Official Freewing 64mm EDF A-10 Thread

[TSHobbies]

Maidened mine today..wow! Great flying plane! sounded great too..need to add some whistles to it. Though I only got 2 flights in..managed to knock the nose gear loose..barely had any glue holding the mount in. I set the lip (Turnigy 4S 4000 40C) using the recommended CG,and it was too nose heavy for that..didnt rotate on my first attempt. set the battery all the way back and that did the trick. I noticed the nose gear door wouldnt shut all the way, causing the nose to drop during flight,so I need to fix that..it was that or still a bit nose heavy, may have to pull a weight out and see..but first I'll fix the door to see if that was it...other than that ,it was a fantabulous first 2 flights! workin on the fixes now,and hopefully will fly it again later today.

[Evoman]

It is still that way. The first thing I did was get rid of that dinky screwdriver and use one of my regular sized ones. Get a lot better torque that way. This was my first build and the part that stumped me the most was fixing the tail section and how to route those wires to get it flush. I plan on painting mine and orange and black scheme after I get some flights in and am comfortable with it. Yeah it isn't scale, but I'll sacrifice some scale for visibility, lol

If you want to make your A-10 more visible and still look authentic I suggest painting it in this scheme. This was a specialty scheme painted on a single Air Force Reserve aircraft from the 45th FS / 930th OG located at Grissom AFB in Indiana. The stripes commemorated the 50th anniversary of the "D-Day" invasions of Normandy in World War II.

I also highly suggest installing a light kit. It not only helps with viability but it also makes it easier to tell the orientation of the plane. If you get the GT Power light kit that motion RC sells it also includes two white blinking led's. If installed on the rear corners of the wing tips it you can more easily tell if the plane is flying towards you or away.

[ace184]

I have only been able to taxi mine. Been pretty gusty. But everyone at the club absolutely loves the plane.

[gooniac33]

I modified mine to 12 blade as soon as I got it back in 2015. First was a set of change sun 12 blades with 2800kv outrunners. then I found these awesome fans on ebay that had more thrust and made really nice noises when balanced properly!! It is one of my fave planes now!! Here is a video from this past weekend...

[Oxotnik]

I'm thinking very seriously about getting the 12-blade Freewing A-10. How well does it handle a grass runway?

[F106DeltaDart]

I'm thinking very seriously about getting the 12-blade Freewing A-10. How well does it handle a grass runway?

I flew my V1 off short cut grass without any issues.

[Oxotnik]

Thanks, F106. To date, I've been a prop warbirder, with no experience with EDFs. I picked up a GWS ME-262 at a swap meet, but haven't put it together yet. I think that the A-10 would be a good introductory jet, based on its real-life mission and flying characteristics. The Freewing A-10 looks phenomenal, and the features look great, although I'm worried a bit about the visibility. The only reason that I haven't bought it yet is that the small wheels have been worrying me since I fly on a grass runway. I've seen other jet flyers in my club really struggle to get their jets into the air. Did you need the flaps for grass takeoffs?

[F106DeltaDart]

No, I didn't install flaps at all. I think it takes off and lands well without them. The A-10 is a great first jet for sure, second only to the little Freewing Panther. Visibility is definitely an issue, I recommend not flying on an overcast day. In a nice blue sky it's not a problem at all, especially with its distinctive silhouette.

[Oxotnik]

DD, thanks for confirming that the A-10 would be a good introductory EDF. I've been really tempted by the new UMX A-10 that is coming out, but for $70 more, I could get the really cool Freewing A-10. Decisions, decisions... Knowing me, I'll probably end up getting both.

[TSHobbies]

Id second the good plane for a first EDF..easy flier without worrying about it being too fast for reaction. and I know it can get disoriented when you get out too far..already did it, if you do, just keep your cool, make small movements to see which direction its headed in. I will note that the gear mounts (little white plastic things the retracts screw into) barely had any glue on them, and my came loose very easyily..so make sure to check yours, and reglue if needed, especially flying off grass.

[TSHobbies]

see..the gear cant handle hard landings ...great flier though

[Oxotnik]

see..the gear cant handle hard landings ...great flier though

So, would the gear be prone to fail on grass fields?

[Alpha]

The Freewing 64mm A-10 has nearly scale sized wheels, which for a 1:16 scale aircraft translates to being very small, around 1.25" tall or so for the nose wheel. In general, grass shouldn't cover more than 50% of a wheel, otherwise it cannot consistently roll. Accordingly, I've always regarded the Freewing 64mm A-10 as an aircraft better suited to paved surfaces, rolled surfaces, Geomat or similar, or at worst packed dirt. I have flown it off of grass, but that grass was closer to a putting green in height and levelness than the average grass RC field I see around the country.

[Oxotnik]

Thanks, Alpha. I've been wanting to add one of these A-10s to my Arsenal of Freedom, but I haven't popped on one yet because I fly almost exclusively on a an active grass-strip runway. I like 3" or larger wheels, but can usually get away with 2.5" on my tail draggers, if the grass isn't too tall or thick. I only have one trike-gear plane (FLRC P-38); it's wheels are almost 3" and it handles the grass field with no problem, especially with the shock-absorbing struts. I don't really have a feel for the smallest wheels that'll work on our grass runway. Other guys in my club have EDF jets in this size class, and they sometimes struggle to get their planes into the air.

[Alpha]

Happy to help, Oxotnik. If your planes need 3" or larger, that's far larger than this plane or most in its size range can handle. I've seen guys throw down a roofing tile mat over grass to aid takeoffs with 64mm or 70mm jets, or heck even hand launching the Freewing 64mm A-10 without gear and ordnance. But ultimately, every field is different. If you're seeing guys in your club struggling to takeoff with similarly sized jets, I'd guess you'd have the same struggle with this bird.

[F106DeltaDart]

Just for reference here are a few pics of the grass field where I have flown mine. If the grass is longer at your location, you might have issues taking off as Alpha said.

[Oxotnik]

DD, what size are the wheels on the F-86 and the P-40?

We keep the grass cut pretty low in front of our flying area. It gets pretty thick during the summer though. We've been having a pretty serious drought for the last couple months; so, the grass is pretty thin and low right now and hardly anything is struggling on it. I like 3" wheels on my tail draggers, to help avoid nose overs, which isn't a problem for trike gear planes. But, I think that my Ta-152, P-47, and FW-190A have ~2.5" wheels, and they sometimes struggle in the summer grass (again, the struggle is avoiding nose overs) but haven't been having any trouble in the drought-stricken grass.

[Ron1950]

flew my v1 off short grass field and flew very well...just checked my v2 plane and it is a 12 blade model but now I cant build it as I have no room lol still !!!!

[Ron1950]

found this old pic of v1 off grass

[F106DeltaDart]

F-86 has 50mm mains and 45mm nose wheel (all approximately 2"). The P-40 has slightly larger wheels, around 2.25".