Sneak peek: Lanier RC Stinger II

Sneak peek: Lanier RC Stinger II

By Michael York
Having pioneered the concept of ARF’s in the 60’s, Lanier RC is still at it after all these years with the introduction of the Stinger II.  You know you’ve been in the hobby for a while when you can say “back when I flew the original”, and I was fortunate enough to fly the original line of Stingers in the early 90’s.  Back then Lanier was just starting to branch out into manufacturing ARF’s and kits out of balsa and ply, versus their traditional plastic fuselage/foam core wing construction.  The original Stinger was such a hit, that it resulted in numerous variants, ranging from mini to giant sized, and I’m glad to see that this fantastic little model carries on the tradition of being a great all around flyer. 

General Flight Performance

Stability. Even though this is a smaller model, it feels like a much larger plane in the air (in a good way). Despite its flat wing, it’s very stable, though not self-correcting It just has a very predictable feel to it, making it easy to stay ahead of in flight. Of

course, on high rates it all just happens a little faster.

Tracking. Just point the Stinger II where you want to go, and voila!, it goes there. The trim scheme is excellent in maintaining visual orientation of the plane.

 

Aerobatics. One of the changes to the Stinger II from the original is increased control surface size, and this allows you to explore the world of 3D. At the forward end of the recommended CG position, it took a bit of elevator input when inverted and knife-edge, but as you get more acquainted with your new friend, moving the CG aft will remedy most of this. The Stinger II can do it all!

Glide and stall performance. There is a lot of wing area, so glide performance is not an issue. Stalls are very predictable with no bad traits. Even at full up-elevator, it only hinted at a wing drop, and that was easily controlled.

 

SPECIFICATIONS
Name of plane: Stinger II 
Manufacturer: Lanier RC
Distributor: Great Planes/Hobbico
Type: Sport
Length: 46 in.
Wingspan: 49.5 in.
Wing area: 589 sq. in.
Weight: 83 oz.
Wing loading: 20.4 oz. sq./ft.
Engine req’d: .46-.55 2-stroke / .70-.72 4-stroke
Radio req’d: 4 Channel w/5 standard servos
Price: $ 170

 

Highlights

  • Quick assembly
  • Easy to transport
  • Very visible trim scheme
  • Tinted canopy with proportionally correct pilot

 For the complete review, don’t miss the January issue of Model Airplane News!

Updated: July 20, 2015 — 12:13 PM

1 Comment

  1. Hard to believe that a provision for conversion to electric power was not made. Not that it was impossible to do. A thread in RCU shows a couple of conversions. Mine was done with an E-Flite Power 46, 60A ESC and a TP 4S 3850 G6 lipo. Excellent flier.

Comments are closed.

Air Age Media ©
WordPress Lightbox