Taft Hobbies Super Dimona

On a recent European trip we were coming down the mountain into Innsbruck Austria. I noticed a couple of neat airplanes flying at the Innsbruck airport. They were motorgliders manuevering to land in a very idealic setting. After a little research I discovered that the planes were Super Dimonas.  I found a couple of vendors handling the model and placed an order.

The Taft version of the Dimona is a big model. It has a 95 inch wingspan and a long, narrow, scale-looking fuselange. It goes together quickly with screws. All the servos and motor elements come installed needing only the receiver of your choice. In flight, the model really isn't a glider. The long narrow wings along with the weight of the motor and other electronics requires some speed. You really aren't going to chase thermals with this plane but it certainly has a grand presence in the air.

When set up on a fairly long final, setting a nice descent rate with the appropriate power results in a smooth touchdown. I've found the fairly thin side walls of the cockpit are prone to breaks and tears when slamming the nose gear when touching down firmly or hitting the nose gear first.  Best idea - land on the main gear.

Here's the video build log for the Super Dimona.