New FMS/Eflite Su-30 coming soon

[Hugh Wiedman]

It doesn’t seem like a good one for grass ops with the gear design. I’d be curious to see how well it holds up, but don’t and have no intention of flying my EDFs off grass.
The Freewing F-22 is much better suited.

My intention was to run mine with Flaperons as well and it would certainly benefit from that. Coming with the AS3X tuned to the standard configuration prevents that on mine however. I really wish they’d gone for a 7 channel BNF receiver with flaperon option.

She is very heavy but manages to handle it well when flown correctly. Slow down, get the nose up and power to the runway. That doesn’t help with takeoffs though.

A new centerburner design is in the works, stay tuned!

[/QUOTE]

Our club had our annual "Jets Miami Rally" this weekend, mostly large scale turbines, and a representative for Horizon was in attendance who is one of their flight testers. He has flown the SU-30 a lot, but always off hard runways and doesn't think any of the other Horizon flight team members have tried it off grass. He also stated that he thought this model is not well suited for grass (which of course that's what our field is), mostly because of the gear design and lack of flaps. He believed, as you mentioned, that flaperons would be a big help on grass, but with only 6 channels, it's either flaperons or the air brake, assuming you stick with the AR636.

[JLambCWU]

How are flight times? I've got admiral 5000mAH 50Cs that I'd consider if I get this flanker. Im still undecided with this against the freewing, but I'd wait until spring to purchase one or the other.

I have flown it with Roaring Top 70C and CNHL 70C older batteries. The power system handles the weight surprisingly well, but is substantially weaker on my older CNHL batteries and takes a bit to get up to speed, and they’re heavier as well.

Much like my Freewing 1835 inrunner upgraded 90mm F-16, F-18, F-22, F-15, T-45 and SkySword, the performance with the lighter and more powerful 70C 5500mah Roaring Tops show a substantial performance improvement! Close to 10mph faster, and much more vertical.

With that said, I bring the CNHLs down at 2:40 and Roaring Tops down just after 3:20 with mixed flying. I’ve flown it a little over 4 min doing just over half throttle flying on the 5500mah RTs. It actually moves along really nice at about 60% throttle with the RTs at my density altitude here of just about 4400ft, which was honestly surprising. It’s all about getting the heavy weight moving, then bringing the power back, even with the old CNHLs.

I flew an RCJETWERX 6000mah and came down at 3:45 with 3.95/cell. So you could comfortably do 4:30 with bigger packs and moderate flying. It’s honestly all weight dependent.

There is a HUGE weight glued into the tail of the airplane stock. The battery area is limited up front from shifting back the battery further as well, so the extra weight in bigger batteries will eventually be a zero sum gain with the required tail down force (drag) to compensate.

The fit and finish of the model is beautiful, but it’s really heavy and has to be flown like a model that is. It slows down surprisingly well (high alpha) for the weight with the AS3X compensating for wind drop until right at stall.

Freewing models are substantially lighter and more balanced.

[JLambCWU]

Shaking down the SU-30

A long video, but it has it all! .

Excellent compilation video, beautiful flying. Any idea how it might take off on grass without flaps? My F-16, even with the upgraded inrunner, has trouble getting off grass without flaps but does so nicely with flaperons. I'm thinking of getting the SU-30 but wonder about grass take-offs. With a 6 channel, if I have to program in flaperons, then the air brake would have to go, so still on the fence. Also, the wheel pants on the nose looks like it may be allergic to grass, but could always loose that part. An LED after-burner would look sweet!

I used to be a big E-Flight fan but not so much the last couple of years as the last 9 planes have been from Flightline/Freewing, with 1/2 a dozen more Extreme Flight planes thrown in, so I'm glad to see them come out with something interesting. Their batteries still suck compared to Admiral and one of these days I'll end up trashing about 30 of them since I never use them anymore cause they puff like Santa at Christmas time and were far more expensive than the Admirals (which not one of almost 40 Admiral batteries from 3000 to 6000mah have puffed a millimeter).

So anyone with any info on grass take-offs would help my decision process.
[/QUOTE]

It doesn’t seem like a good one for grass ops with the gear design. I’d be curious to see how well it holds up, but don’t and have no intention of flying my EDFs off grass.
The Freewing F-22 is much better suited.

My intention was to run mine with Flaperons as well and it would certainly benefit from that. Coming with the AS3X tuned to the standard configuration prevents that on mine however. I really wish they’d gone for a 7 channel BNF receiver with flaperon option.

She is very heavy but manages to handle it well when flown correctly. Slow down, get the nose up and power to the runway. That doesn’t help with takeoffs though.

A new centerburner design is in the works, stay tuned!

[Hugh Wiedman]

Shaking down the SU-30

A long video, but it has it all! .[/QUOTE]

Excellent compilation video, beautiful flying. Any idea how it might take off on grass without flaps? My F-16, even with the upgraded inrunner, has trouble getting off grass without flaps but does so nicely with flaperons. I'm thinking of getting the SU-30 but wonder about grass take-offs. With a 6 channel, if I have to program in flaperons, then the air brake would have to go, so still on the fence. Also, the wheel pants on the nose looks like it may be allergic to grass, but could always loose that part. An LED after-burner would look sweet!

I used to be a big E-Flight fan but not so much the last couple of years as the last 9 planes have been from Flightline/Freewing, with 1/2 a dozen more Extreme Flight planes thrown in, so I'm glad to see them come out with something interesting. Their batteries still suck compared to Admiral and one of these days I'll end up trashing about 30 of them since I never use them anymore cause they puff like Santa at Christmas time and were far more expensive than the Admirals (which not one of almost 40 Admiral batteries from 3000 to 6000mah have puffed a millimeter).

So anyone with any info on grass take-offs would help my decision process.

[JLambCWU]

How are flight times? I've got admiral 5000mAH 50Cs that I'd consider if I get this flanker. Im still undecided with this against the freewing, but I'd wait until spring to purchase one or the other.

3 to 3 1/2 min

[T-CAT]

I'm looking forward to seeing it fly in person. We should have several at least by this weekend flying at the field.

[Dirty Dee]

How are flight times? I've got admiral 5000mAH 50Cs that I'd consider if I get this flanker. Im still undecided with this against the freewing, but I'd wait until spring to purchase one or the other.

[JLambCWU]

Shaking down the SU-30

A long video, but it has it all! Low passes, high speed, slow speed, touch and goes, low approach and vertical zoom climbs.
8 minutes of footage. 2 days, 30+ flights, 50+ landings. I know everyone has been wanting footage, this is from 5 flights and the best I could get shooting it myself and flying.

This is the BNF option. She’s heavy but locked in.
The scale details cost weight, but look incredible.

I’ve never been an AS3X fan, but for as heavy as she is, this jet is LOCKED in on the system. I have safe disabled.

The twin 70mm fans are adequate for the higher altitude here in Salt Lake City. Not terribly fast, but performs well on higher C packs flown at the aft CG limit. Using older/weaker packs is a 250-300ft takeoff roll in cold air.

Using the 70C 5500mah Roaring Tops from Andy over at RCJetWerx, she leaps off the ground in about 150ft. Top speed at the density altitude here is around 110mph. She doesn’t have flaperon ability with the AS3X, so slowing her down and achieving a nose high attitude and powering to the runway is essential to a shorter landing roll. Easily lands in less than 200ft on smooth asphalt when executed correctly.

[cashmoneybrother]

It's nice to see other manufacturers getting in the game. I also like the fact that it's close in scale to the freewing products so they'll look good together. Competition improves the breed. Keep those planes coming. Great time to be in the Hobby!!!!!!! PS... Come on Eflite bare foam?!?!? No-one likes that (except for Fred)

[T-CAT]

Congrats! This plane in my opinion is definitely one of E-Flite's greatest looking foam jets ever released.

[Jpahemi1]

My Su showed up this afternoon it was really easy to assemble and I think it looks great but the bare white foam needs some paint.
A couple of days ago I brought up my Tu95 from my workshop for some cleaning. My friend George built and competed with it. I thought it would be fun to take a picture of my two favorite Russian warbirds together.

[T-CAT]

I like the list of pros and cons. Good job on that analysis! And yeah... if it discontinues that quickly, you do not want it!

The only thing I disagree with is the hex screws. I prefer those on all my FMS planes vs phillips (or JIS) screws in other models. I have a nice set of hex drivers and they are about impossible to strip out compared to phillips in my opinion.

Thanks Jameson . Now that videos are starting to pop up, which is good, we can hopefully get some opinions on the plane. The spring rates look appropriate just from first few when seeing it taxi and land as it appears to absorb relatively well instead of ricochet. The full flying Horizontal Stabs. look to have 13g Analog Metal Gear servos installed, which is a bit odd for this weight and size of aircraft. Maybe some 22g or so servos would be in order for peace of mind. The performance is what I figured it would be (just from seeing video, but have to see it in person), a more scale like flyer, and appears to fly on the heavier side, which isn't a surprise. The video I saw had good sounding fans and well balanced. On RCg, a member posted that the tail has roughly 4oz of weight in it from the factory, which adds to the total aircraft weight.

[JamesonC]

We can modify every plane , but that's not the point. I find it good to analyze a new model to a certain degree to see what features exist for the value I perceive them to be as this will determine whether I purchase a particular aircraft.

There is no doubt that you'll have fun with it, and if I ever purchase this jet, I would too.

I like the list of pros and cons. Good job on that analysis! And yeah... if it discontinues that quickly, you do not want it!

The only thing I disagree with is the hex screws. I prefer those on all my FMS planes vs phillips (or JIS) screws in other models. I have a nice set of hex drivers and they are about impossible to strip out compared to phillips in my opinion.

[xviper]

You know you can modify it if you like. When I receive mine I will put it together and go fly The H out of it. I will fly it like I stole it. Besides once in the air you can't tell all these things just buy it and fly it if you do not like it don't buy it . The plane was meant to bind and fly, and thats all I have to say about that LOL!!!!!

This is not an inexpensive plane for a foamie EDF. You can fly it "like you stole it" or any other way you like, but if I bought it, I would fly it like ................... well ....................... an expensive foamie EDF that I paid hard earned money for it. (I don't have a money tree growing in every corner of my back yard). As for "if I don't like it, don't buy it" ....................... a bit hard to know if I'll like it if I don't buy it first, but perhaps, that logic doesn't apply to you.

If they discontinue it THAT quickly, then I'd rather not own it.

You got that right!

[T-CAT]

If they discontinue it THAT quickly, then I'd rather not own it.

[Wild Man]

I do my research on all the planes, jets, Heli's and racers I fly. Every one has an Opinion on the pro's and con's. You have the longest list I have ever seen, but Every ones different . hopefully it will not be discontinued by the time you make up your mind.

[T-CAT]

We can modify every plane , but that's not the point. I find it good to analyze a new model to a certain degree to see what features exist for the value I perceive them to be as this will determine whether I purchase a particular aircraft.

There is no doubt that you'll have fun with it, and if I ever purchase this jet, I would too.

[Wild Man]

You know you can modify it if you like. When I receive mine I will put it together and go fly The H out of it. I will fly it like I stole it. Besides once in the air you can't tell all these things just buy it and fly it if you do not like it don't buy it . The plane was meant to bind and fly, and thats all I have to say about that LOL!!!!!

[T-CAT]

After watching some assembly and unboxing videos of the E-flite Su-30, here are some quick thoughts on what I like and dislike about the airplane. I don't own one, so the following doesn't hold much merrit, if any, until I do .

Pros:
- Appears to be an all machine screw assembly design that mate into threaded inserts for the control surfaces. It does away with self tapping screws.
- Main gear doors appear to sit flush and almost fully conceal the main struts (except for a very small portion, which is obvious to see why).
- Fitment appears nice with minimal gaps and the paint job has some clean lines, but has some small but typical overspray here and there.
- The nose cone pitot tube is a metal threaded screw-on design, and the nose cone appears to attach securely to the fuselage. The nose cone is also plastic tipped.
- The landing gear from a visual standpoint look great, and you can tell the manufacturer focused a bit more for a scale look, which I commend.
- The horizontal stabilizer mounting system looks to be of decent design with threading in the rods for the screws to attach, and flat sections within the collars instead of fully rounded.
- The pilot figure looks fantastic for a mass produced figurine. It is much better than the previous FMS/E-Flite pilot figures.
- The rivet detail on the aircraft looks nice.
- The plastic tailcones are nice.
- The aux. air inlets are facing toward the midline of the fuselage, so they aren't as noticeable when the plane is on the ground.
- The power system includes inrunner motors, and appears to have Hobbywing ESC's.
- The lighting package looks good, especially the triple nose gear lights.
- The ordnance set comes with the jet, and that's always nice to see.
- The ventral fins attach via sliding lock system, which is a huge help when transporting the aircraft to/from the flying field.
- The airbrake looks incredible and appears to fit flush.

Cons:
- I'm not liking the solid mounted servo lead of the Vertical Stabilizers or Wings, and I'd be curious if intermittent connection could occur under lateral force.
- The unpainted nose section looks cheap in comparison to the rest of the paint job, and it really should be painted for that price. They even painted the gray camo spot on those nose section, but white foam all around it.
- The vertical stabilizer servos stand out like a sore thumb, but that is easy to paint over.
- There aren't plastic lined servo pockets and covers on the vertical stabilizers. There mostly likely wasn't enough meat of foam to do so.
- The screws are Hex type, but I prefer Philip's.
- The decals appear to be of mediocre quality as you can see the clear outline on the decals, and some lifting in areas.
- There doesn't appear to be too much battery compartment space, likely enough for the common batteries many of us are used to for this size model in PNP form, but possibly not for more extreme modifications.
- I dislike the paint scheme E-flite chose. The FMS version, currently only sold in China supposedly, looks significantly better in my opinion. The FMS version will supposedly have higher KV motors as well, but not sure if the capacity of the ESC's will change.
- The performance in the marketing video didn't impress me much. However, if I were to purchase this plane, I'd be expecting it to be a "looker" and to fly it for the great visual presence it has, not for it to be speed demon of sorts. Maybe it will be, but I haven't see it in person, so I can't say what it actually performs like.

[wolpertinger]

Well, I jumped in and got one and it arrived today. Although I cannot have it until after Santa comes and goes per the boss. Did get a sneak peak though.....