Stinson Reliant SR-10 PNP Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I maidened my Stinson Reliant today, not knowing how it would fly. I was pleasantly surprised. The initial trimming on the ailerons, rudder and elevator were applied; slight 1/2 degree up elevator, slight 1 degree right aileron, and 1/2 degree right rudder. I used a 2200mAh, 3s, 30c, 11.1v lipo cell all the way forward as far as it will go. This battery placement will have the center of gravity (cg) well forward of the recommended cg at the furthest aft. Lodge a foam block to keep the battery from sliding rearward during flight. It flies like a Piper Cub, but more graceful and refined. I don't know if it's the planes art deco lines, or its inherent flight characteristics, but this plane flies like silk. It will do aerobatics, but not full on radical stuff. I'm more of a scale flyer, so basic aerobatics I am content with. Is this a good trainer plane? No. It is only mildly correcting, which means if it's rolling/yawing right or left, pitching up or down, the pilot must correctly apply the controls. It's not a good trainer, because it's not designed to take the beating that a trainer will be able to take. If you're a total newbie, buy a flight simulator and fly the sim for 2 months. After the 2 months' sim training, get the Wild Hawk, Hawk Sky, or Easystar. When you've mastered any of those trainers, then I recommend the Hobbyzone Super Cub. The Stinson is best piloted by intermediates and experts. And it doesn't hurt to have some 3D experience to wring out the potential of the Stinson Reliant.

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First introduced in 1938, the Stinson SR-10 is as much a work of art as a work of engineering. The combination of its graceful lines and unique wing shape give you the sense it’s reaching for the sky even when it’s parked on the ramp.
ParkZone has expertly modeled this aviation classic to give you a civilian scale experience unlike anything else. It comes out of the box loaded with scale details like an authentic paint scheme and markings, molded ribbing in the wings, a simulated radial engine, accurately modeled landing gear and much more. A robust ParkZone® 480 brushless motor power system provides plenty of power for everything from half-throttle cruising to full-throttle sport aerobatics. You also have the option of adding flaps. And it will do it all with the same smooth sport flying manners you’ve come to expect from a ParkZone plane.
Best of all, you can have this Plug-N-Play® version ready to fly in minutes. All you need is a 4-channel full range or park flyer transmitter and receiver, a 3S 11.1V 1800mAh Li-Po battery, and a 3S Li-Po charger.

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UMX Beast BNF Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The mini-Beast is a very fun plane to fly and it looks great. Lots of strengths, lots of weaknesses add up to 3 stars overall. Intermediate skill level and dead calm winds will help.
Good or great:
- Looks great! Nice, detailed paint scheme.
- Thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.35 to 1 with the stock battery and a full charge.
- Stable but very responsive little Pitts Model 12.
- Controllable in a little more wind than other UMs, copes with 3-5 mph but is less fun.
- Functional carbon fiber wires increase the rigidity of an otherwise frail build.
- Brushless motor is strong and very quiet.
- 1 to 1 thrust-to-weight ratio @ 80% power.
Weak:
- Battery & plane use a custom 2-cell connector; doesn't fit a standard 2-cell charger.
- No AC adapter is included for the charger - will leave many users high and dry
- 2:30 minutes flight time at full throttle; 4:50 minute run time at a steady 60% throttle.
- Relatively heavy nose under gravity power unlike most micro 3D floaters.
- High wing loading for a micro bipe
- Flimsy materials--the stronger/lighter Hobbyzone Champ easily sets the quality benchmark.
- Expensive plane and battery system.
Overall:
The Beast flies a lot like the UMX 4-Site but faster. The UMX 4-Site biplane costs 40% less with the same wing span, same wing area, same flat airfoils, but has half the flying weight of the Beast. The 4-Site can hover for the first 30 seconds of battery, but the brushed motor drops thrust pretty fast. The Beast maintains stronger pull, but is not as light on its feet and is hard to hover with the heavy nose and high torque. The high wing loading needs a lot more room to stretch its legs. I don't think slow is a bad thing with 3D foam bipes, in fact, the 4-Site includes optional speed brakes to float the down lines longer and that's a lot of fun too.
The battery system is poorly executed with a custom connector that forces you to use the included charger with no AC cord provided. Attaching two 1-cell batteries in series would have made a lot more sense. I'll be converting my Beast to dual-1-cell operation for longer flight times and more power at a fraction of the cost.
This little Pitts 12 adds a new dimension to front yard flying - barnstorming. But I wish Horizon used stronger foam and priced their UMs to reflect their brief life expectancies, instead of competing with top-end, full sized models. Consider buying a 41" wing span Great Planes Edge 540, a sweet flying 3D monster for around $105 as an ARF. Even the E-flight 42" wingspan Pitts M12 (same plane, different scale) costs almost the same $$ to get flying. The 33" wingspan brushless Art-Tech Pitts Special sells for $170 as an RTF, including a nice radio, solid foam build quality, true symmetrical airfoil cross sections, 1800 mAh LiPo with charger, AC adapter, and a flight sim w/cable for the included Tx. $170 for the flimsy little beast BNF is crazy.
The little Beast would be easy to love around $100.

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Designed by aerobatic world champion Quique Somenzini, the Ultra Micro eXtreme (UMX) Beast® is a thrilling small-scale recreation of one of the most awe inspiring airplanes on the airshow circuit today. And, like the full-scale Beast, it delivers high-powered aerobatic excitement that will put a grin on the face of any intermediate to experienced RC pilot.

At the heart of its phenomenal performance is a brushless motor, propeller and battery combination that delivers a spine-tingling thrust-to-weight ratio. This incredible power output, combined with its well-balanced controls and carbon reinforced wing, allow the UMX™ Beast to achieve a level of precision and performance that has more in common with its giant-scale Hangar 9® twin than any ultra micro you've flown before.

The UMX Beast BNF comes completely assembled with a BL180 brushless outrunner motor and Spektrum AR6400LBL Ultra Micro DSM2 Receiver/BL ESC installed. Built-in long-throw servos on the AR6400LBL drive the elevator and rudder while two independent Spektrum AS2000L long-throw ultra micro servos drive the ailerons. A 2S 7.4V 120mAh 20C Li-Po battery and DC Li-Po charger are also included.

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