Extreme Flight 64" MXS V2__Flight Report

Following the 48" Extra and Edge EXPs, the original Extreme Flight 48" MXS was part of the trio that sent shockwaves through the mid size plane market in 2010. The MXS became the wildest of the latest and greatest new generation of 3DXA planes All three are righteous, but the MXS always had a special place in my heart for a lot of reasons, including the fact it's just pure badass.

This was followed by the 64", which redefined extreme performance in that size. Now the larger plane has been updated to the latest V2 construction and material standards, and like we have come to expect from all the V2s, it's better than ever.

I've written so much about all the MXS that a lot of this is going to be a repeat, but then again, the V2 is improved in almost every respect, so there will be some new stuff here too. 

While I always loved the V1 and was sorry to see it go, once I flew the V2 I fell in love with it so quickly there was no turning back. The old scheme was looking a tiny bit dated compared to the newer schemes that Extreme Flight has been coming out with and the new one is a jolly good update. As you can see, it's pretty damm swoopy.

The V2 keeps the checkerboard wing bottom first seen on the V1, and now the stabilizer has that too. The asymmetry of that always drove me a little crazy and I always though it would look spectacular if they were covered alike. I like that the two now match, and it does look spectacular. The checkerboard is also blue and white, which is a sharp contrast to the r/w/b seen on the top. Bright colors are great, but it's contrast that I see better. The top looks so much different from the bottom you will probably never lose orientation of that unless you fly it straight into the sun or something. It's extremely visible, as well as being stunning.

MXS V2__Bad Attuitude 002__A Musical.mp4 from Doc Austin on Vimeo.

 Photos: Click To Enlarge

Mostly the color scheme is a big improvement,  modernized, easy to see and keep track of. It's just a bitchin' looking airplane. 

Kit And Build

It might be odd to see the kit itself mentioned in a flight review, but it's also worthy of note that everything about the build experience is much improved, and this will later filter over into the flying. A lot of this is from the V2 material looking so cool (and so much fun to show off to your jelly friends), but also the factory has stepped it up again. We saw this first with the Gamebird last year, from the self aligning stabilizer and pre-mounted cowling all the way to the new wing quick latch system. Virtually the entire plane from spinner to the rear tip of the rudder has been improved, and more to the point I am making, much nicer not only to assemble, but to take pride in owning.

First the Gamebird, then the 60" Edge V2 and now the MXS V2 all went together seamlessly with no fiddling, no correcting, and nothing coming out less than perfect. This alone translates into confidence the maiden is going to go well simply because everything is so right.

That, and I like nice things. I can't afford a Rolex and I can't afford a Porsche, but it's hard to care when you have planes built as beautifully as these are.

Performance

Here we're going to break down how the V2 construction and material improves the flying. If you have read any of the V2 reviews, a lot of this is going to seem familiar because this is as straight and strong as a plane can be made. The one theme that pops up over and over is stiffness, and we'll go into how that effects each area of performance.

Precision

Perfect alignment is crucial in all aspects of flight, but especially so in precision flight. If anything if the plane flexes, there goes your alignment right along with your precision. Of course, any plane is going to flex somewhen when under extreme stress but with a good, stiff material like we see in the V2, this is minimized and the planes don't flex nearly as much. As such, the stiffer plane, all things else being equal, is always going to be more precise.

You might not think there's a lot of stress in precision maneuvers like, say, a slow roll, but remember these are usually at high speed with a hell of a lot of air going over the plane, and that alone is a lot of stress. Any flexing, any deviation from the plane staying perfectly in alignment is going to make that move look sloppy, ugly or maybe both. Definably both.

With the MXS seemingly the wildest of the EXPs, you might not expect it to do cracking precision, but the opposite is true, While not as graceful as the Extra (which nothing else is anyway), the MXS still tracks on rails and any wobbles or bobbles are strictly on the pilot's end. The plane came out of the box straight and stays straight under stress and you have yourself a big sky maneuver monster.

As easy as doing a big, round loop might seem, it's going to be impossible with a poorly tracking plane. Here the MXS has a lot going for it because it's a fast plane, and speed is stability. A fast plane has a lot of air going over it, and that locks it in and makes it not want to change direction very easily. That, and again, the stiffness of construction keeps everything aligned and keeps the plane going where you put it.

This bleeds over into other big sky stuff like Cuban 8s. They seem easy enough, but get both ends round and the same size, with the maneuver centered. Again, speed and tracking are your best weapon here and the MXS delivers.

Same thing with point and slow rolls. If the plane flexes it's not going to go straight at any point, even if you get it right. With a good, stiff plane, you get it trimmed and then it's just a matter of hitting your controls with the right timing. You're not fighting to keep the thing straight the entire time and it's all going to look a lot better.

Is the MXS the precision king? Well, not quite. In 3DXA planes, the Extra is going to stand alone here, but the margin is more than acceptable. The Extra and MXS are similar planes, though the Extra has that longer stability and tracking inducing moment (distance between the wing and stab). I've always viewed the MXS as sort of an Extra with bomb pitch authority, and I fly those two pretty much the same way.

Most importantly I suggest you use the low rate from the manual on your precision moves. A lot of guys don't want to bother with that, but you can also see their precision game suffers from that. I gave up my precision when I started learning 3D, and when I went back to precision, it was a mess. Then I adopted the manual low rate and got it back. If nothing else, set it up and just try it. A good precision rate is extremely close to what you would use for sport, so it's nothing to be afraid of and you will fly better because of it.

Snaps, Spins, Tumbles, Etc

Now we are on the MXS' home turf. With it's shorter moment the plane has massive pitch authority. Your snap timing will be a little different from, say, the Extra, but the MXS is going to react much more quickly, and more violently too. The V2 is even better here because the stiffer plane will not only react more quickly because none of the force is wasted on flexing, but entry and exit are much more precise due to the plane staying in alignment better. Like I say, this is a recurring theme and more proof V2 makes a better plane.

The MXS has always done beautiful pop tops with the last one slowing to the point you can stop it exactly where you want it just by releasing the rudder. This makes it easy to bring it out where you want it and fly away. One really sweet thing you can do with the MXS in a pop top is wait for that last rotation and then cross over the ailerons to about 1/8 reverse, add some power, and it will drop it into a KE spin in one motion, combining the two moves using the pop top as a unique entry. People are expecting you to just fly it away, but then you surprise them with that spin. KE spins usually make a nasty growl, so the sound and the surprise usually startles a few people, which is good for bonus points.  You can also reverse the elevator and drop it into a flat spin. This is one area where the MXS is extremely adept and flexible in how you can fly it.

Regular old snap rolls are easy to control because, again, it stops when you release the controls. On high rate you use about 1/3 of elevator deflection so it doesn't act like a brake and stop the rotation, and on the precision rate you just bury the sticks, and let go where you want it to stop. Both are extremely controllable methods and the fact the plane stops so predictable takes the scare factor out of it for the pilot.

This is different from upright tumbles. Here you throw it in with as much stream as you can build up, cut power and bury everything. Different planes react to this differently. For example the Slick will throw the tail right under the nose in what looks like a back flip, where the MXS tumble more resembles a violent snap roll. Play with the timing and see what you can come up with

        

MXS V2__First Day Out from Doc Austin on Vimeo.

.Post Stall Control

As always, with post stall we need to start with harrier performance. While the MXS gives up a little to the Edge here, no one will find that to be a surprise. The Edge is king of harrier, but the MXS is still so extremely solid you can putter around with the nose up in total confidence. You can spin her around in a harrier turn on the rudder in about a half a wingspan. I've done them tighter with this plane, but I'll hold back on those until we get some more video in the can.

Straight line harrier is relatively smooth and easy. You can get some wing rock if you are sloppy, but it's next to nothing, and so rhythmic it almost looks deliberate, like it's a little dance or something. It's not going to snap out or wander off course or anything, so it's not a worry and not that often anyway. This usually only happens in a stiff crosswind when most people are packed up anyway.

Elevator maneuvers are not really the same thing as a harrier, but all the skills are the same. I used elevators as the gateway into learning harrier. The more elevators I did the better my harrier became, so I highly value a plane that sinks real pretty in an elevator. I use elevators a lot to burn altitude without gaining speed. Here the MXS is as happy as anything I have flown outside of the Edge (which does them like magic), but you can see in the video I am fearless with them, simply because the plane does them so well.

The V2 treatment has also saves us some weight and the MXS responds to this by flying even lighter on it's wings that before. It's not going to float like, say, a Gamebird, but it's roughly similar to the Extra, which is still a light plane. This lightness allows the plane to hang in the air instead of crapping out and  falling to the ground. Of course, you can still stall it, but but today's planes stall predictably and in a stable fashion. After all, in 3D we're flying around in post stall with only partial lift coming off the airframe. A good plane has to have superbly benign stall characteristics and this lighter MXS has those.

Wrap Up

In General, the MXS does everything a little better than it did before and looks damm  good doing it.  It's smoother, more stable, more lively, and flies lighter. It's starting to sound like all the other V2 stories, but that's because the same things can and has been said about all of them.

Is this a good first 3D plane? I'm sure it could be done, but I think most people would be better off with something more gentle like the Edge, or especially the Gamebird, at least to start with. The MXS is an extremely lively and agile plane and you should probably be an intermediate sport and/or 3D pilot before you step into one of these. It's not like it's a difficult plane or anything. It's not. You just don't learn to race cars in the Indianapolis 500. Like an Indianapolis car, this plane is pure thoroughbred.