Living room R/C! That’s quite a boast carried on the Mini Aviator box. This new model from J.Perkins has just arrived to challenge the dominance of the PalmZ and others across the indoor micro-flyer category and it features some enhancements not previously seen on models such as this.
With wings made from depron and a foam fuselage, the rear fuselage boom is a thin carbon rod. The Mini Aviator is a pusher prop’ model and is supplied complete with a transmitter(Tx)and a display stand.
Flying takes no longer than fitting batteries to the Tx and charging the Li-Po flight battery which is housed in the nose. A small hatch on the side of the Tx reveals a charge lead that plugs into a port on the model. Charging is activated by moving the Tx switch and charge port switch to their appropriate positions and charge times seem to be around 20-25 minutes.
The model boasts a proportional throttle and rudder along with a rudder trim wheel on the Tx. Like many models of this type, some noseweight is essential to improve the flight pattern and stop the model stalling itself continuously. I used a drawing pin which pushed neatly into the little rubber nose protector. Don’t make the mistake of pushing a drawing pin straight into the nose as you’ll run the risk of pucturing the on-board Li-Po battery. With weight on the nose a good degree of controllable flight is possible although it is clear that only very large rooms can provide the space sufficient for uninterrupted flights.
Any large outdoor space in calm weather is fine so a garden is ideal for the model. She’s very stable and flies along well but seems to prefer a gentle turning circle which hides the tendency to stall if throttle isn’t applied carefully. The flight pattern will repay practice as gentle inputs work better. With further practice the model can be held aloft until the battery expires and at full power will keep climbing making it positively easy to land out in a neighbouring garden. All-in-all a great way of passing the time from the patio sun lounger on warm summer evenings or the living room couch on cold ones.
The new garden hack!
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