Hacker Reno Racer - Cosmic Wind

This is my new Hacker Reno Racer. I bought this sometime last year when Hobby Lobby was running them on sale, but it's been sitting in the closet since I received it. I love to build, but it's been a few weeks since I actually threw something together. The itch kind of just hit yesterday, so after perusing my collection of unbuilt toys, I decided to put this one together. The plane is constructed entirely from EPP foam and I found the quality to be quite nice. The instructions were easy to follow, as well, and total construction time was only a few hours.


























Following are the specifics of this little jewel:

Wingspan: 790mm (about 31 1/8")
All Up Weight: 218 grams (7.7 oz)
Servos Used: 3 TowerPro SG-90
Motor: 2712-12 1100kv Blue Wonder
Prop: GWS 8060HD
ESC: 10 amp Power Up
Receiver: Spektrum AR6100e
Battery: 2s 500mah LoongMax Lithium Polymer

The construction was straightforward and I encountered no problems whatsoever. The gluing method called out in the manual was thin CA with accelerator, but the only place I used this kind of glue was on the aluminum rod spars that are recessed in the top and bottom of the wing. Everywhere else I used low temperature hot glue. I was afraid that using this glue might result in a higher all up weight than the specified 220 grams, but since mine came in at 218 grams, I expect all will be okay.

I wasn't certain what motor to use, but since I regularly order RC goodies from Jeff Anderson at HeadsUpRC.com, I decided to use the Blue Wonder motor and PowerUp ESC that he offers. Jeff is a great guy and offers outstanding prices on the wares that he carries. Best of all, he won't "rape" you on the shipping. No matter how many things you order from him, shipping is only $2 for the package! He ships via USPS and must race to the Post Office with every shipment, because I have yet to receive ANY package from him in greater than 4 days time. This motor will produce 8.5 ounces of thrust on a 2S battery pack with the propeller that I chose which will offer my slightly greater than a 1:1 thrust to weight ratio with a flying speed of approximately 35mph. I intend this little plane to be a sport flier - not a 3D plane, so this combination should be perfect.
Jeff publishes all of the performance specs for the motors that he sells, and my combination should yield only about a 5 amp draw from the batteries, so flight times should be decent.

I am stuck right now on the homefront with the kiddoes, so a maiden is out of the question. However, if the weather permits, I should be able to maiden first thing in the morning!

I have a FlyCamOneV2 from Hobby Lobby, as well. I am hoping to be able to attach this little camera to the visor on my hat so that I can document the maiden flight. If I can pull this off, I'll post video right here!

Links to my suppliers:

www.hobby-lobby.com (Airplane kit, don't know if they still sell it tho)
www.headsuprc.com (Servos, ESC, Motor, Prop, Prop-Saver)
www.hobbycity.com (LoongMax Lipo battery)

PS - I'm working on building a website for my personal reviews, but until I figure out the ins and outs of web authoring, look for all of my stuff right here!

And don't forget to check out the RC podcast at www.rcflightcast.com !