Topic: Pred 3 or Strega?

Flew my first full house mouldie this week and was well impressed on the maiden. Since I'm going to be racing I might just need a backup so its good to start looking around sooner rather than later
Been hearing some good reports about rcrcm build quality improving.
Which one floats your boat?

Funny enough I've just been looking at Olerc, they have both available as seconds and i believe free delivery. I was wondering which one.

Let's see if we get any responses.

I've seen an older Strega which flys very well on our local slope. I'd be happy with that.

Nothing about the P3 except they are fast.

They are similar money.

Without making a blatent plug for the Willow.

  Would it be mad of me to suggest that youu go to see Tony Fu and look at the models?  A much better option than trusting a direct sale.  I know that the quality of RCRCM models have been variable in the past.  but it's ownly an opinion.

ian

They are at the barcs fair.
I'm sure there will be some knockout offers I cant refuse.

I'd contact Tony first to see what he's bringing to the fair. I know he's majoring on his servo bearing sets, so let him know if you want to see something specific.

Both the Strega (I have one) and the Predator are good models but I recently saw a Willow and that's very nice too and definitely a good price. If I was in that situation at the moment I'd definitely be tempted with the Willow.

Let's see if we get any responses.

I've seen an older Strega which flys very well on our local slope. I'd be happy with that.

Nothing about the P3 except they are fast.

They are similar money.

Which has the fastest times?

JH

Without making a blatent plug for the Willow.

  Would it be mad of me to suggest that youu go to see Tony Fu and look at the models?  A much better option than trusting a direct sale.  I know that the quality of RCRCM models have been variable in the past.  but it's ownly an opinion.

ian

I went to see Tony Fu a few weeks ago and have an Opus GT on order, I took a look at a Willow and to be honest the finish didn't do it for me, it was a beta version. He's since told me he has some new ones which are much better. I will take a look at them when I go to collect the Opus and maybe bring back a Willow instead.

Would it be mad of me to suggest that youu go to see Tony Fu and look at the models?  A much better option than trusting a direct sale.

As the one who bought directly and sort of triggered this, I agree completely.

The only reason I went direct (and for a second) was that my budget was such that it was a choice between that it not having a new mouldie.

If the budget had been higher then going to Sloperacer, T9 etc. would have been my preferred option.

I went to see Tony Fu a few weeks ago and have an Opus GT on order, I took a look at a Willow and to be honest the finish didn't do it for me, it was a beta version. He's since told me he has some new ones which are much better. I will take a look at them when I go to collect the Opus and maybe bring back a Willow instead.

I would consider a beta willow, in fact I already did but it was already sold. Maybe tony will bring one them to barcs. What money were they tony?

If its quality your looking for why would you consider a second from the other side of the planet?

Not sure about tonys motive, but for me it's 400 quid versus 650 for a Strega. We all know that the first landing may put worse dinks on such a machine.

Learn to land first then

Others have had good experiences buying from this supplier but I wonder who will be the unlucky one who spends a few hundred pounds and gets something they are unhappy with....  Maybe wrong but I wouldnt expect any customer service with such a company.

 

I would pay the extra and get a carbon layup, whichever model you choose.
It will be worth it in the long run - glass will damage a lot more easily.

Pays your money and takes your chance.
Couple of guys are setting up the P3 as we speak on the other forum. That'd be one to watch.

The Willow would probably be better for me than an Opus, I Just didn't like the finish of the beta version. A seconds Stega or Predator would probably only have one or two marks, can't say it gloats my boat buying from HK and the problems that it could entail.
If the new Willows are better than the one I saw a couple of weeks ago I will probably buy one of them, they are a good price.

I would pay the extra and get a carbon layup, whichever model you choose.
It will be worth it in the long run - glass will damage a lot more easily.

Does the choice of model matter that much for someone contemplating having ago at F3F, buying a carbon layup makes good sense because of the strength. Would a Rookie be able to appreciate the difference between a P3 or a Strega?

I've got the latest improved carbon strega which is nice. Only flown it a few times so far but felt right from the maiden with cg perfect -thanks to Zim and tony fu for their advice. Mates got the predator 2 and they are very similar. He's got the glass version predator which comes alive with a little ballast, where my carbon strega would be ok empty as a little heavier.

I've got the latest improved carbon strega which is nice. Only flown it a few times so far but felt right from the maiden with cg perfect -thanks to Zim and tony fu for their advice. Mates got the predator 2 and they are very similar. He's got the glass version predator which comes alive with a little ballast, where my carbon strega would be ok empty as a little heavier.

Get 6 slugs in the Strega and report back.

Would a Rookie be able to appreciate the difference between a P3 or a Strega?

I'd respectfully suggest not.
My limited experience of F3F has taught me one thing at least,
It's not what you've got, it's what you do with it that counts.
Oh, and consistency!
IMHO buy a well looked after s/h F3F and get stuck in.
It'll take a while to get used to the extra performance and will probably need a lot of flying/experimenting with settings to get the best out of it... AND get some race experience - then you'll start to be able to appreciate the differences between the various F3F models.
Phil

Does the choice of model matter that much for someone contemplating having ago at F3F, buying a carbon layup makes good sense because of the strength. Would a Rookie be able to appreciate the difference between a P3 or a Strega?

Not really relevant that, since im asking you guys for opinions on which is best, if no one can tell the difference then fair enough.

Not really relevant that, since im asking you guys for opinions on which is best, if no one can tell the difference then fair enough.

I think what they're saying is that when you get to that level, different planes suit different people - you need to get the right plane to suit your exact flying style, there is no overall 'best'.

And correspondingly if you aren't at that level where subtle aspects of handling make a difference to what you can get out of it, and I know I'm not, then any of the top 10 or more planes will be pretty much the same for what you need.

I've gone the route of buying planes I can afford to crash then getting lots of practice with each one so I can start to get a feel for what changes in the 'feel' of it when I tweak this or that.

I think what they're saying is that when you get to that level, different planes suit different people - you need to get the right plane to suit your exact flying style, there is no overall 'best'.

And correspondingly if you aren't at that level where subtle aspects of handling make a difference to what you can get out of it, and I know I'm not, then any of the top 10 or more planes will be pretty much the same for what you need.

I've gone the route of buying planes I can afford to crash then getting lots of practice with each one so I can start to get a feel for what changes in the 'feel' of it when I tweak this or that.

Good point, i hope im past that point now. Anyway i have the nyx furio for now. Thatll do for now. Im sure something will come along. Perhaps importing is not the best idea for me anyway right, that deal brought something like towards budget, but at 400 plus servos, still looking at 600 or so. Barcs next weekend, perhaps something will turn up.

Good point, i hope im past that point now. Anyway i have the nyx furio for now. Thatll do for now.

I think that to get to that familiarity with one plane that I'm talking about, you'd need a tens of even a few hundred hours flying with it. I don't know how often you get to go flying but given just the planes I've heard about you having over the last couple of months you'd have to be flying in overlapping shifts to have managed that!

What cracked that idea for me was when I was about to land after my customary 10 minute flight before switching to another plane (I usually take three or four to a slope, including foamies), and a bunch of hikers came across the restricted landing area, then stood around talking, waiting for the slowcoaches, taking in the views and generally not getting out of the way.

I had to keep flying for nearly an hour in the end, and just that one flight made me so much more familiar with the plane and what it could do. Pity I crashed it next time out really     

Overlapping shifts. I wish... Anyway as it turned out today I took 3 to the hill. The gulp, the akrostar and the vortex. I enjoyed the gulp so much today by the time the battery was getting flat it was too late to get anything else out. Got about 3hrs plus stick time about 6 flights.
Was experimenting with the ballast et al. Added flick rolls, spins, inverted spins to her repotoire. She's a great sports plane, as well as a racer. Oh and spoilerons. They Work a treat with her, tried that today. She slows up and sticks the nose up nicely with a little down ele comp. I wish that worked on the Akro.

Had a similar conversation to this one with someone else the other day. As many of you know I'm not directly involved with SlopeRacer any more, although Tony and I are still working together on a couple of projects within SR. So hopefully this comes across as at least somewhat impartial.

I understand the problems of budgeting for a mouldie as well as anyone. They're not cheap, regardless of where from. I've seen a few quality issues from RCRCM that have come through to distributors, which I've filtered out and made sure do not get to market. Sometimes very small, sometimes a serious compromise to the model. When they make a good one, they are very good, but they do make a few cork-ups occasionally, and it's the job of the distributor to filter that out.

Olerc are an arm of RCRCM, set up to shift their seconds. So it's worth considering that these models will not have the filter of a distributor, so the likelihood of a pup is still there, and if you bought it as a second, how will you fare on a return? HOWEVER, I will concede that it is entirely possible that you will end up with a bargain, in which case, more power to you!

But I would also ask you to consider this. There's a lot of people over the last couple of years who have commented to me on how much their enjoyment of their model has been enhanced by various bits of information that they have had from SlopeRacer. Consider the guys with their Typhoon CG who thought they had a great model, but we then advised them to try something which appeared radically more rearward than the manufacturers CG (but actually wasn't!) and they then found a whole new level of performance from the model. Then the guys with the Strega who tried my set-up and found an instantly friendly 3m model with huge easily accessible performance. The radio trays which make the build so much easier. Tony's incredible advice on anything moulded. There's more, but I won't bother listing!

Consider also that SR is well known by RCRCM to have a particularly eagle-like set of eyes, even more so now that Tony is involved! It does affect what gets put in our boxes. After all, it was our requests/ advice over the years which has triggered almost all of the improvements that we have seen from them.

IF you see a benefit in having these bits of advice available from SR/ T9/ whoever, then they need your patronage so that they continue to import the models and get to know them as well as they do. I do understand that it's everyone's individual choice to do what they will with their budget and spend it where they see fit, but I just thought I'd put forward a viewpoint on potential consequence.

And having said all of that, I do agree with Ian that to be able to go and see the stock and make one's decision then is a fantastic advantage when spending that kind of money. Tony's workshop is a really fun place to spend a little time browsing for any glider nut anyway.

As a note to someone looking for that starter model in F3F - whilst I do agree with Phil's standpoint, I only agree with it up to a point. It is definitely true that the pilot makes the most part of the difference in F3F, but it is also definitely true that there are airframes which make good pilot performance more accessible to the average bloke. Easier to set-up and fly, in other words.

Cheers!

Z

I'd respectfully suggest not.
My limited experience of F3F has taught me one thing at least,
It's not what you've got, it's what you do with it that counts.
Oh, and consistency!
IMHO buy a well looked after s/h F3F and get stuck in.
It'll take a while to get used to the extra performance and will probably need a lot of flying/experimenting with settings to get the best out of it... AND get some race experience - then you'll start to be able to appreciate the differences between the various F3F models.
Phil

Over the last few months I've keeping a lookout for a good secondhand F3F glider, but most appear to be priced very near the price of a new airframe.
I will see what the new Willows are like.

Over the last few months I've keeping a lookout for a good secondhand F3F glider, but most appear to be priced very near the price of a new airframe.
I will see what the new Willows are like.

You have to take into account the value of 6 x good quality servos that are likely to be already installed. There will probably be a value of at least £200 there.

Over the last few months I've keeping a lookout for a good secondhand F3F glider, but most appear to be priced very near the price of a new airframe.
I will see what the new Willows are like.

There's probably more demand than supply, and as Skirmish says there is usually £200 or more in servos in a model.
The cost of new airframes has gone up a lot in the main, for the competition stuff. Even the Tragi my avatar, which is an old design would cost me over a grand to replace, when it was £650 including delivery only about 4 years ago.

when it comes to second hand planes I work on a simple system
75% of the cost of a new airframe electircs included.
I would NOT pay more
you cant trust second hand electrical equipment, 90% of people would swap a nice new set of £60 each servos for a set of good condition sloppy set that work if we were selling a plane, I am not saying you would get stitched up with an unreliable set just not get the Ds Bs
they could be a nice new set but the guy might land with his flaps down and the servos are almost stripped, he might Have taken out the nice new LiFe battery and stuck in an old nihm pack thats fine but was not quite up on a cycle

you get the picture
75% of the airframe nothing more

this puts most F3F planes £500-£750
which sounds right to me 

If your thinking that's about the price of and RCRCM model, then buy a second hand P2-Strega for £300-£450
If it's had a repair  (quite likely) then £200-£300 

I think you have to make an informed decision based on a number of factors.  It certainly helps if you know the person selling it and what the model is like. 

By the way I don't believe that most people even have enough servos around to swap them out for spares that aren't working properly. I don't think good quality servos really degrade that much anyway. The gearboxes get a little more sloppy but they don't really go downhill.   

A lot of it comes down to what is the in thing at the moment. I think you would pay more than 75% for a freestyler 4 that had been flown a couple of times. Certainly I would pay a higher percentage for that than, for example, a aeromod aldij that had had more crashes than a zx spektrum.  I wouldn't buy a pike brio on the cheap, crash it then sell it for more than I paid for it.  Just as an example.

It's a slightly different situation than the usual economics of supply and demand with moulded gliders anyway, because even if you had the money it often takes a long time to buy a new model.  Models that are considered desirable and that have a long waiting list will probably hold value better.

I like look of the willows. I'll see what comes to the barcs.

I have plenty of bits to do. The vortex needs the airbrakes sorted, the 20 is finished.

I saw two typhoons at the slope at the weekend. One got totalled, the other one got a broken horn while lifting over the stile before it was even flown. Typhoons are but to lightweight for my level of abuse i think.

I had a fly of a club mates elita, was good - (but not as nice as my nyx furio  tho). I think I'm looking at the 2.65m plus level now.

Keep looking.

J.

I'm hoping there will be a caldera for sale soon locally. What do you think of the chances of that Tom? I had a fly of that a while back - was sweet..

they could be a nice new set but the guy might land with his flaps down and the servos are almost stripped, he might Have taken out the nice new LiFe battery and stuck in an old nihm pack thats fine but was not quite up on a cycle

you get the picture
75% of the airframe nothing more

this puts most F3F planes £500-£750
which sounds right to me 

If your thinking that's about the price of and RCRCM model, then buy a second hand P2-Strega for £300-£450
If it's had a repair  (quite likely) then £200-£300 

Crikey Allen - you must be buying from some right crafty sods to be that suspicious! I think there's also a lot to consider from who built/ flew it. If you're buying second hand stuff at that kind of money, then you'll certainly get what you pay for!

Z

 
 

a aeromod aldij that had had more crashes than a zx spektrum.  I wouldn't buy a pike brio on the cheap, crash it then sell it for more than I paid for it.  Just as an example.

Just in case that was a dig
My brio sold for £150 which for a 3m F3F plane in perfect flying order with Digis all round is a damn good price

And my Aldij that is now 4 years old and has had more crashes than a ZX spec, has a brand new fuse and has only ever lost an aileron (which are just a silicone hinge put on by me in the first place) and snapped a few carbon rod wing joiners, so after 4 years of EXTREME abuse is still almost mint and would be worth £300 of anyones money, not forgetting the hotliner fuse I made from the old broken on. Not that im selling it.

and if it was not a dig sorry Tom for just biting 

 

Are you looking for a strega/p3?
Hoping some one comes on
A wonders what price to go for?

Just in case that was a dig
My brio sold for £150 which for a 3m F3F plane in perfect flying order with Digis all round is a damn good price

And my Aldij that is now 4 years old and has had more crashes than a ZX spec, has a brand new fuse and has only ever lost an aileron (which are just a silicone hinge put on by me in the first place) and snapped a few carbon rod wing joiners, so after 4 years of EXTREME abuse is still almost mint and would be worth £300 of anyones money, not forgetting the hotliner fuse I made from the old broken on. Not that im selling it.

and if it was not a dig sorry Tom for just biting 

sorry mate I was just pulling your leg