Review Multiplex Easy Star II - 2012/10

The name Easy Star has been
around for approximately eight
years. The aircraft is basically
an electric-powered sport trainer
made from molded foam. The original
Easy Star was powered by a Speed
400 brushed motor, a NiMH battery
pack, and controlled by a 72 MHz RC
system.
This sport/trainer aircraft became
popular at local club fun-fl y contests
featuring events such as limbo, bomb
drop, cut the ribbon, balloon bust, and
even combat fl ying.
Our RC and electric power systems
have undergone a major technology
improvement. Modelers started
improving the power and RC systems on
their Easy Star aircraft. Multiplex USA
has released a new version designated
the Easy Star II.
The Easy Star II is intended for
brushless electric motors, LiPo batteries,
and 2.4 GHz spread spectrum radio
systems that require no frequency or
channel control. Multiplex engineers
have added an optional aileron feature,
to work with the rudder for full fourchannel
control capability. They also
went to a folding propeller that folds
rearward when the motor is stopped,
providing a more streamlined shape in
the glide.
Other features include a detachable
stabilizer and detachable wing panels
for easy transportation and storage. That
makes this the perfect airplane to take
on a trip.
One feature from the original Easy
Star can still be found on the new
version. The electric motor is located
above the wing, and behind the wing’s
TE in an enclosed pod. The beauty of
this is that you will likely never break
a propeller. Additionally, when hand
launching this airplane, you will not get
your hand in the propeller’s arc. These
are great advantages for a newcomer to
our hobby.
Items Needed to Complete the ARF
Multiplex is initially offering the Easy
Star II as an ARF version, which consists
of the foam aircraft along with the
folding propeller, spinner, and adapter.
Hitec plans to offer other variations of
the Easy Star II with power and RC
equipment options as well as an RTF
version that can fly right out of the box.
The basic kit that I reviewed required
the purchase of the following items: a
28mm brushless motor capable of up to
200 watts power input, a brushless ESC
rated at least at 20 amps motor current,
an RC receiver, four servos (if using the
aileron option), and a 3S LiPo battery
pack.
You can buy most of this equipment
from Hitec, or you can mix and match,
as I did, and obtain the necessary items
from several sources. The AXI brushless
electric motor and Spin-22 brushless
ESC came from Hobby
Lobby International and
the LiPo battery pack, CA
cement and accelerator, and
three-wire cable or aileron
extension cables are available
through BP Hobbies.
These companies are in
the “Sources” list. If you
buy what I used, they will
definitely fit and work in this
aircraft.
Construction
The Elapor molded foam
is durable, but if you damage
any parts, you can buy
replacements for most items.
CA cement and accelerator
will not melt the foam.
Before starting assembly,
read through the instruction
manual and look at the
corresponding pictures.
Several areas specifically tell
you not to apply cement. I
suggest that you highlight
these references so that
you don’t accidentally glue
something that must be
removed later on.
Before cementing the two fuselage
halves together, think out the installation
of your RC receiver and your brushless
motor ESC. I found it necessary
to extend the ESC motor wires
approximately 3 inches in length. This
allowed me to locate the ESC inside
of the fuselage, directly behind the RC
receiver so the ESC battery wires were
close to the battery.
I still had to add an inch or two to the
battery wires to be able to reach the
battery, which is up forward near the
nose of the aircraft. Do this and plug
in all your connectors into the receiver
before cementing the fuselage sides
together.
I opted to use ailerons in the wing
panels. The two HS-55 aileron servos
are located halfway out on each wing
panel. The HS-55 servo wire was
roughly 3 inches short. I chose to splice
it and add my own wire. An alternative
might be to use 3- to 4-inch servo
extensions so you won’t have to solder
anything.
Both servo cables plug into two 12-
inch aileron extension cables inside the
fuselage, which then run forward and
plug into your RC receiver. Again, this
is done before the fuselage is cemented
together.
I plugged both aileron servos into
separate ports on my
receiver, allowing me to
change servo rotation
and throw separately.
The alternative is to use a Y harness,
with one end only going to the aileron
port on your receiver.
My last comment concerns the
orientation of the propeller blades.
The rotation of the motor should be
clockwise, when looking from the tail
of the aircraft forward. If the motor
rotation has to be reversed, it is easy to
remove the motor pod cover and get
at the motor and ESC connectors to
switch two of the wires. Look at the
picture to determine that the propeller
blades are properly oriented.
The CG location is slightly more
than 3 inches back from the wing’s LE.
I achieved this balance perfectly using
the BP Hobbies Cheetah 3S 1800 (5.2
ounces) LiPo battery pack.
I attempted to use a larger BP
Hobbies 3S 2600 pack, but it was a tight
fi t and weighed 7.4 ounces. That would
have made the
airplane quite
nose-heavy.
If you want more capacity, try the BP
Hobbies Cheetah 3S 2200 pack at 6.2
ounces. That one extra ounce would still
work, but that is the largest battery pack
I would use in this aircraft.
Control throws were as follows:
ailerons 1/2 inch either side of neutral;
elevator 3/8 inch; and rudder 5/8 inch. I
added 30% exponential rate to all three
fl ight control channels.
Flying
Installing the ailerons was a good
choice. With the relatively small
amount of wing dihedral, the rudder is
ineffective, especially at slower fl ying
speeds. The banking motion produced
by the ailerons allows more responsive
turn maneuvers at lower fl ying speeds.
Aileron control is a better choice for
the beginner pilot. It allows the beginner
to transition more easily into full fourchannel
aircraft control (aileron, elevator,
rudder, and motor throttle) when
learning to fl y more advanced aircraft.
Aileron control also adds a new
dimension to the fl ight envelope of this
model, allowing for roll maneuvers. True
axial rolls are possible, although some
coordinated rudder control will make
the roll more precise. You can also roll
the model into inverted fl ight, inputting
down-elevator to keep the nose level.
Cuban Eights are easy and quite graceful
in fl ight.
Without landing gear, you must hand
launch the Easy Star II. I found it best
to use full throttle for the launch phase.
What the airplane gains in altitude, you
can throttle back. There is plenty of
power available, so fl ying at even half
throttle is practical. That will extend the
fl ight time because the motor is drawing
less current.
With such light wing loading, it
is diffi cult to stall the Easy Star II.
Landings can be made at slow speeds,
which will make beginner pilots happy.
You can always practice forced stalls at
altitude to see what it is like, but you
may be surprised at how hard it is to get
it to stall. The Easy Star II is a perfect
trainer aircraft as well as an ideal sport
aircraft. It’s a lot of fun to fl y.
Summary
The Easy Star II could be considered
for more than just training or sport
fl ying. The pusher motor confi guration
leaves the front of the aircraft open
and in the clear. A digital camera or
camcorder could easily be mounted in
the nose with a full forward viewing
area. Another possibility is to install a
fi rst-person view (FPV) system which
allows you to control the aircraft
through an onboard TV system.
Many modelers are now getting into
FPV. The Easy Star II provides the
perfect vehicle for such fl ying. If you do
add a camera or FPV system, you may
want to consider moving the battery
pack farther aft, in case the Easy Star II
ends up nose-heavy. There is plenty of
room for adjustment.
The original Easy Star was a wonderful
electric-powered RC model aircraft. The
Easy Star II only gets better!