RC India

I was under the impression that Skysurfer is a single branded plane and every model sold by all the LHS are from the single manufacturer until i saw this Skysurfer from rcsportz.com. Just received one a week ago and thought of giving a review about it.
Have seen 2 models of skysurfer and a bixler, should say this one is much better that the counterparts.
Seems like this manufacturer refined lot of issues from previous models.

First with the wing mounting type.
unlike the other manufacturers, this one was provided with a tube-rod type for easy and secure mounting.
the split wing comes with a slightly bigger tube(8mm?) pre-attached and glued to it and a 6mm rod was given to attach both the wings inside the fuse very similar to bixler. its just the tube-rod fitting gives a good feeling of security than just inserting the CF rod directly inside the foam wings.

Easy open motor mount for access.
Often with more crashes and hard landings(arent they same?) there are pretty good chances with these models that the bullet connector can come loose and the motor will stop working. and it becomes your worst nightmare to find the esc wires inside a 10mm gap and put it back to the motor. There is a hatch kind of lid surrounding the motor in this model which you can open to access the motor and the esc wires easily. this hatch need to be secured with a cello tape or can be stuck permanently with foamsafe glue( i stuck it with cello tape just in case!!) This is a time saver option for people who crashes their models often and experience the loose esc wire issue.

Lot of Space inside the battery bay.
when i mean lot, i mean a LOT of space inside that you can even use 2x2200mah without compromising much on the esc and rx space and can still have the canopy perfectly closed. The canopy even comes with the foam part and transparent sheet part separate for FPV guys. you are no longer needed to surgery the canopy to fit your fpv equipment. just use the foam part alone(this option is my favorite as i bought this mainly for fpv)

apart from these you can see perfection in build quality in every areas which makes it flyer friendly like,
>The esc wires can be accessed from 3 different areas which aid easy troubleshooting.
>2 patched of velcro provided to use with wings, better than going with screws.
>Screw guides are also quite impressive in terms of fit. the screw goes in and out like a charm. I still remember fiddling with my friend's bixler to put the screws on !!
>guide path for aileron servo wires shoots out in two ways, you can either choose to connect them inside the fuse(not so easy way) or you can connect them outside the fuse near to the canopy(easy way)
>ive personally seen one aileron servos on SS from other LHS fails right on maiden and forcing the first timers to fly only with rudder. The electronics provided with this PNP model is just great. works good even with KK board on open aero(while even some branded servos dance to and fro when connected with a KK board and open aero.)
>control horns are provided with screws instead of just glue-on type, another sense of security. I added epoxy to make it more secure.

I didnt fixed the horizontal stab with glue, instead used some velcro and made it detachable such that it can be easily transported easily in the same box it came with. see pics for more info. this makes it easier to carry the model on a bike.

Maiden flight today gave an average of around 20mins with a bit too much wind(will upload a aerial video soon taken from the same model) with a 2200mah tigerpower 3S battery. so the best case would go even more than 30mins with lot of glide timings.

Overall i am satisfied with this model and it feels much better than any other SS from other manufacturers. Feels like a refined bixler in PNP form for just Rs.5350. Competitively this LHS is good at price and quality of the products.

Pics follows. Please refer the seller site for other technical info like Wingspan and motor specs.

Ashok.P

Motor access area, packed plane in same carton box.

Lot of bay area, CF tube inside the wing for rod insertion, much stronger way of securing wings.

Two way servo wire routing for easier connection.

Finally my way of detaching H Stab and mounting wings using just velcro and CF rod(No screws!!!)
The velcro Hook in the fuse holds the fur in the wings and stop them from moving outwards, the CF rod makes it impossible to flex. no difference in performance noted sofar with this mod and holds as good as a screw mounted one.

The H stab is connected just by two pieces of velcro and the elevator push rod stops it from moving. No slop and no difference in performance noted so far makes is convenient for packing.

Ashok.P

I had to completly glue my skysurfer , the first flight the wings came off , the second the motor mount broke lol . But its a good flying plane (multiplex easystar is 10* better) but i realy enjoy this plane .

I havent flown easystar, but this SS from this manufacturer seems pretty much professional in every aspect. ive seen Bixler 2, SS V2 before.

Have been flying this model for a few weeks now and has helped me quiet a bit in my bid to transition from surface RC to the skies. Have crashed this model multiple times. After a few crashes, have had to glue the wings permanently in. Duct taped the nose and the hinges of the control surfaces, the horizontal stabilizer,tail fin and few parts of the fuselage have seen quite a bit of glue.It still flies beautifully although it tends to always climb and you might be caught doing loops unintentionally (would be a great help if somebody can tell me how to avoid this). All in all have been happy with the model and would recommend it as a excellent beginner plane. The bixler upgrade videos on you tubes are something that can be very helpful to those owning this plane for the first time, lot of information there.

This model is designed for a complete beginner who might find it tough to transition from chucking the model and getting back to the stick and i presume that is why its designed to climb with full throttle, it flies good with half throttle and glides best with no throttle. I too find this a bit annoying but since i will be using 2x2200mah lipos, i think this will be resolved, or i will put some washers in the top mounts to make the thrust line go up, i think this might solve this issues, will update sooner.

Ashok.P

good detailed review ashok

sahil

Yea Will Love To See The Video Too !!!
Regards,
Aman.

Feared of getting the model out of my home due to things happening in Chennai. had just one flight so far.

sir where do you fly in chennai??

JK

Here is a video of me flying the sky surfer. It was the first time I was flying an RC plane outside the simulator.

http://youtu.be/AoG7WkXBC3Y (http://youtu.be/AoG7WkXBC3Y)

@drksargod,
Excellent first flight. Well done. {:)}

A few suggestions for your consideration:
- avoid getting the model beween you and the sun. Lost my first electric that way in 2007!
- try using less throttle. It will be slower and more relaxing.

Best wishes.

your flying field look nice and look here for beginner tips.

http://www.rcindia.org/beginners-zone/flying-tips-%28reminder%29/msg211608/#msg211608 (http://www.rcindia.org/beginners-zone/flying-tips-%28reminder%29/msg211608/#msg211608)

Thank you Mr.Iyer. As a beginner was more exited to just get the plane in the air and had some twitchy fingers. After spending some more time on the simulator my control has been now improved.Cant over stress on the importance on spending time on the simulator. Will definitely implement your advice.

Thank you sahilkit. That is indeed a very informative post. :thumbsup:

https://youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=eU5cLp3X6LI

Speed pass video.

https://youtu.be/-Wy6GYRENSQ

Little stunts.

All these videos were taken after some 10mins of normal flying. The tiger power lipo is worth every penny. Didnt knew where the juice came in for a speed pass at the end.

nice flying although i would not dare try them on my current/setup model, may be a low slow speed pass  ;)

I totally agree with Mr.Ashok .The tiger power lipos are really Good.Thanks to RcSportz.. :hatsoff: :hatsoff:

And the customer service are really good.The products are amazing and the pricing too.

Thank you Rcsportz.. :salute:

@v2 eagle,
Very nice flying.
Esp fast inverted pass and slow/ gentle inverted landing.  {:)}
After 10minutes of flying?
How much battery are you using?
2x2200?

Very nice Ashok!  {:)} {:)} {:)}

As you bought a PNP, do you know whivh motor (KV & Size) ESC & Prop are used? There is a guy who flies with us; he too has a Skysurfer bought locally and it seems very underpowered especially compared to yours

I fly with single 2200mah 3s. 30c. Holds charge great. The model is quite lighter than other manufacturers and pretty strong hence this performance, the motor is 1800kv, didnt know what brand or size, 5.5inch prop, pitch unknown. Wings held together with just velcro not nuts. I think the lesser weight and a 30c lipo is the reason, will weigh the model by eve and post it here.

I use the same battery, and its been good till now. However I need to  add weight at the tail end to get the CG right even after I have pushed the battery all the way back.Is it the same for you?

The specs says 1600mah right? So a 2200mah is a little extra weight in the nose.

Iyer sir, that 10 mins is a mixture of full throttle and no powered gliding. Gives about 12mins of powered flight in average throttle.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qoMfv_TcS00&feature=youtu.be

Three in formation.

Nice video :)
Regards,
Aman.

Good quality planes from RCSportz....

Lost my canopy Today while in fight... The wind took it to a wooded area and could not retrieve it back after an hours search...the magnet must have come loose... Guess will need to fabricate a new one...

Few night flying pics from my ss.

https://youtu.be/c1H2D1gy8-Q
VIdeo

My FPV adventure: Landing with Goggles on!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dSdW-_zkLY&feature=share (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dSdW-_zkLY&feature=share)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOr4T-xySrk&feature=share (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOr4T-xySrk&feature=share)

Ashok.P

Spectacular!

 :goodjob: Ashok  :salute:

Wow Those Images Are So Good !!! The Plane Looks Amazing With The Led Lights On it.
Regards,
Aman. :D