The big 55" SHP by 3D Hobby Shop has always been a special plane for me. 55" is right in the middle of what used to be the 40 or 60 sized nitro planes I grew up flying, what I considered to be a "real airplane." Sure, the smaller planes are great fun, and convenient too, but a big plane has it's own kind of special aura and presence. 55" is about as big of a plane as would fit my lifestyle and budget, and that made the big SHP perfect.
The 55" SHP took me back to my old nitro days, only cleaner, quieter and much more conveniently. I would have been happy flying the big SHP forever, so initially I wasn't sure how to feel about it being replaced by the 57" Extra SC.
FLYING
First, it's worth noting that all the good things about how the SHP flies have carried over into the SC. The SC is very honest, stable, forgiving, and absolutely confidence inspiring. Sounds just like an SHP, doesn't it?
In fact, the SC flies very much like an SHP, only lighter. While they are very similar, without a doubt the biggest difference between the SHP and the lightweight SC is the performance gain losing that weight afforded. The SC is much floatier, and also more agile at slower speeds. The SC is almost like a smaller plane in this respect because you can toss it around pretty carelessly, but it still flies very big, and very, very smooth.
Obviously harrier, hover and other alpha flight is going to be improved because of the lighter wing loading. Overall, the SC just feels lighter, can fly slower and be much more responsive at those speeds. The SC just 3Ds better.
On the other end, high speed precision is very good. In fact, my SC seems to KE better than my 55" SHPs. This translates into beautiful slow and point rolls, which were already really nice with the SHP. The SC seems to be a little more reassuring in KE flight and I really can't find a reason for that. It might just be an illusion, or it might be the lighter weight comes into play during all aspects of flight.
Outside of handling much more lightly on the sticks, the SC flies so much like the SHP that my comments on the 55" SHP apply to the 57" SC as well:
http://docaustinsfreakshow.blogspot.com/2009/02/25-flights-3d-hobby-shop-55-extra-shp.html
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AIRFRAME OVERVIEW
The most important improvement on the Extra SC is it's new, much lighter weight. On a plane this size an ouch or two isn't all that crucial, but when you add in more wing to drop the wing loading, and then go with a lighter power system, now you've got a completely different animal.
The 57" Extra SC is essentially a slightly larger, lighter SHP, but it's also better flying plane. The wingspan grows from 55" to 57". When you compare it to an SHP wing you'de think this wasn't worth the effort, but combined with the SC's lower weight, the wing loading drops considerably and the SC is a noticably floatier flying plane.
3DHS saved the weight in a few areas that are obvious. First, the SC can be built with either single or dual elevator servos. Single works best for me because I prefer to keep things simple and reliable. The loss of one servo and pushrod in the tail saves weight, and also moves the mass of the airplane closer to the center, which improves the plane's agility.
It now takes less weight in the nose to balance the plane properly, and the preferred power set up drops from the SHP's heavier 5 cell arrangement to 4 cells. Lately I'm preferring the lower power of the 4s setup anyway, because it makes the power delivery much easier to control. For me, the SHP was a little difficult to keep in a harrier or hover on 5s because one or two notches of power was all it took for the plane to blast off. Now with the SC on 4s, managing the power is much easier.
While we are on the business end of the airplane, the SC's motorbox has been stiffened up and strenghtened quite a bit. The sides, top and bottom pieces are cut so the inside edges at the corners are pre-gusseted. This is hard to explain in writing, so please check out the motorbox photos.
Another place 3DHS saved weight was moving from opaque covering to translucent on the bottom of the wings and stab. This saved an estimated one ounce, but another big gain here is that the translucent covering seems to stay tighter and stick to the wood better. It just seems to stay nicer. The whole covering job is probably the best one I've gotten yet, and along with superb build quality this is probably the nicest plane overall I've ever owned.
The most important part of the asthetics for me is the SC's new tinted canopy. It is lightly smoked, but dark enough to much more easilly discern the canopy outline, and makes orientation better. It's still light enough that you could put a pilot in there and he would still be visible. I was tinting my own canopies and it was a colossal pain, so I hope this feature will make it's way into all future 3DHS releases. A righteous upgrade.
All the SHP's hardware was carried forward to the SC. That whole package is top drawer quality, and it's nice to use equipment you are already familar with. The sideforce generators appear to be the same ones used on the last generation SHP, and those worked so well it's not surprising they were retained.
The SHP's optional carbon fiber landing gear is now standard equipment for the Extra SC. I much prefer this to the previous aluminum gear which bent up so easilly. The carbon gear is stiffer, yet will still take a pretty good shot. It also looks teriffic.
One last upgrade is that the SC comes with 3DHS's custom fitted wing bags. These are complete with an internal pouchs for the carbon wing tube and also the SFGs. A very nice, quality touch that protects you quality investment.
EQUIPMENT
Power System
We weren't going to stray from what we know works. The obvious choice for our power system was always going to be Extreme Flight, with the motor being the Torque Revolution 4014, and the Airboss 80 speed controller (ESC). If the motor in the photo looks a little ragged out, that's with good reason. This motor has been around and around the block in all my 55" SHPs, and it still runs smoothly and powerfully.
Again, the simplicity of the Airboss 80 ESC makes it a no-brainer choice. Plug it in and go fly it. You don't need a seperate BEC, and you don't need to program anything. Just put the deans plug on it, stick it in the plane and forget about it. This is one less thing to maintain and worry about. It makes it easier to push the plane hard when you have equipment like this that just works.
Power and reliability is what the Torque and Airboss are all about. As much money as you will be spending on a large plane like the Extra SC, it's hard to imagine settling for anything less.
Later down the road I'm planning on going ultra lightweight and trying a Torque 2812 motor. This was originally designed especially for the 51" AJ Slick, but the Extra SC is so light that this could be a very viable power package for it. On 4s it's just a bit too much motor for the Slick, so it ought to be pretty close on the SC.
Batteries
On previous 55" SHPs (and Edge 55" 540s) I used Thunder Power Extreme Series 5S 3850 batteries. These served me really well and after hundreds of flights still perform beautifully. However, lately I've been flying my 55" Edge 540 on 4s, and I like the less explosive power delivery much better. 5S was just too stupid much power, but 4s seems just right.
For the SC I ordered some Thunder Power 4s 3850 Pro Power packs. I tried these first in my 55" Edge and they have much more punch than the 4s Extremes I was running. They also run considerably cooler, so this is a win/win combination all the way around. The Pro Power packs have so much more grunt that I will probably turn my end point control back a bit on my throttle. That will make the power more manageable, and it will also take a lot of stress off the power system.
Funny how we drop down a cell to get rid of power and Thunder Power just gives it right back to us with better batteries! It's a bit petty to complain that the batteries are too good, but that's the case here. I think next time I'll go for the lower discharge and slightly lower weight Pro Power packs. Those have been utterly awesome in my 47" planes, and I can save about another ounce or so by using them on the SC, as if it's not already light enough.
Servos
From the beginning, I've always flown my 55" planes on Hi Tech HS225MG servos. I recently converted my 55” Edge from dual elevator to single, and even in full speed walls and terminal velocity parachutes, a single HS225MG servo still has enough torque to get the job done. I used these same servos in my three previous SHPs, and they still work smoothly and center perfectly. Even though they have hundreds of flights on them, I had no reservation using them in a brand new plane.
SET UP
Funny thing is, I took the servos out of my 55" SHP and put them in the SC using the same holes in the same servo arms. I didn't even change my 55" Extra SHP transmitter program other than to center the trims and rename it "Extra SC." Well, that and I turned off the dual elevator mixing feature because the SC only uses one.
Once you've had an SHP, you'll find nothing here you haven't seen before. Very straight forward and simple.
Elevator set up is very basic. I used the longest arm from the Dubro pack and set my endpoints at 130% (with 140% available on Futaba radios). I may dial in the last 10% later, but for now the plane is quite agile enough.
I used the aileron servos and arms exactly the way they came out of my 55" SHP. I may move the pushrod out one more hole on the arm because I'de like a little more travel to counteract torque when hovering, but for now I think my bad form is more of a problem than setup. The thing rolls like a banshee the way it is.
The rudder setup was more of the same....right out of the SHP with no changes. About the only thing I can do differently here is post a more fun view of the cables.
As you can see, I use wire ties to snug the servo wires up so the won't get into the rudder servo arm. I had a throttle linkage snag an aileron extension once, and it unplugged it, so I've been pretty careful since. I've seen other installations with the wires going everywhere, and fouling everything, and it just makes me crazy. I am probably a bit obsessive about getting the installation just so, but it gives me a lot of confidence to know the plane is as right as I know how to make it.
Something really nice about the SC is that the bevels on the control surfaces have more angle, so you can run a really tight gap and still get massive control surface travel. This is such a simple solution that works so well you have to wonder why no other manufacturer has thought of doing it before.
I can get about 70 degrees on my elevator, and that's with such a tight gap you would have a hard time squeezing a business card through it. With a tight gap the plane is going to fly better, smoother, and with more control. This shows up especially well at slower speeds where the tighter gap will help by considerably aiding control authority.
Personally I always seal my hinge lines with clear monokote, but it's a pain. With the SC's tighter gap, that's not at all necessary. The SC's gap is really, really close, and allows a bunch of throw.
THE NAIL
In a way, the SC is nothing more than an SHP with a few tweeks, but this is a very simplistic view. Digging a bit deeper, by losing a bit of weight and adding a bit of wing, the SC comes in with a lighter wing loading. Weight and wing loading is always the enemy in 3D, and any attempt to shed some is a righteous upgrade.
3DHS didn't stop at merely shaving weight off the plane itself, though. They went after even more by dropping down to a much lighter power system. At the lighter overall weight, the 4S power system is still more than good enough to blast out of a hover, or blast out of trouble. It's not as stupid wasteful as 5s power was, but it's much more than good enough, and still maybe just a little too much for those who need to work on their throttle management.
With the lighter power system and the weight of one less servo and linkage in the tail, the weight of the plane becomes much more centralized, and this makes the plane even more agile.
So, you give up next to nothing in the power department, or at the worst you give up power you didn't need and can't use anyway, and in return you get a lighter and floatier flying plane that is more responsive and more agile.
So, while the SC retains all the sweet flying characteristics that made the SHP such a solid favorite, it also breaks into new ground....almost to the point it flies like a completely different plane.
Here's a little bonus for all of you who made it this far..................
