AXILON P-3D Pro Kit By Charger R/C

The Axilon is an extremely capable 3D Precision RC Airplane that is made from Depron foam giving it very light weight while maintaining additional rigidity not found in other more flexible foam. The drawback to Depron is it isn’t as forgiving as Epp foam when learning 3D maneuvers. Epp repairs can be repaired quickly with a variety of glues where Depron is limited to glue selection and damage is more severe. Because of this reason alone I put off purchasing a dedicated Depron 3D plane until now.

Build List

The build went very smooth and since the Depron foam was pre-cut with some pieces being tabbed the parts helped align themselves when glued. I used foam safe CA glue in addition to accelerator for almost all the glue work. Hot glue was used to keep the servos in place after fooling around with different tape methods. Blenderm tape was supplied in the kit for the hinges. I used black Gorilla tape for the motor mount and it hasn’t budged at all (except when crashing.. a lot). I also added tail skid made of simple wire for landings. I had a tail wheel at one point but it’s on a runway somewhere with foam attached to it. I’m much happier with the simple metal wire tail skid that takes a lot more abuse.

What a blast to fly! I was impressed with the increased precision gained from not only the Depron foam but also the design of the Axilon and SFG’s (side force generators) on the wings. I became immediately comfortable with the Axilon and put through 2 batteries in a short amount of time. The advantages were clear and soon enough the Depron Axilon was put through it’s first crash test. Ripped motor and front of plane off on second flight. Looked terrible but managed to repair with .5oz fiberglass with epoxy and light wood brace.

 

If you’re hunting for a Monster Size 72″ 3D Foamie your in luck. ChargerRC is now selling their popular Fuzion aircraft design in a mammoth package. Check it out HERE

Update- Crash Count -  at least 5+! (front fuselage fiberglass 3x) little heavier still flying!

 

Additional Information:

RCGroups Build Thread 

Wattflyer 

FlyingGiants 

Depron planes- Charger R/CDW Foamies

 

 

3DHS Edge 540 48″ Build

 

 

Build List.

The 3D Hobby Shop Edge 540 48″ version is a new size 3D kit that follows their extremely popular 41″ Edge 540 aka the “buck huck”. The 3DHS Edge 540 48″ ARF package is designed around a similar concept of the buck huck which is a very capable 3D Edge airframe available at a great value. One way 3DHS chose to keep the costs down was to use a wire frame/balsa landing gear setup in place of the normal carbon fiber landing gear you will find in other 3DHS kits. I have found the flexing in the wire gear so far to be tolerable but may change it out for the carbon gear at some point. The gear is not a huge issue for me when landing on paved surfaces as it would be for someone landing in a grass field or less than ideal areas.

Wattmeter Test -  46.49 amps @ 516.9 watts

The maiden flight went well and once the balance issues with my 3s 2200 lipo were sorted out I was really able to put the Edge through the paces. First impression was the Edge was as nimble as expected being a smaller 3d airframe then I am used to flying from 3DHS. The slow flight characteristics with my low weight setup is amazing. It holds a hover very well in my preferred CG setup. I have the Edge some what neutral with more bias towards tail heavy. The plane really performs well across a broad range of CG measurements I’ve tested. I’m enjoying this particular CG setup at this point. The tumble and knife edge spin moves of this Edge are ridiculous! The velocity it generates in the spin while adding throttle is far faster then anything I’ve flown to date. Really a show stopper and a fun transition move to another maneuver. Looking forward to more flights and updates.

Update – Dec 2011: rudder pull-pull setup is stretching a little, wood on landing gear separating and a quick maintenance check over is due. Otherwise going strong and bringing smiles.

 OTHER LINKS

RCGroups Forum Thread

3DHS Sponsored Pilot : Joe Smith Flying The Edge 48″

Adding Landing Gear - wa4geg rcgroups member

 

Update – Dec 2011: rudder pull-pull setup is stretching a little, wood on landing gear separating and a quick maintenance check over is due. Otherwise going strong and bringing smiles.

 

Thunder Over the Valley – Woodland Davis Aeromodelers 2011

Thunder Over The Valley is a RC Jet event hosted by the Woodland Davis Aeromodelers. The event includes a large variety of RC Turbine aircraft and this year also had a special fly-over with a full scale Voodoo P-51.

Parkzone P47 Thunderbolt Build Mods

I started my next build and decided on the Parkzone P-47D Thunderbolt AKA the JUG. I planned on building this plane similar to my Parkzone Corsair, with plenty of power and speed. The Thunderbolt should be able to reach 90mph without difficulty.

Here are my build items

  1. Parkzone P-47D Thunderbolt Airframe Kit
  2. Tacon Big Foot 15 – 3548 950kv
  3. Turnigy Plush 60a esc
  4. Turnigy 4s 2200mah 40c lipo
  5. (4) T-Pro MG90 9G Metal Gear Servo and (2) 6″ extension leads
  6. APC props – 12×6 and 10×10 so far
  7. Retracts  - ChangeSun Electronic Retract 25 V2(Main Gear) or (e-Flite 10 to 15 – Size Main Electric)

The plane arrived in great shape with all the hardware included in the airframe kit. It comes with all the decals, the wing and fuselage are already applied so you have two decals to apply to the underside of the wing if desired. The Thunderbolt airframe is very pleasing to the eye and the build process went smoothly. I used the stock plastic motor mount in addition to a plywood mount I made. The plywood mount fits between the stock motor mount and the Brushless motor. In the past I ordered and used mounts from CustomRC. The motor came up a little short out the cowl so I then used my Dremel to grind off enough of the cowl’s center to fit the motor.

With everything in place, I charged my brand new 4s 2200mah 40c battery and connected my Turnigy Wattmeter for some testing. Here are the results.

Big Foot 15 / APC 12x6e Prop / Turnigy 4s 2200mah 40c

59.72a
913.1w

Plenty of power and way over spec on the motor but I was ready to maiden it at this point so off I went. I brought along my radar gun and met a friend to help get some mph readings. On the second flight we got 94MPH on 2 separate runs. The plane is very stable and a real pleasure to fly. Very smooth two wheel landings that carry a lot of momentum down the runway until I finally place the tail wheel down. Very precise and it’s a lot of fun to fly. My old Corsair has gotten heavy and worn over the years so this new Warbird is exactly what I needed.

Update – New Paint, Prop and Wattmeter Test and new MPH Record

Big Foot 15 /APC 10x10E / Turnigy 4s 2200mah 40C

58.72a
888.4w

 

P-47D Thunderbolt Weight

36oz without battery

AUW = 45.5oz using 4s 2200 40c lipo

 

Here is the new MPH record video and she certainly isn’t finished yet  -

Painted

 

More Radar Fun – 7.14.2011 – P-47D Thunderbolt 110mph !


Nanoplanes – Babyshark And Balsa Babyshark

Nanoplanes sells kits of mini size pylon racers and other airplanes made of either Depron foam/Balsa mix or Balsa entirely. I decided to purchase the Babyshark which is a foam/balsa mix that comes as a pre-cut ARF kit. I purchased the power package and all other electronics separately. Since the Babyshark is comprised of mostly foam I was curious as to how the airframe could possibly resist the loads when at full speed straight and level and then pulling back on the elevator instantly going vertical. Nanoplane’s videos of the Babyshark where impressive and now that I have many flights on the Babyshark I can attest to it’s structural integrity.

Build List

 

The nanoplanes kit requires a little building experience but flying the fast small plane should be reserved for those that are comfortable at these high speeds. The little babyshark disappears pretty fast at 95mph+

The Nanoplanes videos can give potential owners a glimpse of the madness to come. These are very nimble fast mini pylon racers that will require your full concentration in order to keep orientation. The videos do not fully depict the speed and capability of the plane!

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