VP Models Website and Information

[Spookyeng]

Hello Guys,

Been a few minutes since I have posted, but I am slowly getting back into it and looking forward to flying some more. Already picked up a couple F5L RES kits from Aloft for the Winter and I have had my eye on the VP Models Nobody 3.8m F5J, actually in my cart now! Really like the looks of the model and it looks well designed and constructed.

However, when I attempt to search for the company, I am not finding any information or a company website and only a handful of videos on the Nobody. I just like to do some research on the company before buying and hope there might be some more information out there and/or a website to take a look at?

For people that have owned a VP Models Nobody or one of the other airframes, how would you rate the quality, assembly and flying characteristics? Thanks in advance guys and glad to be back at it! Talk soon.

 

[Spookyeng]

OK, I need to update the post. I might be dense sometimes. Here is the link to the manufactures website. I ended up just looking at the pictures closer and noticed the .cz top level domain (TLD).

VP Models

I guess my only REAL question would be...How would you rate the quality, assembly and flying characteristics? Thanks.

 

[Wayne]

I hope you don't mind if I jump in here and offer some feedback, I know I am not the best source of information for you..

Why we carry VP models at Aloft - They are one of the few companies that offers vacuum bagged wing models, there are basically 3 companies in the world that I know of that excel at this construction method. We offer planes from 2 of these companies. VP is the top rated of these 3 companies. When we have a shop visitor (especially someone that does some composite building) I like to show them the VP models due to the quality of the build, they are blown away and start asking questions about how they achieve this level of quality. It is rare to see such nice wings from the bagging process. Bagged wings usually have some quality issues, not from these 3 companies.

Their fuselages are works of art too. Super nice.

Now why do I care about bagged wings? Well, simply put they offer a real price savings, and should an accident occur, they are easier to repair. So you get a plane that performs great, costs less, and should have a longer life span. That is a great combo to have.

I'll add that I love the foam that they use in their wings. It is super nice, wish I could source the stuff here in the USA.

Hopefully you get some idea of the flight quality from the videos people have posted. You will find a lot more if you search for Django as they are sold under that name for the different wingspans in Germany where they are very popular. We stuck with the names from the manufacturer. Think they were sold as Bubble Dancer's and some other names in Europe too.

I think you will be very pleased with the model's qualities, construction and in flight. I think your flying buddies will be impressed too. Not many of these have made it into the USA.

 

[Spookyeng]

I hope you don't mind if I jump in here and offer some feedback, I know I am not the best source of information for you..

Hello Wayne, I am not sure why you would think you are not a good source of information for me? I know your the vendor, but value your opinion. Thank you for information provided, I really appreciate it. I will get the orange one on order today.

 

[Spookyeng]

I have ordered the Orange Version and just want to confirm it includes the wing bags as pictured or do I need to order those as well? Thanks Wayne.

 

[Wayne]

Yes, we include the bags with the Nobody.

Guys are working on boxing it up already.

 

[Spookyeng]

Yes, we include the bags with the Nobody.

Guys are working on boxing it up already.

Awesome, thank you. I am looking froward to getting it and working on it over the winter. The look of this bird really appeals to me and your information was helpful to make the decision! I like that I am not going to spend twice as much on my first proper F5J sailplane! Thanks again Wayne.

 

[Wayne]

You are very welcome.

I have been VERY tempted by the Cubic as a personal plane for myself.

 

[Spookyeng]

Thought I would share with the group to show how the glider shows up, thanks. Great job Wayne and Aloft Crew!

 

[Tmcfarland]

You are very welcome.

I have been VERY tempted by the Cubic as a personal plane for myself.

Hi Wayne. Of the three models by VP that you sell what are the differences besides span. I ask because its quite a price difference from the Django to the Nobody yet the web descriptions are about the same

 

[Wayne]

It is primarily the wing span. The Django and the Cubic share the same fuselage. In Germany they sell the cubic as a Django, but we stayed with the manufacturers names. I should state these are the "new" versions with the slip on wings. The No-Body uses the older bolt on wing layout.

Keep in mind that the No-Body is a rather massive model, and making a 3 piece wing has more labor.

@Spookyeng - Thanks for sharing the video! Your wing bags are on the way from VP. Will email about the tail mount once I hear back on. Not sure we have one here at all. Thank you for the understanding! Also, good point on the instructions, maybe we can put a little work into that here. I do love these models, glad you do too. Also - Wow, nice garage!!

 

[Spookyeng]

@Spookyeng - Thanks for sharing the video! Your wing bags are on the way from VP. Will email about the tail mount once I hear back on. Not sure we have one here at all. Thank you for the understanding! Also, good point on the instructions, maybe we can put a little work into that here. I do love these models, glad you do too. Also - Wow, nice garage!!

Hello Wayne,

I will have more video to share and post as I get the model built. Sounds good on the wing bags and please keep me up to date on the Horizontal tail mount. Vladimir did reach out and stated that it is indeed missing and needs to be replaced. I might be able to 3D print the part though, once I get the same material VP Model used. But I would rather just get a replacement, since they know what works the best. I am working on the instructions currently, it will be a literal translation though, but it might help to have that and I will post the file here when done and send it to if you want.

Thanks for the kind words on the shop, its a work in progress and I have to figure out what to do with all the stuff that is on the floor now, that used to be in the RV, LOL

 

[Tmcfarland]

You are very welcome.

I have been VERY tempted by the Cubic as a personal plane for myself.

Wayne, I have some questions about the Cubic.
1. How would you rate the difficulty of completing the glider. I watch a lot of F5J youtubes and some of the builds look complicated and very precise. My last build was an Aero-not Res. Also does Aloft stock all the needed motor and servos to complete it?
2. Many F5J pilots I have talked to say they are easy to fly and can be turned maimly with rudder. From the photos it looks like the Cubic might have less dihedrral and polyhedril than some others. Or perhaps its just how it appears in the pics. I am not interested in competition. Just want an easy transition to a carbon fiber glider. Thanks for any help you can give.

 

[Wayne]

What kind of stuff are you flying right now? Are you randomly crashing from time to time, or pretty solid now?

And what sort of things have you built so far?

I don't want to push you into a plane that is not going to be a good fit.

I'd say the level of completeness on the VP kits is pretty darn high for the model type, but if you have only been flying ARF foamies, then this will be a very large step to build. With this said, I don't think any of it is too hard, but probably not the ideal first build. If you are patient and willing to ask questions, I think someone could build one as a first build.. But I could also see this going badly if someone tried to rush through it and not learn the steps.

So to answer your question - I think the build on these is pretty straight forward. Most of the time will be spent installing the servos and linkages. If you have done some of this before, you are well on the way.

In my opinion (I have not yet flown this model) you will need more than just rudder to fly the Cubic. I'd expect this will be mostly an aileron flown model with some rudder to clean up the lines and core thermals. I think it will be a very tolerant plane and happy to do what you ask of it.

Hope this helps.

 

[Tmcfarland]

Thank you Wayne. That is very helpful. I am like many of your customers. Flew in my youth and now returning to the hobby.
My building and flying experience are a Gentle Lady, a Wanderer, a slope glider called a Katie, just built and flew an Aero-naut res. (Great kit btw), and currently building a bird of time from a short kit. I am also learning about my Frsky x14. Frustrating but learning one thing at a time. I might wait until I get more flying time.
Btw, Aloft is a great company. One of the few that excedes expectations. Great prices, great service and fast shipping. Jarron was a great help in helping me select the electronics for my current glider. Even switched the connectors for me so it was all compatible. Keep the candy coming. Lol.
Tom.

 

[Wayne]

Thanks Tom, means a lot to hear this. I do hope you will tell your friends in the hobby.

Sounds like you will be fine with the build. No worries there. And if you are not breaking any wood, then you should be fine to fly her too.