Park View: GWS Slow Stick and Floats - 2011/01

52 MODEL AVIATION
GWS HAS SOLD many Slow Sticks
throughout the past few years, but what are
they? Are they trainers, park flyers, or sport
models?
The Slow Stick (item GWSS2215YA) is
inexpensive, durable, and easy to repair, but
it isn’t good-looking and I don’t think it will
win any contests. I have seen numerous
Slow Sticks, and their owners seem to like
them, but I have never had a chance to try
one—until now.
Opening the package revealed a molded
hard-foam wing that seemed to take up the
whole box. The two wings are molded in
one piece, with a “hinge” in the middle to
allow them to be folded into the carton.
The precut foam-board tail surfaces
were slipped between the wing
halves. Under a
cardboard separator I
found the aluminum
fuselage “stick” (some
packages include a
plastic fuselage stick),
several “trees” of plastic
parts, a couple of hardware
bags, two large sheets of
stickers, and a 14-page colorillustrated
instruction
manual.
The Slow Stick is
available with several motor
packages. Mine came with the
Everything is included with the
ARF except servos, ESC, battery, and
receiver. The extremely flexible landing
gear is fine for the slow takeoff and landing
speeds of the model.
new GWS 2215 brushless set, which
included the GWS2215-12T outrunner
motor, two motor mounts, a 10 x 6 electric
propeller, and a rubber spinner.
My model was yellow, but it is
available in a variety of colors. That comes
in handy if you and several buddies want to
fly together.
All parts seemed to be well made and
appropriate for their intended use.
Not all of the pieces on
the plastic trees
were used on the airplane, but all of them
were numbered to make identification
easier.
The instruction manual included lists of
all included parts and items that the
assembler needed for the project.
Assembly: No glue is used to assemble the
Slow Stick. A vacuum-formed plastic center
reinforcement, which also sets the correct
dihedral, is attached to the wings with
precut double-stick tape. Then
carbon-fiber reinforcing rods are
attached to the LEs and TEs with
clear tape.
The tape is actually part of the large
sticker sheets and is also used for the rudder
and elevator hinges. There wasn’t enough
tape on the sticker sheets to do all it was
meant to do. I used clear packaging tape
after I ran out, and that worked just as well.
The rudder and elevator
come attached to the main
tail pieces and are easy
to snap apart. Then a
45° taper must be cut
and sanded into their LEs.
Be sure to do this before you
do any hinging, or you will cut
through the hinge tape. The
completed tail feathers are attached to
the fuselage stick with bolts and doublestick
tape.
Park View: GWS Slow Stick and Floats
JIM FELDMANN
Nearly perfectly named, the 400-class GWS Slow Stick has taught many people how to fly.
surf-and-turf fun
It’s still around, and a great design for
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:52 PM Page 52
January 2011 53
Photos by the author
Above: The wings are unfolded, and then
the plastic center reinforcement is
attached with double-stick tape. Notice
the aluminum and carbon-fiber LE and
TE reinforcements.
The float kit is simple, light, and inexpensive, and the parts fit
was exceptional. These floats will work on any GWS Speed 400-
class airplane.
The author built new, longer struts to mount the floats to the
Slow Stick. Struts included with the aircraft were far too small
to clear the waterline.
Left: Contents of the Slow Stick,
including the 2215 motor package. The
wing halves are folded together so that
they fit in the box. Other colors are
available.
Everything else is simply slipped onto
the stick, and the motor mount is secured
with a bolt. Some drilling is required.
Despite the many color photos in the
instructions, it was hard to see how to orient
the plastic parts. A bit of trial-and-error
fitting solved that problem.
I had only two minor parts-fit issues.
First, the included tail wheel retainer did not
fit the tail wheel wire. I fixed that with a
1/16-inch wheel collar from my spare-parts
drawer.
Second, the included pushrods were too
short to install the servos in the position that
the instructions show. I installed them as far
forward as the pushrods would allow, and
the initial balance still came out close to the
recommended CG.
On the topic of balance, the directions
are to move the battery back and forth to set
the CG where it should be. I didn’t have
room to move the battery, so I moved the
wing back slightly instead.
The instruction manual isn’t up to date
with the latest changes in the package, but
overall it is better than most. Although a
person with some mechanical skills should
be able to correctly assemble the Slow Stick
with no serious problems, a new RCer
should have an experienced RCer examine
the finished model to make sure that things
such as radio and power hookups are correct
before the first flight.
This was the first Slow Stick I had
assembled, and it took me half a day to
figure everything out. But I am convinced
that I could assemble a second one in less
than an hour.
Flying: The included brushless motor set,
GWS 25-amp ESC, and GWS 1050 mAh
Li-Poly battery made a complete power
package that has proven to be simple,
powerful, durable, and quiet. It was ideal for
almost any style of flying that the airplane
could do. The GWS NARO+D digital servos
lacked neither power nor precision.
The Slow Stick can be hand-launched,
but it will take off easily from either hardsurface
runways or grass. Point it directly
into the wind and advance the throttle, and it
will lift off practically by itself.
Climbout is strong, and you can throttle
back to half or less for cruise. And cruise
with this aircraft is a walking pace.
It is perfect for lawn chair flying and
making lazy circles in the sky. This model
will fly for 30 minutes at half throttle, so
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:53 PM Page 53
54 MODEL AVIATION
The total weight of floats and struts is 5 ounces. The
struts fold down for easy transportation and storage
when the floats are not attached to the fuselage.
The author built and tested the Slow Stick with wheels as the standard
three-channel version. An aileron-control version is available.
This airplane on floats
performs majestically—
just the ticket for
smooth-water flying.
Taxi the model wet with a touch of power, upelevator
to keep the nose high, and ample rudder to
hold it into the wind. It will quickly “pop” off of the
water.
The author’s longer gear raises the airplane well off of
the water. A corrosion-preventive spray such as
CorrosionX keeps the electronics safe from water
damage.
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:54 PM Page 54
January 2011 55
Pluses and Minuses
+
• Slow and stable enough to be a basic
trainer.
• Relaxing to fly but can be fun to toss
around.
• Durable and easy to repair.
Specifications
All components are exposed, so changing the battery and performing necessary
maintenance is easy. This flyer is slow and gentle; the author has a blast with leisurely flight.
Learning things on your own is
sometimes more rewarding than being
taught, even though it might be more
difficult. So when my friend who works at
the AMA got me interested in piloting model
airplanes, I thought this was a good
opportunity. With the economical
combination of two GWS products, I gained
my wings after some hard—but fun—work.
First I began using the GWS FMS PC
USB Flight Simulator. It is a replica of a
GWS transmitter, and it works with the free
FMS software. It might not be as visually
pleasing as the software you pay for, but I
truly enjoyed it and spent hours flying on it.
The second part of my combination was
the GWS Slow Stick. Its resemblance to the
Red Baron’s Fokker made it exciting to me
as a novice. Its low price gave me
confidence; I knew that if it did crash, it
would not cost much to repair.
The setup of the GWS USB Flight
Simulator and the FMS took patience, but
after a bit of reading I had everything
working correctly. Piloting the simulator took
practice, but it did not take me long to master
flying inverted or looping figure eights.
After some exploring, I learned that
hundreds of models can be downloaded for
free for use with the FMS. There are even
some spacecraft from popular movies that are
extremely fun to use.
Assembling the Slow Stick took a total of
roughly two hours. You begin with the most
difficult part, which involves cutting and
taping the rudder and elevator.
Next is installing the fuselage. Adding the
receiver, speed control, and servos was a
snap. I had to play with the control horns to
get them right, but it was easy with an
experienced friend’s help.
The motor and a couple other pieces were
installed with cement adhesive. After those
steps were completed, all I had to do was wait
for the glue to dry. In the meantime I got on
my simulator to practice for the next
afternoon’s flight.
I spent an hour on the simulator before
going out for my first flight. I was cruising
around in a Corsair and managed to fly
inverted with total control. So with my
confidence up and the wind died down, I was
ready to fly my Slow Stick for the first time.
I was at a grass field, which made a handlaunch
necessary. I instantly saw where this
model got its name, but after a shaky takeoff
it began to climb.
Excitement raced through me as the
airplane began running out of field, and I
knew I had to make the first turn. Copying
the movements from the simulator, I had the
Slow Stick heading back toward me. After a
couple of passes, I set it down slowly and
managed to keep it in one piece.
After that flight I think I can consider
myself a beginner pilot. Now I want
something that goes a little faster. MA
—Shane Scherschel
[email protected]
Test-Model Details
I Learned to Fly, Thanks to GWS
Model type: Park flyer/trainer ARF
Skill level: Intermediate builder, novice
pilot
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 510 square inches
Length: 37.25 inches
Power system: 100-watt electric
Radio: Three channels minimum, two
servos, ESC
Construction: Molded-foam wing,
foam-board tail, plastic or aluminum
fuselage, plastic and foam floats
Floats: GWS float kit with custombent
music-wire struts
Prices: Airframe with motor, $39.95;
ESC, $35; Li-Poly battery, $31.50; servo
(each), $17.99; float kit, $14
Motor: GWS 2215 (included)
ESC: 25-amp GWS
Battery: GWS three-cell, 1050 mAh Li-
Poly
Propeller: 10 x 6 (included)
Wing loading on wheels: 4.4 ounces/
square foot
Wing loading on floats: 5.6 ounces/
square foot
Radio system: Hitec Eclipse 7
transmitter with Hitec 2.4 GHz module,
Hitec Optima 7 2.4 GHz receiver, two
GWS NARO+D digital
Ready-to-fly weight on wheels: 15.5
ounces
Ready-to-fly weight on floats: 20 ounces
Flight duration: 10-15 minutes
• Inexpensive and widely available.
• Available in several colors. -•
Requires mechanical aptitude and some
modeling experience for proper assembly.
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:54 PM Page 55
you can pass it around among your buddies or
trim it for a gentle turn and seldom have to
touch the sticks.
As with any three-channel airplane,
maneuvers are not precise, but it loops easily.
I even performed a decent outside loop.
Rolls require planning. With full throttle,
point the nose 45° down to gain speed, pull
the nose up to 45°, and add full left rudder.
Hold full rudder, and the wings should come
back to level by the time the nose is pointed
45° down again.
Landing is only slightly harder than taking
off. The Slow Stick is so light that it should be
flown all the way to the ground. Cut the
throttle when the wheels touch, and the
ground roll is only a few feet.
Be aware that, as do other light airplanes,
this model does a poor job of handling the
wind. At one point I tried to make a left
upwind turn with 45° left rudder, but this
aircraft was turning right (downwind) instead.
After an experienced pilot has trimmed the
airplane, I think a quick student could learn to
fly it without an instructor in calm conditions.
The student would need to move up to four
channels and a faster model before moving on
in the hobby, but this might be a good airplane
to start with if a teacher is unavailable. It is
quite durable, and most repairs require
nothing more than packaging tape.
Floats: GWS makes a nice, lightweight set of
floats that is the right size for the Slow Stick,
so I just had to try it on water.
The floats come as a kit that requires the
assembler to trim and glue the vacuumformed
plastic bottoms to the molded foam
tops. A hardwood backbone and wire struts
are included with all of the necessary
hardware. Water rudders are not included, but
they are not required under the calm
conditions that the Slow Stick needs.
Gluing the top and bottom of the floats
together can be a challenge. I found that using
tape to hold the sides of the plastic parts
against the foam while the glue (epoxy or
aliphatic) set worked well enough.
The wire struts and spreader bars that
come with the kit are not suitable for the Slow
Stick, so I bent longer ones using the same
gauge of K&S music wire. I mounted the
floats 123/4 inches apart and 61/2 inches below
the fuselage stick, which makes the outward
angle of the struts close to the ideal 45°. The
step is approximately 1 inch behind the CG,
and the fuselage stick is roughly 2° positive to
the top of the floats.
I bent the top of my new struts to match
the shape of the Slow Stick’s main landing
gear struts and made a plywood sandwich to
clamp them to the fuselage stick. These struts
seemed awfully flexible at first, but they
worked great on the water.
The Slow Stick is basically waterproof.
However, if you give the ESC and all of the
56 MODEL AVIATION
electrical connectors a bath in CorrosionX or
a similar water-proofer, you don’t have to
worry about dunking it.
Fresh water will not hurt the battery,
motor, servos, or receiver. I have flipped the
model several times, retrieved it, blown the
water off, and taken off with it again.
Flying the Slow Stick with floats is even
more fun than without, if that is possible. It
“levitates” off of the water. The pendulum
effect of the floats and the slightly higher
wing loading seem to calm the airplane a bit
and give it a bit more wind tolerance.
But be careful not to run the model too
long on the water. The floats tend to dart off
to one side or the other if you try to hold the
aircraft on the water after it reaches flying
speed. Let it take itself off.
And don’t try to taxi crosswind—but
that’s good advice for piloting any floatplane.
I am going to take the Slow Stick to every
float-fly I attend. Nothing is better for late
evenings, after a busy, exciting, and noisy day
of flying bigger models.
The GWS Slow Stick does the relaxed slowflying
thing better than any airplane I have
seen. It is also a good first model with or
without an instructor, and it is a great base for
customizing.
The ailerons are molded into the wing. I
have seen several Slow Sticks converted to
full four-channel control, and I have seen
others converted to biplanes, twins, and even
canards.
Some fliers have glued a wing upsidedown
on the bottom the regular wing, to
make it fully symmetrical. A stronger motor
is a common upgrade, although the new 2215
seems more than adequate.
It is hard to find more fun per dollar than
with the GWS Slow Stick. I think I will get
another so I can have a full-time version on
wheels and a full-time version on floats. Then
maybe I’ll get another one so I can make it
into a … MA
Jim Feldmann
[email protected]
Manufacturer:
GWS USA
138 S. Brent Cir.
City of Industry CA 91789
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Sources:
CorrosionX
(800) 638-7361
www.corrosionx.com
Visit the AMA Education
Committee Web site at
www.modelaircraft.org/
education
AMA Academy of Model
Aeronautics
ARF Almost Ready to Fly
BEC Battery Eliminator Circuit
CA cyanoacrylate glue
CAD computer-aided design
cc cubic centimeter
CD contest director or
compact disc
CG center of gravity
CL Control Line
cm centimeter
cu. in. cubic inch
dBA DeciBels Adjusted (noise
power calculated in dB
[decibel])
DT dethermalizer
EPP (foam) expanded
polypropylene
ESC Electronic Speed Control
EPS expanded polystyrene foam
FAA Federal Aviation
Administration
FAI Fédération Aéronautique
Internationale
FCC Federal Communications
Commission
FF Free Flight
GHz gigahertz
ID inside diameter
Kv rpm/volt
kV kilovolt (1,000 volts)
LCD Liquid Crystal Display
LE leading edge
LED light-emitting diode
Li-Poly Lithium Polymer
mA milliamperes
MA Model Aviation
mAh milliampere-hours
MHz megahertz
mm millimeter
Nats AMA Nationals
nitro nitromethane
Ni-Cd Nickel Cadmium
NiMH Nickel Metal Hydride
OD outside diameter
RC Radio Control
rpm revolutions per minute
RTF Ready to Fly
SASE self-addressed, stamped
envelope
SIG Special Interest Group
TE trailing edge
Model Aviation’s
Frequently Used
Abbreviations/Acronyms
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:54 PM Page 56

52 MODEL AVIATION
GWS HAS SOLD many Slow Sticks
throughout the past few years, but what are
they? Are they trainers, park flyers, or sport
models?
The Slow Stick (item GWSS2215YA) is
inexpensive, durable, and easy to repair, but
it isn’t good-looking and I don’t think it will
win any contests. I have seen numerous
Slow Sticks, and their owners seem to like
them, but I have never had a chance to try
one—until now.
Opening the package revealed a molded
hard-foam wing that seemed to take up the
whole box. The two wings are molded in
one piece, with a “hinge” in the middle to
allow them to be folded into the carton.
The precut foam-board tail surfaces
were slipped between the wing
halves. Under a
cardboard separator I
found the aluminum
fuselage “stick” (some
packages include a
plastic fuselage stick),
several “trees” of plastic
parts, a couple of hardware
bags, two large sheets of
stickers, and a 14-page colorillustrated
instruction
manual.
The Slow Stick is
available with several motor
packages. Mine came with the
Everything is included with the
ARF except servos, ESC, battery, and
receiver. The extremely flexible landing
gear is fine for the slow takeoff and landing
speeds of the model.
new GWS 2215 brushless set, which
included the GWS2215-12T outrunner
motor, two motor mounts, a 10 x 6 electric
propeller, and a rubber spinner.
My model was yellow, but it is
available in a variety of colors. That comes
in handy if you and several buddies want to
fly together.
All parts seemed to be well made and
appropriate for their intended use.
Not all of the pieces on
the plastic trees
were used on the airplane, but all of them
were numbered to make identification
easier.
The instruction manual included lists of
all included parts and items that the
assembler needed for the project.
Assembly: No glue is used to assemble the
Slow Stick. A vacuum-formed plastic center
reinforcement, which also sets the correct
dihedral, is attached to the wings with
precut double-stick tape. Then
carbon-fiber reinforcing rods are
attached to the LEs and TEs with
clear tape.
The tape is actually part of the large
sticker sheets and is also used for the rudder
and elevator hinges. There wasn’t enough
tape on the sticker sheets to do all it was
meant to do. I used clear packaging tape
after I ran out, and that worked just as well.
The rudder and elevator
come attached to the main
tail pieces and are easy
to snap apart. Then a
45° taper must be cut
and sanded into their LEs.
Be sure to do this before you
do any hinging, or you will cut
through the hinge tape. The
completed tail feathers are attached to
the fuselage stick with bolts and doublestick
tape.
Park View: GWS Slow Stick and Floats
JIM FELDMANN
Nearly perfectly named, the 400-class GWS Slow Stick has taught many people how to fly.
surf-and-turf fun
It’s still around, and a great design for
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:52 PM Page 52
January 2011 53
Photos by the author
Above: The wings are unfolded, and then
the plastic center reinforcement is
attached with double-stick tape. Notice
the aluminum and carbon-fiber LE and
TE reinforcements.
The float kit is simple, light, and inexpensive, and the parts fit
was exceptional. These floats will work on any GWS Speed 400-
class airplane.
The author built new, longer struts to mount the floats to the
Slow Stick. Struts included with the aircraft were far too small
to clear the waterline.
Left: Contents of the Slow Stick,
including the 2215 motor package. The
wing halves are folded together so that
they fit in the box. Other colors are
available.
Everything else is simply slipped onto
the stick, and the motor mount is secured
with a bolt. Some drilling is required.
Despite the many color photos in the
instructions, it was hard to see how to orient
the plastic parts. A bit of trial-and-error
fitting solved that problem.
I had only two minor parts-fit issues.
First, the included tail wheel retainer did not
fit the tail wheel wire. I fixed that with a
1/16-inch wheel collar from my spare-parts
drawer.
Second, the included pushrods were too
short to install the servos in the position that
the instructions show. I installed them as far
forward as the pushrods would allow, and
the initial balance still came out close to the
recommended CG.
On the topic of balance, the directions
are to move the battery back and forth to set
the CG where it should be. I didn’t have
room to move the battery, so I moved the
wing back slightly instead.
The instruction manual isn’t up to date
with the latest changes in the package, but
overall it is better than most. Although a
person with some mechanical skills should
be able to correctly assemble the Slow Stick
with no serious problems, a new RCer
should have an experienced RCer examine
the finished model to make sure that things
such as radio and power hookups are correct
before the first flight.
This was the first Slow Stick I had
assembled, and it took me half a day to
figure everything out. But I am convinced
that I could assemble a second one in less
than an hour.
Flying: The included brushless motor set,
GWS 25-amp ESC, and GWS 1050 mAh
Li-Poly battery made a complete power
package that has proven to be simple,
powerful, durable, and quiet. It was ideal for
almost any style of flying that the airplane
could do. The GWS NARO+D digital servos
lacked neither power nor precision.
The Slow Stick can be hand-launched,
but it will take off easily from either hardsurface
runways or grass. Point it directly
into the wind and advance the throttle, and it
will lift off practically by itself.
Climbout is strong, and you can throttle
back to half or less for cruise. And cruise
with this aircraft is a walking pace.
It is perfect for lawn chair flying and
making lazy circles in the sky. This model
will fly for 30 minutes at half throttle, so
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:53 PM Page 53
54 MODEL AVIATION
The total weight of floats and struts is 5 ounces. The
struts fold down for easy transportation and storage
when the floats are not attached to the fuselage.
The author built and tested the Slow Stick with wheels as the standard
three-channel version. An aileron-control version is available.
This airplane on floats
performs majestically—
just the ticket for
smooth-water flying.
Taxi the model wet with a touch of power, upelevator
to keep the nose high, and ample rudder to
hold it into the wind. It will quickly “pop” off of the
water.
The author’s longer gear raises the airplane well off of
the water. A corrosion-preventive spray such as
CorrosionX keeps the electronics safe from water
damage.
01sig2.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 11/19/10 4:54 PM Page 54
January 2011 55
Pluses and Minuses
+
• Slow and stable enough to be a basic
trainer.
• Relaxing to fly but can be fun to toss
around.
• Durable and easy to repair.
Specifications
All components are exposed, so changing the battery and performing necessary
maintenance is easy. This flyer is slow and gentle; the author has a blast with leisurely flight.
Learning things on your own is
sometimes more rewarding than being
taught, even though it might be more
difficult. So when my friend who works at
the AMA got me interested in piloting model
airplanes, I thought this was a good
opportunity. With the economical
combination of two GWS products, I gained
my wings after some hard—but fun—work.
First I began using the GWS FMS PC
USB Flight Simulator. It is a replica of a
GWS transmitter, and it works with the free
FMS software. It might not be as visually
pleasing as the software you pay for, but I
truly enjoyed it and spent hours flying on it.
The second part of my combination was
the GWS Slow Stick. Its resemblance to the
Red Baron’s Fokker made it exciting to me
as a novice. Its low price gave me
confidence; I knew that if it did crash, it
would not cost much to repair.
The setup of the GWS USB Flight
Simulator and the FMS took patience, but
after a bit of reading I had everything
working correctly. Piloting the simulator took
practice, but it did not take me long to master
flying inverted or looping figure eights.
After some exploring, I learned that
hundreds of models can be downloaded for
free for use with the FMS. There are even
some spacecraft from popular movies that are
extremely fun to use.
Assembling the Slow Stick took a total of
roughly two hours. You begin with the most
difficult part, which involves cutting and
taping the rudder and elevator.
Next is installing the fuselage. Adding the
receiver, speed control, and servos was a
snap. I had to play with the control horns to
get them right, but it was easy with an
experienced friend’s help.
The motor and a couple other pieces were
installed with cement adhesive. After those
steps were completed, all I had to do was wait
for the glue to dry. In the meantime I got on
my simulator to practice for the next
afternoon’s flight.
I spent an hour on the simulator before
going out for my first flight. I was cruising
around in a Corsair and managed to fly
inverted with total control. So with my
confidence up and the wind died down, I was
ready to fly my Slow Stick for the first time.
I was at a grass field, which made a handlaunch
necessary. I instantly saw where this
model got its name, but after a shaky takeoff
it began to climb.
Excitement raced through me as the
airplane began running out of field, and I
knew I had to make the first turn. Copying
the movements from the simulator, I had the
Slow Stick heading back toward me. After a
couple of passes, I set it down slowly and
managed to keep it in one piece.
After that flight I think I can consider
myself a beginner pilot. Now I want
something that goes a little faster. MA
—Shane Scherschel
[email protected]
Test-Model Details
I Learned to Fly, Thanks to GWS
Model type: Park flyer/trainer ARF
Skill level: Intermediate builder, novice
pilot
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 510 square inches
Length: 37.25 inches
Power system: 100-watt electric
Radio: Three channels minimum, two
servos, ESC
Construction: Molded-foam wing,
foam-board tail, plastic or aluminum
fuselage, plastic and foam floats
Floats: GWS float kit with custombent
music-wire struts
Prices: Airframe with motor, $39.95;
ESC, $35; Li-Poly battery, $31.50; servo
(each), $17.99; float kit, $14
Motor: GWS 2215 (included)
ESC: 25-amp GWS
Battery: GWS three-cell, 1050 mAh Li-
Poly
Propeller: 10 x 6 (included)
Wing loading on wheels: 4.4 ounces/
square foot
Wing loading on floats: 5.6 ounces/
square foot
Radio system: Hitec Eclipse 7
transmitter with Hitec 2.4 GHz module,
Hitec Optima 7 2.4 GHz receiver, two
GWS NARO+D digital
Ready-to-fly weight on wheels: 15.5
ounces
Ready-to-fly weight on floats: 20 ounces
Flight duration: 10-15 minutes
• Inexpensive and widely available.
• Available in several colors. -•
Requires mechanical aptitude and some
modeling experience for proper assembly.
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you can pass it around among your buddies or
trim it for a gentle turn and seldom have to
touch the sticks.
As with any three-channel airplane,
maneuvers are not precise, but it loops easily.
I even performed a decent outside loop.
Rolls require planning. With full throttle,
point the nose 45° down to gain speed, pull
the nose up to 45°, and add full left rudder.
Hold full rudder, and the wings should come
back to level by the time the nose is pointed
45° down again.
Landing is only slightly harder than taking
off. The Slow Stick is so light that it should be
flown all the way to the ground. Cut the
throttle when the wheels touch, and the
ground roll is only a few feet.
Be aware that, as do other light airplanes,
this model does a poor job of handling the
wind. At one point I tried to make a left
upwind turn with 45° left rudder, but this
aircraft was turning right (downwind) instead.
After an experienced pilot has trimmed the
airplane, I think a quick student could learn to
fly it without an instructor in calm conditions.
The student would need to move up to four
channels and a faster model before moving on
in the hobby, but this might be a good airplane
to start with if a teacher is unavailable. It is
quite durable, and most repairs require
nothing more than packaging tape.
Floats: GWS makes a nice, lightweight set of
floats that is the right size for the Slow Stick,
so I just had to try it on water.
The floats come as a kit that requires the
assembler to trim and glue the vacuumformed
plastic bottoms to the molded foam
tops. A hardwood backbone and wire struts
are included with all of the necessary
hardware. Water rudders are not included, but
they are not required under the calm
conditions that the Slow Stick needs.
Gluing the top and bottom of the floats
together can be a challenge. I found that using
tape to hold the sides of the plastic parts
against the foam while the glue (epoxy or
aliphatic) set worked well enough.
The wire struts and spreader bars that
come with the kit are not suitable for the Slow
Stick, so I bent longer ones using the same
gauge of K&S music wire. I mounted the
floats 123/4 inches apart and 61/2 inches below
the fuselage stick, which makes the outward
angle of the struts close to the ideal 45°. The
step is approximately 1 inch behind the CG,
and the fuselage stick is roughly 2° positive to
the top of the floats.
I bent the top of my new struts to match
the shape of the Slow Stick’s main landing
gear struts and made a plywood sandwich to
clamp them to the fuselage stick. These struts
seemed awfully flexible at first, but they
worked great on the water.
The Slow Stick is basically waterproof.
However, if you give the ESC and all of the
56 MODEL AVIATION
electrical connectors a bath in CorrosionX or
a similar water-proofer, you don’t have to
worry about dunking it.
Fresh water will not hurt the battery,
motor, servos, or receiver. I have flipped the
model several times, retrieved it, blown the
water off, and taken off with it again.
Flying the Slow Stick with floats is even
more fun than without, if that is possible. It
“levitates” off of the water. The pendulum
effect of the floats and the slightly higher
wing loading seem to calm the airplane a bit
and give it a bit more wind tolerance.
But be careful not to run the model too
long on the water. The floats tend to dart off
to one side or the other if you try to hold the
aircraft on the water after it reaches flying
speed. Let it take itself off.
And don’t try to taxi crosswind—but
that’s good advice for piloting any floatplane.
I am going to take the Slow Stick to every
float-fly I attend. Nothing is better for late
evenings, after a busy, exciting, and noisy day
of flying bigger models.
The GWS Slow Stick does the relaxed slowflying
thing better than any airplane I have
seen. It is also a good first model with or
without an instructor, and it is a great base for
customizing.
The ailerons are molded into the wing. I
have seen several Slow Sticks converted to
full four-channel control, and I have seen
others converted to biplanes, twins, and even
canards.
Some fliers have glued a wing upsidedown
on the bottom the regular wing, to
make it fully symmetrical. A stronger motor
is a common upgrade, although the new 2215
seems more than adequate.
It is hard to find more fun per dollar than
with the GWS Slow Stick. I think I will get
another so I can have a full-time version on
wheels and a full-time version on floats. Then
maybe I’ll get another one so I can make it
into a … MA
Jim Feldmann
[email protected]
Manufacturer:
GWS USA
138 S. Brent Cir.
City of Industry CA 91789
(909) 594-4979
www.gwsus.com
Sources:
CorrosionX
(800) 638-7361
www.corrosionx.com
Visit the AMA Education
Committee Web site at
www.modelaircraft.org/
education
AMA Academy of Model
Aeronautics
ARF Almost Ready to Fly
BEC Battery Eliminator Circuit
CA cyanoacrylate glue
CAD computer-aided design
cc cubic centimeter
CD contest director or
compact disc
CG center of gravity
CL Control Line
cm centimeter
cu. in. cubic inch
dBA DeciBels Adjusted (noise
power calculated in dB
[decibel])
DT dethermalizer
EPP (foam) expanded
polypropylene
ESC Electronic Speed Control
EPS expanded polystyrene foam
FAA Federal Aviation
Administration
FAI Fédération Aéronautique
Internationale
FCC Federal Communications
Commission
FF Free Flight
GHz gigahertz
ID inside diameter
Kv rpm/volt
kV kilovolt (1,000 volts)
LCD Liquid Crystal Display
LE leading edge
LED light-emitting diode
Li-Poly Lithium Polymer
mA milliamperes
MA Model Aviation
mAh milliampere-hours
MHz megahertz
mm millimeter
Nats AMA Nationals
nitro nitromethane
Ni-Cd Nickel Cadmium
NiMH Nickel Metal Hydride
OD outside diameter
RC Radio Control
rpm revolutions per minute
RTF Ready to Fly
SASE self-addressed, stamped
envelope
SIG Special Interest Group
TE trailing edge
Model Aviation’s
Frequently Used
Abbreviations/Acronyms
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