74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/10
Page Numbers: 74,76,78,80,81,82,84,86,88
74 MODEL AVIATION
Extreme Flight RC
Edge 540T ARF
ARE YOU ITCHING to try some of this
new 3-D stuff? Maybe see if you have the
“right stuff” to hover, Harrier, etc.? I did, and
I decided to take on this review of the
Extreme Flight Radio Control Edge 540T
Profile ARF. What a mouthful!
The Edge is one of the latest designs,
which is geared to be a 3-D trainer. It is meant
to be inexpensive and quick to assemble and
use. It supplies a platform on which you can
polish your skills before moving on to bigger,
more extravagant models.
First Impressions: The Edge 540T is a
profile design, meaning that it has a flat
fuselage that is designed to represent the
shape of the airplane if viewed from the side.
This design does resemble a full-scale Edge,
although it’s a bit shorter than a Scale model
would be.
The wing came out of the box in one piece.
The rib profile was fully symmetrical and was
nice and thick at the spar. There were two
hatches built into the bottom. They covered
the compartments where the radio and aileron
servos were mounted.
All the parts were precovered in a greatlooking
multicolored scheme. There were no
wrinkles and all the trim pieces lined up well,
but you’ll want to go over the edges of the
trim pieces with an iron; they were not
completely adhered.
A complete hardware package was included, providing control
hardware, a fuel tank, landing gear, and tail gear—almost everything
except a spinner. Also included was an illustrated instruction manual
that was quite clear about how to put everything together.
Construction: Begin building by cutting away the covering from a
few areas on the fuselage (wing saddle, throttle servo, etc.). Assemble
the landing-gear halves, and then attach them to the fuselage. The
gear’s position is not preset, so you are free to move it fore/aft a bit to
better match up with the CG location. Since the CG is unknown until
Pros:
• Extremely quick build—takes a couple hours.
• One-piece wing.
• All hardware (except spinner) included.
• Will hover using an engine as small as a .46.
• Excellent ground clearance to suit a wide variety of
engines/propeller sizes.
• Great fun to throw around the sky—even for a 3-D novice.
Cons:
• The fuel tank is held in by two tie-wraps. As soon as the
engine fired, the tank vibrated loose. Use silicone or a similar
adhesive in addition to the wraps to help secure the tank.
• Although it’s a minor point, take the time to go over the trim
strips with an iron. Many of the edges were not completely
ironed down.
The review Edge 540, ready for its maiden flight, weighs 4.2 pounds.
From low-level passes to knife-edge loops and even snaps from
knife-edge to knife-edge, this model can make you look good.
P r o d u c t R e v i e w Dennis Ridenhour
E-mail: [email protected]
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:18 am Page 74
76 MODEL AVIATION
Photos by the author
the model is almost finished, in hindsight I
would have left this step until later.
Attach the tail wheel, wing, and horizontal
stabilizer. There’s nothing out of the ordinary
here; just make sure everything is straight and
true. After the glue has cured, attach the
movable surfaces. You will have to cut slots
for the hinges; I used Great Planes’ Slot
Machine to help speed this step along.
Because the hinge material is the type that is
attached with cyanoacrylate glue, adhering
the surfaces was fairly quick and painless.
Radio Installation: The basic airframe is
complete at this point. Begin radio installation
by mounting the servos in their various
locations. The elevator and rudder servos are
mounted just forward of the horizontal
stabilizer. This gives a short, slop-free linkage
to the surfaces.
However, it does require that you use two
24-inch servo extensions to connect to the
receiver. A nice touch is that a channel is built
into the bottom of the fuselage where you can
route the extensions. Once the wires are in
place, they are covered by a supplied piece of
matching iron-on film.
The receiver and battery are mounted in
separate compartments in the wing. Each
compartment has a panel that covers it, and I
There aren’t that many parts to put together. The Edge goes from
this state to assembled in just a couple of hours.
To start with, an O.S. .46 LA was used. The engine provided
plenty of power to hold the Edge 540T profile in a hover.
The Edge climbed effortlessly on first takeoff. A few clicks of left
aileron trim kept it flying straight and level.
Two hatches hide bulk of flight pack, aileron servos. Author
mounted power switch on one hatch door to simplify things.
Rudder and elevator servos mounted just forward of horizontal
stabilizer give short, slop-free linkage to control surfaces.
The one-piece wing appears to be assembled from laser-cut
components. Note the judicious use of lightening holes.
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 76
mounted the flight pack switch on one of
them to make life easy.
Install the pushrods, control horns, and
other hardware. Everything is
straightforward, and the supplied hardware
works well. You have to make two cutouts in
the covering to allow the aileron pushrods to
exit the wing.
Engine Installation: The Edge 540T ARF is
designed to take a wide range of engines.
Since Extreme Flight RC claimed that 3-D
performance could be obtained using a lowcost
.40-size engine, I chose to try an O.S. .46
LA. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, but rather
a typical .40-size power plant.
Mounting the engine is simple since the
engine mount is built into the fuselage. The
length and width of the cutout enables you to
mount the engine to help put the CG just
where you want it. I mounted the .46 LA to
place the CG approximately 1⁄4 inch behind
the main spar, as the manual suggests. The
engine is held in using the supplied bolts and
lock washers.
I installed the fuel tank next. With a bit of
sizing up, I drilled four holes through which
two tie-wraps are passed. These tie-wraps
hold the fuel tank and its balsa spacers in
place.
To finish up, hook up the fuel lines and
attach the throttle pushrod. From the start to
this point took roughly two hours. You can
finish the Edge further by adding the supplied
lettering to the top of the wing.
With everything completed, the Edge
540T profile ARF weighed a respectable 4.2
pounds ready to fly. Then it was time for
some fun!
Flying: After the initial ground photos, radio
check, and fueling, I fired up the engine for
the first flight. While letting the engine warm
for 10-15 seconds, I noticed that the fuel tank
was moving a bit. I immediately shut down
the engine to find that even though the tiewraps
were secured, the engine vibration was
enough to shake the fuel tank and the balsa
supports loose.
I only had cyanoacrylate with me at the
field, so I glued everything in place with that
and then tried starting it again.
Since the Edge’s tail wheel is not
steerable, I was a bit hesitant to try taxiing at
first. Instead, I sat the model on the runway
centerline and took off from there. Takeoff
was a breeze. In approximately 10 feet, the
Edge was up and climbing with authority. I
took a few passes to click in trim and become
familiar with it, and then I flew the model in
closer for the usual photo passes.
Then I clicked in the high rates to see what
I could do with it. I’m not a 3-D pilot—just a
typical sport flier—so I didn’t know what to
expect. Trying to hover on a few simulators
didn’t work out so well, so I was a bit
tentative about trying this at the field.
I made my first attempts at hovering and
some tight 3-D flying at a height that would
cover several mistakes. But to my surprise,
the Edge 540T was rock solid. Granted, it
takes most of the .46’s power to hold it in the
hover, but the engine put out enough thrust for
me to be comfortable with hovering closer.
When the model started to wander out of the
hover, I simply put in some down-elevator to
nose it over and flew off.
Knife-edge passes were great fun—even
buzzing just a couple feet off the ground. I
also threw in a few tight loops and rolls before
bringing the aircraft in for the first landing.
Getting back to the pits to refuel, it hit me
that I really could do some of these
maneuvers with this profile Edge, and it was
exciting! So I anxiously fueled up and set off
on the next flight. This little machine is a blast
to fly. It can easily outfly me and did
everything I asked of it. I even threw in a few
Harrier touch-and-gos. Inverted flight took
almost no down-elevator to maintain altitude,
and the Edge will fly seemingly forever on
low throttle settings.
Oh, and one more thing. That uncertainty
about taxiing without the tail wheel that I
mentioned was all for nothing; the rudder’s big
surface is more than adequate to help steer this
airplane around—on the grass or pavement.
I’ve put roughly 25 flights on the Extreme
Flight Radio Control Edge 540T profile as I
write this. I’ve upgraded the engine to a Saito
72 four-stroke and moved the CG back a bit
to help in the hover.
Although I’m not a 3-D master by any
means, I can hold my own with the guys at
my field and strongly recommend this kit to
anyone who wants to try 3-D. It’s a quick
build, it comes with a great color scheme, and
it offers outstanding performance—even on
engines as small as a .46! MA
Specifications:
Wingspan: 45.5 inches
Wing area: 700 square inches
Length: 48.5 inches
Recommended weight: 4-5 pounds
Review model’s weight (ready to fly):
4.2 pounds
Recommended engine: .40-.50 two-stroke or
52-72 four-stroke
Engine used in review: O.S. .46 LA twostroke
Recommended radio: Four-channel with four
standard servos and one miniservo (throttle)
Radio used: JR 6102 transmitter, R700
receiver, four JR 537 servos, and one Hobbico
CS-12 servo
Materials used in construction: Balsa and
plywood
Street price: $149.95
Manufacturer/Distributor:
Extreme Flight Radio Control
Box 374
Beauford GA 30515
(770) 887-1794
www.extremeflightrc.com
Products used in review:
JR 6102 radio system, Saito 72 engine:
Horizon Hobby
4105 Fieldstone Rd.
Champaign IL 61822
(217) 352-1913 or (800) 338-4639
www.horizonhobby.com
O.S. .46 LA engine, Hobbico CS-12 servo,
2.5-inch plastic spinner, Slot Machine:
Great Planes Model Distributors
Box 9021
Champaign IL 61826
(800) 682-8948
www.hobbico.com
1⁄4-inch protective foam rubber:
Du-Bro Products
Box 815
Wauconda IL 60084
(847) 526-2136
www.dubro.com
APC 10 x 6 two-blade propeller, APC 13 x 6
two-blade propeller:
APC Landing Products
1222 Harter
Woodland CA 95776
(530) 661-0399
www.apcprop.com
78 MODEL AVIATION
RADIO SOUTH INC.
PRO-DRIVER
Contains 4 1300 mah battery cells, senses when plug is fouled & boosts power.
LED bar garaph meter display on plug condition. Supports Futaba “J” chargers.
Retail Price $89.95
PRO-DRIVER MARK II
With auto shut down.
Retail Price $89.95 PRO-HINGES
Easiest Hinge to Install.
(for use with cyanocrylate adhesives)
RC- $2.49/pkg. 18 • 1/4 Scale - $2.79/pkg. 24 3702 N Pace, Pensacola, FL 32505
Toll Free Order Line (Orders Only Please) 800-962-7802
Repair and Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850-434-0909 or visit our website at http://www.radiosouthrc.com
If not available at your local hobby shop, order
direct. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.
Special Paper
Plastic
Special Paper
10sig3.QXD 7/23/04 10:19 am Page 78