Topic: Speedo Thermo - anyone for Speedo MoM racing?

I saw one of the little Speedo Thermos flying for the first time last night - much impressed - very light but really shifts. Dead cheap off ebay too e.g.
RC EP 1.2M Speedo Pro Mark II Thermo Glider Sailplane on eBay (end time  26-Apr-10 09:55:11 BST)

So - since Flying Fish racing hasn't got off the ground - how about Speedo racing instead? So cheap they are almost "disposable" - just take along a couple of spares to the races. Light so it bounces on rough landings too. Could probably get a load of them shipped over even cheaper?

Crazy idea? - what do you think?

Phil.

I was eyeing one of those up the other night... if only it had rudder.

Racing would be fun, shame I live in the a$$ end of no where.

Voila!- did this soon as it arrived.

Voila!- did this soon as it arrived.

Didn't know you had one Cliff, but if I did know, I would not have expected less of you  !

Racing would be fun, shame I live in the a$$ end of no where.

1st race is Cornwall then!

(next is Devon)

Phil.

Didn't know you had one Cliff, but if I did know, I would not have expected less of you  !
 
Yeah- bit old hat now but I posted this a few months ago of it being flown in good lift at .... you know where!

Speedo Thermo- Acro? on Vimeo

1st race is Cornwall then!

(next is Devon)

Phil.

ehehe, easy win for me as I'll be the only one there!



Hows it fly Rog? The off centre rudder only good for snaps spins etc?

I gots one too - but no rudder like Cliffhanger's, just std.
There is a big thread on RC Groups about them, they substitute foam/glass wings etc. NO NEED! they fly fine without uprated wings (or rudder CliffH!  ).
I'm in for a bit of "one make" racing. Bring two to the slope for redundancy.
Rules: Standard Speedo Thermo. No Mods whatsoever - apart from strengthening wing seat area - neccesary in this model, unfortunately!
No Ballast.
Perhaps a maximum weight  limit- with a weight check in the back of someone's estate before racing - they are small enough to fit there in most orientations.
That's it!

Just realised - isn't there an uprated version of the ST that they sell now? What's the difference to the original?

Phil - do you mean MOM racing (probabaly) or F3F type racing?

Clive.

Count me in for some MOM-as Phil said we could get a large shipment, as quite a bit of the price is shipping from H.K.

Steve- no understand "The off centre rudder only good for snaps spins etc?"  

I gots one too - but no rudder like Cliffhanger's, just std.
There is a big thread on RC Groups about them, they substitute foam/glass wings etc. NO NEED! they fly fine without uprated wings (or rudder CliffH!  ).
I'm in for a bit of "one make" racing. Bring two to the slope for redundancy.
Rules: Standard Speedo Thermo. No Mods whatsoever - apart from strengthening wing seat area - neccesary in this model, unfortunately!
No Ballast.
Perhaps a maximum weight  limit- with a weight check in the back of someone's estate before racing - they are small enough to fit there in most orientations.
That's it!

Just realised - isn't there an uprated version of the ST that they sell now? What's the difference to the original?

Phil - do you mean MOM racing (probabaly) or F3F type racing?

Clive.

Yep deffo MOM racing - Speedo vs. Speedo  
standard Speedo but with any necessary strengthening if they need it - sounds good to me
weight limit - good too

going OT/OTT:
- extra points for wearing your Speedos outside your trousers?
- need some publicity materials - pics of girlies in Speedo bikinis holding speedos? like those 1970s RCM&E cover shots (ah, nostalgia)  
- Speedo sponsorship?

Phil.

Count me in for some MOM-as Phil said we could get a large shipment, as quite a bit of the price is shipping from H.K.

Steve- no understand "The off centre rudder only good for snaps spins etc?"  

By off centre I mean it isnt balanced, as in the rudder is only the top 1/2-2/3 of the fin. Does it induce roll at all?



If a group buy shipment thing is coming over I'll have one.


The new version has an uprated fuz from reading the blurb.

I will be up for a bit of that kinda action  ,
              you should set a weight limit though or you get the glassed wing Kevlar sleeved ,Lawn dart gang wanna race, i think mines 380 grammes , so anything under 430 ish would be good so the guys that want rudder have something to work to and others can just add a slither of lead to get the weight up, not that it needs it  ,
                        Anyway great idea Phil , i would be up for it , to be honest we could also have speedo fastest 1000 meters as long as its witnessed and post times up to see who is getting to grips with it , but MoM racing would be really great fun im sure , like you say at the cost per unit they are really good value , you could have had a fly on mine mate its just a shame you fly mode 2
 or is it i who am odd flying mode 1  , great debate for a different day , i love me split stick madness.

              Bob


p.s dont buy em from Ebay , they are cheaper Here R2hobbies.com - 2 Channel RC EP 1.2M Speedo Pro Mark II Thermo Glider Sailplane, Fiberglass / Balsa Wood Made, rcpl71016_p_code , if you register its 10 percent off so do it , i just get emails saying this n that , but worth 10 percent off .

   Also i have had 3 of these , every one is a different 1 , the original was Eggshell , needed carbon tow and strenghthening , the second was the best , its the same as you have Rog , the Third variant , is as strong as the 2nd generation , but the wing does not have the triangle cut out for the fuse , i like a triangle slot idea as it splits the tape joining the wings , also the 3rd generation has 2 wing bolts , which is nice .

Just ordered one from R2, been threatening it for a while but never got round to it, also was nt that keen on a grey fus. Anyway bittten the bullet and ordered a white and red checkers one off them. £49 including P&P paying through paypal. Can't wait, sold a couple of small soarers recently and this should fill a gap in my fleet.

JJ

OK Phil - ball's in your court - get on to R2 and see if there is a "club buy" discount.
Would like to know where this proposed race series would take place - I rarely venture out of Wales...
Cheers,
Clive.

I've got a mk1...was flying it last Wednesday...great toy.
So second race in Yorkshire....after the Cornish event.
Afterall Tinkers is the home of mid-airs......

Had one of these for a while now and it really is a bargain, I don't know how they do it for the price and it's nicey built and covered too. Mine cost £45 inc. P&P with no taxes to pay and arrived less than a fortnight after ordering direct from R2hobbies.
 The only mod I've done is to epoxy the wing halves and carbon spar together.  You'll find that the plane is compact enough to fit in the smallest of cars fully rigged so why have the complication of loose panels, a spar to lose maybe, and then having to plug/unplug servo leads all the time. 
AUW of mine is 388g (13.6ozs) and it'll fly in a fairly good blow or in the lightest of breezes. Top model! 

I have emailed  Aure (of R2hobbies),
         Asking him for a price for 10 delivered to the uk, will let you know if he has a deal with me


                       Bob

So the 3 race should be up here in Northumberland. Speedos abound here I'got 2 a mk1 and mk2. Fly's at every opportunity
Best place is R2 Hobbies.

Ok , i got a reply
   He wants me to join his wholesale group but having to spend $1000 to get a better deal is a bit much .
            This is his reply anyway .


The total amount with special offer will be GBP 414.55 = USD 632.51.
Please kindly inform us if you will accept this offer. We'll then send you a payment request to complete the order.
Besides, you'll enjoy our wholesale offer if your single purchase reaches USD1,000. Please kindly inform us if you're interested in joining our wholesale group. We'll then contact our wholesale department to reach you for further details. Thank you very much! : )

           p.s Kindly remind, our membership system is now in effect. Do join us and enjoy exclusive 10% off discount for the whole order!

                 If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Have a nice day!
 
                                              Yours Sincerely,
                                                        Aure

so there it is , we would need 10 people willing to purchase them , and then they would need posting from wherever in uk they arrive from . on a personal level i dont think hes having that much of a deal ,although £42 per unit is a better price than you can get from R2hobbies direct.              
                                  So What say You All?

                       Bob


BTW hes only got 23 left in stock and they are all white wings(gold carbon trim) with the Grey Fuse

Hi BobbyR

Thanks for taking the time & effort to investigate this.

Personally - if I'm reading this correctly - the difference of £3.00 for postage to one's home is negligible and for all the work involved in repacking & postaging by the "group buy organiser" would be a no-goer. Too much trouble.
Best to order individually I guess.

Now see what you can do with GiantCod on a package of Rx, battery & 3 mini servos!!     

ONLY JOKING!!

Clive.

Hi BobbyR
Thanks for taking the time & effort to investigate this.

+1

Phil.

Hi BobbyR
Thanks for taking the time & effort to investigate this.

+2

As Clive says, after repacking and sending individual consignments it's probably not worth it.

Saying that I'm still hoping the MOM racing can be a goer.
 
I bought a Flying Fish in the hope of some MOM but that seems to have fallen through.

Your Very Welcome Guys  ,
            It was only an email in pidgeon english so they understood what we needed ,it was no trouble really
     And i do agree that after repacking and sending on , its not gonna be worth the few pounds saved. So sorry it didnt work out better  .
         I also agree that we should have an event organised somewhere for some fun MoM racing , and if we had a set distance timed,  the people who are unable to attend the race can still compete if they video it and have witnesses , i think i trust people to be honest its not like theres a prize at the end of it  .
                                     Just think it would save on people who cant travel being able to participate in a little cheap chinese fun .


                    Anyway I am sorry Aure wasnt more helpfull ,

                                       Bob

like the "postal" comps for thermal etc. (so they still do that?) - all do your thing on the same day at your own site & post up your results - might just work, certainly worth kicking the idea around some more

Phil.

At the risk of appearing thick  what is MoM ??..

great looking model for the money i'm deffinately interested in one of these, anyone one know what they are like in light conditions ( winds) or do they like a blow??

At the risk of appearing thick  what is MoM ??..

Man-on-man racing - or more accurately - model-on-model, except the models aren't supposed to be on the other models, even when they all go around the turn together, and sometimes get in a muddle.
Just like EPP60, but with cheap crunchie Speedos - which are probably cheaper than EPP60 jobbies, and don't need all that nasty EPP, tape, goop, gorillaglue, spackle, more tape, solartex, more goop, new stuff lam film, and more tape...
Phil.

  thanks Phil,
  Brain wouldnt engage 
Are they any good in light conditions??

Are they any good in light conditions??

seems so - see post No.15 above
they are pretty lightweight

Phil.

...............Are they any good in light conditions??

 In a nutshell, yes!  

I wouldnt take it out in less than 6 or 7 mph depending on your site , but 10 mph is the start of its sweet spot , 25mph its amazing , 35mph things get a little hairy , and ive flown mine without ballast in 40+ mph  . im not saying it was a doddle but when it actually did tac out across the slope it was so fast it was amazing fun.
        This is a wee beasty , and an asset to anyones model collection . havent met a flier yet that isnt impressed when they see it ,for the money .
 
                           Bob

havent met a flier yet that isnt impressed when they see it ,for the money .
 
                           Bob

Satinet didn't like his!!  I remember he thought it was twitchy or so.  He's right, but it's a 1.2mtr sub 500grm ship, so they do suffer when it's strong & blustery.  Watch Cliff's vid for the opposite if twitchy though, and mine on youtube for the definition of poorly over-controlled twitchyness.

Steve - please buy one and put one of your tarantino's togethert...

R

mines never suffered in strong wind in fact it excelles, only time its twitchy is when im in the rotor

           Satinet , was you flying a cheap chinese imitation and not a real speedo Thermo ?

                               Bob

Here is a quick vid of Cliffs Speedo in pretty light (for the Bwlch) conditions
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eap-3J6f3m0" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eap-3J6f3m0</a>

P.S> I don't use goop on my EPP racers. Just foam and laminating film

Thats not twitchy , that looks pretty much bog standard build Speedo .

             Think its a nice little plane

                                   Bob

Thanks all 

Think i will have to invest in one they look just the job 

All we needed was a cliff of the hang vid to set things straight, looks like a sweet little flyer, defo on my list of buys, prolly wont be till later this summer tho.

Just about to start on mine now,the destructions are very vague but it all looks simple enough anybody got an idea of auw and c/g,also any tips/hints gratefully accepted

Just about to start on mine now,the destructions are very vague but it all looks simple enough anybody got an idea of auw and c/g,also any tips/hints gratefully accepted

 This post on RCGroups may be of some assistance.............RC Groups - View Single Post - speedo thermo 1.2m

Its a shame this thread dropped off, could have been fun.

I'm trying to scrap together enough cash to get a couple of the R2hobbies models as they're cheapo and ideal for light summer air and flat field.

Thinking about their Passer X and Bulero





The Passer I'll leave as is for flat field thermal days and the Bulero will prolly have a bagged wing and X-tail mod.

I would get the Speedo but racing for me would be a once a year occurance and I really like the fuz shape of the Bulero.

Bought one with some spare cash in my paypal account. Inevitable Qs.

1) Instructions? Looks fairly obvious but there are a few bits in the hardware pack I'm scratching my head about
2) Wings, looks like someone has "over-ironed" the film as there are woody outlines on most of the ribs. The film hasn't been punctured but it's very tight over the ribs and the wood is showing if that makes sense. All my gliders look rubbish anyway after I've flown them but was wonder f I should care.
3) Saw a servo q on another thread. Have some servos but did everyone else get two mounts to screw onto the ribs. I think the bit of ply I have in the pack is for a servo mount for the wing, but I only have one!

Looks a nice little model, shame about the covering :(

There is no Ply servo mount for the wing m8 , that's for the fuse servo .
        You can do it 2 ways with the wing servo m8 , you can

1.  stick the servo to the covers and screw these to the wing
or
2. Use a little 5 min epoxy on the servo in the wing where it touches the balsa , Not loads but just a small amount to secure it , then screw the covers over the top
  that's how Ive done mine and its fine .

     The ply plate is for the elevator servo mount , i put mine under the cockpit as far back as poss to leave room for the battery in front .


          Bob