VolanteX RC Ranger EX 757-3 FPV - Unbox

VolanteX RC Ranger EX 757-3 FPV - Unbox
Where to start? First let me thank Max at FPVStyle.com for sending me the Ranger EX 757-3 to check it out and take it for a test drive.
Edit: Watch the maiden here:
When the plane was delivered, my stomach had one of those sinking feelings when I saw the box. It was caved in pretty good and I it was the first time I had received a plane that wasn’t double boxed. To top it off, the box it comes in is not very robust. It wouldn’t take too much abuse to cause damage.
I was pleasantly surprised and relieved however, when I opened the box and found everything to be in perfect condition. I suspect this was due to the fact that the Ranger’s PVC fuse was located in the area that took the most abuse and it just laughed it off. The fuse is super tough and durable.
I chatted to Max about it and the issue is that there is a significant impact on shipping costs to double box it and ship it from his location in China to the rest of the world. He is exploring options. I suppose that even though the box may take a hit in shipping, if the contents arrive in perfect condition all the time, who really cares? The first thing I do is put the box out in the recycle bin anyway! If it were me, I might just beef up the box the plane comes in a little more and call it a day. Maybe just a stiff cardboard or Coroplast liner within the box would do the trick.
Enough about the stupid box, let’s get on to observations about the plane itself.
As mentioned, everything arrived in perfect condition. When I assembled the plane, everything fit perfectly. To get it to the stage you see in the video only took about 20 minutes but I didn’t install the control horns or rods. No glue required!
The only issue I had in the hasty assembly was that the tires rubbed on the gear and there didn’t seem to be any provision to correct it. The problem was easily remedied by using a bushing. As a tip, the extra adapters you get with APC or other props make great washers, spacers and bushings. For this plane, just use a 4mm adapter or drill one out to 4mm (like I did) and it did the trick. Speaking of the gear, the stock setup is great flying off a hard surface bit it seems that most of the people who have this plane have a significant problem with nose overs when taking off from a grass field. I’m just going to install some bigger wheels and tires. I’m also going to replace the plastic fairing for the gear with light ply so that there isn’t a weak spot on a hard landing and I will reinforce the inside of the plane where the gear attaches. I’m not saying that bad landings will be routine but I don’t want to rip the gear out on the first bad landing and do damage to the PVC fuse.
Speaking of the PVC fuse, it’s awesome. It feels a little bit heavy but no one who already flies this plane complains about it. If it is a bit heavy, it’s a decent trade off to have a fuse that can take a beating and be able to protect your lipos and FPV components in a bad crash. A little bit of extra weight is really nothing in the context of the overall weight the plane will be carrying, especially with two or three 4s 5000 lipos.
There have been a few reports about wing flex when you fly the plane heavy. I’ll be using an extra spar (inside the existing wing spar) and laminating the wings to make them more rigid and to protect them from hangar rash. I’ll also be laminating the horizontal stabilizer and the rudder. This will protect them and reinforce the hinges on the control surfaces. It will also waterproof the foam in the event we get caught in the rain.
The first few flights will be LOS to trim it out, find the perfect flap settings and establish the COG. When the plane is flying perfectly, I’ll start adding the FPV gear and stretch out the flights.
The Ranger EX comes in two versions, a kit version and a Plug and Play version. I might be inclined to buy the kit version and put in goodies that you know and trust. I’ll be test driving the PNP version and I’ll let you know how it goes.
I hope you enjoy this unbox video (if that is humanly possible) and I’ll get back to you with a video of the maiden flight as soon as I can. I have to find and dig out my work bench, I’m sure it’s in there somewhere. As soon as I finish off a couple of other projects, I’ll be getting on with this one and I’m really looking forward it!
As always, thanks for watching! Here are a few links where you can find the plane and its specs:
Where to buy:
Kit:
PNP: