Avios Grumman Albatross!

[wvrailfan]

I flew mine from water using differential thrust for the first time today. It is going to take a little getting used to.

Like Xviper, I find mine steers pretty good on grass using just the rudder, but on water it wants to weather vane so without the water rudder the differential thrust is kind of necessary.

I'm flying using Admiral 3000 4 cell for power and it flies very scale like with power to spare. I have my timer set to 6 minutes and generally come down with 35% left in the pack after mixed throttle flying.

[Twowingtj]

For those that have been waiting, the Albatross is back in stock at the US warehouse. Finally got mine ordered!

[Hardway]

For those that have been waiting, the Albatross is back in stock at the US warehouse. Finally got mine ordered!

Thanks!!!!! Mine is on order finally! I appreciate the heads-up Bro!!! Jerry

[Twowingtj]

Glad to help Jerry. I've been checking the site almost daily. For a long time it said ETA early Sept. Then about two weeks ago, the ETA changed to mid Aug. Two days ago, it changed to Out of Stock with no ETA. I chatted with HK CS yesterday and they said they only got a few and had sold out again. This morning I looked at it and it showed in stock. Sometimes being OCD pays off.

[xviper]

I chatted with HK CS yesterday and they said they only got a few and had sold out again. This morning I looked at it and it showed in stock.

It has always baffled me how HobbyKing manages to "find" a few examples of a models to put "back in stock". I have a hard time believing that the factory only makes so few and releases them, rather than doing a proper "run" before letting them go to market. It makes me wonder where HK finds these things. Were they hidden under a tarp in the back room of the warehouse? Were they rejects from a previous run that has only just been "fixed" and tested? Were they returns from customers who, for whatever reason, decided they didn't want them and HK got them back, checked them out, fixed what was wrong and put them back in stock? This aspect of HobbyKing remains a mystery. I have seen a product be "Out of Stock" for weeks and then suddenly get back in stock, only to be out of stock within 1 hr.

[OV10]

I had the same suspicions as XV commented about and had reservations about ordering so now I'll just wait and see what the fallout is. I
TJ..........Be real curious whether you receive someone else's remediated reject :head_bandage: Lets hope not :worried:

[Twowingtj]

I had the same suspicions as XV commented about and had reservations about ordering so now I'll just wait and see what the fallout is. I
TJ..........Be real curious whether you receive someone else's remediated reject :head_bandage: Lets hope not :worried:

Got it yesterday. It's NIB and not a reworked or returned. Very nice bird. The finish is top notch.

[OV10]

Got it yesterday. It's NIB and not a reworked or returned. Very nice bird. The finish is top notch.

Look forward to seeing it at the AGS float fly at the end of Sept.

[Twowingtj]

Look forward to seeing it at the AGS float fly at the end of Sept.

It will be there. Trish should have her Dynam PBY ready then too.

[Hardway]

It will be there. Trish should have her Dynam PBY ready then too.

Good for you both!!! Those two that I own will still be in the box at the end of Sept!!!! LOL FYI Charlie, the Albatros I received from HK wasn't a retread, either!! Good stuff!!! Blessings to you all!!! Jerry

[John Bergsmith]

How are you guys setting up the differential thrust, and reverse in the your transmitters?

[John Bergsmith]

How are you guys setting up the differential thrust, and reverse in the your transmitters?

Set up instructions for differential thrust.

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?3054251-Spectrum-iX12-differential-throttle-for-twin

[WrightBrosRC]

I assembled mine originally thinking I would program the throttle differential. I've only flown it 6 times now but I just haven't noticed a need for it. Yesterday I flew from our little duck pond and it was great fun.

[John Bergsmith]

I assembled mine originally thinking I would program the throttle differential. I've only flown it 6 times now but I just haven't noticed a need for it. Yesterday I flew from our little duck pond and it was great fun.

It's a great flying airplane. The reason I like the differential thrust is you can remove the water rudder and servo.

[John Bergsmith]

I printed out so radials and installed them in the cowl.

[WrightBrosRC]

I printed out so radials and installed them in the cowl.

That looks great! I was considering the same thing but didn't know a file was already available, or is that your design?

[John Bergsmith]

Here is the one I used. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3545655/files

[AirHead]

I have almost finished my Albatross until I halted because I fell into the "Upgrade" trap. Marketing is such a slick and sometimes evil department that "upsells" components on either a "whim" or a "false pretense" depending on how accurate and true the "reviews" of products are. I also don't want a bird to fall from the sky because of stupid electronic arrangement...Most RC folks know that if you're running 4S power, you're going to want a fairly beefy ESC with at least 10 Amps of "headroom" to handle amperage due to pushing the motors mostly because of weight. So, "HobbyDing" decides to market the Albatross with 30Amp ESC's running on 4S with a "weighty" plane with twin motors and scale size props pulling that good chunk of weight. So then I read online, that quite a few guys did what I'm doing or asked for by "UP-Spec-ing" the ESC's to handle what looks like 66 Amps or higher during flight. Some people reported that their ESC's burned out. Now HK shows they are "Out Of Stock" on the 30Amp ESC units. Gee! I wonder why? Freewing; FlightLine and Motion RC, cover the electrical headroom on their planes so you don't have to tear them apart and buy the "Upgrade" which the designer should have put there in the first place!!! Dang! It's a solid plane; seems well built, but the electronics again are "short-changed" in favour of either "cheapness" or "weight saving" or both. The big issue is that they glued the center section so you have to run in a "pull string" on each motor pod so you can pull in your new upscaled ESC wiring.....Oy Vey.....
Oy Vey!!!.....

[Bluebird]

Hi there fellow Avios Albatross fans.

I have just ordered my second Avios Albatross after loosing the first to a snap roll and tumble out of the sky. This had actually happened twice. Each time it was after a somewhat aggressive flying manoeuvre . I'm thinking the battery came loose and ended up in the nose of the plane. However I've heard these planes don't stall that well and will snap roll easily if you're not careful.

Any thoughts on the stall characteristics of this model from anyone?

Thanks! Bluebird

[xviper]

Hi there fellow Avios Albatross fans.

I have just ordered my second Avios Albatross after loosing the first to a snap roll and tumble out of the sky. This had actually happened twice. Each time it was after a somewhat aggressive flying manoeuvre . I'm thinking the battery came loose and ended up in the nose of the plane. However I've heard these planes don't stall that well and will snap roll easily if you're not careful.

Any thoughts on the stall characteristics of this model from anyone?

Thanks! Bluebird

I can't recall any significant or remarkable flight characteristics that would cause me alarm. It's a fairly big, heavy foamie that has a very mushy roll. Stalling is also unremarkable and without alarm or fanfare - chop throttle and ease back on the stick and it just begins a shallow sink. The only thing I can mention (and it's minor) is that the elevator is a bit sloppy but that may be due to my elevator control rod being a slopping - rod being too small for the horn hole. So far, it hasn't bothered me and if it ever does, I'll go in and try a few things like putting on a new horn or bigger wire for the rod or try more expo in the ELE.