14 Signs That An RC Plane SUCKS 

My buyers tip is to call the dollar store to make sure they have foam board before you make the drive out :-)

Buying used often means buying overweight. Repairs almost always add weight; a plane with lots of hours on it usually has additional CA, epoxy, stiffeners, splints, and other stuff that leads to the same thing as eating at McDonald's.

If you really like a plane, it's sometimes better to just buy a second one rather than worrying about the availability of expensive replacement parts. After you wreck the first plane, it becomes your replacement parts for the second. Total expense works out about the same. 🙂

I really wish ALL the manufacturer’s would offer their airplanes in plane white. No decals, or paint. As an option. Most of these airplanes these days look like something straight out of the Barnum and Bailey Circus. Absolutely ridiculous. Let us paint em ourselves. That and the landing gear on all the E Flite timber’s,other than the UMX models need to be positioned a few inches more forward of the C/G and are way too narrow. They’re all, always dropping a wing, then nosing over. Good video brother.

“Not being straight” (the airplane) was the part I couldn’t get past. I laughed and laughed because my significant other thinks me and my friends are “crooked” because we get to and fly models together. 😅

9:10 Not being straight, The airplane 😂🤣😂🤣

Back when I did buy new planes I used to obsess over learning as much as I could before I pulled the trigger. Mostly due to having super limited funds for it. It was mostly over the anxiety of whether this plane was easy enough for me to fly than anything.

A couple of things. 1-spare parts can sometimes be 3D printed. I put my model for for the hobby king P51 Galloping Ghost up on Cults for free. 2-stickers can look great on foamies if painted with clear polycrylic. Helps keep the paint on too.

#4. One of my swap meet planes is a Sig "Blue Star" I got excited that it was balsa and resembled a 4-star. However, the motor is woefully underpowered and the components are all set for 2S.

I've owned like 3 different MPX Funrays which has about a 7 feet wingspan. the first one was PNP, had all the electronics minus the battery and receiver, weighed like 2500 grams fully loaded, the 2nd about 2200 grams, and the last one I decided to go kitbuild and managed to reduce the weight to 1800 grams. that's just under 4 pounds. when the first weight 5.5. such a big difference in weight makes a hige difference in it's ability to stay airborne for longer without needing to use the motor.

Good and important one! 👌🏼 Buying from someone experienced that doesn’t sounds like a car seller is also better as from one unknown that has a lot of junk. $9 for a cheap plastic geared Amazon servo is quite a lot! 😅

Thanks for the awesome content!👍😊

Perfect! Very important tips for beginners!

If you have the chance when buying a used plane. See if you can test the servos there because I had planes with all bad servos that needed to be replaced.

Great information, as always!

I have gradually been adding balsa planes to my fleet. They seem abnormally light for their size and often fly longer than foam due to this.

I'm not very well versed on all the RC planes out there, so thanks for the heads up on the Conscendo. I want that one, or a similar sport glider for my next bird.

My timber had the slats on it. I am stuck STOL, and before learning how slow is too slow, there was a basketful of replacement landing gear. Even though I got to where the gear lasted longer, there were broken and discarded slats. Relearn to touchdown faster. I left the floats on this year. Not just because of landings, but somewhat.

5:57, this is why I'm so excited to fly my UMX Conscendo, I adored my Conscendo Advance for 5 years, until the esc died mid air, but above all else, I just always wanted it to get lighter and stronger/stiffer. This UMX version, which I just got my hands on and haven't flown yet, seems to be exactly that, same power as the Advance, just smaller and lighter, and seemingly way more well engineered, the Advance had some issues to say the least, and out of the box the UMX feels absolutely solid. My only worry is that it's a V1 plane technically, however I'm really hoping the UMX version essentially functions as the 4th Conscendo, and they've taken what they learned on the last 3, and not made the same mistakes on the UMX.

In my experience (scale airplanes) paint is usually indispensable. Have you ever seen anyone sticker-coat a B-17? If all you're after is a foamie to beat around the sky like a bush plane, go for white with stickers and have fun. But those of us who want scale recreations to fly and cover in sweet sweet Callie Graphics, paint is absolutely necessary, and I wouldn't regard it as a sign that an airplane "sucks"

Dude is tied to the chair getting smacked around: "TELL ME WHERE THE FUNCUB IS!" 😂🤣

I love the way to check linkage and push rods😂😂😂😂😂 thank you.

All valid points! With all the hoopla about the Timber you guys do, I’m surprised you haven’t done anything with the Eflite Valiant. It’s a way better airplane.

Thanks for the great video!

Turbo Timber Evo landing gear springs - Remove the inner spring limiters (cut with wire cutters) and I haven't replaced springs since.

Holy crap this was amazing and spot on!🎉❤🎉

Can you make a video with recommendations for what to buy next for different skill levels?

lol V1.... new Caddx X goggles... total BOMB... I planned to hang back 3 months but still has serious issues so went DJI lol

For a used plane, has it been crashed, and if so, how good were the repairs? If something was repaired poorly, it might not fly quite right, even if the original design was good. Same advice applies to any other modifications the previous owners made- converting an older nitro or gas design to electric, for example, might end up changing the aircraft enough to cause problems. For older balsa planes covered in whatever-coat, pay attention to the condition of the covering. Even if it's an unassembled ARF that's been sitting in a box for the past 20 years, the covering may still be falling off due to age. Especially any pinstriping. Well used nitro powered models are at even higher risk, as the oil will soak into everything and loosen up adhesive. Occasionally, especially in the used market, you'll run across a model from a brand you've never even heard of before. While there are certainly some gems in the rough out there, there's just as many duds. If you can't find any information at all from a quick google search, it's probably best to run- if you do buy it, know that it's a gamble. Sometimes, that craigslist find you thought was too good of a deal to pass up was actually anything but- you may have gotten 7 aircraft at a unit cost of $14.29 per, but only 4 of them are even worth repairing back to flying shape and of those, none of them are particularly pretty or well-flying. You would have been better off spending that $100 on one better-quality used model or down payment on a new one. This last one probably doesn't need saying- but don't buy a flitetest style model used. Foamboard and hotglue planes are cheap and fun, but they also only really last for a few sessions of flying before the material gets ragged and the repairs pile up. Plus, the electronics people use on them are often just as disposable, so buying one used is most certainly a waste of money. Similar advice applies to things like lightweight 3d profile foamies which won't ever fly quite right after one good bonk.

I've been using a soft foam glider with motor and radio that I fitted . If the plane breaks, it was only $ 10 . Then, just a little time to refit the good bits and set up again.

thinking about getting a carbon cub rtf instead of a sport cub s2. Good choice? Bad choice? Kinks?

It's so funny that you jump right on to the Freedom Fox and the Draco. I have both and I gotta say that you are right on the money with the Freedom Fox. Out of the box, it was dog sh*t to fly and the stock motor & ESC were garbage. The landing gear is made out of dry pasta and barely held in place. The paint flecks off of it if you so much as touch it and it's stall characteristics are abrupt and nearly unpredictable. Also I nearly forgot about the tires; they are made of the worst imaginable foam for tires. I skinned mine with liquid electrial tape and they are much better now. Once you put the extra money into replacing the motor and ESC, it flies much better. I've also added a reinforcement plate to the landing gear, but the single biggest upgrade I made to the Freedom Fox is adding vortex generators to the wings. MASSIVE UPGRADE!! I can now no longer stall the wing. The elevator now loses effectiveness well before the wings let go. Draco on the other hand... That one is a chunky b**ch. It flies very scale in that you fly it the way you would fly a real aircraft. It's not a stunt plane, so aerobatics are off the table, but I do really enjoy flying it. I replaced the main tires with DuBro inflatable tires and made my own custom hubs with bearings in them. The tires soak up a ton of energy when landing, so as of yet, I have not bent the landing gear. The only "problem" I have had with Draco as of yet is knocking off a few of the scale antennas. Draco gets an 8/10 from me. It took a bit of work to get it to where my standards are, but it's a great scale plane out of the box. I love my Draco! Freedom Fox gets a 2/10 from me. I needed to do some CAD work and replace major components to get it to fly nicely. This one is shelved.

You can put the twinber gear on the TTE as an exact fit.

I brought a timber evolution and I really like it but brittle, so I used clear tape on surfaces and got to hot glue the corner of the wing and hot glue balsa wood and hot glue to strengthen the fuselage, 😅😅😅 but fly great and more sturdier 😊

The best plane I’ve owned for durability, sports flying, and just pure pleasure is my HK Avios Grand Tundra.. I’d buy two more if they became available again 😊

Don't think you missed anything. And it was a blast from the way back past seeing the Senior Telemaster (I learned to fly on one I build in the early 2000s...I miss it.). I have the Turbo Timber Evolution. It's my first foamy. I was away from RC for about 9 years. I "have" been able to fly it...and it's a decent plane (I haven't had to replace the springs yet). I have transitioned to "all electric" as I was one of those who would spend way to many hours at the field (in the way back past) trying to get the nitro engine (always 2 strokes) to run consistently. Thanks as always for an interesting, entertaining, and useful video. (And for convincing me I probably shouldn't go out an buy the scale Kitfox...I love scale btw).

I think in one of your previous videos, you labeled influencers that constantly show themselves fly 3D as sites to avoid. There are a few who do that on the interweb and you are one of them. Most people you aim at are newbies so why show how clever you are with your 3D flying. Most pilots are not into that style of flying. However I will keep watching your channel as you do have some good stuff even if you are a shill for HH

It’s like the Bison a grate plane from motion,but grate if only you tune it up for you. Then it’s a grate plane. Love the plane with out the slats .

I picked up a Timber from a friend's estate. Never flown but after about 10 or so flights the aileron horns became so loose that the flutter almost broke the wings. My first foamie will be my last. I have gone back to my 22 year old Kadet Sr.

the next timber should come with shocks instead of springs! I installed shocks on mine and the landings are delicious and buttery.

To fix the gear springs issue on the timber, as suggested by another subscriber in your timber evo review, just cut the extension limitor off and the springs will never break again, the only downside to this is that they will allow the gear to move waaay more = a hard landing will probably make the fuselage belly touch the ground

6:39- An ALASKA 737! Does the battery hatch suddenly pop out during flight?

Guys... More balsa/composite, less foam guerilla content! Another thing to look on used model is how the plane is inside, in terms of cleaning and tidiness

I havet to add, that the transparent parts of the stickers of my Aeroscout turned yellow by now so thats something to be aware of with stickers. Also, you know those 10 servos for 20 bucks packs from Amazon? Not a single servo of those failed for me, contrary to branded ones (e.g. spectrum 8g servos or Traxxas car servos)

Ha Ha 😂 I have freedom fox and Draco in my hanger. Freedom fox is a handful just like a full size fox . Haven't flown Draco.

Bad mouthing my planes!

Something I would recommend. Does your airplane look cool? Cuz everyone is different and if your airplane doesn’t inspire you to fly, you probably won’t fly it.

I heard one guy on youtube saying that the conscendo evolution is too heavy and doesn't fly well. I decided to ignore him and buy it anyway. after assembling it, I said: damn, why it's so heavy? BUT IT FLIES GREAT. By following hawks I've managed to have some lift on a thermal even with the biggest battery that you can fit in it. One day i was flying with the smallest battery and than my transmitter broke. the plane without the motor flew in circle for a whole minute and then crash into a bush without big damages. I was very lucky but I think that all my other planes would have crashed badly in a similar situation.

Thank you!!! Finally! The arrows marlin. Waiting on parts since august 23? NO SHORTAGE ISSUE. makes nice dust collector, but the sale is extended. SMH

My esc also busted it needs airflow in the freedom fox 😊

always good information! thank you for that! I do have a question? a good plane for a beginner BUT!!! then easily available in the Netherlands? Healthy and Friendly Greetings from the Rotterdam area! Rob

Yes, I have the second version of the Freedom Fox and with the addition of an inexpensive flight stabilizer/receiver, it flies great. But you are right about the landing gear, it is poorly designed and needs modifications to work properly. You would think coming from Flite Test Guys, it would be more durable. These are all good valid points made in the video that new folks to the hobby should review. Also, join a local club, the guys there will help new folks stay away from RC planes and brands that are a waste of money.

To make a case for your point . Let`s look at the Avios mig 15 . Cheap ass plastic geared servos all the way around , landing gear that didn`t work , fire starter esc , and a crap and weak motor , God what junk . What the hell was Avios thinking when they released that thing . When that piece of crap came out , man was I glad I held off buying one . Instead of fixing it`s problems , they offered it in airframe only condition for three hundred dollars . What a burn . That`s why I`ve avoided Avios planes like a ten cent hot dog . Thanks for this video . A guy can sure get burned if he isn`t careful .

🛑🛑 Wow!! I did the hobby for 15 years. I built MANY planes; both Scratch and Stick Kits. I’ve gotta say, if you showed up at the field I belonged to, back in the day; with Foam Prebuilt Planes ( 🗑️)…most guys just started laughing and walked away. 😂 Gone are the days of Stick Built Kits, Mono-Coat, and Pride as to what you bring to the field. 😂🤣😆😅💯

The Draco was a beautiful static model - I wish they released a less super scale wooden model. Such a disappointing release though the challenge of landing it stol is fun for skilled pilots.

It's high time for E-Flite to do a V2 of the TT Evo. The overheating ESC issue, crappy front motor mount setup, and wimpy landing suspension needs to be addressed. The ESC should be placed further forward in assembly, an upgraded cowel needs to be designed for better air flow, and the current TTE landing gear springs need to be replaced with the Twinber landing springs setup. The 850mm Pitts has landing gear issues as well, the axles aren't secure at all.

Hey Tailheavy, I was wondering if you have any suggestions on a good second plane with more than a 5 minute flight time that you can "fly outside the box" with, any thoughts?

I have a Conscendo, and I love it.

I am glad you didn’t talk about my mother this time. 😇

So, how do I know what “version” a plane is ? Are they supposed to be version numbered like! 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, etc ?

The HobbyZone Super Cub was discontinued because it was TOO GOOD

It's like you looked in my hangar. Draco: I hate to love it, but love to hate it. OG Timber: Still the best. Conscendo Advanced: My peaceful Zen flyer.

Wait, who should I be buying servos from? finding 9g metal gear servos is impossible aside from some emax knockoffs so I'm all ears for new sources.

3:51- to be fair, we don't ALL fly our foamies as hard as you guys do! Just watching that bushflyer RV-8 video.... OF COURSE the paint is gonna flake when the foam has to flex like that. Many stickers bubble or ripple when exposed to a sunny day so I'm not sure paint is such a bad thing for many of us.

I stll fondly remember a friend of mine in the 70s who "inherited" a crash from his older brother, spent a few months rebuilding it, getting off the ground and losing some commands, basically it became a crash again. Undaunted, he rebuilt it, as a low wing for good measure, and we took it flying on a beautiful day, it got airborne, porpoised a few times, and suddenly went straight vertical. And kept going. A lovely windstill day, we saw it climb with no rudder or elevator command, then the engine stopped, and it gracefully turned over and came down again. Ed didn't know why command had failed but I saw two patches of heat shrink skin superglued to control horns with no screws in them... Anyhow, he salvaged the motor and electronics, and set fire to the rest. 😹 Ed had - briefly - three other model aircraft in the time I knew him, I have no idea how many afterwards, but I heard that he got his private pilot's license when he was in his mid 20s...

How about a new timber with 3 motors and smaller aileron surfaces?

You know the planes and RC cars are bad when 30 creators get them on the same day and post a video at the same time. They praise it as if it is made of gold all so they can continue to get free ones. FMS and Banggood are notorious for sending them to every creator with over 1k subscribers. It's crazy how naive people are buying these products, complaining, then buying the next one in line hoping the creators have become ethical this time around. I can name a bunch, but I won't. I'm sure you can name a bunch too. The best part is they name a bunch of things they like about it. And a few things they dislike. Like, the radio uses too many batteries, and instructions are black and white. I wish the wing was yellow, not white, or it was missing a staple in the parts bag. The best dislike, I had to mount the tire on the wheel with my own glue. Something irrelevant to the RC plane or RC car's performance. 😂😂

never had a problem with a multiplex model with original power setup, they might be boring, but never problematic, and will happily endorse them to beginners

A lot of people flying them also suck at flying them.

the FT Freedom Fox V1 is to expensive for the quality you get. Tires are bad foam rubber, the motor is to weak, the flight characteristcs are disappointing as well. I had one landing where the Prop hit the Gras and immediately the ESC caught fire. I have other planes where this happened, but I have to say, I never before and after had an ESC going up in smoke at all. Rather go with Tundra 2 from Hobby King, or FMS Piper PA-18 much more fun and better performance as well as durability at a lower price.

:laughs while hot gluing Home depot foam to make another flying wing with whatever garbage I have lying around:

I sell mine when I get bored 😂 usually they are good deals

Two words (or 4 combo'd together?) FliteTest or Scratchbulit RCG .

Yes, bottom loaders suck but another grievance from Horizon Hobby is the habit of discontinuing "great" models. I own several and fly them as if made of gold because when they are gone, they are gone. Jim

My buddy and I successfully pur twin timber gear on the evolution.

Can you make a review of HOBBYZONE Aeroscout?

An STOL foamy? Drop flying ice chests.The longer you fly ‘em, the more you’ll agree. No absolutes but yeah, mostly. If that’s the only thing to buy, build one. Learn about differential drag when lowering an aileron and high speed stalls. Aerodynamics is what it should be about and balsa planes don’t need replacement parts either. It’s actually possible to build them.

Tell you what, the UMX Turbo Timber Evo is awesome. Don't know about the full size but the UMX is really, really good!!!

I’m diving into the balsa myself

I have a small number of planes that fly really well, always. So why do i gravitate to the others?

Right now i have the hobbyzone aeroscout

Draco is a Fun Plane to FLY... but you must FLY IT!!! it was sold as "its great STOL plane for in-experienced".. I watched countless chop the throttle to land it and it would slam down (due to fore mentioned weight) and pound the OVER RATED landing gear.

Good one🤠👍🇿🇦🛩️

Not gonna lie that no decal ultra stick looks kinda fire.

I have had MUCH better luck keeping balsa airplanes flying than foamies.i am still flying my sig somethin extra with a used OS fx46 engine for 4 years now. I bought a timber x last summer and it lasted about 3 weeks.....

Absolutely love the voiceover. You guys are hilarious! I really agree with the used plane stuff as well. I live for Facebook plane deals but you have to be careful for sure.

I almost bit on the Freedom Fox. Josh was so excited about it! I'm glad I waited. My FT Bushwacker flies circles around it!

This video is “muy bueno!” You guys are really the best! I drank the Draco juice and bought one. It is still in the box after 3 years. The plane I fly regularly is a FunCub XL I picked up used at the hobby shop. I’m not the best pilot and do a lot of backyard flying and that FunCub always puts a smile on my face. I had looked into the Freedom Fox and couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t more popular as a stol plane. Now thanks to Tail Heavy I know! Thanks for the awesome content and honest, spot on info! 👍🏻👍🏻

My Draco is a beast,.... not obese

The motor on the F-27 Evolution has no name on it and is so hard to find these days.

8:44 You put Loctite on a bolt or clevis before you assemble it, not afterwards. 🙄

Draco? Really? That’s one of the best flying scale foam planes horizon has ever produced..

While those issues are all somewhat valid, they really look like "first world problems" to someone who started in the last century ;). Fixing issues like that was to be expected from the owner, since the manufacturer would rarely do it and rather keep selling the same balsa kit for 30-40 years, with the degradation of the stamping tools becoming really visible in the final runs. It DID lead to many, MANY people quitting after a few crashes though. Starting out was never easier, besides from the legal patronizing of late.

You guys are always right and thx. And the Turbo Timber Evolution is my favs still and I’ve had to cut the retainers on the landing gear springs and it works as good as the Twin Timber. And the motor mount sucked 1st time it broke and now I 3d print a new one. Now it’s the most durable plane I have…

That’s why I scratch build balsa planes. If I paint it it doesn’t wear like foam and if it the plane sucks it’s my fault

Great advice we’ve all been burned

All good advice. I have the version 2 of the Freewing Avanti S and it is improved, but I’m still flying V1. I also purchased V2 of E- flight Cessna 150T and it is awesome.

I really with more planes were available as an airframe only for people who prefer to select their own electronics.

i 3D printed a timber motor mount with petg

I might be old-school, but most of this stuff is part of this hobby. If a motor mount breaks, just make a new one. I've had many planes that kept flying way past their expiry date and were held together by more epoxy than the original airframe. And if there's a poor factory design that's destined to break, don't keep buying the same part, just make something that actually works. But again, I'm probably the minority at this point with my DIY mindset.