Discussion Long term planning: Getting into gas

[njswede]

A little bit of long term planning. One of my personal goals for 2013 is to try out gas powered models. Now I need to figure out what I need to be drooling over. I'm thinking of a 3DHS 74" Edge with a DLE-30 as an entry level gas plane. Good? Bad? Indifferent?

Help me decide what I should be dreaming about over the winter (and possibly buy if I get a good bonus...)!

 

[kerwin50]

I think it's a great ideal.
I love my DLE 30. The only suggestion I might make is to install a frank Bowman ring in it. The FB ring makes breakin so much faster and really gives this engine some umph

 

[Cmala]

Personally, I would go with the os in this size. I haven't owned either but the os seems to cause less trouble from what I've seen and the price difference for this size isn't that much

I do have a DLE 111 that is great

 

[Jungle]

I am breaking in a mentor 38 right now and it seems to be running pretty nice.

 

[TopSpin]

I have given some thought to building a gasser but just not sure I want to make that much of an investment in a plane that I know I will prang at some point.

 

[Jungle]

It's really not anymore expensive as a electric of the same size.

 

[gyro]

It's really not anymore expensive as a electric of the same size.

I agree. I'm finalizing accuqisition of the stuff for a 3DHS 72" Extra.... Bought a brand new & pretuned PTE36 motor for $280, IBEF for $35, 3000mah LiPoFe battery for $15. The equivalent motor would be a Motrolfly DM5320 $200+, 100A HV ESC $100+, and tons of batteries $XX?

So, IF you already have batteries, it would be about the same price... when you add the batts in, you're way over the cost of gas.

-G

 

[njswede]

I'm budgeting somewhere between $1000-$1500, probably closer to $1500 for this and I don't see any way I can get away with it cheaper if I went electric. At least not if I want to run quality components. I don't have the kind of batteries this type of plane takes, and that alone is a $300-500 investment.

I've already cleared it with the boss (my wife). Now I'm just hoping for a good bonus and/or tax refund and I'll have this in the air next spring (or winter if it's a mild one).

 

[Jungle]

Yeap. If someone wants to get in to gas easily then I suggest order one servo at a time and use them as a rudder servo or something that they will fit in until you have enough to put in a plane then order the motor. When your ready send them in and get hem checked out which most of the time is free or really cheap and drop them in the plane. I have bought lots of planes one peice at a time.

 

[Jungle]

Here is another thought. Buy used. I just sold a 119" 330sc with a da150, 7950 on rudder, 4 7955's on elevators, 6 9156's on ail and 9155 on throttle, a eq 6, rx, batts, prop, and programed to his radio for 3 thousand. And it was mint condition. Had he of bought it all new he would have had to spend at least double.