Official FlightLine OV-10 Bronco Discussion Thread

[desertdrifter7]

Mr. D. Thank you so much for the flap-elevator issue in the manual. I just looked at the copy I downloaded and, sure enough, it states to add up elevator when deploying the flaps. That appears to be the opposite of what is needed. I could see someone following the manual and, while backing off the throttle to land, putting the plane into a stall.

[Racer944]

I overnight in Ogdensburg taking flights up for SkyWest from Chicago. Was amazed to hear the lengths people go through up there to get around all the government taxes and fees in Canada.

Cool, its become a great little airport!

So in my case, its actually not so much the government fees and taxes... The big advantage lies in the fact that its usually free shipping within the US for most things, but as soon as it crosses the border, shipping for a plane like the Bronco is an additional $75. Then you have the "brokerage" fees charged by UPS/FEDEX to do paperwork to clear customs, etc., and that can easily add another $60-$80 to a plane, so you can see it adds up quick. In my case the government still gets its tax dollars as I always declare the parcel crossing the border and pay my Canadian sales taxes at that time. Since I live 35 minutes from the border crossing its a no brainer for me to drive and save what is usually in the neighborhood of $130-150 extra fees per airplane.

Sorry to sidetrack the discussion!

Cheers;
Eric

[Racer944]

I also live in Canada and it's only about 3 hrs to the border for me. However, expedited shipping for this plane is about 50 bucks US (so about 70 Canuck bucks). With expedited shipping, there is no brokerage at this end, only GST and if paid online (FedEx account is free to set up), no fees for collecting it. I calculated that the fuel used in the car to drive down there, the wear and tear (mileage) on the car, my time is worth a lot to me (6 to 8 hrs), waiting in line at the border and all the bugs on the windshield, 70 bucks is a bargain, so really not a "ton" of expense. It's only about 100 clicks and maybe over an hr drive each way for you, so your expenses and time won't be as much as mine.

No Brokerage fees on FEDEX expedited shipping... that's good to to know!

In my case its really close to me and the border crossing is never busy, so its worth it. I agree though anything more than an hour or two would not be worth it for me either and I would simply pay the shipping to get these great planes from Flightline....

Cheers;
Eric

[RCGuy83]

Here's the Bronco taking off and landing off-road. This dirt area may look smooth but there are rocks hiding under a very soft layer of dirt as well as some weeds I mowed through. The landing gear is quite strong and has lot's of shock absorption for off-airport operations. The Bronco is a 4X4 pickup truck of the skies!

[James]

So excited everyone will be getting their Broncos soon! Love when our container comes in early!

[Hardway]

Right on time!!! Thanks MRC and team...

[Alpha]

I was secretly hoping for 14 days early, but I'll accept 13.

[RCGuy83]

Battery placement is a non-issue with the Bronco: Put 2X 4,000's all the way forward against the foam bulkhead for perfect CG and you're good to go! I have my timer set to 8.5min and even then was landing with packs at 3.82V-3.86V per cell. I hear some are already looking to add more power but the stock system has plenty of power and allows for the very long flight times. Loitering at altitude the Bronco can putt around at 30-40mph or less heading into wind. Top end speed flat and level averaged 60-65mph and making strafing runs I hit a max speed of 75-87mph. Once you get the plane moving with some momentum behind it she will boogie on the top end! Those 9.5X7 3-blade props sound great at full song too! During the course of an 8.5min flight the Bronco covered 6.3mi of distance.

[OV10]

Hey pilots! I want to share my experience with the new Flightline OV-10A Bronco. As a customer service team member at Motion RC it's important we get a feel for the build and flying of new products so we can better assist you with any questions you may have. The build is nice and simple like most all Flightline products but following James' build video helped me with the wiring. Being able to take 16in off each side of the plane with the removable wing tips makes transport much easier. The battery tray is large and the canopy has the most volume of any Freewing/Flightline canopy I've seen making it perfect for FPV operations. Once built the Bronco is a sight to behold having an aggressive look sitting on the flight line poised for action.

With 18 flights on my Bronco in a variety of conditions I can confidently tell you that you're going to love the way it flies. I'm flying mine with an Admiral RX600SP gyro stabilized receiver in Combo C for gyro on/off. It doesn't need a gyro but when the wind kicks up it does help keep the large profile of this plane more stable. It's very easy to pilot the Bronco like a trainer but you can also throw it around the sky on high rates and use unusually large amounts of rudder to increase maneuverability. The Bronco is not a one-trick pony. This is a plane you will start trusting the more you fly it and explore the edges of the flight envelope. Add full rudder deflection with any roll and the roll-rate will dramatically increase. The Bronco will do really tight loops or you can make them large and gradual if you desire. The entire back of the wing is movable control surface so when setting it up step back and make sure it's all evenly set across the wing. The quad flap setup allows for some very short take-offs and landings. The landing gear is stout so fear not taking this bird off-road to the forward operating base. With full flaps and full power you're off the ground in 35-45ft (less with some headwind) and climbing out to altitude very quickly. I found the manuals flap to elevator mix to be the direct opposite of what is needed. The more flap you put down on the Bronco, the more nose down elevator trim you need to keep the nose from shooting skyward. Setting the same manual published percentages to nose down vs nose up settled the plane on approach perfectly. Using two 4,000mah 4S packs I am happy to report 8.5min flight times. Having been flying more EDF lately it was very nice to have so much time for activities up in the sky. I could take off, stunt around exploring the flight envelope, and work the pattern for a few minutes before taking a good landing. I'm very excited to see and hear how others experience this unique aircraft.

Throughout testing I tried to capture the Bronco in a variety of different ways to show what it's capable of. The view from the horizontal stab using a RunCam was my favorite media capturing position on board the aircraft. I chose not to cut this demo video up to show the full 8+min flight time. The winds on this flight were all over the place and it was extremely turbulent at times both above the field and on approach but the Bronco can cut through. If you're on the fence about purchasing one go ahead and hit the happy button. You won't regret it!

Please note this issue new Bronco owners. I called this out on post #340 after doing my maiden 3 weeks ago on May 21.
You will also find the DX9 settings for the Flap/Ele mix corrected for down elevator on that post.

Aros Hope that Motion puts a correction note on the product page also

[t01ga]

I hope the EU stock won’t be long. Now the waiting game got even more harder!

[OV10]

Here's the Bronco taking off and landing off-road. This dirt area may look smooth but there are rocks hiding under a very soft layer of dirt as well as some weeds I mowed through. The landing gear is quite strong and has lot's of shock absorption for off-airport operations. The Bronco is a 4X4 pickup truck of the skies!

YES IT IS.........as I've said before, this is going to be the ultimate all terrain twin for those wanting to venture into twins.
For those who have never flown a twin..............Do this Bronco first then the Tigercat and then the Lightning

[Marco Polo]

I hope the EU stock won’t be long. Now the waiting game got even more harder!

EU shipment is approx 2 weeks away.

[t01ga]

EU shipment is approx 2 weeks away.

So was the US but arrived 2 weeks early. So I am hoping we might get our shipment notices some what early as well.

[themudduck]

I just got my shipping notice! (well sorry I didn't see the posts earlier on, oh well)

[boomer108]

I received my notice this morning will be here tomorrow. Woo hoo!!

[RCGuy83]

The OV-10 makes for an excellent camera platform. Both of those Freewing T-33's were DJI FPV equipped and being flown FPV. I ran an oval and they formed up around me. With all of us in communication on the ground we were able to coordinate some really neat shots. Video to follow......

[xviper]

No Brokerage fees on FEDEX expedited shipping... that's good to to know!

In my case its really close to me and the border crossing is never busy, so its worth it. I agree though anything more than an hour or two would not be worth it for me either and I would simply pay the shipping to get these great planes from Flightline....

Cheers;
Eric

Just in case I called it by the wrong name, just check whenever you are in the check out for the shipping method. One of them will always state that there will be no brokerage fees upon arrival. Oddly enough, that method seems to always be one of the cheapest. Then you can count on another bit for GST and PST (if you have that). Pay it online (with FedEx) and they don't charge a collection fee.
When Motion used to use UPS, they called it "world wide expedited".

[Mad Baron]

Got my shipping notice today should receive it on Thursday and it will go into storage until I get my Fokker D8 off of the workbench. Too many projects but it keeps me busy

[desertdrifter7]

OV-10 I just took my Tigercat out today for a stroll in the air. I love flying that plane as well as my P-38. If the OV-10 flies as well as these two planes I will be overjoyed. Flightline has done a great job with their multiengine planes. Can't wait.

[xviper]

Just in case I called it by the wrong name, just check whenever you are in the check out for the shipping method. One of them will always state that there will be no brokerage fees upon arrival. Oddly enough, that method seems to always be one of the cheapest. Then you can count on another bit for GST and PST (if you have that). Pay it online (with FedEx) and they don't charge a collection fee.
When Motion used to use UPS, they called it "world wide expedited".

@Racer944 I just checked the shipping for this plane. There is no such thing as "expedited" with FedEx. That was with UPS. The 50 bucks shipping DOES have brokerage as extra when it gets to us. The brokerage included price is over $100.00US, so I'm not going to choose that way. For me, it's much cheaper to go with USPS since Canada Post's brokerage is very small and reasonable.
Sorry for any confusion I may have caused. It's tough importing anything into Canada these days. Gone are the days of UPS worldwide expedited with Motion. I got spoiled back then.

New information. I looked at my old statement for this plane. (I had to cancel the order for personal reasons but am now ready to re-order.) When I first ordered this plane (during the pre-order), the "no brokerage fee" FedEx shipping was $74.00. It's now $106.00 US. WOW, something happened in the last 3.5 weeks. Not sure what I'll do now. Gotta chew on this one for a bit.

[Marco Polo]

FedEx and UPS started adding a per pound surcharge (varies by country) to all international shipments on April 6th. More details here: https://www.fedex.com/en-us/shipping...-and-fees.html Since they claim it is COVID-19 related we should see the surcharges removed at some point in the near future.