General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: BOBO on August 13, 2021, 10:10:30 AM
Title: Hobby Shops
Post by: BOBO on August 13, 2021, 10:10:30 AM
I was at a hobby shop yesterday when I noticed they had several large .8, 1.2 & 1.8 meter wingspan WW2 fighters for what looked like very cheap prices $130-$550. They all had retractable landing gear, flaps and Auto Takeoff/Landing ability. All come fully assembled.
I hadn't been inside a hobby shop since I was a kid until recently when my brother in law and I started racing radio control cars and I'm amazed by how easy it's gotten to get into this hobby.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Chalenge on August 14, 2021, 02:28:33 AM
Yeah, those ARFs are notorious for falling apart, too.
R/C has been on the decline for years for the same reason AH memberships have declined.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: perdue3 on August 15, 2021, 08:35:33 AM
I would not say that ARF's in general are notorious for falling apart, maybe certain brands. Balsa ARF's are definitely more lightweight and flimsily built than a kit, no doubt. I have found that the foam lines are excellent if you do not want to fool with nitro or gas. It is definitely easier to get into than it used to be. On the decline? I would agree with that, especially outside of electric. Almost everything I have are ARF's, save a couple kits I built when I was young. My biggest complaint about ARF balsa kits are the lack of plans. If you tear one up, you will be hard pressed to rebuild it.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Ack-Ack on August 15, 2021, 10:11:53 AM
I used to fly RC planes and gliders until I moved to LA. Not many legal places to fly in LA. Got back into RC cars and currently heavily modifying a Traxxas Unlimited Desert Racer to UDR 4400 racer.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Chalenge on August 16, 2021, 03:23:18 AM
I would love to setup a new balsa kit company with laser cut kits, but even though that is widely supported by attendees at the Top Gun and scale fly-ins, the general public wants ARFs, and it's a shame.
So, money is the deciding factor. You can do wonders for a small set of people, but in the end you're throwing your money away.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: MiloMorai on August 16, 2021, 06:07:12 AM
I used to fly RC planes and gliders until I moved to LA. Not many legal places to fly in LA. Got back into RC cars and currently heavily modifying a Traxxas Unlimited Desert Racer to UDR 4400 racer.
That is one of the big problems > flying fields. What was once out in the middle of nowhere is now surrounded by houses.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: perdue3 on August 16, 2021, 09:14:04 AM
I would love to setup a new balsa kit company with laser cut kits, but even though that is widely supported by attendees at the Top Gun and scale fly-ins, the general public wants ARFs, and it's a shame.
So, money is the deciding factor. You can do wonders for a small set of people, but in the end you're throwing your money away.
That part of R/C is definitely dying. No one wants to build a kit anymore, me included.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: DmonSlyr on August 17, 2021, 08:21:25 PM
Perdue, my theory is that there just aren't that many who actually know how to build one. My dad built one with me when I was a kid, an Astro Hog. I could not believe how much time and perfection went into it. That kind of model building takes some dedication. They don't teach that in schools (stupid schools). Many probably are too afraid of messing up building it with that kind of money.
Then you have to fly the damn thing.
It's a challenging hobby, a great hobby, and one that should be passed down. I believe that's ARFs, and even RFs are great for the hobbies because it allows people to dabble in the hobby and learn more about it. Then they can get into actually building one. I hope that these hobbies grow, but they are very expensive for young adults, many who don't have a clue what they are doing.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: FLOOB on August 17, 2021, 09:18:36 PM
I have an rc tank addiction myself. Don’t see much of that in shops though it’s still kind of a cottage industry.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: MiloMorai on August 18, 2021, 03:21:00 AM
The Astro Hog first flew in 1958. https://freercplans.com/plan-astro-hog-1383.htm
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: LCADolby on August 18, 2021, 06:33:56 AM
Really great plane. Was a lot of fun to fly. I'd highly recommend it.
Yes there was a few in the club back in the day.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Oldman731 on August 19, 2021, 03:05:56 PM
I never dared to do RC, for fear of the expense involved in a crash. Which I was good at. Sometimes I miss having that .049 Cox PT-19 that was held together by rubber bands - I finally managed to keep that in the air, after losing the Cox L-5, P-40 and a (probably Guillow's) balsa Fokker D-8, powered by the salvaged parts of the first two.
I note that they still sell the control line parts: https://coxengines.ca/airplane-kits-prop-rod/cox-c-l-kit-accessory-package-standard.html
And Guillow's still makes some of the kits, although they're a bit pricier than they used to be: https://www.guillow.com/200series.aspx
Wish I had more time...
- oldman
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: MiloMorai on August 19, 2021, 09:37:55 PM
Was that the full fuselage PT-19 or the profile one? I had the profile one. The fuel hardened the plastic motor mount and broke.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Oldman731 on August 20, 2021, 01:35:13 PM
Was that the full fuselage PT-19 or the profile one? I had the profile one. The fuel hardened the plastic motor mount and broke.
I didn't know they made a profile fuselage version. Now that I think on it, I did build a profile plane from some balsa kit, with the .049 on the front. Had to tie and glue a fishing sinker to the back end of the plane for balance to come out ok. Fortunately I never had the opportunity to fly that frightening contraption.
- oldman
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: MiloMorai on August 20, 2021, 02:31:01 PM
Would have been about 1960.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: Shuffler on August 20, 2021, 04:43:54 PM
I would not say that ARF's in general are notorious for falling apart, maybe certain brands. Balsa ARF's are definitely more lightweight and flimsily built than a kit, no doubt. I have found that the foam lines are excellent if you do not want to fool with nitro or gas. It is definitely easier to get into than it used to be. On the decline? I would agree with that, especially outside of electric. Almost everything I have are ARF's, save a couple kits I built when I was young. My biggest complaint about ARF balsa kits are the lack of plans. If you tear one up, you will be hard pressed to rebuild it.
I started building/repairing right after my first crash. Was very enjoyable to me. I was even repairing other folks aircraft as I have always had a talent for things like that. These days I am too busy with other things. Still think about going back to flying at times though.
Title: Re: Hobby Shops
Post by: BOBO on August 23, 2021, 01:21:19 PM
That part of R/C is definitely dying. No one wants to build a kit anymore, me included.
I feel the same way. I'm a industrial mechanic and my brother in law (RC partner) is a doctor. He loves building RC car kits so I let him build my kits because I'm just not into that part of the hobby. Also, all of the cars that I like the most come ready to run.
I used to fly RC planes and gliders until I moved to LA. Not many legal places to fly in LA. Got back into RC cars and currently heavily modifying a Traxxas Unlimited Desert Racer to UDR 4400 racer.
I had to look up what that is, looks awesome brother!
I was racing in Wisconsin last weekend and the attached shop had a Xmaxx that someone traded in a week after they bought it and the deal was too good for me to pass up. I moved away from my hometown for about 15 years because to quote the Donald it's a bit of a S-Hole however while I was gone the town built a 800 acre Off Highway Vehicle Park / Campground and what appears to be a very respectable municipal RC Park where a golf course used to be as well as a indoor track at the mall that's been mostly torn down for redevelopment.