Official Freewing Twin 80mm/90mm A-10 Thunderbolt II Thread

[Evan D]

From memory the A6E and TRAM had the dive brakes inactivated, earlier models and the KA6D had them working.

[jetpltrich]

From memory the A6E and TRAM had the dive brakes inactivated, earlier models and the KA6D had them working.

That is correct, the mission changed no longer needed. My post was to be as simplistic as possible and to shed some light on why the brakes do what they do. I was going to include the High and Low speed engine setting in the 737 but that is far fetched. Just a little insight on the real thing. I'm no expert especially when it comes to these Foamies, so I'll Keep It Simple Stupid because if I had those big aileron brakes on my A-10 I'd get in big trouble when using them.

Richard

[Evan D]

They are on the F-104 and Avios MiG-17. I crashed my first F-104 using them, they were very effective and on one approach using them I didn't keep enough throttle in to keep her airborne. It was coming head on and I couldn't tell that it had slowed as much as it had.

On the flip side I use them on the MiG and love them, they work absolutely great.

[Bill b]

Hey there not going to be getting rid of this plane anytime soon are they??? I want one but afraid they may stop selling in near future then I won't be able to find parts!

[Bill b]

Another reason I am asking is be my luck they discontinue this model come out with an upgraded one. Something parts won't fit from this one to updated one! 😂 Well it's a lot of money to get this one then have em discontinue it. 😆 Then I have get newer one lol be divorced for sure! 🤔 That's good idea been thinking about a way to do that! 👍

[xviper]

One can never be certain about the future of this or any other model. Manufacturers/sellers won't generally venture to reveal such information. I'm going to take a stab at a guess. Since this plane originally was introduced with the potential for upgrading to 90mm, I think it will be a long time before they would consider an "updated" version. I also believe that this product has sustained generally moderate++ interest throughout its existence and it isn't likely to suddenly disappear once current stock runs low. Initial interest and popularity would likely mean that there are plenty of these "out there". Parts have also been fairly "available" and aside from specific body parts, things like servos, retract bodies, motors, ESCs are common and shared with other products. I'm sure others will have a different take on this.

[Bill b]

Ya I Kno, but I got a p51 from motion then they stopped carrying it right after I got it. Now only got 1 style of p51... Why I was asking about this model, I am pretty sure going to get one!

[Ks.jetflyer]

I picked one up this last weekend. From what I've read it has a good reputation. Have no concern about being discontinued. Did order the trailing link nose gear for it. Looking forward to getting it in the air.

[Bill b]

Ya I ordered same thing! 😆

[Hugh Wiedman]

I picked one up this last weekend. From what I've read it has a good reputation. Have no concern about being discontinued. Did order the trailing link nose gear for it. Looking forward to getting it in the air.

I fly off grass as well and originally put the trailing link nose gear in. Occasionally, in rough grass, the suspension sometimes depresses all the way and the tire actually gets stuck against the rear nose gear door. Talk about slamming on the brakes! Happened a couple times on landing, not a big deal, but it did it once on take-off after hitting a clump and it started to skid somewhat. I immediately swapped back out to the original nose gear and no issues since then and it operates just as well on the grass, at least IMO. Have heard of only a few others this has happened to, so maybe it's not a universal issue.

After over 100 flights on mine, I've decided it's definitely one of the easiest EDF's to fly and land. Just make sure on landing you keep the nose up and you won't experience the bucking bronco (and resulting mishaps) that some have experienced. It helps to balance it 90-93mm instead of the 78mm point the manual recommends. At least that's my opinion.

[xviper]

Hugh Wiedman You're not the only one. When I fly mine off grass, it does the same thing. When I first got this plane many years ago, I got that horrible kangaroo bounce on landing. I swapped out the stock nose gear for the trailing link hoping it would help. It only helped a bit. I've learned to land it much better now and I'm thinking of putting the stock one back on, if I can find it.

[Ks.jetflyer]

I fly off grass as well and originally put the trailing link nose gear in. Occasionally, in rough grass, the suspension sometimes depresses all the way and the tire actually gets stuck against the rear nose gear door. Talk about slamming on the brakes! Happened a couple times on landing, not a big deal, but it did it once on take-off after hitting a clump and it started to skid somewhat. I immediately swapped back out to the original nose gear and no issues since then and it operates just as well on the grass, at least IMO. Have heard of only a few others this has happened to, so maybe it's not a universal issue.

After over 100 flights on mine, I've decided it's definitely one of the easiest EDF's to fly and land. Just make sure on landing you keep the nose up and you won't experience the bucking bronco (and resulting mishaps) that some have experienced. It helps to balance it 90-93mm instead of the 78mm point the manual recommends. At least that's my opinion.

Thanks for the heads up on c.g. I don't like flying nose heavy planes. People around here think I'm nuts.

[xviper]

Thanks for the heads up on c.g. I don't like flying nose heavy planes. People around here think I'm nuts.

More and more these days, I am seeing a change in philosophy when it comes to CG. I recall a time when the most widely spoken adage went something like, "A nose heavy plane can be flown with some effort. A tail heavy plane can be flown once." It's getting more clear now that there were once a lot of people married to "old wives" and those old bitties talked way too much and the husband's just kept listening. These days, it seems people are calling it something like this:

[xviper]

duplicate.........

[StevenR]

Hey Guys!

l’m considering the Freewing A10 80mm for my next EDF!
can anyone tell me if the current models come with the inrunner or outrunner motors?

thx!

[xviper]

The description at MotionRC and RC Castle say they are 9-bl outrunners, which is what they've always been. I have no information that they have changed.

[hhamzeh]

I think FreeWing and MRC should consider releasing the V2 version of this jet. Perhaps small changes like inrunner motors, already available upgraded struts installed and a new paint scheme. All in all the cost and efforts will be minimal but I guess these days the marketing philosophy of most companies is "if it is selling, do not do a damn thing". Unfortunately, eventually someone else will come with a similar A-10 with more "up-to-date" components and then MRC and FreeWing will start to react. I fully appreciate it is a business for them but sometimes saving small costs and efforts will result in large losses down the road.

[Elbee]

hhamzeh, I understand your thinking, I would add, I bought mine during the original pre-order and it's all OEM stock. She's a rock-solid flier with faster than scale performance. I only swapped RH MG for LH MG and vice versa (a recommended mod) as I recall. It comes with 90mm upgrade foam parts for the nacelles if you want more performance. I can only guess that MRC figures what else could we do and keep the price point reasonable. My suggestion is find a buddy who has one and take a test drive. I can't believe, you'll be disappointed. Best, LB

[Hugh Wiedman]

I think FreeWing and MRC should consider releasing the V2 version of this jet. Perhaps small changes like inrunner motors, already available upgraded struts installed and a new paint scheme. All in all the cost and efforts will be minimal but I guess these days the marketing philosophy of most companies is "if it is selling, do not do a damn thing". Unfortunately, eventually someone else will come with a similar A-10 with more "up-to-date" components and then MRC and FreeWing will start to react. I fully appreciate it is a business for them but sometimes saving small costs and efforts will result in large losses down the road.

As Elbee just stated, the original with all OEM parts was a rock-solid flyer with faster than scale performance. And of course half the fun of these is repainting to a livery more of your liking, as I did. With that said, I did eventually upgrade my A-10 with the 9 blade 3658-1920 Kv inrunners that came with my Mig 29. I had upgraded the Mig with the FMS 12 blade 2100 kv inrunners (not that it needed it but with the TV nozzles and an additional 25% more thrust-whoopi) and had it's original fairly unused fans sitting around so stuck them in the A-10. They provided at least 20% more thrust (although not really needed) and did help get off long grass easier, even though the stock motors never had a problem. I now rarely fly over 60% throttle (except take-off and verticals) and am more than satisfied with their performance. A flying buddy, RudyD54 who upgrades everything got the A-10 with the 90mm nacelles and I think he put FMS fans in it and it is ridiculously fast and takes-off on heavy grass in seconds. I think his only problem is keeping the graphics on as at full throttle in peels those and the paint off. Sometimes it looks like the space shuttle re-entering Earths atmosphere

[Dougcarr73]

9 min flight on twin SMC, LiHv, 6200mah, 6s packs. My buddy was using a smaller drone than normal, so I probably averaged around 55% throttle to help him stay in range. Full power briefly on takeoff rotation. I stack my packs one on top of the other and push back in line with trailing edge of the wooden battery board. Nothing on the forward batter spot. That gives me a pretty good 88mm CG for good and floaty approaches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJMvc-l5gRY