Nice comparison! I have the P-51, the f4u, the t28 and the spitfire, as well as a xk220 p40 with eachine internals. All are really nice planes and easy to fly. Once the trim is set correctly with the bendable rods, they fly straight in expert mode. Flying inverted is possible with all of them, but to maintain level, the mustang and the corsair need elevator full down, where the p40 needs just a bit down elevator and the spitfire flies neutral. P40 and mustang are able to climb very well out of inverted flight and they are even able to fly a "positive loop ". I dont think, that there is any gyro assistance in expert mode. The tendency to roll to the left, when using rudder only, comes from motor torque in my opinion. Aileron rolls to the left are much easier on the mustang and the corsair, compared to rolls to the right. Spitfire and p40 are able to roll easily to left and right. Even though, that all minis fly nicely in windy conditions, they fly perfectly in no wind.
The Mustang has a thick wing and seems to me to handle slower speeds quite well in manual mode. I have not tried the Spitfire yet but I have tried the Xk P-40 and I found it needs more speed to maintain good control. The plus is that I also found it a bit quicker. Happy flying!
Another great thing about these planes: beginner mode gives kids and those new to the hobby the confidence to fly. My son (10yo) loves his p51. Didn’t take him long to start flicking to intermediate for tighter turns and loops. Robustness is handy, though we found the 3 blade prop on my bf109 breaks a lot easier than the 2 blade on p51.
Yeah the prop I broke in this video is the first one I've ever broken for this one. I act like it's normal but actually, for the minis, it's a first' the P-51's never broke!
I have both and prefer the spitfire but that’s partly because my p51 has a weird sideways wobble when flown at speed which has rather put me off it. I also have the 109 but that came with a faulty gyro so I’ve actually only got one fully working warbird! As commented by others, you are a very skilful flyer, especially using the supplied transmitter. I aspire to your skill levels.
Thank you! It comes at the end of a lot of crashing haha! Fortunately, Eachine minis mean anyone can get a lot more crashing done in a lot less time! :) I wonder what's causing your P-51 to wobble. Does it do that with the gyro off? Because a bit of tail-swishing is normal in the wind.
The Eachine warbird planes are rebranded Volantex Legend models from EXHobbies. They share the same electronics and the props are mostly interchangeable but the actual foam body construction of each model is different enough that each model has different flight characteristics. I have the P-40 and BF-109 models. The P-40 is tail-heavy as your Spitfire is, the BF-109 almost flies it's self. The variants aren't just "skins" as you put it, each model has it's own flight characteristics. I plan to get the whole collection eventually to determine which one is the "best of the best" in the series. My next investment in this series will be the F4U Corsair, it's inverted gull-wing configuration should provide excellent stability as long as the CG is correct.
Superb in-depth comparison vid. Interesting to see the airfoil differences. I have the BF109 which seems to use a more similar airfoil to the Spit rather than the P51 with that under-camber. Thanks for putting this together!
That's a great in-depth comparison - and you must have the reactions of a housefly to keep your Eachines in the air out of the gyro modes! Nice flying!
Thanks for the video, I ordered the P-51D about 3 weeks ago and last night I also ordered the Spitfire haha, coming from China so its good to see a video of both before I received them (I'm in New Zealand).
I have the first generation f4u which came out with the P51 and there is a significant difference in the flight behaviour compared to the Spitfire , although the f4u is quite nice to fly in windy conditions (I get a better control in expert mode than the Spitfire). The glazing on the cake is the telemetry for the battery in the plane, after 10' to 12' the sender beeps telling the battery is about to get on empty. Great feature for such small models.
I've got the spitfire but not flown it yet, the p51d I've flown lots in all modes(not so much in advance), I found the p51d very tail heavy when i switch modes straight away its climbing and not very controllable, I'm a beginner flyer, i was flying on a jumper lite radio, good review
I have the spitfire , bf109 and the latest version of the mustang. The Mustang and the Spitfire are almost identical and i can't really pick a favourite. My BF109 is a handful, maybe just how i fly but i find myself in death spirals with that plane regularly which is easily saved if you have enough altitude but it catches me off guard all the time. I cant get the BF109 to fly inverted it just dives towards the ground even pushing full forwards on the elevator, the spitfire i can fly inverted but i havent actually tried with the mustang yet. I suspect it wont work like you found.
I like to fly with 2 of everything, plus about 4 batteries and a box full of spare props. Also repair all the broken props with super glue. Even the battery clip Cracked open as well
Good video. I have the Mustang and the Corsair. The P51D is easy and a slow flyer approaching the stall. Once stalled the aircraft drops wings level. Try that with the Corsair? It tip stalls everytime!!!! Both my aircraft when in expert mode seems to switch off all the gyro assistance so ????
Yeah it's a weird one with the P-51. Another commenter has made me reconsider that it may just be throws and other dynamics that give it those unusual quirks. The control surfaces definitely stop twitching when the switch is in pro mode... I flew them both again today in much stronger winds and have found that the P-51 is simply much more stable on the roll axis - it's loose on the pitch but steady on the roll - the Spit is the other way around.
I had the same two planes,until today.I arrived at my caravan after a month away.And we have had a guest who only likes plane food…they have both been eaten,by a very determined mouse,whilst in their closed boxes.The mouse just made a hole in the top of the box,and ate half of each plane…I’m gutted,as there was NO wind tonight…I’m hoping to chuck the brick in a balsa tiger moth…450mm….wish me luck.
Ah, it doesn't need a video it's very simple; the pushrods should have a 'U' bend in the middle of them. You can get a pair of pliers to pinch the U bend in tighter, if you want to make the pushrod shorter, or get a flat bladed screwdriver into the U bend and use it to bend the U out wider, if you want to make the pushrod longer. :)
It does serve well as a step up from the P-51. Its camo paint job makes keeping orientation more challenging and it is much more free on the roll axis making it more challenging to fly straight and level. It's hard for me to say for sure if it makes a good second plane as I've picked it up six or seven years into the hobby. But as it does a lot of things similarly to the P-51, if you're comfortable flying the P-51 then you're ready for the Spit. :)
