My short review of an Easy star clone:
The Hawk Sky is marketed as a 4 channel, 4 servo, RTF plane, however it is a 3 servo, 3 channel plane, with no rudder! There is a space for the rudder servo cut in the fuselage, as well as an area for the pushrod, but the actual electronics just are not there. One small issue, is not actually a problem, just an indicator of the quality of electronics being put into the plane. The ESC has one red wire, and two black wires to be wired into the motor. It isn't difficult to trace the wire into the plane, and to the ESC to see which is which, but what kind of ESC has 2 black wires and one red one?! My next small issue with the plane, is that the battery is 1250 mah, but nitroplanes says it comes with an 1800 mah battery. However, all of these problems can be solved somewhat easily, with little to no cost.
There is, unfortunately, a problem with this RTF model that has no simple solution. The transmitter does not turn on. I put in 4 AA batteries exactly the way that it instructs, and the transmitter did not turn on, at first I thought these batteries were just dead, and threw them in the trash disposed of them properly :P but after I put in a new set of batteries, nothing happened. No lights, no buzzer, even with brand new batteries. I popped open the case and inspected the wire connections to make sure nothing was loose, and everything seems fine. I have not found a way to fix the transmitter, and I honestly don't even know where the problem is. If anyone has any suggestions, I would love to try them!
So with this RTF easystar clone, priced at 110 USD, I can't even throw the cliched "you get what you pay for," because you can buy the actual easystar with a motor and ESC for 75 USD, and the servos for next to nothing. If you actually plan on using a 1250 mah battery, you can buy that for nearly nothing as well. So I recommend that you buy the Easystar instead if you have the chance, but if you do not, the Dynam Hawk Sky is a slightly overpriced almost ready to fly(marketed as RTF) alternative to the easystar.
There's my .02, does anyone have anything they would like to say about easystar clones?
Replies
I too bought a Hawk Sky from Nitroplanes. It arrived with more things wrong that I could have ever expected. I had to add on my own control horns, get my own landing gear, and supply the rudder control cable. Once all parts were together, I found that all worked except the motor. I wrote to Nitroplanes 3 different times asking for help --no reply. So I went to BP Hobbies and bought a new ESC, having read on different forums that people were getting new Hawk Sky planes with DOA ESCs. Replacing the ESC didn't help. So, I bought a new 2.4gHz receiver for it. Still no go. Finally I bought a new outrunner motor. That finally got the plane to work. In testing the equipment I replaced, I found that on arrival the motor, ESC and receiver were all defective in addition to the missing parts. I wrote to Dynam about it and got the same response I did from the vendor: none. It took me 4 months and $72 to get the plane, priced at $119 to work. I thought I would save a few bucks over the Easy Star and ended up paying more for the Hawk Sky.
I bought an Easy Star and had it in the air within an hour and a half, including charging the battery for the first time. I strongly recommend that anyone who thinks of buying one of these planes just go buy an Easy Star and avoid the Hawk Sky --unless someone gives you one for free. That's exactly what they're worth in my book. Apparently, according to forums, my experience with the plane is pretty common. I'm pretty disappointed in Dynam and Nitroplanes, both companies I just won't deal with anymore.
However, I built an ardupilot system and installed it in the Easy Star, and while I haven't flown it yet --I still have a lot more to do, the plane reacts on the ground as I hold it in different attitudes, showing that it works. When I finally get it flying, I'll post about it.
There are two different versions of the Hawk Sky out there. One with 72mhz radio and another with 2,4ghz. The 2.4ghz comes with a brushless motor, the 72 with a brushed one --that's what I found anyway. I'm glad that some of you had good luck with the Hawk Sky, I sure didn't and it looks like I'm not alone.
The controller actually takes 8 batteries. Take the battery holder out and you will see that 4 more batteries go on the other side.
I can't speak for how it compares to an easystar, but I am pleased with my hawk sky. It is clear that it is cheaply made but it seems pretty hard to beat for the price.
Brushless ESCs don't have "positive" and "negative" wires, so color is arbitrary. It doesn't matter what orders the wires are plugged in--if the motor goes the wrong way, you just switch two.
Also the EasyStar that you can get for $75 has a terrible brushed motor, unlike the brushless motor of the Hawk Sky. Not comparable.