icanFly EP Trainer 1370mm EPO (PNF)

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Great plane.

Nov 05, 2016

scarborofun & rcmaverick that bit of clear plastic is to protect the wings from the rubber bands. I love this plane, with a little upgrading it is my favourite.
I add a more powerful motor, & a 30A ESC, but more importantly one with a 3A BIC. Add some carbon fiber or fiberglass tape to help the wings if you want to throw it around as a fun plane, not necessary as a trainer.
My first is now retired. Even it could not handle full speed into a 4Ft diameter tree, but the other 2, showing heaps of battle scars from similar adventures, are still are the flying well.

I have never flown a plane with such a gentle straight stall. They just don't ever drop a wing. I have lost count of the number of learners who have flown these with us. I bought another last month to keep in the shed as a spare, for when the grandson finds another tree.

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Great plane

Nov 01, 2016

What a great plane. With a 2208 1400KV motor a 30 A speed controller, & a bit of fiber glass tape under the wings, it is not only a great trainer, but a great fun plane. Tough too, but don't forget the clear plastic wing protector or the rubber bands can be a problem. I & my grand kids are still flying 2 of the 3 I have bought. Bits of the first are still in that gum tree.

The original motor & ESC are a perfect match for a Mad Bird power system, so you get 2 great fun planes for about A$1250. How's that for value.

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Certified Buyer Rated

Jan 02, 2015

This is a great beginners plane. I thought myself to fly Rc planes on this model and would recommend it. It is very stable and will fly so slow when needed. The landing gear is weak and is not up to rough landings a beginner is likely to have. It's easy to hand launch and belly landings are a breeze. You will need to reinforce the motor bulkhead after the first nose in.

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Customer Rated

Apr 06, 2013

This is one of the best trainers you can get. I used it to practice my landings. You need to make the following changes:

a) Upgrade the motor as someone mentioned below
b) Epoxy the landing gear in the housing and epoxy a piece of balsa over the plastic
c) Tape the area around where the rubber bands sits as it bites into the foam
d) Put wheel retainers

Make sure your ailerons are tightly clamped as there is one servo for both. The ailerons can be a bit weak in the wind.

With this configuration it takes off within a few feet. Great plane and highly recommend for newbs. I have had over 30 flights. It takes a 1800mah 3 cell and the cg is fine with it.

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Customer Rated

Jan 13, 2013

This is a great plane for beginners as well as experienced pilots. It easily handles winds upto 10 KM but you must upgrade the motor to AX-2306N which is a direct bolt on as someone else has suggested. Upgrade the ESC to 30 A and you can use a 1600 mah or 2200 mah battery to give 40 minute flights. It can be used as a stable trainer. The aileron is a trade off as one servo is clamped to both the sides but it works fine just make sure the push rods are properly tightened. Replace the rubber bands holding the wings regularly. The landing gear is pretty crap and pops out easily. You will need to reinforce the housing and add a more springy wheel axle with larger wheels. It is very stable in flight and a delight to fly. Perfect for a relaxing on a calm afternoon/ morning.

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Customer Rated

Dec 19, 2012

The overall impression: a bit flimsy but OK for a cheap foamy. It is a bit disturbing to read on the package that there is a "steerable nose wheel" featured. Wat??
Building was event less as it poses no challenges. Never found out what the transparent plastic bit was for, and there are spare hinges that are not needed. Bend all the control surfaces back and forth before attaching them, cause they are stiff. Or make use of the spare hinges?
Looking at the short and thin CF spar and bending the wings a bit it is obvious that the wings will buckle first time you correct hard in a loop. I applied 2 stripes of 36 mm reinforced tape both on top and bottom of the wings. That gave it some stability. Also, some extra tape where the rubber bands hold the wing for protection. Extra markings on the bottom of the wings will help to recognize orientation in flight.
Before I even flew it I added one 0.8mm washer on the right to the motor mount, to get rid of the exaggerated right thrust, and added 2 washers on the top to give it the down thrust it will need.
The propeller 9x6 is not good quality. On a 2s it produces 260g thrust at 6.3A. On 3s 420 g at 10A, heating up the motor a lot. So I ditched it and replaced it with a GWS 8x4 DD and use 3s batteries. That gives 420g thrust at 8A, which is plenty, and the heat sink stays at 50 deg C . The ESC is cool.
It flies well and forgiving. Goes fast

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Customer Rated

Apr 21, 2012

great first plane with a little bit of common sense . the wing spar is a bit small the wing is flimsy easily fixed with longer carbon rod and the motor is very under powered on 2 cell but the system works good on a 3 cell i just cut the v in front of the motor a little bigger for more cooling and no over heating problems at all very easy to finish assembly cg is good there was not enough down thrust on mine so fixed it by adding a washer to top of mount. foam is strong had one crash from 300m up nose first into a tennis court and only broke motor mount which was just a glue fix wing and fuse held up no problems prop didn't even break. great fun to fly and it can fly in a fair bit of wind

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Customer Rated

Apr 16, 2012

The spa rod for the wing is way too small so the wing bends like a wet sponge. The wing and tail don't line up. The under carriage is too tight to install, if I push it any harder I think something will break.

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Customer Rated

Mar 15, 2012

I own three for learning to fly overall foam quality is great and foam will take a heck of a beating and still fly great. Motor is way underpowered on 2 cells not sure if 3 cells a viable option so i simply replaced engine with AX-2306N-2000 bolts stright on and a 8 * 3 prop and you will have a safe stable trainer.

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Customer Rated

Feb 29, 2012

Its the best!! I love this plane. I am a noob to RC flying and this is perfect. HK done great with this plane! 5 Stars!!!