RC Help

[Cremator]

 My daughter today says she wants a remote control plane. We've had dual helicopters for breaking stuff in the house so she has interest.  I had one as a kid and destroyed it 6 seconds into fight.  Present day I still have the gumption to get another.

I live in the boonies and have plenty of space for a mowed runway. My question is what plane should I get that will take off on a grass strip, take some tough landings and give us the opportunity to play without investing a fortune and being pretty much turn key.

I once saw a RC plane that looked like a super cub, it was fairly simple, electric, good range. I can't remember what brand but it seemed ideal for what I want. I'm open to ideas but I'm not trying to impress anyone just something to start and play with.

[CASHEW]

A hobbyzone cessna 182 is a great starter plane. Durable. Slow. Replacement parts. But You can still have a good time!!

[Cremator]

OK cool. Thanks.....<S>

[MiloMorai]

Nice big wheels for grass and a high wing. Looks scale.



http://www.bananahobby.com/4-ch-blitzrcworks-blue-star-trainer-rc-trainer-airplane-kit.html

[asterix]

There is tons of info in the RCGroups forum http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/index.php.

I have had a good experience with Multiplex line of products, but I don`t know how available the models and spare parts are in the US. You could search for Multiplex Mentor, FunMan or FunCub. The FunCub could prove to be a bit problematic for the beginner and without some additional tinkering.

 

[CASHEW]

My daughter today says she wants a remote control plane. We've had dual helicopters for breaking stuff in the house so she has interest.  I had one as a kid and destroyed it 6 seconds into fight.  Present day I still have the gumption to get another.

I live in the boonies and have plenty of space for a mowed runway. My question is what plane should I get that will take off on a grass strip, take some tough landings and give us the opportunity to play without investing a fortune and being pretty much turn key.

I once saw a RC plane that looked like a super cub, it was fairly simple, electric, good range. I can't remember what brand but it seemed ideal for what I want. I'm open to ideas but I'm not trying to impress anyone just something to start and play with.

If it is her first time i DO NOT recommend a taildragger

[MiloMorai]

If it is her first time i DO NOT recommend a taildragger

But the a/c will be flying off a mowed lawn not a golf green.

[Randy1]

Flying R/C planes is not easy to do by yourself.  You really need to find an R/C club and they will be glad to get you started.  I trained several people and have seen many who tried to learn themselves.  We had a Delta pilot show up one time at our field.  Nice guy but when asked if he had flown R/C before he said no but he was a commercial pilot and didn't need help.  His first flight lasted about 20 seconds.  We never saw him again.  My first flight when I tried to teach myself lasted shorter than that.

When the plane comes toward you, everything is backwards.  Add to that you have to learn to judge speed and attitude from many different angels.

Its not hard to learn just it can be expensive to do it by yourself.

I have been out of R/C for awhile but in my day we could tie the two transmitter together

[Wmaker]

Couple good trainer options, all "turn key":

Champ: http://www.horizonhobby.com/products/champ-rtf-HBZ4900
3-channel model. This thing is so light that is so little kinetic energy that it is very hard to break it and can be found very cheap. Obviously won't fly off grass but can be hand launched and basically doesn't care where you land it.

Super Cub: http://www.horizonhobby.com/products/super-cub-s-rtf-with-safe-trade-technology-HBZ8100
3-channel model. 'Cute' model. Has some cool safety features like the Apprentice. Durable plane and in the middle regarding the price.

Apprentice: http://www.horizonhobby.com/products/apprentice-s-15e-rtf-with-safe-trade-technology-EFL3100
4-channel model. Tricycle gear, most expensive of the three. Some very cool 'hi-tech' safety/trainer features built in. Not the prettiest, which trainers rarely were in the past times especially. But an amazing trainer.


While these are all Horizon hobby products my post isn't meant endorse a single firm only, the fact just is that these are all very good options as the first plane.

[Sol75]

Nice big wheels for grass and a high wing. Looks scale.

(Image removed from quote.)

http://www.bananahobby.com/4-ch-blitzrcworks-blue-star-trainer-rc-trainer-airplane-kit.html

While most likely a solid plane, I would steer you towards horizon, or tower hobbies products for a first plane.  A lot of the planes from places like banana etc, are not well set up from the get go, and require some work to make fly well.  Some of them are great too.  The other piece is parts availability for "non big 2" (Horizon and Tower/Great Planes).  The "Big 2" tend to stock the parts, and can be easily obtained onlne or from your local hobby shop, while the "off brands" can be hard to get parts for.  The downside is, "big 2" products are more expensive.  I am not badmouthing the "off brands" at all, in fact I own several, I just feel that the horizon/tower products are better or a first-time RC'er, especially from a support standpoint.

again, just my opinion based on 30+ years in RC

[narsus]

Buy an inexpensive one, you WILL crash it. It's just a matter of time. Having one that hand launches and lands on grass works as well.

Start small and as you get experience you can get "cooler" stuff.

[Ratsy]

Randy1.

+1

[COndor06]

There are some good recommendations out there for sure all of which have merit. I have been in the RC business for over 35 years and of all the aircraft out there for training and fun I would go with the Parkzone T-28. Hands down the very best flying trainer out of the box. Every hobby shop on the planet carries parts for it so you don't have to rely on ordering replacement parts.

This plane flies so well that I always have one hanging around just for the fun of flying it. This is a foam aircraft so when you do crash it simply hot glue the pieces back together and your ready for another flight in 10 minutes. Most people I have trained on the T-28 can take off and land by themselves in the first few flights. Slows down very nice and handles the wind with no problems.

Its a tricycle gear setup perfect for first time flyers and comes in a couple different colors. This one is the easiest to see in flight.

[SNO]

Nice fun flying plane, I hand launch and land on grass with no gear

[Sol75]

If you go with Horizon, they now have SAFE technology in a lot of thier beginner planes, which goes a LONG way towards helping a noob pilot fly, without crashing.  Still, expect to crash.  Even at 30+ years of RC experience, I still crash.  Lost a jet last year, which was very painful in the ol wallet.... everything burned when it impacted.. nice big fireball and column of black smoke.  At least the crash was as scale as the plane was.. lol