Author Topic: Serious Remote Control Planes (Read 1216 times)

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #45 on:** March 28, 2004, 11:38:40 PM »

There are no trainers around here, but of course i will buy a trainer plane first. No thrill in crashing a 1,000 bird in the first five minutes

Maybe ill buy one of those zagi's, almost indestructable you say? Great just what im looking for;) If you know any sites of some good trainers i can look into id appreciate it

Post a pic of ur plane too;)

Newtype, simply jaw dropping ehh

Gixer · « **Reply #46 on:** March 28, 2004, 11:51:01 PM »

Never understood the fascination for models and RC Planes, thought it was a kids hobby.

~~...-Gixer~~

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #47 on:** March 28, 2004, 11:57:28 PM »

Just a fascination some ppl have with airplanes Gixer. How many ppl you know have a couple million bucks to spare and buy one

It's like bikes, never understood the fascination, always thought they were for little kids
(actually like motor bikes but you see my point)

Just what some like hehe.

Tarmac · « **Reply #48 on:** March 29, 2004, 12:15:28 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by XtrmeJ
There are no trainers around here, but of course i will buy a trainer plane first. No thrill in crashing a 1,000 bird in the first five minutes Maybe ill buy one of those zagi's, almost indestructable you say? Great just what im looking for;) If you know any sites of some good trainers i can look into id appreciate it Post a pic of ur plane too;)

Newtype, simply jaw dropping ehh

You'd be surprised. Look for an RC club in your area on Google. The AMA webpage may also have a listing for a club with instructors in your area. A quick search there turned up some clubs in Hawaii: http://www.modelaircraft.org/templates/ama/ClubZipLocator.aspx?s=HI&c=

Zagis are not great to learn on, as they're pretty fast. If you get a standard model you may be able to learn on it. I have a 400x, with an upgraded motor and battery = fast. You aim the nose down and it's in the ground before you have time to think.

Like I said, I'd recommend electric, even for your trainer.

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #49 on:** March 29, 2004, 01:45:03 AM »

Sweet Tarmac! I checked into it and there is an R/C flyers club in my area

once i get some free'r than free time ill go and get some info. Looks like my P38 R/C days arnt to far off;)

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #50 on:** March 29, 2004, 04:17:31 AM »

Checked into it. Assuming they arnt to busy since this is a fairly small place I should be lookin into it tommarow.

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #51 on:** March 29, 2004, 04:33:39 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Gixer
Never understood the fascination for models and RC Planes, thought it was a kids hobby.

~~...-Gixer~~

~~You mean like video games?~~

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #52 on:** March 29, 2004, 10:17:09 PM »

Tarmac, any idea how long the electric ZAGI's stay in the air for (how much flying time do you get 15 min ect?)

Tarmac · « **Reply #53 on:** March 29, 2004, 10:49:34 PM »

Mine, on a beefy 1700 mAh battery, gets about 15 minutes of throttle on time, longer if you let it glide a lot.

My buddy's, with a 500mAh battery, get about 12-14 minutes but also has a smaller motor and glides much better so it can be stretched a lot longer than mine.

Of course, you can always buy more batteries or take your charger out to the field. I only have one battery, but my friend would have one running, one cooling, and one charging so he could always be flying.

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #54 on:** March 29, 2004, 10:58:27 PM »

I'd hope to find a plane that has got some decent power and can fly for at least 20 min, any hope of finding such a thing? Maybe a fuel or duo battery's or something.

Tarmac · « **Reply #55 on:** March 29, 2004, 11:09:16 PM »

Why bother? Not like there's much excitement in flying around in circles... landing is half the fun.

Most planes are configured for about 15 minutes of flight time, both gas and electric. You could always put in a larger battery or fuel tank, but then you've got the extra weight and the balance issues -- especially with gas as it burns down. A glow fueled plane would be more capable of lugging the extra weight though -- electrics need to stay reasonably light.

My suggestion: forget it. Buy extra batteries and do more flights, not longer ones. Refueling and swapping batteries is no big deal.

ed: unless if you want to do a lot of gliding around, or flying at very low speeds with something like a Lazy Bee. Those can probably fly longer.

Plus, if you join a club, other members on the same frequency might get pissed if you're hogging the channel for too long.

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #56 on:** March 29, 2004, 11:22:28 PM »

Ahh thanks for info. Gonna go look at some starter kits tommarow and give the nearby club a ring in a few days. Any thoughts on a reasonably good plane to start with, something i can learn on but is decent to the extend

Thanks for the info by the way, ur making this P38 R/C dream come true. (I think i just soiled myself)

Tarmac · « **Reply #57 on:** March 30, 2004, 12:14:17 AM »

I started on an Aerostar .40 glow fueled trainer. Didn't fly much because the engine was such a ***** to start, and I was always afraid to crash it. Didn't fly much until I got my Zagi. Flew that for about two years and then put it on a shelf. Haven't flown since. When I get out of college and have some money again I'd like to get back into it.

I've already sent an email to my friend who's more into electrics than I am. I haven't flown in a year or two, while he's still building and flying like mad. Hopefully he'll have some suggestions for an electric trainer.

My other suggestion: go to a hobby shop and ask there. You'll be able to walk around drooling at things -- plus they're happy to give you the rundown on what you'll need to get started, especially the radio equipment and accessories. I'm pretty out of the loop on radio equipment since my transmitter is probably getting near 10 years old.

XtrmeJ · « **Reply #58 on:** March 30, 2004, 02:16:30 AM »

sweet bro thanks. Mighty kind of ya to email your friend for some info. If this thread "dies" so to speak you can email me at XtrmeJ@hotmail.com. Thanks again