HM 32" EPP Xtra Vector

I'll start out by saying that this was somewhat of an impules buy as part of a group order through a local club for indoor flying. I was surprised by how small the box was when It arrived but was impressed when I opened up the box. The foam parts are perfectly cut and beautifully printed. I opted to choose my own electronics to keep the cost down (admittedly from Aliexpress), besides the twisted hobbies receiver. my build list is as follows: Motor: Sunnysky 2305 1450kv ESC: HW Skywalker V2 15A Receiver: Twisted Hobbies 2.4g CSP 6ch DSMX/DSM2 All Servos: Surpass Hobby 9g digital Props: APC 9x4.7 & Slow Fly TUFF 9x4.7 Batteries: Ovonic 2s 450mAh 50c Lipos Build notes: -I used foam tac for all airframe connections but also used gorilla glue gel CA and BSI accelerator for landing gear and a few dabs with accelerator to hold the rudder in place while the foam tac dried -Some trimming of fuselage required for servos, not hard to do, just trace around servo and cut a slightly smaller size than the traced lines for a good friction fit + glue -IMPORTANT: There are four 200 mm carbon rods included but two of them are 1.5mm and the other two are 2.0mm. Make sure to use the thicker rods for the landing gear and the thinner ones for the elevator & rudder pushrods. I accidentally used a 1.5mm rod for one of the landing gear and it flexes so much that the prop strikes. No big deal and totally my fault, I reinforced it with a wooden dowel and got a Dubro pushrod connector for the larger 2.0mm rod I now had to use for the elevator pushrod -I wish the landing gear wasn't such an odd/complex glue/dental floss method and rather a small molded or 3d printed 135° joint that you simple slide the carbon rods into with some glue, I thought about printing this part but decided to just build it up per the manual, no issues with the gear after a few indoor and outdoor flights Performance: This plane is so much fun outdoors and indoors with a large enough space. It's my first 3d plane and first plane without a gyro which makes it a little intimidating but I know it will handle some abuse and really sharpen my post stall skills. I set my servo travel to 150 for all control surfaces and use 100 D/R with 30% or so expo and I think that's the only way to fly. very maneuverable and floaty. It will drop a wing when stalling but it has plenty of power and control authority to quickly recover. I set my timer to 4 minutes and it hits LVC exactly at that point with 3.8v/cell at rest. I would like to try some 600mAh 2s packs and maybe some 3s packs as well. The only mishap I had was my maiden flight when I hand launched it right into a hover in my apartment and it caught and hung itself by the elevator on a lamp and tore the elevator hinge. Foam tac made the repair easy and It has flow flawlessly since. Highly recommend this plane.

First time building one of these. Wanted to practice 3D flying with this plane. I ordered the accessories kit (motor, speed controller and servos) you will need two servo extension leads (8” will work). I watched a YouTube video on how to build this plane. It helped a lot. I was surprised at how much there was to put together considering how basic the plane looks. However, nothing was difficult. I purchased two of the 450mAh batteries. I set my low rate at 50% and expo at 15. I set full rate at 100% and expo at 30. My first flight was a lot of fun. I set it at my feet, hit the throttle about 3/4 and it launched into the air. I adjusted elevator trim and rudder trim and then started tossing it around the sky. This is not a sport plane that you just fly around the pattern. It doesn’t turn well with just aileron. It is meant to thrash around in the sky at high speed or super slow speed. I learned quickly that the 450mAh battery only lasts about 4-minutes. I was hovering over the runway when the motor quit and it fell onto the runway. But guess what? No damage at all to the plane. Set the timer to 4-minutes and no problem. I have now ordered the 600mAh batteries in hopes of at least 5-minutes of flying time. I love this plane!

Have previously built and flown a Crak Laser which Has been used for over a year with great enjoyment. The Vector is a new purchase to replace the beating I have given the Crak. The build is even easier and while it is not guite ready to fly, I know what to expect and can hardly wait. I will leave another review after flying it.