Multiplex Easy Star

Multiplex Easy Star 1

The Bixler line, the Sky Surfer, Volantex Ranger line, and Finwing Penguin and Sabre all have something in common. They are mid-fuselage pusher planes.  But, who started this branch of excellence in RC flying?  The Germans. The Multiplex Easy Star to be exact.  It's just a bit smaller than the Bixler 1/1.1/1.1 v2

A different concept

Efkute Radian is a similar concept, the prop is upfront

The Easy Star is a foam trainer with extra rigid wings. The wings feel a bit more like EPP than EPO foam.   Thus it's durable.  It was designed for new pilots, a type of trainer where the prop is not at the front or back of the plane and thus less likely to get damaged.    And, it's only 3 channel.   It has elevators but no ailerons.  It steers by the rudder.  The dihedrals in the wings help keep it stabilized.   It's the basic concept of the Horizon Hobby Radian.  The Radian is two meters and has a prop upfront, but other than that, they are similar.

The joy of floating

I can't explain floating to people.  You either enjoy watching a plane fly Line of Sight (LOS) and floating on the air currents, or you don't.   I find that it's like Indian food, you either simply love it, or you avoid it.   If you love it you seek out planes that can float well,  this is one of them.

Rebuilt with left-overs

I used the Racerstar  BR2212 2200KV motor

I found this plane for sale used.  Someone had pulled out the stock brushed motor that came with the plane back in the era where brushed motors were a thing.  He was going to put a brushless motor in it but didn't get around to it.  I just finished the plan.  The plane was rebuilt with stuff I literally had laying around.


Motor:  Racerstar BR2212 2200 -  I believe this is similar to the DYS D2826/6 2200KV motor.   I think the original motor may be around 30g heavier.  With a 6" prop it's plenty powerful.  The motor is only 2S and 3S. Honestly, the plane flies great on 2S

ESC:  Skywalker 20A-  The motor tops out at 21 amps.   So, technically, the speed controller should be around 25A.   If I were going to weigh down the nose and fly this plane at full throttle all the time on 3S then yes, it would get the proper speed controller.  But, that's not what I am doing.

I found a motor mount from the Bixler 2 that I wasn't using, That seemed to be a bit too large, but I made it work.  It wasn't pretty but I sent her anyway.

The maiden

The first flight was with 2S.  Not only that, but it was at 1/3rd power the majority of the flight. Needless to say that it doesn't take much to make this plane fly.   It floated like crazy. It's simple yet stunning to fly.  It just floats about the air currents which is both simple and relaxing.

Old School still works

Something off-topic but does drive the point home is 'In & Out Burger.'   For those who don't know, In & Out Burger is a Southern California institution.  It offers a couple different burgers, shakes, fries and a few drinks. That's it.    The most famous burger, the 'Double Double' is essentially two beef patties.  There really isn't much to the burger, it's nothing you wouldn't find elsewhere. Meat, cheese, onions, buns, etc.  Though there are variations of the burger that can be ordered (such as Animal Style) there are no "Southwestern Double Double" nor "Chipolte Double Double"  nor "Monterey Double Double." 

Don't try and fix perfection!

As an experiment, we took these delicious burgers home and added avocado and bacon to it.  So, what was learned with our experiment? It's simply the economic term "The Law of diminishing returns" in action. The avocado was nice, but not needed, and for whatever reason, I couldn't really taste the bacon.   You see this same thing happen when beautiful gals go a bit too far with playing with their hairstyles. Sometimes it's counter-productive. 

The Easy Star is the same thing, it just works, and it's beautiful as it is. There is no need to fix perfection.

The Easy Star, the plane that started the sensation

I can easily hack the wings and drop in ailerons and flaps if needed.   I can put a flight controller in it, as well as a camera, VTX and GPS.  I can make this a full INAV plane.   And yet, I won't.   Why? I mean, this is what I do.  I look for odd planes to put INAV into, and this would be a perfect fit.   The reason why this plane works is because it's light and simple. Once I start weighing it down with gear, it's a small Bixler, and perhaps not as good as a Bixler.   For around $45 US you can buy the SkySurfer any day of the week from Banggood. It's an EPO Chinese knock off of the Easy Star,II and a much better plane to hack and improve upon.   The Skysurfer has ailerons.  The Easy Star did capture lightning in a bottle with the original concept. The only issue was that it came out at a time before brushless motors were popular.   The brushless motor upgrade makes it fly even longer.

Multiplex blinks

The Easy Star II has five channels with the addition of ailerons.   So, I will say this as a guy who owns a Bixler 1.1, 2, and Sky Surfer.  The original Easy Star is perfect.  Like the Radian, the rudder is all you really need to turn the plane.  Sometimes, less is more. Unless an Easy Star II falls into my lap I wouldn't spend the extra money on it when I could have a Bixler 2.  If you would like to add things to the Easy Star such as more servos and FPV, it's far, far better to buy a Bixler 2 or Bixler 3 and start from there.  Why?  Both planes are larger than the Easy Star and can take the weight a lot easier.




This plane has been for sale for the last year.   It's the Easy Star II with FPV already added to it. The ad claims it has a flight controller.  It has a long-range VTX in it. So, why is it for sale?   Without flying it, I would guess that the plane is heavy and it doesn't take long before the battery voltage is depleted.   Had this gear gone into a Bixler 2 or 3 it would float better, and take larger batteries.


Update:  Motor mount and new motor.  I wrote to Terry at SmallPartsCNC.com and asked him to find me a mount for the Easy Star 1.  Keep in mind this plane hasn't been made in a very long time and thus the demand for the mounts are gone.  But, he found one. This allowed me to put on a one inch larger propeller.   So, this is what I did.


I put on the Racerstar 2208 1400KV motor.  It's around 13g lighter.  Then I put on a Master Airscrew 7x3 prop.   I sent the plane out for a flight at 6 AM.  The old 2200 motor  was loud and I wouldn't ever think of sending it that early when people are sleeping.  But, this plane was so quiet that it didn't matter. 

This flight was with a 3S 1500mAh battery and lasted 40 minutes.  It floated effortlessly in the sky.   And yes, I probably could have put in a 3S 2200mAh  battery ahd let it float around in the sky for an hour. 

Did we leave something behind?

There is a simplicity and honesty to the Easy Star that got lost in translation when these planes went from Germany to China.   Yes, you can still buy the Easy Star 2, but it's not the same thing. Perhaps it's like talking about LP vinyl albums.  There was a time that you would put on the Beatles Abby Road album on your record player and listen to it. Then you would have to get up and go flip the album over and listen to the other side.  You would often listen to the entire album and see how it was structured.  Now you'll hear "Something" from that album mixed in with other songs from other artists as they are streamed. It's not the same.

 For around $45 you can get the Sky Surfer from Banggood and leave off the servos on the ailerons and perhaps get a plane that's 95%  as good.   Therefore, I am not saying that you should search high and low for this plane.  But, just the same, it's about as enjoyable as listening to the Beatles Abby Road album.

5 things I've learned about the Bixler 2

As the administrator for the INAV Fixed Wing Group (Facebook) we get people of all skill levels coming to the group. Often we get guys who come to us from quads who want more range and longer flight times. It’s not surprising that people’s next quad is often their first plane. The topic comes up of what would be a good INAV plane. Planes such as the Reptile S800 and Sonicmodell AR Wing (900) often come up first because of their ease of use. I like flying wings because they are easy to repair after a good crash or two, or 10. But, many suggest that a good 5 channel plane is what’s best. The name “Bixler” comes up, again and again. This is surprising because the plane is has been out for at least the past seven years. It’s still beloved and still a favorite of many. These are the top five things I’ve learned about the plane.

1) Glider with trainer capabilities- The word “trainer” more or less means “useless” once you learn how to fly. Trainers often go in the corner of the garage, rarely if ever used again. The Bixler 2 is easy to fly and would be a good plane for a first plane. The good news is that you won’t grow tired of it and want to retire it. With glide characteristics like the Horizon Hobby Radian, the Bixler 2 is a plane you’ll enjoy for a long time.





2) Highly stable, but not a speed demon. One of the reasons why it’s so loved is because it can fly smooth and stable even in less than ideal conditions. Some people like stable fliers and others can’t stand them. The Bixler 2 will help you discover the airspace, and drift on wind currents and help you find thermals. The swept up wings make it less than ideal for being a fast flier. The STRIX Stratosurfer is similar to the Bixler 2 with flat wings so that you can get the speed you desire. It also has an injection molded plastic fuselage so it’s very durable,


3) Version 2 has flaps



This is the original Bixler 2.






I didn’t care for the graphics of the original Bixler 2. The newer graphics are a lot more appealing The real change is that the Bixler 2 now has flaps. I have this plane as a LOS flyer for my first plane, and I didn’t use the flaps. I can say that I’ve never wished for flaps when landing. However, I could really use them for taking off.


Flaps can also help for slowing the plane down for catching thermals. At 1500mm the Bixler 2 is a great size for riding thermals. I once got the plane stuck in a thermal and I was barely able to get it down before it floated up to the stratosphere. My thinking now is that catching thermals is fun, but I would like to do this FPV in case this ever happens again. Flaps can also slow the Bixler 2 down for a landing. The 2 is more prone to take its sweet time landing and I can see how having flaps can get it back down safely when it needs to come down quickly.

The flaps are on hinges whereas the ailerons aren’t. Strange, right?


4. Launching is an art.



Mid-fuselage pusher planes like the Bixler and the Volantex Ranger are notorious for dipping under heavy throttle. This means as the Bixler takes off the plane will want to push itself into the ground. The , unfortunately, the result is a lot of failed launches when you're not launching into a mild breeze. For this reason alone I find the Bixler is less than ideal as a trainer. It's a great plane if someone who is experienced can launch it for a new pilot. I find the solution for a good takeoff is a short run with a level launch at around half throttle. This works well 95% of the time. I usually have my hand on the nose so the plane is less likely to pitch when I let go of it.









5 ) Buy the kit- If you're not one to spend your weekends with a bottle of glue and a set of build instructions then the PNP is for you. If you're not afraid to get your hands dirty, by all means, buy the kit. Throw in actual metal gear servos and spend time thinking about which motor to purchase. If this is a plane you’ll hopefully be flying around for at least the next few years then you’ll want to outfit it with good stuff. In my book, motors are a subjective thing. You can run with a strong Sunnysky X2216 motor if you like, or you can get by with one for half the price. I figure if you don’t dig your motor you can always upgrade it when you’re itching for a change. The plane does a lot of floating so you don’t really need an outrageous motor unless you’re loading it up with excessive gear and weight. If you’re coming back from flights and your motor is always hot a change may be needed sooner than later. Though you may not go top shelf first, make certain that the motor offers enough thrust to fly the plane without struggling.


Servos are the main thing that would draw me toward a kit instead of the PNP. My rule of thumb for the plastic servos that come with most PNP planes is to just leave them, and you’ll change then out, eventually. Hopefully, you’ll catch them starting to fail and replace them before the situation turns critical. I’ve gone years flying with plastic servos in certain planes and they haven’t been an issue.

When you build a kit, you’re signing up for customization. The metal gear servos are just a start. There is a lot we can do with this plane to improve the way it flies, how long it flies as well as make it better suited for certain tasks.






Is the Bixler 2 An ideal INAV FPV platform?

We have a number of members of our INAV Fixed Wing Group on Facebook who start out with an AR (900mm) Wing and love it. The only wall they hit is that the flight is over 8-12 minutes later. The Bixler 2 makes a lot of sense because 20 minute flight on a 3S 2200mAh battery are common. Depending on the weather it can be even longer. The Bixler 2 can take larger batteries such as a 3S 3000mAh battery and a bit larger. This can help you hit the half-hour flight windows. But you do have to be careful with the amount of weight you’re putting in the nose. The plane really isn’t designed to hold an extraordinary amount of weight in the nose and doing so increases the likelihood of damage. It also changes the flight characteristics, namely how it glides. The Bixler does like a bit more weight on windy days to help it penetrate but I would be careful with not overloading it. The other issue is that the elevator may have a problem with the extra nose-weight and may force the plane down if you rely too heavily on it doing things like stunts.

Of course with longer flight times you can go out even further, which is a mixed blessing. The risk of you never seeing your plane again goes up the further away the plane gets. Extending your flight range is something you want to ease into, perhaps going out 100 meters further with each circuit you make. When you start taking on mid-range flights you’ll need to consider the range of your transmitter and video transmitter. You may need to start playing with new video antennas to extend the range further. If your dream is long-range FPV the Bixler 2 may be a very good way to work your way up to it. The FrSky L9R maybe a perfect compliment to this plane, allowing you the distance up 6KM if not longer.




If you’re looking into mid-range flights another worthwhile addition is the SmallpartsCNC.com Bixler 2 Motor Mount adapter. With this you can put on larger props and turn the Bixler 2 into a cruiser. What you’re giving up for speed and agility you make up for in extended flight times. This is an all aluminum CNC machine motor mount and well worth the money.



Overall

I did a little research into what the original version of this plane was.  It was the Multiplex Easy Star. That plane is a 3 channel plane, elevator, rudder, and throttle.   It's less than 1400mm which means it's smaller than the Bixler 1.1.    The Easy Star is a well-designed plane but is a trainer.    The Bixler line added ailerons to the design.  The Bixler 2 now adds flaps.

If anything, you can argue that the Bixler 2 is over-engineered.    I say, cost per feature it's perhaps the best value RC plane on the market.    Now with FPV this is a plane that can chase thermals and stay afloat for long periods of time.  I find the Bixler 2 to be like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  It may not be exciting all the time, but it's good and it will make you happy.

There will be more to say about this plane when I get it flying in INAV FPV.