So many respected reviewers have struggled with this plane. I've got one and the elevator control was not working out the box. I've ordered another receiver as the servos for rudder & elevator are integrated into the control board. I'm following all the recommendations and hope it will fly without any problems but I don't hold out much hope.
I have one coming in tomorrow and I will run this test on mine> If it acts up I am going to un-hook the rudder and just fly it 3 channel without the rudder. I have a A600 Beaver from XK and have never had a problem out of it. Thanks for the video. It probably saved my plane!
@@thetwogardens6048 I have tried both high rates and unhooking the rudder. now instead of twisting down, it just comes straight down like a arrow. I have given up on mine. I would also like to let you know that I have had a XK Beaver for a couple years now so I decided to get another one and it acts just like the Skylark. Big Bummer!
@@rcplanetim53 I bought that XK A800 glider and only got three flights out of it . The receivers on those things are crap. I wont buy small planes anymore. I stick to the bigger stuff .
I have a working theory as to why the gyros in these are flipping out. it's not a tips stall issue, as you can see the rudder going to full deflection and putting it into a spin. I suspect it is because they moved the receiver back into the tail section so that the plane could have a detailed cockpit. But the built-in gyro system on the receiver brick needs to be mounted near the center of mass so that the plane rotates around it in all 3 axis's. By mounting it in the tail the receiver is experiencing lateral and vertical motion when the plane rotates in yaw and pitch, and I bet it's confusing the self-leveling software. Look in any other Eachine,Volantex or XK ready-to-fly aircraft and you will find the receiver with gyro under or over the wing and near the G/C and center of rotation/center of mass.
That is a good theory Doggeslife. It may explain why other XK planes do not have the same issue. I thought the issue was the abnormal full deflection of the rudder when you gave a quick succession of small RLRLRL rudder inputs. Please let me know if you end up testing and proving your theory. Thank you.
@@PropsWheels I just need a beat-up and ugly but still flyable A160 airframe that I can relocate the stock radio's position in and test-fly it without having to worry about potential crash damage. I don't want to test theories on a near-new plane and trash it if I'm wrong.
Hi once again, I also have the a800 and it literally without warning it dived into the ground consequently it is hot glued and taped together and I have been reluctant to fly it since. With a lot of the small models that I have including the Mustang and Corsair I have not experienced that problem but I do feel that the sensitivity could be dialled back to eradicate twitching whilst flying but for the money I accept there’s a in what can be provided. Once again a clear concise video I’m intrigued what if anything is possible with this stabilised receiver. Thanks.
Hi Michael. Thank you for sharing your experience with your XK A800 glider. My last few crashes was like that as well, felt like I had no control and it kept leaning towards one side until it hit the ground. I am going to check it for the same rudder issue. I never had any such issues with my Eachine and WLtoys stabilized parkflyers, and I think they are fantastic. By the way, I just posted another flight video of this airplane: th-cam.com/video/vLdoWWh9JoE/w-d-xo.html Best regards.
I have never had a tip stall issue. The plane for a start is tail heavy and needs at least 10g weight on the nose. But I do find that the electronics on XK planes to not be the best .
I'm sorry to hear that. One of the TH-camrs suggested moving the CG a bit forward to ameliorate top stalls. You can try by moving the battery more forward or by adding a penny under the motor compartment and see it it makes this plane more stable. Cheers!
HI, I have an A160-J3, I would like to use it with a TX16S radiomaster. I have detected that you have a new V911 protocol card. Can you tell me on which channels I can set the other functions? 3G/6G - L,H etc. Thanks and greetings, Aldo Guarasci
Thank you for your presentation, I found the problems of the remote and receiver, it does not respond to the control sticks, may be a toy grade remote control!, so I decide not to take off before changing the transmitter and receiver include esc. Actually, the size of the plane is quite compact but it needs to modify the space of elevator and rudder rods.
If you have an OpenTX transmitter, like a RadioMaster or Jumper, you could bind this plane to it. This may at least resolve the "toy-grade controller" aspect of your problem.
@@PropsWheels Thanks. Now I remove receiver board (includes built -in servos) and ESC from its body waiting for RC grade replacement parts since I can not rely on 6 G Gyro. I want to fly without restriction of the program board.
The replacement project is on process, the 2 grams micro servos for elevator and rudder shall be arrived soon. My plan is to use the original esc (changing a connector plug to receiver to futaba/jr plug-modify) if it fails, the new esc shall be used, all replacement items shall be the same weight or close to the original item, then, check and check the cg before flight. The radio shall be radio master Pocket elrs with 2 or 4 grams Rx-PWM (futaba/jr plug).
@@PropsWheels Hi, I finished modifying the plane, all electric parts are removed except servos on the wing. I use hobbywing 20A, 1510 2200KV, 2 digital servos for rudder and elevator, modify plug to futaba/jr /pwm for aileron wire with elrs rx, modify back compartment for installing of servos, a 4 grams elrs Rx in the back cabin, modify cowling for 1510 BL motor, modify propeller hole for spinner. The total weight for take off is 200 grams!!!! Small plane but big job!!!! Now waiting for a test flight (first fight). Tx is radiomaster Pocket, the size close to a toy grade Tx.
The suggest cg in the laughable "manual" is WRONG. It makes the plane tail heavy causing tip stalls and spins. CG should be no more than 1/3rd of the cord of the wing from the leading edge. I balance mine right, moved the rudder and elevator pushrods to the outside holes and mine doesn't tip stall or spin out of control. 45 years of RC experience.
Hi Aztom40. Thank you for your recommendation and tip. I do not like flying tail-heavy planes. I may do another review flight video once I bring the CG forward. Take care.
Thank you for the smartest advice yet! that’s what I was thinking .a plane will not fly if it’s not balanced in the CG is a bit too far back. Do I measure 1/3 back from front part of Wing? 1/3 of the over all wing with?
In this plane, the rudder is already mixed with ailerons in stabilized mode, so there is no need to use the rudder in flight to make a turn, which is where the problem you are reporting is on. So, just do not use the rudder alone in flight that everything will work well.
I tryied binding the the airplane to my RadioMaster 16x radio using the video you posted but it would not bind. Is their another sub protocol that I can try. I use v911s and wltoys
If you have the new version of the XKA160 (the receiver board will have extra sockets for satellite DSM and S-bus receivers) the protocol used is now V911S/E119. You may need a recent firmware version on your Radiomaster TX16S Multi Module.
One my wing struts already broken. I am beginner and new to the hobby. Now i have to wait month for new wing strut to arrive from china because i can't find any uk model shop which sells a160 skylark parts :(
That's why i have both the XK a600 PS new name XK a900 . This plane doesn't have this issues the only problem with the XK a900 is that it is tall heavy so you need a bigger battery or put some weight in te nose of the plane. PS i had this plane before that's why i know
No es un avion acrobático para estar moviendo los mandos tan rapido, cualquier avion si lo vuelas muy bajo, es muy probable que se estrelle, por eso es recomendable volarlo muy alto, debes volarlo con el motor a tope, volarlo de preferencia a primeras horas del dia 7-9am para que no existan vientos fuertes. En un espacio abierto con bastante espacio para que los giros no sean tan cerrados. Este hobby requiere un lugar y horarios especiales y mas cuando son aviones ligeros.Yo tengo uno y vuela increible.
Yo lo compré, estoy esperando la entrega, es mi primer avión. Si veo que me gusta el hobby me compraré un radio y receptor Fly-sky que me servirá para otros proyectos y tal vez lo pueda adaptar a este avión.
Hola. Acabo de ver en un canal italiano que el problema se solucionó con un condensador de 330μf en el ESC😊. Lo probaré en el mío antes de volarlo por primera vez. No quiero romperlo, prefiero dejarlo colgando del techo del taller 😅
It’s not a good plane out of the box. I bought a new board thinking that was the problem but the new receiver has the same reactions as original. Can u put in a different receiver
I think you can put a new receiver, but you will also need a small brushless ESC and some soldering for the micro servos and the motor connectors. I am not sure if it is worth the effort though... :(
For a bench demo of what the real problem is with this model watch this.... th-cam.com/video/wiFARGgVZKt/w-d-xo.html Not a great fan of his videos but gotta give credit for being the only finder of this I've yet seen.
In this plane, the rudder is already mixed with ailerons in stabilized mode, so there is no need to use the rudder in flight to make a turn, which is where the problem you are reporting is on. So, just do not use the rudder alone in flight that everything will work well.
It's fine to fly without rudder in the air, but the rudder is useful during the taxiing on the ground. Unfortunately, this beautiful plane doesn't have full manual mode.
It should be easy to check this theory with a good Multi Protocol Radio. Just lock the inputs from the rudder stick to 0 and allow only the Gyro mixing of aileron to rudder to move the rudder. Adjust the COG for non tail heavy, select a flying day with a bit of wind (to get the gyros working) and fly large circles and 8s at 60%+ throttle (to discount the stalling of the highly loaded wing at slow speeds) - No lawn darts = theory may be good. Still a Crash Monster - back to the drawing board!
Thank you for a Comprehensive explanations and teaching hidden secrets hints about this plane just as a preflight preparation hints . BR
Very good troubleshooting and communicating the results. Far too few people can do both.
First time viewer. I’ll be back.
So many respected reviewers have struggled with this plane. I've got one and the elevator control was not working out the box. I've ordered another receiver as the servos for rudder & elevator are integrated into the control board. I'm following all the recommendations and hope it will fly without any problems but I don't hold out much hope.
I found you need to have the Transmitter on high Rates and you wont have a problem .
I have one coming in tomorrow and I will run this test on mine> If it acts up I am going to un-hook the rudder and just fly it 3 channel without the rudder. I have a A600 Beaver from XK and have never had a problem out of it. Thanks for the video. It probably saved my plane!
Hi Tim. That us a very good idea. I think it will fly fine as a 3-channel airplane. Please let me know how it goes. Good luck!
Fly the model on high rates. thats the problem .
@@thetwogardens6048 I have tried both high rates and unhooking the rudder. now instead of twisting down, it just comes straight down like a arrow. I have given up on mine. I would also like to let you know that I have had a XK Beaver for a couple years now so I decided to get another one and it acts just like the Skylark. Big Bummer!
@@PropsWheels Not good. Now it just comes straight down. I also bought a XK Beaver and it does the same thing
@@rcplanetim53 I bought that XK A800 glider and only got three flights out of it . The receivers on those things are crap.
I wont buy small planes anymore. I stick to the bigger stuff .
Such a helpful video! Thank you for all the effort!
Can we not disconnect the link to the rudder and just fly it bank and yank?
How do you disengage the gyro?
Awesome awesome video. Thank you so much. I was thinking about getting one of these I really like them. I would definitely look into that.
I have a working theory as to why the gyros in these are flipping out. it's not a tips stall issue, as you can see the rudder going to full deflection and putting it into a spin.
I suspect it is because they moved the receiver back into the tail section so that the plane could have a detailed cockpit. But the built-in gyro system on the receiver brick needs to be mounted near the center of mass so that the plane rotates around it in all 3 axis's.
By mounting it in the tail the receiver is experiencing lateral and vertical motion when the plane rotates in yaw and pitch, and I bet it's confusing the self-leveling software. Look in any other Eachine,Volantex or XK ready-to-fly aircraft and you will find the receiver with gyro under or over the wing and near the G/C and center of rotation/center of mass.
That is a good theory Doggeslife. It may explain why other XK planes do not have the same issue. I thought the issue was the abnormal full deflection of the rudder when you gave a quick succession of small RLRLRL rudder inputs. Please let me know if you end up testing and proving your theory. Thank you.
@@PropsWheels I just need a beat-up and ugly but still flyable A160 airframe that I can relocate the stock radio's position in and test-fly it without having to worry about potential crash damage. I don't want to test theories on a near-new plane and trash it if I'm wrong.
Hi once again, I also have the a800 and it literally without warning it dived into the ground consequently it is hot glued and taped together and I have been reluctant to fly it since. With a lot of the small models that I have including the Mustang and Corsair I have not experienced that problem but I do feel that the sensitivity could be dialled back to eradicate twitching whilst flying but for the money I accept there’s a in what can be provided.
Once again a clear concise video I’m intrigued what if anything is possible with this stabilised receiver. Thanks.
Hi Michael. Thank you for sharing your experience with your XK A800 glider. My last few crashes was like that as well, felt like I had no control and it kept leaning towards one side until it hit the ground. I am going to check it for the same rudder issue. I never had any such issues with my Eachine and WLtoys stabilized parkflyers, and I think they are fantastic.
By the way, I just posted another flight video of this airplane:
th-cam.com/video/vLdoWWh9JoE/w-d-xo.html
Best regards.
I have never had a tip stall issue. The plane for a start is tail heavy and needs at least 10g weight on the nose. But I do find that the electronics on XK planes to not be the best .
A very helpful presentation. Thank you.
The plane is tail heavy I added 2 pennies to the nose and I trimmed the rudder no problems .
I bought the 1st with rudder issues then returned to get other one same but still have same issue!
I'm sorry to hear that. One of the TH-camrs suggested moving the CG a bit forward to ameliorate top stalls. You can try by moving the battery more forward or by adding a penny under the motor compartment and see it it makes this plane more stable. Cheers!
Unreal. I just ordered this plane a few days ago. It’s literally arriving today and I’m thinking I should just not even unbox it and return it.
Great work on your videos, thank you. Have you been able to find a way to bypass the stabilization and go to manual flight?
Utytt
Excelente observación se puede enlazar con futaba ??
HI,
I have an A160-J3, I would like to use it with a TX16S radiomaster. I have detected that you have a new V911 protocol card. Can you tell me on which channels I can set the other functions? 3G/6G - L,H etc.
Thanks and greetings, Aldo Guarasci
is the receiver use KN-WLTOYS or V911S-E119 multi protocol ?
Thank you for your presentation, I found the problems of the remote and receiver, it does not respond to the control sticks, may be a toy grade remote control!, so I decide not to take off before changing the transmitter and receiver include esc. Actually, the size of the plane is quite compact but it needs to modify the space of elevator and rudder rods.
If you have an OpenTX transmitter, like a RadioMaster or Jumper, you could bind this plane to it. This may at least resolve the "toy-grade controller" aspect of your problem.
@@PropsWheels Thanks. Now I remove receiver board (includes built -in servos) and ESC from its body waiting for RC grade replacement parts since I can not rely on 6 G Gyro. I want to fly without restriction of the program board.
@yut1572 Could you share which micro servos, receiver, and ESC you ordered? I'm curious how much weight they would add. Thanks!
The replacement project is on process, the 2 grams micro servos for elevator and rudder shall be arrived soon. My plan is to use the original esc (changing a connector plug to receiver to futaba/jr plug-modify) if it fails, the new esc shall be used, all replacement items shall be the same weight or close to the original item, then, check and check the cg before flight. The radio shall be radio master Pocket elrs with 2 or 4 grams Rx-PWM (futaba/jr plug).
@@PropsWheels Hi, I finished modifying the plane, all electric parts are removed except servos on the wing. I use hobbywing 20A, 1510 2200KV, 2 digital servos for rudder and elevator, modify plug to futaba/jr /pwm for aileron wire with elrs rx, modify back compartment for installing of servos, a 4 grams elrs Rx in the back cabin, modify cowling for 1510 BL motor, modify propeller hole for spinner. The total weight for take off is 200 grams!!!! Small plane but big job!!!! Now waiting for a test flight (first fight). Tx is radiomaster Pocket, the size close to a toy grade Tx.
Conseguiste desactivar la estabilización?🙏
Unfortunately, I was not able to fully deactivate the gyro stabilization.
If anyone knows how to do it, please leave a comment here. Thank you!
The suggest cg in the laughable "manual" is WRONG. It makes the plane tail heavy causing tip stalls and spins. CG should be no more than 1/3rd of the cord of the wing from the leading edge. I balance mine right, moved the rudder and elevator pushrods to the outside holes and mine doesn't tip stall or spin out of control. 45 years of RC experience.
Hi Aztom40. Thank you for your recommendation and tip. I do not like flying tail-heavy planes. I may do another review flight video once I bring the CG forward. Take care.
Thank you for the smartest advice yet! that’s what I was thinking .a plane will not fly if it’s not balanced in the CG is a bit too far back. Do I measure 1/3 back from front part of Wing? 1/3 of the over all wing with?
@@rogerhartzell544you measure from leading edge of the wing where it connects with the cockpit
In this plane, the rudder is already mixed with ailerons in stabilized mode, so there is no need to use the rudder in flight to make a turn, which is where the problem you are reporting is on. So, just do not use the rudder alone in flight that everything will work well.
I tryied binding the the airplane to my RadioMaster 16x radio using the video you posted but it would not bind. Is their another sub protocol that I can try. I use v911s and wltoys
If you have the new version of the XKA160 (the receiver board will have extra sockets for satellite DSM and S-bus receivers) the protocol used is now V911S/E119. You may need a recent firmware version on your Radiomaster TX16S Multi Module.
Which protocol was this plane on I don't own this plane. I just want to know which protocol it's on in order to bind my XK A180 to my Jumper T-lite.
Here is the binding video:
th-cam.com/video/dPChLMySfKM/w-d-xo.html
Great information
Glad it was helpful!
One my wing struts already broken. I am beginner and new to the hobby. Now i have to wait month for new wing strut to arrive from china because i can't find any uk model shop which sells a160 skylark parts :(
Sorry to hear... It is not one of my favorite airplanes. :(
I just used a barbecue skewer and painted it .
That's why i have both the XK a600 PS new name XK a900 . This plane doesn't have this issues the only problem with the XK a900 is that it is tall heavy so you need a bigger battery or put some weight in te nose of the plane. PS i had this plane before that's why i know
No es un avion acrobático para estar moviendo los mandos tan rapido, cualquier avion si lo vuelas muy bajo, es muy probable que se estrelle, por eso es recomendable volarlo muy alto, debes volarlo con el motor a tope, volarlo de preferencia a primeras horas del dia 7-9am para que no existan vientos fuertes. En un espacio abierto con bastante espacio para que los giros no sean tan cerrados. Este hobby requiere un lugar y horarios especiales y mas cuando son aviones ligeros.Yo tengo uno y vuela increible.
Yo lo compré, estoy esperando la entrega, es mi primer avión. Si veo que me gusta el hobby me compraré un radio y receptor Fly-sky que me servirá para otros proyectos y tal vez lo pueda adaptar a este avión.
Hola. Acabo de ver en un canal italiano que el problema se solucionó con un condensador de 330μf en el ESC😊.
Lo probaré en el mío antes de volarlo por primera vez.
No quiero romperlo, prefiero dejarlo colgando del techo del taller 😅
It’s not a good plane out of the box. I bought a new board thinking that was the problem but the new receiver has the same reactions as original. Can u put in a different receiver
I think you can put a new receiver, but you will also need a small brushless ESC and some soldering for the micro servos and the motor connectors. I am not sure if it is worth the effort though... :(
Maybe you got a lemon, mine flies perfect
I am glad you are having better luck. Perhaps they fixed the issue.
Cheap rc planes never work properly, i hate cheap model companies
If you take the prop off and throttle up it gets worse
For a bench demo of what the real problem is with this model watch this.... th-cam.com/video/wiFARGgVZKt/w-d-xo.html
Not a great fan of his videos but gotta give credit for being the only finder of this I've yet seen.
This link does not work; it says "Video unavailable". I am curious what the root cause was.
Try to shorten the video
In this plane, the rudder is already mixed with ailerons in stabilized mode, so there is no need to use the rudder in flight to make a turn, which is where the problem you are reporting is on. So, just do not use the rudder alone in flight that everything will work well.
It's fine to fly without rudder in the air, but the rudder is useful during the taxiing on the ground. Unfortunately, this beautiful plane doesn't have full manual mode.
It should be easy to check this theory with a good Multi Protocol Radio. Just lock the inputs from the rudder stick to 0 and allow only the Gyro mixing of aileron to rudder to move the rudder. Adjust the COG for non tail heavy, select a flying day with a bit of wind (to get the gyros working) and fly large circles and 8s at 60%+ throttle (to discount the stalling of the highly loaded wing at slow speeds) - No lawn darts = theory may be good. Still a Crash Monster - back to the drawing board!