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Review: TFDi Design BalsaXBy Michael Hayward /images/reviews/balsax/t/1.jpgThe balsa wood plane for many years hasbeen a cornerstone toy for all young aviation pilots all over theworld. Played with by people of all ages, today TDFi Design havereleased their own rendition of the aircraft. In this review, I willbe taking a first look at this aircraft and talk about all of thefeatures that this model includes. Aircraft SpecificationLength: 25cmWingspan: 15cmHeight: 7.5cmEmpty Weight: 200gMaximum Takeoff Weight: 200gPowerplant: Rubber Band Propeller Power!Aircraft PerformanceRange: 10ftExtended Range: 25ftRate of Climb: Whatever angle you throw it atService Ceiling: 40ftMax Cruising Speed: However fast you throw it /images/reviews/balsax/t/2.jpgDownload And InstallFor this aircraft, you will need to head over to the TFDi Design web siteand create a free account over there. Once you have made an account,head over to the product page where you can add it to your shoppinglist, input your details and purchase the aircraft for youraccount. You will then be redirected to a download page where you canthen obtain the aircraft and add it to your simulator folders. Noproduct key is required, showing the level of trust that TFDi Designhas with their user base. For this day only, there is a special offer where newcomers to thesite may even actually get this aircraft for free! But you gotta timeit just right for that. /images/reviews/balsax/t/3.jpgExterior ModelThe beauty of the balsa wood plane definitely shows within thispackage as the aircraft is an outstanding representation of what youwould find in the real world! The wood is beautifully laser cut fromthe balsa wood sheet with each line and cutting beautifully recreatedin their model. The precision of the wing as it fits into the bodyshows that the people behind this model were dedicated to making thisthe best that it possibly could be. I'm no 3D modeller myself, butwhen I see a fantastic design such as this, I can only think about howlong it would have taken to ensure that with this level of detail,meaning the user is receiving a top of the range product with absolutededication from the developers. Textures are also done to a 4K resolution meaning each line in thewood is also visible to the user, fitting suitably with the flightsimulator environment. For those that would also like to paint their own aircraft, thereis also a download link available for the texture pack meaning you cancustomise the body with everything your childhood ever wanted. Cockpit And InteriorThe virtual cockpit is also exactly what you would find in the realworld aircraft - a full view of the propeller ahead of you and thelanding struts below. You can also turn the camera in a full 360motion, meaning there is also the possibility of looking at both wingsand if you're feeling lucky, the vertical stabiliser too! While some would argue that there is no 2D cockpit, this is anotherthing I would personally say is not the case as everything you wouldexpect to see is in place. /images/reviews/balsax/t/4.jpgButtons, Gauges And FunctionalityThere are no buttons, there are no gauges, and there is nofunctionality. SoundThis model matches 100% exactly what you would find on a balsa woodplane. All audio has been recorded from the real-world aircraft,including everything from the sound of the metal strut hitting theground, to the wind as it flows past the body. Sound loops are also expertly done meaning there are no cuts orjumps within the sound samples. This gives you full immersion incontrolling the plane whilst making the pilot feel as if they werebehind the controls of the plane for real. Flight DynamicsWith no coding at all within this add-on, the balsa wood plane iseverything that you would expect in a flight simulator product. Thismeans you will get the full feel of an aircraft without any ailerons,rudder or elevators. There is some basic control and that will verymuch depend on your own skill as a pilot, meaning the better you areat flying, the further this thing will go (think Wright Brothers andForrest Gump). /images/reviews/balsax/t/5.jpgOpinion And Closing RemarksThis aircraft without a doubt is one of the greatest flightsimulator add-ons I have ever had the opportunity to fly! The modelitself looks fab and with all the flair and style of a balsa woodplane, you are definitely getting one of the best looking add-ons ofall time. The mix of high quality sounds and perfected flight dynamics alsomeans that the overall feel of this aircraft is better than most Ihave had the opportunity to fly to this point. Pricing for the aircraft is at $39.99, but as mentioned before, forsome lucky people this aircraft is also available for free when you dosign up. Everyone says that all flight simmers need the PMDG 737 or AerosoftA320 in their virtual hangars, but for me? I would actually offer thisaircraft up as the absolute pinnacle of flight simulation. /images/reviews/balsax/t/6.jpgThe Technical BitMinimum RequirementsMicrosoft Flight Simulator 2002, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004, Microsoft Flight Simulator X, Microsoft Flight Simulator Gold Edition, Microsoft Flight Simulator Steam Edition, Lockheed Martin Prepar3D v1, v2, v3 OR Dovetail Games Flight Sim WorldMicrosoft Windows 3.0 OR Microsoft BASIC6510 Processor64kb RAMGeForce 9500 GTReview PC SpecMicrosoft Flight Simulator X: Steam EditionWindows 10 Professional6th Generation Intel® Core™ i7 6700K Processor16 GB RAMNVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 745Michael Hayward Get the Balsa X here