Sub 250g Fixed-Wing Fun

Zohd Talon 250g Review

Fixed-wing FPV seems to be growing in popularity due to the increased flight time and relaxed nature of the flight – imagine taking your thumbs off the sticks with a quad!

However, the size of FPV planes has always been a disqualifying factor for many pilots, due to their wingspan, especially in our new sub-250g world.

Now though, Zohd has come out with its latest small FPV plane, the Talon 250g which joins its Dart 250g in the ultra small and lightweight category. Derived from the original Talon, a large-scale, V-Tail airplane, this mini version retains most of the original’s design features in a truly miniscule package.

The Talon 250g is available in three flavours: Kit, PNP, and FPV Ready. The Kit comes with the airframe and hardware only, the PNP version adds motor, ESC, servos and props, while the FPV Ready also includes an all in one VTX and Camera and Kopilot Lite stabilisation board.

I tested the PNP version, which for value for money, is the one I’d suggest going for. With a 4 channel receiver, the PNP version is perfectly capable out of the box with no automation, however adding a small flight controller such as the Matek F411-WSE, GPS and Inav makes it really come alive.

There is plenty of space inside the fuselage for a decent-sized battery pack, however anything heavier than a 3s lithium ion will result in issues finding the centre of gravity. Speaking of the fuselage, in order to keep weight down, the only carbon fibre support comes from the wing spar. Meaning the fuselage itself is quite weak and prone to cracking in the event of any impact.

The V-tail also allows for yaw input, but it really isn’t necessary – the Talon 250g will fly quite happily with three channels. That is, unless there is much wind and that is where it real flaws surface. On a calm day, it flies great – smooth and locked in, however it really struggles when the wind picks up and is particularly susceptible to gusts because it is so light.

For this reason, and its structural weaknesses, I wouldn’t recommend it as a beginners FPV plane, however for pilots with some experience and who are looking for a small and portable plane to keep in the car boot, you can’t go wrong with the Talon 250g.

The Zohd Talon 250g PNP is available for £84.36 from Banggood or from other retailers in your region.