Oversized Wing-Wing?
The Wing Wing is one of those planes that people just love. All EPO foam, a simple design, easy to build, easy to fly, durable, and a ton of fun to fly, The main directive of the Wing Wing is to make it a little speed demon. It’s loud and tears up the sky like nothing else. When the C1 was announced Matt Osborn put out a video saying that we’re all going to get divorced because we’re all going to buy one. He was crazy about it, and then another video came out where he said he hasn’t flown the plane in six months, why? The short answer may be that it’s not a Wing Wing. Yet, this is a plane that stands on its own merits.
The C1 Chaser-Overview
The C1 is a 1200mm EPO foam plane with a similar build to the Wing Wing. It looks like something that you may expect to see flying at Tomorrowland at Disneyland in the 1970s. It’s a Delta Wing with a serious spar going through the middle of it. The main bay is HUGE and can hold a lot of FPV gear if that’s the route you want to go. This plane is an excellent platform for FPV. It also demands larger batteries. Your 3S 2200mAh battery is probably too light for this plane and will need extra weight just to get it to fly. So, the downside to this plane is that you may need to buy some new batteries.
My FPV plane gripe
The radio controlled plane hobby is evolving. It started out from the need to simply fly planes line-of-sight. That means, as far as you could see it was as far as the plane could go. So, the planes were built for fun over short distances. But the newer FPV planes are designed with gear-loading in mind. They are designed to hold a lot of gear and travel much further distances than 2000 feet, so the fun factor for line-of-sight flying is forgotten in models designed for medium to long range flights. These flights are usually minimal on turns, going in fairly straight lines is the objective. Instead of being sports cars they are more like cargo trucks. If you try and fly them line of sight they do work but they may not be as fun and responsive as you would imagine them to be. The large Skywalker planes are not on my radar because I don’t plan on doing this type of flying. So, when I see planes like the C1 Chaser my first impulse is to think that it won’t perform. But, to my surprise, it does perform.
C1 Chaser - Normal Build.
What was suggested on the Banggood website.
11.1V 3S 3300mAh 20C Lipo Battey,
2212 2200KV Brushless Motor
6030 2-blade propeller
30A ESC
Hmm, the high KV motor and small blades means fast and loud. I put on an 8 inch prop with a triple bladed propeller instead. That provides lots of thrust and requires low amounts of power. It flies well even on 2S though hand-launching is more difficult with 2S. What I had to do was go through trial and error with batteries to figure out which one would work the best. I managed to make it fly with a 2700mA 2Sh battery with a little extra nose weight. The glide characteristics were off the charts! It caught thermals and increased in altitude with the motor off. I still didn’t have the right amount of weight in the nose which made it a bit hard to control. But it floated like a cloud. The lightweight characteristics meant that it didn’t have to move that fast in order to maintain flight. This is important if you plan on catching thermals.
The FPV Build
11.1V 3S 5200mAh 20C Lipo Battery
2217 1400KV Brushless Motor
8060 2-blade propeller
30-40A
This motor is heavier by around an ounce. That is counterbalanced by more than an ounce in the front The propeller is 8”, along with the motor it can definitely provide thrust. That battery is very heavy so it’s going to weigh the plane down. Yes, it will work with your FPV gear but it’s going to be a much heavier plane. It will require more energy to keep it moving and will need faster speeds to prevent it from stalling.
What do you want?
When you weigh this plane down it’s no longer a lazy glider. The extra gear is expensive, so perhaps you may want to work up to the heavier build of this plane. With more weight it won’t fly the same. It’s going to be harder to launch and is a lot less care-free in flight. My suggestion is to start off with the lighter batteries, figure out how to fly it then add your gear. When it’s built light, and you get the CG right it is very, very manageable in the air.
3 Thing I do and don’t like about this plane
#1. It’s a lot of great plane for the price!
Like the Wing-Wing, you get a lot for your money. For under $50 (USA) you get a plane that is actually very well built. The servos mount on the top which help prevent them from ripping off when you land on the grass. The lid snaps on and actually stays in place during fliight. The motor mount is not weak like the Wing Wing’s motor mount. It has different noses for FPV or non-FPV flying.
#2. It’s resilient
I’ve unfortunately given mine a good crash. Other than a broken propeller it was fine. I think I was more lucky than anything, but still. . . it can take a bit of abuse and hang in there
#3. It’s versatile
A lot of planes are one trick ponies. They are great for one setup only. What i like about this plane is that it can go many different directions. Do you want go full FPV? Sure, it can do it. Do you want a plane that you can fly with iNav? Yes, this is perfect. Do you want to make a glider? Why, sure, give it a try. Since it’s cheap it may be the model you use for more than one build.
What I don’t like
#1. It’s pure white with ugly decals.
White affects me more on some planes that others. This one just looks cheesy in white. It looks lIke a large flying styrofoam cooler. If you haven’t read my review of Krylon Foam Primer, this is a good time. This plane is begging for a good paint job and lamination. Since it’s in many pieces that are easy to paint separately it can make a very nice two tone paint scheme or even 3 tones.
#2. Cameras may be difficult to mount.
This ain’’t a Bixler. There are not many different mounting options for your FPV cameras. There is a hole in the nose that fits a camera lens. Which one, I don’t know, perhaps a Runcam? Other than that, it’s self-contained which makes it hard to mount cameras. Perhaps you can leave the lid off and make a base out of plywood? I’ve seen people mount cameras on the wing with Velcro.
#3. No spare parts
I don’t know what will happen if you break a motor mount. Supposedly, Smallpartscnc.com is making and aluminum motor mount for this plane. The owner tells me it’s on his wish list. If you break an elevon perhaps you can make new one out of foam or balsa wood. If you break a winglet and can’t glue it back together you may have to get creative with cardboard or foam. But, if worse comes to worse you simply buy a new plane and use the broken one for spare parts.
Overall
I fly this plane with a smile on my face. It’s a lot of fun. When properly trimmed this plane is very maneuverable. It can do flips and spins and various stunts though planes this size tend to not be as sporty as smaller planes. I am impressed how well it moves around a fairly small park, it’s very controllable. This is a plane you really need two versions of:
Version 1
This is the heavy build. It’s fun to fly this plane on 4S. For me a 2200mAh 4S LiPo worked perfectly. I had a 8x6 triple blade propeller. Yes, it tears up the sky. And yet it’s still fairly floaty. I’ve had larger batteries in it with longer run times. The extra weight helps the plane penetrate better on windy days. But, it flies like heavy planes do. This seems like a great plane for iNav or FPV. It also seems like it could do some good intermediate iNav flights. Perhaps out and back 4 or 5 miles. Play with different batteries, make it go for speed or distance, or perhaps tone it down a bit and have it float a bit more. Strange to say, but even with this build the plane is versatile. Just by changing batteries it can be a completely different plane. That’s what makes this plane so appealing in my book. It’s different flight characteristics on one build give it range.
Version 2
The goal of this is to make this plane as light as possible. I am going to power the plane with a D2208 1400KV motor and fly it with an 8” folding prop on a 2S battery. The idea will be for it to catch thermals. You can think of it as a low powered power assisted glider. The key will be a good launch. It may be underpowered for takeoff so the difference between success and failure may be a good shove into orbit. It may be a glider that you can take to the glider spots on windy days.
A word about launching
Matt Osborne talks about “The duck” of this plane, You launch it and the first thing it wants to do is fall back to earth on its belly. This can be reduced by tilting the nose up and giving the plane a good firm toss. Learn how to do it with your left hand. It needs to nearly fully power to take off but once airborne you should cut back on the throttle if the angle of attack is too steep.
Ideas for your first C1 Chaser
I’ve learned quite a bit about building planes and have learned a lot from my mistakes and less than stellar ideas. The motor mount can take huge motors and I know you may be tempted to start off with a D3536 as your first motor. I don’t know if this plane will balance with that heavy of a motor. Thus, to be safe, stick to 50g and 60g weight ranges of motors. There are a lot of great motors in this range.
Painting the plane
If you stick with white and land it on the grass over time the bottom will look very dirty as it rubs along the wet grass, time after time. This is a plane ripe for painting. If you don’t primer it first with Krylon Primer the EPO foam will melt a bit. It will give an alligator skin texture. It doesn’t look bad, but you may not like it. You can paint the wings one color and the fuselage another color. I painted mine red and black in honor of my college (San Diego State University). It looks so freaking sweet low to the ground. But at high altitudes the black is a bit difficult to see. My second C1 I painted the fuselage blue, the wings white with blue tips and red winglets. It’s a patriotic American red, white and blue. I am waiting on parts before I assemble that one. EPO foam is smooth and thus doesn’t need a lot of paint. Paint does add weight so try to get your painting done in as few coats as possible.
Lamination
Lamination reduces drag. It adds strength and rigidity. I go for a strong 5 mil lamination.
Battery- Start out with what you’ve got. Add weight onto the battery to get the plane to balance. For example, start out with a 3S 2200mAh battery if that’s what you’ve got. Go to hardware store, buy some lag bolts. They are long and heavy. Figure out which ones make your plane balance the way you like. Weigh your lagbots and battery combination. This weight combination is what you should look for in your next battery. It can be 3S or 4S if your motor supports 4S.
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