RC Model Reviews

I'm undecided about which one of these to get. I already have a Hawk Sky which is about the same size as the Bixler and after many repairs it is time to retire the Hawk Sky. The Bixler and AXN are very similar so I'm open to recommendations.

Thanks

I keep getting people asking me "which is best, Bixler or AXN" but unfortunately I can't speak from first-hand experience with the Bixler (yet).

However, from what I've seen and heard, the Bixler is slightly bigger but not so well designed or built.

Out of the box, the AXN is a superior model from a design and quality perspective.

The Bixler's control horns are brittle and break easily (so I'm told).

The Bixler comes with a big wad of weight in the nose which does nothing but fix the CG issue. It's a much better idea to simply remove the weight and use a larger battery -- so why didn't they design it to take a larger battery in the first place?

The Bixler has more room inside (the AXN can be a little cramped) but the Bixler is also less streamlined.

Out of the box, the AXN is far more spritely in performance -- having enough power and performance to please even the most experienced pilot. The Bixler will require a motor/prop upgrade to match the AXN's performance.

The AXN also appears to be more crash-resistant than the Bixler.

So I guess the "best" depends on what you're looking for in a model.

If you want lots of room inside and a little more wing-area with "modest" performance then the Bixler might be the best.

If you don't need the room and don't want the hassle of upgrading control-horns, motors and the like then the AXN is sure to please.

Perhaps I ought to do a Bixler/AXN shootout.

this wont be helpful at all since ive seen neither in the flesh (though i would choose the axn based the perfectly valid points of looks and price) but personally i refuse to buy any plane named after someone who crashes planes by trimming them too much

Thanks for the input, Bruce. I wish you a happy new year and continued good health.

There have been three Bixlers at my club, one deceased.

The first was apparently a disaster; for whatever reason it was unflyable and was eventually crashed by an instructor, no less. Who knows what was wrong with it, probably COG, but it soured the usual traditional crowd on the type.

When I showed up with an axn there was a lot of scepticism and put-down comments, as people thought it was a Bixler. Until I did a low pass and then took off like a rocket, after having been soaring happily for half an hour or so. They still can't work out if it's a glider or what. I fly the axn there all the time and several people have expressed interest in getting one as a result (especially when I mention the $38 price including a motor).

It's also gone splat twice at a great rate of knots with minimal damage and was up in the air again next day (dislodged elevator servo once, and later a crap launch by a friend in very high winds...it shot right over my head and then played lawn darts). No such luck with lots of other club models that hit the deck at much slower speeds.

Recently, two more Bixlers have been bought by club members. The one that has flown so far gave some lols on its maiden, when the elevator was inadvertently reversed. Subsequent flights went OK, but it sure looks slow compared to an axn at full chat. Just nowhere near as versatile imho, though quite possible better for FPV work.

My only complaint with the axn would be its poor roll performance, even with largish aileron travel. Probably more to do with my aged flying skills, but it won't just do a neat roll without a lot of fine elevator control and/or added rudder. Then again, I do have aileron differential mixed in for neater turns. It's probably something I need to experiment with.

Thanks, Sid. Good information. This is a wonderful community of helpful people saving others from making costly mistakes. It is greatly appreciated.

Well, after researching several other resources, I went ahead and got the Bixler. Let me tell you, I am not sorry. I think it flies better than the Hawk Sky I was replacing. I replaced the control horns and the crappy clevises on the ailerons, put on a 6x4E prop, added a carbon spar to the horizontal stab and along the spine on the fuse and reinforced the spar in the wing.The stock motor is plenty strong with the change of prop. I didn't try the stock prop because of what I have read. This bird flies beautifully. With a 2200mAh 3 cell I got over 15 minutes of powered flight at 1/3-1/2 throttle. I expect much longer when I power down and just soar. On the maiden flight I got to plag tag with a couple of red tail hawks. I think they were pissed because of all the screeching they were doing. Anyway, my personal opinion of the Bixler is a thumbs up.

I think my Bixler is fantastic. Fly's SO well and have no complaints at all. Plenty of power for what I need (who wants to go fast with FPV? I just want to float and soar )
I do have a 2200mah on its way and will be removing the nose weight. Otherwise for me the COG has been fine

I haven't gotten my hands on a Bixler yet but it seems that you need to do a bit of work on them to make them than is the case with the AXN.

I've also seen them suffer strucrtural failure in the air -- something I've never seen an AXN do yet.

The thing I like about the AXN is that they just fly brilliantly right out of the box.

I've had over an hour of flight-time out of mine with a 2200mAH 3S pack too.

For FPV there's more room in a Bixler but if you're using a backpack that doesn't really matter.

Personally -- I have to wonder about anyone who'd design a model that uses nose-weight instead of a decent-sized battery though