She's lost and gone forever...

[gnascher]

Well, today my SuperCub was lost. R.I.P. old girl ... we hardly knew ya.

I was flying early this morning at a large field near my house. The plane was waaaay down-range and probably 150' up.

I lost my ability to judge orientation and attitude and she went down deep in the woods. I walked a bee-line through the woods with the controller in my hands occasionally revving the throttle, hoping to be able to hear the motor.

I tromped around the thick underbrush for maybe an hour before I decided it was a lost cause and packed it in.

So now ... I'm looking for the "next plane". As much as I've loved the cub as my first plane, I don't think I want to buy another one just yet as a replacement. I'd prefer to get something that was 4-channel right out of the box and with a larger performance envelope.

I'm thinking in two directions for the next plane.

1. A mid-wing hotrod type plane ... I've got my eye on on the E-Flite Mini Pulse XT (PNP) ... looks like a nice plane and something I can handle, as I feel I've gotten pretty good with the cub modified with ailerons. Anybody got an opinion (and preferable first-hand experience) with this great-looking plane?

2. Another high-wing plane so I can add floats. The biggest open areas around me are lakes and ponds, so a float plane would greatly expand my flying possibilities. It'd be a big plus if it's got fairly competent aerobatic capabilities, however I do have my expectations set appropriately for this type of plane. I'm not sure what's out there that's "good" in this configuration, so I'm desperately looking for recommendations. I'd like a PNP or an ARF ... don't think I'm ready to do a full build just yet.

Any feedback and recommendations on planes out there would be very greatly appreciated. I'm not giving up on the Cub forever ... I'll probably get another one down the line and leave it stock for my wife to fly, but I'm really ready for the next bird myself.

[mrmugen]

The pulse is a great plane. I just built one for a friend. It was a simple ARF build. It is not a trainer by any means. It is balsa so those minor crashes become major in a hurry. If you feel like you have enough exp. then by all means get it. It goes where you point it. Balsa flies 10x's better and truer than foam IMO. Great Planes offers a ton of arfs for under 60.00 and they all seem as good as the next. I have a yak55 flight flex and almost done building it. It seems like the plane to train on since I don't think you can break it very easily. Just a thought.

[gnascher]

mrmugen said:

I have a yak55 flight flex and almost done building it. It seems like the plane to train on since I don't think you can break it very easily. Just a thought.

That looks like a decent option. Care to post some photos of yours? The photo at tower hobby doesn't seem to do it justice. I'd also look forward to a pilot's report once you maiden her.

Any recommendations for a high-wing plane suitable for mounting floats on? I took a peek at the Decathlon, but that's a little spendy by the time you add all the required hardware.

[mrmugen]

What is your budget for another plane? I will post some pics in the hangar section soon. Almost done.

[gnascher]

Well, the Mini Pulse is in the ballpark. The Plug-n-play version is around $200 bucks, and I've got a DX6 receiver and four servos already sitting in my cabinet, and two 11.1v 1100mAh lipos in the mail to me as of today. (Just got 'em off eBay before I lost the plane).

So, ideally I'm looking for an all-up price around $200, and the ability to use these new lipos would be a definite plus.

[mrmugen]

Well the mini pulse will draw those lipo's pretty hard. They recommend the 2100's for a reason. They can deliver more current efficiently. The 1100's may heat up from drawing them hard. I will test a 1100 in my pals this week if you want to see the draw on it. What is the C rating of those lipo's you ordered? See the 450 draws 14A continuous and 18A bursts. If the Ccell rating is 20C then they will be able to dump 22A continuous. If they are 12C then 13.2A (not enough) or 15C=16.5 and still not enough. If you draw a battery to it's fullest capacity you will shorten it's life dramatically. If you ran a 2100 like they suggest then you are looking at a possible 42A and the motor will never touch that. Do you see where I am coming from here? Kevin

[gnascher]

They are 12C packs, so they were suitable for the Cub, but not for the MP.

I'm actually leaning away from the MP for now, based on your suggestion that it may be a bit beyond me for now. I've become a pretty confident flyer, but I don't want to make too big of a jump either. It was the plane I had my eye on while I still had my SC ... but now that that plane's gone, my priorities have changed a bit. I had been planning to fit my SC with floats, and have the other plane as a non-float plane. But now I still want to do a float plane, since I've got a bunch of lakes and ponds near me and it would greatly expand the number of places I can go flying.

I know I'm jumping around a bit, but now that I've had a day to reflect on the loss of the Cub, I'm gaining a bit more perspective.

[mrmugen]

Does it mayyet what it is made of? Like balsa or foam?

[gnascher]

mrmugen said:

Does it mayyet what it is made of? Like balsa or foam?

Well, I certainly like the look of a balsa plane, but I'm not averse to a well-made foamie either. Foam may have some advantages if I'm going to fly off the water ... won't sink if I flip and swamp the fuselage (don't know that a balsa plane would sink, but I'm figuring it's more likely to), and won't warp if it gets damp.

Bottom line ... no, I don't think I care how the plane's built as long as it performs well, and looks nice.

[tekwip]

have you checked out the Wilga 2000? It comes with brushless motor and 1500 LiPo. It also comes with floats.
www.bananahobby.com/1151.html

[gnascher]

tekwip said:

have you checked out the Wilga 2000? It comes with brushless motor and 1500 LiPo. It also comes with floats.
www.bananahobby.com/1151.html

Yes, I did see that one and it looks interesting. Have you flown it, or read anything about it?

I've also been eyeballing the Ultrafly Decathlon : www.modelrectifier.com/search/product-view.asp?ID=7791

Looks like that outfitted with a set of GWS floats might be a nice combo.

[tekwip]

Yes I bought one. I don't have the skill level to fly this one yet but it looked like a good buy. I am still training with the cub. I can take pictures of what it looks like out of the box if you want. Again it is a RTF for 154$ with LiPo and brushless motor. It has ailerons too which is what I am not ready for. If you look at the link, the video at the bottom shows it has pretty good power.

[gnascher]

Sure, I'd like to see some pics. How would you describe the build quality?

I don't need the radio gear since I have a DX6 ... maybe I can sell it.