04/01/2008

Reviewer: Kevin Potts

I am new to R/C aircraft and have never flown one before but have always wanted to, so on looking at various web sites I saw the Firebird range and opted for the Freedom model (well if your going to have a go might as well start at the top)I looked at a few forums which advised to practice on a flight simulator and clicked on the link provided for the free download, I spent around 2 hours in total practicing. When my Firebird arived i promptly put it together, cahrged the battery and went to the local playing field. I Hand launched the plane with A.C.T on and the plane was off up in the air. to my delight it was easy to control easier than the simulator,I managed to fly and land 7 times without any problems, the landings are easy enough just have to master getting the plane closer to me. This plane does everything and more that it says, I found I coulsd fly for around 20 to 25 minutes by flyung high then gliding back to earth saving the battery. I have read quite a few reviews that slated this plane saying it was difficult to handle and not for beginners well all I can say is what a load of twaddle I am proof of that I had never laid hands on a RC aircraft prior to this one. I would highly recomend this plane to any beginner. So in short I wanted to put the record streight this plane is fantastic for beginners

02/06/2006

Reviewer: Malcolm Jay

Hobbyzone Firebird Freedom On my return to model aircraft flying after a long absence. I decided on something simple, easy to fly, and electric. Of the many suitable aircraft I chose the ‘Firebird Freedom’. Everything is in the box and ready to fly (RTF). It is, and it would be so tempting to charge up the battery and on to the flying field. Fortunately when I bought the ‘Freedom’ the wind was blowing about 25 knots. So it gave me time to examine the bits in the box. All the parts were well-packed and tied down with cable ties. These were cut and the parts removed. I took out the package that contained the instruction manual and CD. I normally don’t bother to read manuals until I get stuck in the construction of the items that I am building. But this time I did. So I installed the batteries in the transmitter and went to put the battery into the fuselage. Where did it go? A diagram in the manual shows the canopy lifting up. There is a small screw on top so I supposed that the screw had to be removed. As I went to remove this screw I noticed that the canopy moved. I realised that it was held down by a rubber band and hinged at the rear. Turn on the transmitter said the manual. Install the flight battery into the fuselage and plug it into the connector. This puzzled me, as I thought why should you do this? Why? Because there is no switch. I did not like this idea. So later I found a small slide switch, and tapped it into the power lead. I cut a small hole in the side of the fuselage above the wing root, where I screwed in the switch. With the flight battery installed I noticed that there was a gap between the front of the canopy and fuselage. Even without the battery the gap was still there. “Dam big air brake” this could cause whilst the aircraft was flying. So I placed a strip of selotape over the gap to cure this. The Wings go together well and seem quite tight when attached to the fuselage. They are nicely formed and smooth. But the decoration decals had loads of air bubbles under them. Surly this could affect the smooth airflow over the wings. I found that these sticky decals can be carefully peeled back and replaced with the air bubbles removed. FIRST TEST FLIGHT The wind had been blowing almost gales for the last three days since I bought my ‘Freedom’. But early on the Sunday morning I noticed that the trees were not bending so much. I am fortunate that at the rear of my home I have a sports field. So Taking my ‘Freedom’ I went out of my back gate onto the field. First I did a range check. As I was on my own I placed the aircraft on the ground with the rear towards me. As I walked away I checked that the control surfaces were doing what they should and blipped the engine. I had with me a small but powerful pair of binoculars. At 100 metres I could still see the control surfaces working and the prop spinning. I did not have the antenna of the TX extended. To me that is good enough. With the wheels removed and the radio on, I did a hand launch (without motor) to check the trim. It was OK. But it needed a bit of up trim to flatten out the glide. I did another and that was also fine. Oh it was so tempting. I gave half throttle and launched the ‘freedom’. It went straight and level at about 2 metres from the ground, after about 100metres I turned off the power and the aircraft landed gently. I did this twice more with no problems. But the wind was picking up and I was not willing to take risks. So I went back indoors and cleaned off the mud from the underneath, and put it back in its box for another day. FIRST FLIGHTS These were not very successful. As I found that the aircraft was badly trimmed. I Gave full power and launched the Freedom into the air. It was all over the place and difficult to control. I managed to get it up to about twenty feet and cut the power. I managed to keep it straight and landed it. The second time that I launched it into wind, I took it higher and tried a turn. It dived into the ground. I had the switch on top of the transmitter switched to the anti-crash technology (ACT), but it did not seem to help. One side of the ‘V’ tail broke. The battery had been thrown out and a lead from the connector had pulled out. I repaired the tail with epoxy glue and scotch tape. The battery lead was replaced in the connector and the radio was tested. All was OK. The next session I did some more test ‘chuck and glides’ to sort out the trim. With full power the ‘Firebird Freedom’ at last was flying as I expected it should. The ACT WAS NOT SWITCHED ON. This gave much better response with the controls. I have had quite a few good flights with it now that the trim has been sorted out. I have even managed to do take offs from the ground. As I said the tail had been broken and also the wings have creases but still air worthy. I have purchased a spare tail and wings with spar, and these only cost £16.38 with post. On the box it states ‘Teach yourself to fly’. Not if you are an absolute beginner you will be very lucky if you have no knowledge of these RTF models. As they are mass-produced, and you should get an experienced model flyer to help you trim and fly the ‘Freedom’ The ‘Firebird Freedom’ is a great aircraft for an introduction into model flying. With the cheap spare parts you will not go wrong. Malcolm Jay.