Aerobeez 57" Extra 330-50EP

March 2012

What's in a clone?

General Specifications

Build Date - March 2012 and April 2012
Updated May, 2014

Airframe Type -	Mid Wing 3D		Flying Type -	3D, 3D, 3D, 3D
Wingspan -	57.0 inches		Length -	57.0 inches
Wing Area -	680 sq. inches		All-Up Weight -	80.3oz
Motor -	ExceedRC Rocket 4120-515		Wing Load -	17.0 oz/sq. ft.
Propeller -	15 x 7 APCe or Xoar PJN		Power -	840 - 1210 watts
Thrust -	176 ounces (4990gr)		Thrust/Weight -	2.2
Battery Type -	Lipoly 5s1p 4000mah, 45C		Capacity -	4000mah(4s), 3300mah(5s)
Speed Control -	Cobra 80 amp		BEC -	CC 10 amp Switching

Commentary

For many months I waited for the folks at 3D Hobby Shops to get in stock their 57" Extra 330SC as it was really well spoken about in every way. What I ended up doing however was to search for the maker of the plane and see if there was another supplier. Wouldn't you know, I found one, Aerobeez.com. Not only is it exactly the same airframe, it comes with slightly better hardware and the price including shipping is nearly $100 less than 3DHS!

This prompted me to create a new decal!

As far as the build goes, it was uneventful and very quick. As is typical these days I had to install hinges, hardware and my gear and that's about it. One of the pieces that proved to me it was the exact same airframe was the instruction manual which in text is identical to the 3DHS manual and in pictures it was the same as well. I used all the standard hardware the plane cam with and added a CF plate to the fuse to mount the receiver.

The engine mount was as straight forward as they get as no stand-offs were needed! It was just drill, bolt and done.

As far as fit and finish, it is all high quality stuff. The pre-cut hinge slots were dead on, the cowl and canopy fit nice and snug and all the colors matched well. I'd have to say it is easily on par with the 3DHS bird. Speaking of this, below is a comparison photo of my Aerobeez flyer and a freinds older 3DHS airframe. You can see they are nearly perfectly identical in construction with the only difference being the Aerobeez unit has an added stiffener in the bottom of the fuse for air flow and the two bottom fuse stringers have CF rod inlays.

That's it! A few short hours, minimal tools and creative work and she is (was) ready to fly.

Why there are two build dates in the spec section

Simply put, the first one of these I built lasted four minutes and twenty seconds. This first airframe was built using 100% new components and they were good quality components. I did all the right set-up stuff, used a good radio and this is certainely not my first experience. What happened was, one of those high quality components failed and unfortunately it took the aiplane with it. The component which failed was a Castle Creations Ice75 speed control and when it failed it did saw in a spectacular way with lots of smoke as the plane augered in.

 

Needless to say, it was not my best day! On doing an analysis I found the data logger in the Ice75 worked all the way to the ground. It shows something terrible happening because at one point the internal temp goes completely wacky so I put a letter together and a copy of the data log and a picture of my ESC mount and sent it all to the folks at Castle.

I gotta say they really responded. They told me they would do an analysis and get back with their findings but in the mean time they would honor the warranty and express mail me a new, tested unit. That is excellent customer service. Upon getting back they said their analysis showed a faulty set of power IC's and they very much apologized for what happened. (No, they did not offer to replace the plane...).

Within a month I had a new airframe (no, 3DHS didn't have any) and was ready for the second maiden. This time I went with a Cobra 80ESC and a separate Hyperion 10amp SBEC. I've used this arrangement in the past and if I had this separate BEC on the first plane, the original catastrophe might have been avoided as I wouldn't have lost all flight controls, just the motor.

Flyin

It is a beautiful plane to fly. Very well behaved, radical when you want it to be and locked in on all the manuevers I am capable of. I would certainely recomend this plane to anyone looking for a 3D capable bird in this size. The Scorpion power is adequate on 4S to do just about anything you would ever want. On 5S it is just simply brutal. On the 4S pack I get a good 8+ minutes and on the 5S a reasonable 7 minutes.

Graphics

I have since added some graphics using inkjet waterslide decal material to dress her up a bit. The eagle emblem, (look familiar?) the bullet holes and the Extra 330SC are all mine.

1 year, 9 months

January, 2014 - Dumb Thumbs!

I thought it a total loss but when I removed all the hardware and dug into what repair was needed I decided to spend a couple hours and see if I could make it a solid air-frame again without adding too much repair weight. Also it was clear the right wing was a total but because of the first mishap, I had an extra right side wing in near perfect shape! The only purchase part needed then was a canopy.

2.1 oz of glue and wood with about 4 hours of tinkering and the air-frame was good! Of course the gamble is on the canopy because Aerobeez no longer sells this plane. So, to prove my point about this plane being identical to the 3DHS 57" 330SC, I bought a 3DHS canopy and wouldn't you know, it fit perfectly. The ONLY difference is it has "3DHS" inscribed in the canopy back plate.

Part 3 - Long live the 57" 330!

Notable changes
Two notable changes were made in this rebuild. I moved the elevator servo back to the original mount in the tail and changed the motor to a larger ExceedRC 4120/515 Outrunner with a 5S, 4000mah, 45C pack. This added about 4oz to the AUW which brings the plane up to the specified flying weight. I did this because the Scorpion motor, which was undersized for a 3D plane of this size, was really over-propped and coming down hot too often. The ExceedRC motor does well and the plane is it's awesome self again but I would suggest to anyone reading, get the Cobra motor equivalent. These ExceedRC motors are pretty low quality and in this case I had to throw out the bolt-on prop adapter, push the shaft through and use a collet type because the bolt-on adapter vibrated so bad. (This is not my first Exceed Motor).

The End :(

As they say, I found the expiration date. The rebuild wasn't a total waste because I did get quite a few flights on it but once again, dumb thumbs. Oh well, on to the next project.

Part 3 - Long live the 57" 330!