FMS Henschel HS123
Tom Sullivan [email protected]
Turn heads at the field with this Spanish Civil War biplane
The people at FMS have exploded onto the aeromodeling scene with a wealth of smaller, foam ARF kits. One of the company's newest kits in its warbird series is the FMS Henschel HS123 ARF.
The full-scale Henschel Hs 123 was a single-seat biplane dive bomber, close-support, and attack aircraft flown by the German Luftwaffe during the Spanish Civil War through the midpoint of World War II. FMS has not only captured its looks, but also incorporated many small details to make it a great Fun Scale design.
When I opened the box, I was surprised by how few parts there were. All of the major airframe components (fuselage, wings, and stabilizer halves) are molded from EPP foam. The molding is good and you'll see plenty of hatch and panel detail. Each of the control surfaces mimics the look of fabric covering, just as the full-scale used.
The smaller parts are mainly injection-molded from polystyrene, the same type of plastic used in typical plastic kits. Some pieces require assembly, such as the outer wing struts that come in two halves, plus an upper and lower mount. Others, including the two main landing gear, come preassembled and only need a couple of screws to attach them to the airframe.
One of the kit's main features is that, with the exception of the receiver and the power battery, all of the other radio equipment is included and is factory installed:
- Two aileron servos mounted in the upper wing
- Two flap servos mounted in the lower wing
- Elevator and rudder servos premounted in the fuselage
- ESC and brushless motor premounted in the fuselage
Construction
The manual is the FMS Henschel HS123's weakness. As product reviewers, we are instructed to build review models as per the manual, but the radio-installation steps are confusingly placed. In practice, before you try to mount the receiver in the tight radio compartment, first attach all of the connectors to the receiver outside the airframe. Then work on mounting the receiver in the airplane. You'll also need to connect the long Y-harnesses for the ailerons and for the flaps before final installation.
After the receiver and harnesses are sorted, you can follow the rest of the manual. Most of the remaining assembly is straightforward because many parts are held in place with screws. The wheel subassemblies bolt onto the bottom wing, and all of the struts are bolted into position.
Only a handful of parts are glued into place, including:
- The upper and lower mounts for the outer struts
- The center fuel tank
- Pitot-tube attachments on the outer wing struts
Take care when threading the aileron extension wires through the bottom wing, the outer wing struts, and through the top wing. This isn't difficult, but you don't want to twist the wires or have them in a position where they could be crimped or cut.
There's no explicit mention of attaching the cowl during assembly, but obviously it must be done. The cowl slides on over the motor; make sure it is properly aligned with the top of the cowl facing up. It takes some force to push the cowl back to its correct position, and you may not be able to get it off if things are misaligned. Holding the cowl in place, I used two of the longer leftover self-tapping screws.
Several scale accessories are provided to finish the HS123. They won't make it fly any better, but they enhance its looks:
- Two pairs of bombs on sliding racks (removable)
- Center fuel tank (glued to the bottom wing)
- Pitot-tube parts
- Antenna on the center of the top wing
- Windscreen and pilot figure
- A couple of steps that mount below the cockpit on the fuselage edge
Other than attaching the propeller and the spinner nut, that nearly completes the Henschel. However, there was one problem I had to solve. The manual (and the Diamond Hobby website) calls for a 1,800 mAh LiPo battery for power. Thunder Power provided batteries for our review project, but they didn't fit. I tried a few other brands and none of them fit. The batteries would slide into position inside the fuselage, but the hatch couldn't be closed without breaking it.
After studying the situation, I saw that there was plenty of foam under where the battery would rest. I powered up my rotary tool and began slowly removing the foam. After a few passes that lowered the battery resting position about 1/4 inch, the battery hatch could seat properly. Not only that, but I could also use a few of my own 2,200 mAh batteries as well.
When finished, the FMS HS123 weighed 2 3/4 pounds and balanced close to the position noted in the manual. It is slightly nose-heavy.
Assembly required roughly three hours, not counting time for glue to set. I built the model in two evenings: glued in parts on the first day and completed the rest on the second.
Flying
Not knowing how much sky the FMS HS123 would need, my first flights were at my club field. With its paved runway I could check out its pleasing ground handling. The steerable tailwheel rotates more than the rudder, so the Henschel will turn in nice, tight circles, which is perfect for taxiing.
Powering up for its first takeoff, the model accelerated nicely and lifted off in approximately 50–60 feet without flaps. It tracked nearly straight, but I needed to steer it to keep it pointed down the runway.
After a couple of trim and photo passes, I quickly started having fun with the little airplane. This is not a 3-D or Pattern aircraft. The full-scale Henschel was a dive bomber, so a roll or a loop was probably a rare occurrence. The FMS version, with more muscle per pound than the full-scale, makes a great barnstormer. Loops, rolls, snaps, and even a nearly presentable hammerhead turn are part of the fun. Any of them can be entered at level flight, throttling up as you climb and then decreasing power as you level out.
Depending on throttle position, an average flight is 8–10 minutes. Cruising slowly with flaps extended, flight times can approach 12 minutes. I would advise setting a timer to warn you when the time is close, because the FMS HS123 isn’t a glider. It won’t drop out of the sky when the power runs low, but it does descend enough that you won’t get another pass.
The only thing it really struggled with was inverted flight, but that’s not what a dive bomber should be doing.
Landing on pavement wasn’t a problem, but I rarely had a landing where at least one of the two wingtips didn’t drag on the pavement. The narrow gear can keep you on your toes trying to keep the HS123 straight and upright. I found better results when I switched to flying at a local baseball field. The infield dirt made the perfect runway and the field was large enough on which to fly.
Conclusion
I’ve had fun with the FMS Henschel HS123. It checks off many boxes on my wish list for a model: great scale looks, a good flier, good ground handling, and it flies well at slower speeds.
It is not a “me-too” design, so it won’t be mistaken for yet another P-51 or P-47 warbird at your club. The FMS HS123 is small enough to fly in larger parks or at a baseball field.
When the weather permits and I can make the trip to my club field, the FMS HS123 is one of my go-to airplanes to throw in the car after work and tear up the sky.
—Tom Sullivan [email protected]
Manufacturer / Distributor
- FMS
[email protected] www.fmsmodel.com
- Diamond Hobby LLC.
553 Capital Circle SW, Unit 4 Tallahassee, FL 32304 (850) 765-1132 www.diamondhobby.com
Sources
- Spektrum
(800) 338-4639 www.spektrumrc.com
- Thunder Power RC
(702) 228-8883 www.thunderpowerrc.com
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
