HSD F-16 105mm EDF Jet

[Aros]

Oh sweet! Good to know!

[Porkster]

Its here!!!!!!! I wasn't going to believe it until I actually had it my hands, its taken nearly a year and many attempts to get a second HSD F16. I ordered the Artic Camo EDF from HSDgo on christmas day and despite it sitting in UK customs for nearly two weeks its managed to get here just in time for the weekend and some (hopefully) reasonable weather.
Couple of things I've noted.
Good,The gear on the V2 is definitely more stout than the V1 and looks nicer finished too.
Good,Tyres on the mains now have tread and the brake hubs look smaller.
Good,The main wing spar is longer, quite a difference between the two.
Good, The wings are now one solid piece, my V1 has the leading edge slats cut, but glued in.
Good, Servos are bigger although in a plastic case and the ailerons horns are metal along with the servo horns and control horns on the elevator.
Bad, The water slide decals have left a horrible looking finish on the clear sections
Disappointing, The website shows a metal locking pin and improved wing plugs, these are both the same as my V1, plastic lock and small brass pins on the connector
Disappointing, The paint needs a little touching in here and there, nothing major just annoying.
Bad, The ESC was loose, both the cable ties were broken. Both the cable ties were in the fuse, they looked cut rather than stretched and broken???
Same, I don't think the foam is any different to my V1, which is already very good

On the same program set up it has more throws on the control surfaces than the V1, although the servo positions are same the holes on the horns must be differently spaced?

I haven't powered it up yet, waiting for some soldering on the ESC cables to EC5
*edit* just powered up the servos, not sure I like the gyro? the servos don't seem as smooth as the V1?

Although this sounds like I'm moaning about the odd thing I don't think its enough to warrant an actual complaint about anything. I always expect a few things to sort on something this size and complexity.
Top marks for overall foam condition, no creases or dents at all. The model and box arrived in very good order. Although I did think it was going to end up as a football being stuck in customs for so long!

Hopefully maiden on Sunday.

[Aros]

Glad yours arrived! Hmm, by your description it almost sounds like a V1/V2 hybrid? :Confused:

Strange about the ESC ties being broken...The water slide decals were the same on mine...I repainted (couldn't stand the cream color where it should be snow white) and ordered a custom set of decals from Callie including that central decal you show in one of your photos.

I would ask them about the lack of metal locking pin/improved wing plugs. If this was advertised as a true V2, then they have some explaining to do. I'm sure overall it will still be a great jet for you though!

[Aros]

Shout out to dahawk and EDFJetpilot for tuning me into Andy and his company RCjetwerx.com. I posted this on RCG tonight and thought I would share...

I have been chatting with Andy of RCjetwerx.com (aka Rangerfan) tonight and I have found him to be a wonderful, candid, enthusiastic, willing-to-help guy that genuinely loves to help and genuinely loves this jet. I was telling him about my issues with the first one (I knew my nerves played a role but I always suspected I didn't have the proper CG/throws/settings).

Here's a small snippet of the conversation, I hope he doesn't mind. If this can help others then I am happy.

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There's a couple of key points that we've identified that make the jet fly "better".

The biggest part of the equation is the cg. Sure it'll fly forward of 170 but there are a few complications that the forward cg presents. One, it leaps off of the ground at takeoff and that poses its own complications. Two, the up trim needed for level flight cuts down on the up elevator travel that the plane likes for landing. Three, holding the nose up during the whole flight prevents it from achieving a scale speed, which is why so many believe its under-powered. I've had a lot of conversations with the designer and we both agree that 178-180 is optimal.

I'd be happy to provide my throw and travel numbers. What radio are you using?

The stock fan is an absolute amp eater. It's tough on batteries. Ideally, I'd love to fly for five minutes on 8k batteries but the truth is, to get the cg back to 179ish, I have to toss an ounce under the rudder just to get the high C packs that the stock fan needs for its amp appetite, thus limiting the max mah to around 5500. I like for the jet to have decent vertical and to do that, the mah can't make this guy a porker. That's how we ended up on the Roaring Top 6S 5500 70C packs. In my opinion, the huge 8k-ish packs add so much weight and lack the C punch limiting the average flight to race car track laps for 5 minutes only. Most of my customers prefer vertical ability and 3.5 minute flights over 5 minutes of slow ovals.

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I've heard nothing but good things about Andy and his company RCjetwerx.com. I was super impressed with his quick and helpful responses to my questions. He could have blown me off since I wasn't an actual customer of his. That's what I love about this hobby. Most of us aren't in it for profit or gain but to help each other out. I know he's been an active member here and in this thread so I wanted to thank him publicly for taking the time to address my endless questions, comments and concerns. Yes endless. Just ask poor v8, lol!

[EDFjetpilot]

Shout out to dahawk and EDFJetpilot for tuning me into Andy and his company RCjetwerx.com. I posted this on RCG tonight and thought I would share...

I have been chatting with Andy of RCjetwerx.com (aka Rangerfan) tonight and I have found him to be a wonderful, candid, enthusiastic, willing-to-help guy that genuinely loves to help and genuinely loves this jet. I was telling him about my issues with the first one (I knew my nerves played a role but I always suspected I didn't have the proper CG/throws/settings).

Here's a small snippet of the conversation, I hope he doesn't mind. If this can help others then I am happy.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There's a couple of key points that we've identified that make the jet fly "better".

The biggest part of the equation is the cg. Sure it'll fly forward of 170 but there are a few complications that the forward cg presents. One, it leaps off of the ground at takeoff and that poses its own complications. Two, the up trim needed for level flight cuts down on the up elevator travel that the plane likes for landing. Three, holding the nose up during the whole flight prevents it from achieving a scale speed, which is why so many believe its under-powered. I've had a lot of conversations with the designer and we both agree that 178-180 is optimal.

I'd be happy to provide my throw and travel numbers. What radio are you using?

The stock fan is an absolute amp eater. It's tough on batteries. Ideally, I'd love to fly for five minutes on 8k batteries but the truth is, to get the cg back to 179ish, I have to toss an ounce under the rudder just to get the high C packs that the stock fan needs for its amp appetite, thus limiting the max mah to around 5500. I like for the jet to have decent vertical and to do that, the mah can't make this guy a porker. That's how we ended up on the Roaring Top 6S 5500 70C packs. In my opinion, the huge 8k-ish packs add so much weight and lack the C punch limiting the average flight to race car track laps for 5 minutes only. Most of my customers prefer vertical ability and 3.5 minute flights over 5 minutes of slow ovals.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I've heard nothing but good things about Andy and his company RCjetwerx.com. I was super impressed with his quick and helpful responses to my questions. He could have blown me off since I wasn't an actual customer of his. That's what I love about this hobby. Most of us aren't in it for profit or gain but to help each other out. I know he's been an active member here and in this thread so I wanted to thank him publicly for taking the time to address my endless questions, comments and concerns. Yes endless. Just ask poor v8, lol!

Aros,

Great to hear you had a chance to talk with Andy! We're really fornunate to have companies like Motion and RC Jetwerx with owners that are passionate about this hobby, willing to help others succeed, and not just think about the bottom line.

Thanks for sharing the details of your conversation.

Sean

[Aros]

Thanks again Sean, I have certainly bent his ear and he's been fantastic. We both agree helping each other is simply good for the hobby, period.

Mine arrived yesterday...Spent all of 20 minutes putting it together...Man the low part count is indeed impressive! There were minor fitment issues here and there (canopy latch is a bear, starboard LE wing root has a larger gap than port side) but all-in-all everything looks good. I am still unclear why HSD decided to use a grey-ish cream color for their "white" camo areas. I can hardly wait to paint those sections WHITE like I did my last one. I think it looks a million times sharper. Oh, and another round of Callie Graphics will be in order but of course!

Had a near disaster yesterday when binding. I used a 3S to connect to the system instead of a 2S thinking it should be okay (I must have sold the 2S I used in my last one to the guy who bought it)...Nothing worked. Ailerons went in full opposite direction, stabs went full deflection and then nothing would happen. Gear wouldn't drop. I unplugged and spent the next near 24 hours wondering "What did I do?!?!" I was hearing everything from "you might be okay, just don't use a 3S EVER AGAIN" to "You probably fried your entire electrical system." Aaaaaaccccckkk!!!

I went to my local hobby store on my lunch break and bought a 2S 2200. Did a lot of praying to every deity imaginable, plugged it in, re-binded, and everything worked! WHEW!

Sometimes...Just sometimes the Flight Gods look the other way during times of my tom foolery. LOL

Ordered my new pilot from WarbirdPilots.com, should be here by the weekend. Oh, and THIS arrived today! :Cool::Goodbye:

[Porkster]

Glad it’s all ok Aros.
If the weather plays ball I’m going out with mine later.

[Aros]

Happy landings with her!

I may be a week or more out for my maiden with our weather. In the meantime I will get her masked off today to paint the pure white tones and get the cockpit ready. Tomorrow I will be removing the stock gyro and installing the Cortex. I am going to go with Andy's recommendations for CG and throws, so maybe I will get those ready sometime over the weekend as well.

Report back how your flight went if you do go...Good luck!

[Aros]

Painting underway as you can tell by my really high-tech paint booth. LOL

Got the pilot today too. Always impressed with WarbirdPilots.com's pilots. :Cool:

[Porkster]

Thanks but the weather was rubbish. Rain then snow although the forecast was dry. It seems of late its either raining or high winds.
I'm embarrassed to say buy I quite like the dirty white look on mine, its more realistic for the kind of mucky snow we get LOL

I went and put a layer of WBPU on her instead

[Porkster]

Nice! I like that pilot, we need somebody to make some scale patches for them :Smug:

[Aros]

Yeah that would be pretty sweet! As for the bright white, I guess the snow is pretty white here in the Pacific Northwest. :Silly:

[Aros]

Top section is done painting-wise. Still need to add Callie custom decals...Next up, paint the bottom white sections. I also found out I ordered the wrong size pilot. 1/5 scale instead of the 1/6-1/7 size. DOH! <face palm>. So the wrong pilot will get shipped back to base and I will have to get his shorter associate.

[Porkster]

I’d love a 1:5 scale f-16! The rate you’re buying planes you should have kept him just in case!!!!!

[Aros]

LOL I have maxed out my garage space already.

[Porkster]

So, I did my maiden flight this afternoon and it was truly awful. I had my CG at 178 maybe a little more forward as George (my pilot) was added after the CG setup. It flew very tall heavy and was extremely pitch sensitive especially with the gear down. I was lucky to just about land it ok. Second flight I moved the Rx battery a little further forward - not much. This made it a little better but it still wanted to balloon with the gear down?!
Im now thinking I might need to add a mix to add down elevator with the gear down? I had to dial in quite a few clicks of up trim as well, indicating nose heavy?
Oh a just another point, I have the throttle to elevator mix off...but....if you turn the stock gyro on it enables the mix again!!
Second flight again I really struggled to get a decent landing and nearly pancaked it in! It's pulled the front gear mount off but that looks like it didn't have much glue on it.
I'm really quite annoyed as my first one was a complete ***** cat to fly, this was a complete dog! If this was my first experience with it, it would now be on the classifieds or in the bin! :Confused:

[RCjetdude]

Hmmm. I have heard nothing but mostly good things about how the plane flies.

[Porkster]

Like I said my other one is a peach.
the only difference is the gear suspension and the esc
I've already decided I don't like the new gear either, controversial I know but the compression is to hard especially in the cold weather the fluid in them must be very thick.

[Aros]

Like I said in my response on the RCG thread it sounds strangely similar with some of my flights with my first one. I was fighting her tooth and nail in some flights. I thought it was acting very tail heavy so I ended up moving my CG to 165 (I believe my initial CG was closer to 180). Someone in this thread said to try 165 and that they swore by it and sure enough I found her to be much more stable. However, Andy from RC Jetwerx has some good points about a CG in the 178-180 range:

"...The biggest part of the equation is the cg. Sure it'll fly forward of 170 but there are a few complications that the forward cg presents. One, it leaps off of the ground at takeoff and that poses its own complications. Two, the up trim needed for level flight cuts down on the up elevator travel that the plane likes for landing. Three, holding the nose up during the whole flight prevents it from achieving a scale speed, which is why so many believe its underpowered. I've had a lot of conversations with the designer and we both agree that 178-180 is optimal."

He also mentioned to decrease the expo and rates for more scale-like flight. Where are your settings at?

I am a bit nervous to maiden at 178 but I am going to give it a try with the lower rates and expo and trust the Cortex gyro will tame this girl for me. I feel your pain man. This jet has at times made me pump my fist in the air and shout "YES!" after a wonderful flight from takeoff to greaser and has at other times made me question my flying ability. It's one of the reasons I wanted to get another one so quickly after selling my first. I know this jet is very sensitive to CG and settings and I am determined to get her dialed in and flying sweet on every flight, not just once in awhile, lol.

Hopefully some others can chime in. I think the rates, settings, setup and CG is as varied with this jet as the opinions of the flyers that go along with them.

[Aros]

Got the Cortex gyro installed and calibrated. Just need to tweak the throws/rates and she's ready for maiden. Going to maiden at 178mm CG with low expo and rates as advised by Andy. Just need the weather to cooperate. Sooooooo, I'm thinking a June maiden.

LOL