Well I’m very pleased to say I received my Parkzone Sukhoi this morning, just two working days after ordering it from Model Flight (the local importer here in Australia). Given the calm winds today, it was the perfect opportunity to take it for a test flight.

Un-packing and assembly of the ultra-micro

Opening the box was exactly what I expected – the little model safely in the foam, with a spare propeller, the landing gear and manual securely taped in place too.

Interestingly, this plane looks even smaller “in the flesh” than it does on the Parkzone web site. That said, I’m not at all worried, I have big planes and this was a purchase for a small electric RC plane to fly at my local park – so fits the bill nicely!

I found the lipo battery half-charged out of the box (this prolongs the life of the battery when in long term storage), and as a result it took only 15 minutes to charge fully in the included charger (with 4x AA batteries conveniently in the box as well).

After giving a quick top-up charge of my Spektrum DX7 transmitter and binding it to the plane I was ready to set the appropriate throw rates (this model does not come with a transmitter, you need to provide your own DSM2 compatible one).

One thing you’ll notice is that the control surfaces are very generously sized – so this model is definitely equipped to do some pretty impressive aerobatics.

Although I have a few years’ experience flying low wing models, I haven’t really done a lot with 3D planes – as a result, I decided to conservatively set the control surface throws – knowing they can always be moved out in the future.

As a result, the low rates were set as 60% movement, with 35% exponential for all surfaces (ailerons, elevators and rudder).

I left the high rates at 100% movement, and with 45% exponential for all surfaces.

The undercarriage also clips neatly into the fuselage, and although feels quite sturdy, given my first landing would be on grass thought it best to detach them (a blade of grass is about the same height as the undercarriage – so this undercarriage is purely for cement/indoor landings only!)

First flight

My first pleasure I have to admit was being able to drive only a short distance to the local park, given this rc electric plane is so small! (It’s not called an ultra micro for nothing!).

I found a quiet soccer field, and in winds of only about 5 knots, throttled up to 50% and gave it a gentle throw after checking to ensure I was on low rates. Impressively, the plane did not require any trim at all – it flew perfectly, straight away.

After taking it up to about 30 feet, I did about five circuits to get a feel for the model. Even at 60% throw, I noticed the ailerons were still very responsive (with nice fast rolls) – so much so that in hindsight I’d probably drop the throws to 50% for a first flight.

Throttling up to 100% demonstrates what this parkzone ultra micro is capable of – certainly plenty of vertical performance – it’s a fast little monster actually.

One thing I did notice, although I was only in light winds, was that when it gusted the model certainly does tend to jerk around. At a guess the wind probably got up to about 8 knots – so certainly quite light, but enough to knock the little model off course.

The motor provides adequate power to charge through the gusts, and given I was at a safe height, just needed to re-orient the Sukhoi back onto its path. I suspect if I was running closer to 100% throttle (most of the time it flew around at 50% power) the gust would have had a less noticeable impact.

The only slight negative I found was that even the slightly higher capacity 150mAh battery (many parkzone ultra micro’s come with a 130mAh lipo) only gave me a flight time of about 8 minutes. I noticed that in the last two minutes of this, the top range of the throttle did tend to drop right off too (maximum appeared to fall to about 60%). For the flying I was doing this didn’t really matter, but I could imagine a more experienced pilot doing 3D manouvers may feel the flight duration is a little on the short side for an electric model.

One other side note worth a mention is that I placed battery at the most forward location to shift the centre of gravity as forward as possible. In actual fact, it appears this is pretty much the desired CofG setting as stated in the manual (3cm from the leading edge of the wing), so really it is actually quite hard to get to a very “nose heavy” settting. Even though the Parkzone promo video’s suggest the battery can be moved “up and down” to the pilot’s liking, it really should be re-worded as moving “down” to really just add more weight to the tail as the pilot gains more experience.

I know this is splitting hairs, but essentially you’re not really able to make this model more nose heavy should you wish to. Although for most hobbyists I don’t think you’ll need to do this either.

Distance wise, I flew this model up to about 100m away from me. The receiver worked perfectly and I didn’t receive any interference or loss of control. Any further than this distance and I found I’d start to lose sight of the direction of the model given its size. As a result, the space this model needs is genuinely quite small. An area the size of two basketball courts is really quite perfect.

Final comments

Horizon Hobbies claim it’s a model for intermediate to advanced pilots, and I tend to agree if you want to get the most out of it – however it is not that difficult to fly – just set the low rates to about 50% and you’ll absolutely love this model. If you’re comfortable with low-winged planes, I think you’ll find you’ll be OK with this Parkzone Sukhoi 26 xp too.

Grab yourself an extra battery and you’ll have a heap of fun – definitely the perfect model for taking a break from the office during your lunch hour!

I recently went out and purchased the Parkzone P51D to have a fun semi-scale foamie for those times where you just need to get out and back from the flying field in a short space of time, and want a super-fast model that you don’t mind bashing around a bit.

As many forum posters have noted, this is a fabulous looking foamie, however doesn’t pack quite the punch that one would hope for with a Mustang.

The main challenge I have found is that on days with wind more than 5kts this RC electric model does tend to look a bit sluggish in the air when travelling upwind.

There are really only two components you need to change out to get this plane absolutely roaring around the field, in addition to checking your battery is up for the task.

a) Upgrading the propeller.

The propeller that comes with this Parkzone P51 is a 9×6, and with a medium-low revving motor of 960kV means the top speed is somewhat limited.

So the best thing to do is add more “bite” to the prop – I swapped it with a spare Parkzone T-28′s prop (9 x 7.5) to give it theoretically 25% more speed (before aerodynamic inefficiencies etc are introduced).

b) Changing the ESC

This little model only comes with an 18A ESC, and when run on my watt-meter at wide open throttle (WOT), reads about 15A with the default prop. As a result, making the prop 25% bigger will increase the amps by approx 25%, with a likely scenario that I could damange the ESC, resulting in radio failure and a downed-model.

So I changed up to a 25A ESC to allow for this increased load on the controller.

c) Check your battery

The battery which came with my model was a 1300mAh 15C (which reportedly bursts to 20C). On WOT we are pretty much reaching the maximum discharge level for this battery (see our other article here on understanding battery C rating).

As a result, I purchased a 1500mAh 20C battery which is used for performance flying, and the 1300mAh battery is thus left for less throttle-intensive flights with this model, and for my other parkflyers.

How does it run?

The new prop pulls just on 19.5A when on WOT, which is well within the performance limits of the 25A ESC, to the point that it generally comes down cool after a typical flight.

The added weight of the 1500mAh battery is negligible and hasn’t noticabally impacted performance.

And most importantly, this plane flies like a Mustang now! It’s quick, responsive and really looks the part down at the flying field!

This upgrade is highly recommended, you’ll have a ball!

RC Clubs

If you’re a beginner to RC planes, tt’s really helpful to find a good RC model airplane club at the beginning of your interest in this hobby.

Here’s a list of some main associations around the world – on their sites you will find a list of local clubs:

Model Aircraft Association of Australia

Australian Electric Flight Association

British Model Flying Association

Academy of Model Aeronautics (USA)

Model Aeronautics Council of Ireland

Chatting with people who share a common interest in model aircraft will ensure you have a great afternoon! Further to this, you’ll get some very good localised tips alongside my more “macro” suggestions listed here.

RC Transmitters

One of the first things you need to do, before you start learning to fly is to decide what “mode” of transmitter you should learn on.

There’s no right or wrong, but typically the popular modes are 1 and 2. With Mode 1 transmitters, the throttle is on the right joystick. With Mode 2 transmitters, the throttle is on the left joystick. As a very general observation, North American rc pilots tend to be Mode 2 operators in the majority, while in Europe and Australia, Mode 1 pilots seem to be more common.

Rather than deciding this Mode for yourself, hunt down an instructor at your local club and find out what mode they are – that way you’ve got someone who can train you! Personally I use a Spektrum DX7 mode 1 transmitter, and would thoroughly recommend either this or the DX6i for any newcomers.

The second reason it is good to visit your local club early on is that you will more often than not have a reasonable chance of securing some good quality second-hand equipment, saving you money up front.

The final reason is plane selection – again you may be able to find a decent second hand “trainer”, but otherwise, will get some handy local advice for finding the best deal on your new airplane and radio equipment.

Perfect radio for beginners - the Spektrum DX6i

Learn to Fly first on an RC Simulator

Fresh in the knowledge of the “mode” of transmitter you wish to learn on (from part one of this article series), you are now in a position to source yourself a good simulator to practice on. The key reason it’s helpful to learn on a simulator is that you’ll get good “directional co-ordination” – remember, when your plane is coming at you, leaning right on the rudder will make the plane look like it is going left!

Also you’ll be able to practice landings without having to do lots of repairs. Personally I crashed on the simulator approx 30 times before I successfully landed, so don’t be put off if it takes you a while to get the hang of RC flying, it is a skill and takes time to consistently get right. (But the simulator is heaps of fun!)

Radio Controlled Aircraft Simulators

There’s a free package called FMS, but you’ll need to be handy with computers to connect your transmitter to the USB port. Further to this, the graphics and realism are not brilliant. It’s good for free, but there are better ones around if you have the money for them.

RealFlight G5 and Phoenix

Definitely two of the better ones, both have great graphics, flight instruction lessons, and you can turn on plenty of environmental factors such as wind gusts to increase the realism and the challenge. Both are highly recommended. They also come bundled with controllers in either Mode 1 or Mode 2, so no mucking around with your computer, just plug them in, install the software and you’re ready to learn!

RealFlight has the added bonus of a healthy discussion board, where users can upload their own aircraft. You need to check the ratings to ensure the models contributed are realistic, however there are some lovely examples available (generally for free too!). Phoenix can be found here.

Clearview is another airplane simulator which is reasonably popular in the radio control community – it’s a great option to consider if funds are tight but you’d like something a little more advanced than FMS.

I’ll continue with the next few steps in my next post!

Realflight G5 - perfect simulator for beginners to RC planes

The Parkzone Radian, a great first RC plane

Although it may seem strange that I’m about to recommend this, given we sell parkflyer electric rc models on this site, I do encourage you to start with a larger plane as your first, ideally with at least a 55″ wingspan to begin with. The parkzone Radian is a great way to start (even though it’s a glider it is a good flyer), as is the eflite Apprentice.

My reason is simple – the bigger the better. They’re more stable in the air (less susceptible to being knocked around in wind gusts) and are generally more sturdy as a result of components being bigger. It is definitely possible to start with a simple high wing “parkie”, such as a Cessna 172, however they’re a bit trickier to get a handle of, purely because they are smaller, and you don’t really want to crash a nice model do you?

The eflite Apprentice is a good example of an electric “trainer”. Trainers are built specifically for learner pilots, and they have wide wings mounted above the fuselage, making them fly slowly and steadily. You’ll also find you can re-use many of the components with your park flyer, particularly the battery charger as these aren’t particularly cheap.

If you’re lucky, your club will have a “club trainer” that you will be able to use – a great way to cost effectively enter the hobby!

There’s no problem with your second plane being an 40″ wing span electric model, but ideally for your first, get a bigger one which you’ll fly only at your club.

The Parkzone Radian - perfect RC plane for beginners to learn on

Your first flight

Wow – so many things to do before we’ve even flown! OK, so here is where it all comes together. Tee up a time with your instructor and meet him/her at your flying field. They’ll do a pre-flight inspection of your plane, and then take it to the skies and trim it out for you.

After this, your instructor will be able to “buddy” up with you – most modern transmitters are able to be “buddied” up with another transmitter of the same brand with a simple lead. This way they will be able to hand control to you so you can learn to fly, and then easily take control back with the flick of a switch if you run into a little trouble.

After a few weeks and a bit more practice on the simulator, you’ll be ready to fly solo! You may need to pass a test (such as your “Bronze Wings” in Australia with the MAAA) before you are properly insured, and your instructor will be there to help you out here too, quite possibly being the person who will be testing you as well.

Your local RC flying field - plenty of people to talk with and airplanes to look at

As with your first trainer, although not absolutely necessary, try starting with a high winged plane, so you can ease into the smaller size of parkflyers. You can definitely have a little more choice about what you’d like to purchase, a semi-scale ARF (“Almost Ready to Fly”)  Cessna 172 might take your fancy for example, and they look great down at the park.

If you do wish to go for a low winged plane, do try to get a slower one (not an Edge or an Extra). I’ve regularly fly my EuroStar SL and it’s a great first low-wing park flyer to try out, as is the RC Cirrus SR-22. You’ll notice low winged planes don’t tend to “right themselves” like high winged RC planes do – so just be aware you’ll need to flick the ailerons in the opposite direction to your turn to help you straighten the plane back out.

One of the most important parts of this hobby is building a suitably strong remote control air plane from the beginning, so you can fly it for a long time by avoiding unnecessary damage along the way – and building strong servo linkages is a actvity you should do well.

Although it’s not covered off in all manuals, a very handy thing for the ARF plane owner to do is to ensure your servo push rods maintain firmly connected to your control surface horns (for obvious reason!).

The simplest way to achieve this is to cut off a small 3mm length of silicon fuel tubing that our nitro friends use (here’s an example), and stretch this over the clevis. This way you’ll prevent the clevis disconnecting, and you may have a much longer-lasting (and far safer) radio controlled model airplane as a result!

Below you’ll see a photo of the aileron linkage found on the underside of my 48″ electric Decathlon’s main wing and the fuel tubing wrapped around the clevis.

Till next time – happy landings!

Alex

Note the silicon fuel line around the clevis.

A common frustration an electric R/C pilot will generally come across is the is the wide range of battery connectors available on the market. Well, this in itself isn’t frustrating, but the fact that you may feel compelled to buy from a particular battery vendor, or particular Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) product line is (in order to keep all your batteries interchangeable with all your models).

It is very easy to change connectors, but before you do that, you need to decide which one to standardise on – and this is the tricky part.

I’ve recently been forced to make this decision, as one of my favourite sources for LiPo batteries (HobbyKing), recently changed all their battery connectors to their own proprietary standard.

Up until this point, I have been happy running Deans connectors, but now had the choice of either paying $5 per connector (about 10 times more than I was previously), or to find an alternative. So my choices are thus:

• stay with the Deans connectors and find another source to buy them from, as HobbyKing are not stocking them anymore.
• change all my ESC and battery connectors over to the HobbyKing format (XT60).
• change all my ESC and battery connectors over to Horizon Hobbies’ format (EC3).
• find another connector.

I hadn’t been entirely comfortable with the Deans’ connectors (they spark a lot, and I found them a bit too hard to disconnect quickly), so these were discluded. Even though I like HobbyKing gear, I don’t like the idea of moving to a completely new format which is not widely used – although I admit they do look great.

So I decided on EC3 connectors for the following reasons:

• they are very easy to connect and disconnect, and very few sparks are present.
• they are easy to solder and attach to ESC’s etc.
• they are used in ParkZone aircraft – so if  I do buy their new P-51 foamie I won’t need to resolder any connectors.
• I can buy a packet of 10 from HobbyKing for around $6.00.

So that settles it then, not particularly scientific but EC3 it is! I bought 3 bags to ensure I don’t run out any time soon.

Hi there and firstly thanks for visiting this site. We’ve created this as a way to share our thoughts on park flying, and many of the various aspects related to this hobby.

Park Flyers are wonderful examples of model flight – nice and small, fully functioning radio controlled aircraft – and a great way to learn, meet people, and have a whole lot of fun, regardless of what stage of life you may be in.

Over the coming months we’ll discuss everything from building tips, aerobatic manouvers, may touch on some of the safety aspects of the hobby, as well as the electronics behind it and “how it all works”.

So please check in once or twice a month, and feel free to comment on what we have to say.

Until next time – enjoy your flying!

Alex (on behalf of the team at parkhobbies.com)