. The fuselage is full EPO including the cowling which is nice, however there is a downside - the battery access is a small hatch on the underside.

The 5g servos, in wings and fuselage, are pre-installed along with the control horns. The high-standing tail wheel is also fitted, leaving only the tail planes to be screwed into place. The wing, with locating pins up front, is also screwed into place - a glue-free assembly.

The iconic GeeBee undercarriage comes pre-assembled, with integrated wire reinforcing which also serves as the mount slotting into the wing. Included is sprung bracing wires stabilising the undercarriage as well as bracing the wings to the fuselage, which should look great assembled.

The kit comes with two three-blade props and two spinners, the latter being the only disappointment - they're EPO, with the cone apparently needing to be stuck onto the base with double-sided tape! I'm not surprised to read that people have ditched these for real spinners. In fact, had I known, I’d have tried to get a replacement spinner when I ordered the kit…

Trainstar Tough Trainer EPO 1400. D4023 850kv Replacement Motor.

...fitting the Trainstar replacement motor

Having struggled to get a replacement prop adapter for the Trainstar, I finally decided to get a whole new motor, the D4023 850v from Hobbyking.

This seemed rather wasteful as I only really needed the adapter, but anyway. The D4023 comes with a steel prop adapter, hopefully more durable than the Volantex aluminium item but is otherwise pretty much a direct equivalent replacement.

The D4023 does actually have a different mounting pattern on the bell  mount, three holes instead of four, but fortunately the Volantex saddle mount has a multi-hole configuration which accepts the three-hole pitch with no rework required, which is great.

So the installation is a pretty simple switch-out; even the wire length is just right. The only extra work required is that the D4023 doesn’t come with any connectors, but a few minutes soldering got some 3.5mm bullet connectors fitted just fine…

Trainstar Tough Trainer 1400 EPO. D4023 Motor Test Flight.

...test flying the new motor

Fortune smiled this afternoon with the growing cloud cover holding up just enough for a scenically sunny afternoon for flying. Conditions were a little choppy but, given the lovely afternoon, we were going to give it a try anyway.

As well as being the test flight with its new motor, this was also the first time I’d flown the Trainstar for months after its collision with a light pole, so it was perhaps not surprising that it was out of trim.

As soon as it took off, it was evident that the Trainstar had become very floaty, in contrast to the nose-down attitude I’d been flying it previously. Nevertheless, it was still fun to have it back in the air.

After having a bit of fun floating it around, I brought it in to check trims, and then it was back in the air, flying a bit flatter than before. It was still not smooth flying though, with gusty conditions and wind shear above tree level turning the Trainstar into a kite of sorts.

The new motor performed very well, at least as powerful as the OE unit, and perhaps a little more. Considering its modest cost and ease of replacement, it’s a viable alternative to Volantex’s dodgy prop adapter…

Dynam DC3. Unofficial Unboxing.

...retro rocks

I'd been looking forward to taking a peek at the Dynam DC3 and pulling it out of the box certainly didn't disappoint.

The kit, the PNP version in this case, comes very well packaged inside a picturebox. Inside, the wings and fuselage are separately boxed, with all items also individually bagged. So, full marks on packaging.

The EPO moulding of all parts is very good, although in some cases the moulding spur hadn't been removed flush to the surface, but this is a minor gripe.

The props and heavy-duty nut have been upgraded since the original ugly-slow-fly two-blade setup, and the Dak looks a million dollars for it. The Dynam-badged three-blade props look great, the only negative being they're not contra-handed although this may just add a bit of crabbing character to the DC3's flight characteristics.

The undercarriage is fixed - no fancy retracts here, so the Dak always flies with wheels down, but it looks sturdy and the mounting configuration to the wing looks robust.

The removable canopy is large, giving good access to battery and receiver location. It engages into the fuselage at the rear with twin magnets at the front and can be surprisingly awkward to remove so well do the magnets engage!

The mounting of the engine cowlings is a rather tenuous arrangement using double-sided tape, with light handling enough to knock one out of alignment. I think this requires improvement to make it durable so it's not a continuous annoyance...

EPO Hole Repair

...don't film while you fly

I was flying the Phoenix 1600 over the paddock and, with the glider coming in nice and slowly, I decided to grab the camera and do a little action filming. This, unsurprisingly, turned out to be a bad idea because, as the Phoenix floated lower, I couldn't hit power and add with my spare hand.

The upshot was the Phoenix ploughed through a barbed wire fence. While it was flying slowly, the effect of the barbs on the EPO wing was not pretty, with chunks torn out the leading edge, and ugly scrapes underneath the wing.

Trying to repair this was a puzzle, as I'd actually lost foam, and trying to fill holes and match the leading edge profile was not easy. Having dug through the cupboards, I eventually came across some exterior gap filler. This stuff is waterproof, sandable and doesn't shrink.

I've used this to fill the holes, and have then used a file to sand it flush and copied the shape of the wing. Now I just need to sand it and give it a paint, and the Phoenix should be good to go...

Rarebear Ready

...not sure I am though

The Rarebear has been assembled, not that the assembly required is that extensive - just the vertical stabiliser/rear fuselage and horizontal stabiliser. The extra bit of fiddling around that was required in this case is to fit the 850mAh 4S battery into the front compartment. While this is just a matter of removing foam, it is rather annoying, especially as this is the ballistic upgrade they suggest...

Nevertheless the chunky battery is now accommodated, the ESC slotted in and the controls hooked up and trimmed. I have run up the motor and it's ferocious. The manual suggests launching the Rarebear at full throttle on a 3S pack, so perhaps three-quarters would be appropriate with the 4S.

Anyway, hopefully the breeze will drop tomorrow and I'll give it a go at the paddock where there's lots of clear space. I think I'll need it...

Trainstar First Flight

...with success!!

Having done some taxiing training yesterday I was a little more confident to try take-off in the Trainstar, although I still had reservations that this would actually fly as it's really chunky compared to anything I've flown before! Of course I knew it would fly ok, but it just seemed counterintuitive.

Flying it with the familiar 2200mAh 3S 35C battery and a 12x6 prop, the take-off run went reasonably well, although not exactly straight. However, thanks to my practice, I knew what to expect. Once the chubby craft was running stably I added power and then gently rotated to get it airborne. Again the climb-out wasn't exactly formal, however nothing that would cause alarm.

The flight went well, as did the landing despite rather cramped confines, with the pitch in the middle of the field being cordoned off.

The Trainstar's characteristics are, well, exactly what you'd expect of a Cessna-style aircraft, slow, steady and very restrained! Having said that, you can get it to execute aerobatics; a loop is achievable and a roll almost.

Oddly, I found that it performed these maneuvers better with the flaps down, although it should be said that the flap angle I had was quite modest (much less than the actual aircraft would use), however this was both enough for high-speed agility as well as stable landing.

Regarding the latter, my landings were rather on the fast side, as I didn't have a clear final approach to settle it down gently. However, t does land remarkably well, settling down even though it has come in hot.

The Trainstar's aluminium undercarriage struts do an excellent job of soaking up the bumps and keeping the aircraft stably on its wheels. Of course the tail-dragger configuration helps it from face-planting which, not having access to roads or runways for flying, was one of the reasons I ended up choosing this particular craft...

Training to be a Star

...now just to fly it

Today I finished the assembly of my Trainstar, a high-wing Cessna-type taildragger. It's a great looking plane, complete with soft foam tyres and spats! It's got rugged aluminium undercarriage which also doubles as suspension.

I took it to the field last night although ended up not flying it, but instead doing taxi-training to get a feel for its behaviour on the ground. Also, for someone who's never had an aircraft with undercarriage, taxiing it around was deeply groovy...

EPO Repair

...in a bucket of water

Due to a recent unscheduled landing, for the first time I have tried EPO repair using hot water. 

This method is surprisingly effective and, after leaving the wings to soak for about twenty minutes, the EPO shape had largely been restored. In fact it appeared that the grain structure had somewhat overdeveloped, so a little smoothing-down is required



This method seems to work a lot better than a hairdryer as the temperature is controlled (no risk of melting the foam) and the heat transfer immersed in liquid is improved.

All in all a low-risk well controlled method to uncrumple your dented EPO parts...

Phoenix 1600 with Carbon Prop

...and it really flies well

This morning I flew the Phoenix for the first time fitted with a 11x6 carbon prop, and it flew really well. This was also in conjunction with the removal of the battery tray ballast. The result was very impressive climb performance from the big glider.

This flight was conducted against the backdrop of a gorgeous morning's golden rays illuminating scattered fluffy cumulous in a still sky, and the Phoenix's effortless performance had it climbing, swooping and hanging inverted in the sky off the top of big loops...

Phoenix 1600 in Hot Conditions

...feeling the heat

This afternoon was my first flight with the Phoenix 1600 in hot weather (32C). I expected flying as usual but the loss of lift was huge, with me having to keep feeding in up-elevator. Just like flying a Radjet and a little nerve wracking.

I was wondering whether something had gone wrong with the Phoenix, but inspection after landing showed everything was OK - it was just the heat causing it to fly like a brick...

Phoenix 1600 Ballast Removal

...hoping it should improve climbing performance

Whilst stripping down the interior of the Phoenix 1600 in order to swap the motor, I noticed that the Phoenix 1600 now has ballast added into the front of the battery tray.




The Phoenix 2000 didn't have this feature, unfortunately, as this would have avoided the initial crashes I experienced due to the glider going into steep climb which invariably ended with me panicking and cutting power, followed by the glider burrowing it's spinner into the turf.

Now, however, I know better and I fly these with a larger 2200mAh battery, whose extra mass takes care of the light nose. 

While the  Phoenix flies well as it is, I think I could do without the additional mass, the ballast plug weighing in at 41g. I've removed it and will give it a test fly in the next couple of days. If necessary I can adjust the battery position to provide additional compensation, but I think it should work well...

Volantex ESC Brake Setting

...it's the second tone you want

My recently acquired Phoenix 1600 came with a new blue ESC (compared to previous unidentified yellow in the Phoenix 2000), accompanied by an instruction booklet which, amongst other things, provided instruction on how to set the brake on the ESC. It does seem odd that the default is set to "brake off" when most of their products are gliders...

Anyway, my attempts at finding the three beeps proved fruitless and had to resign myself to rather compromised gliding, with the large prop whirling busily in the breeze, and with the risk of doing the prop in on landing.

Fortunately I came across this forum post #58.  To summarise succinctly, the crucial moment is when one hears the second musical tone. Don't bother with trying to identify the tone amongst the myriad sounds the new unit makes, you'll just end up reprogramming random settings like I did.

Anyway, I am happy to say, that after the first attempt with the new instruction, the ESC brake is now on and I can look forward to a bit of gliding tomorrow morning.

And, by the way, if you were wondering, Volantex is the new Lanyu...