Part one of this review was a general introduction to the Oxalys, so let’s now move on to putting it together. The first job was to remove the wrinkles from slackened covering material, something that’s not uncommon with ARTFs and probably caused by temperature change during transit. While most of the wrinkles were easily removed using a modelling iron or heat gun, some of the more stubborn ones on the fuselage (just behind the canopy) refused to shrink back. This may be due to the fact that there are multiple layers of film at this point. Anyway, since they’re hardly noticeable I stopped trying to zap ‘em and decided to live with them.
Since this model requires fairly basic assembly there’s little that I can add that won’t be repeating what’s already described in the instructions. It was a pleasure to assemble and was completed in an evening, however there are a few points during construction where extra care needs to be taken.
If you follow the construction sequence you’ll have no problems, but don’t be tempted to short-cut it or you could end up doing what a clubmate of mine did. He glued the tailplane into the fuselage and then realised that the one-piece elevator wouldn’t fit. Had he followed the instructions (bless him!) he’d have seen that the elevator slots in first, followed by the tailplane to which it’s then hinged. Be warned!
My four Hitec HS55 servos were a perfect fit for their respective openings in the fuselage and wing roots, with no trimming of the airframe being required. The HS55 is my servo of choice for models of this size; they’re good value, reliable and have quite a high torque rating. Motor wise, the instructions recommend CPLR’s own branded Mini Cyclone outrunner. However, as this motor doesn’t seem to be readily available in the UK I opted for a PJS 3D 550 with a 10 x 7″ APC electric prop, this coupled to a Tower Pro 30A speed controller powered through a FlightPower EVO 1200mAh 3-cell Li-Po pack.
The FlightPower Li-Po is at the top end of the recommended capacity and should give reasonable flight times of about 10 minutes. However, the one problem with using this pack is that it’s slightly too long for the battery slot in the fuselage. I could have opened up the slot, but instead I decided to simply Velcro the thing to the side of the fuselage as a temporary solution.
Fixing the motor was quite a simple operation, thanks to the milled aluminium mounting plate supplied with the PJS 550 that simply screws to the ply engine plate. Like the battery, the speed controller and Rx (Jeti 4-channel MPD in my case) were attached to the fuselage with Velcro.
With the preparations finalised, all that remained was to get her into the air. Find out how I found the flight characteristics in Part Three.
