Good Starter R/C Plane

[thenuge876]

So this weekend I was out my girlfriends parents place for a labor day picnic and her dad had just picked up a small electric RC plane to start flying with. I've seen a few posts about this kind of stuff here before and it looked like a lot of fun, so I was wondering what a good way to get started in the RC Plane world was, recommendations etc..

[Joe 1320]

The best thing you could do is spend some time on a simulator

http://www.towerhobbies.com/products...ght/index.html


Get the crashing out of the way on the TV screen,


real life flight will come much easier.

[Jeff_in_Atl]

My first plane was a .02 size "trainer". I never successfully landed it until after I bought a glider. The trainer flew too fast for me to think about what I was doing. I bought a Carl Goldberg Sophisticated lady 2 meter sail plane. It flew slow enough that I had time to think about what I was doing. It can also fly fast enough to do all aerobatics. The thing is with a glider you have no choice but to land. Then you launch it and land again, and again, and again. After that I had no problem landing the trainer. I even got good enough that I could fly the glider up to me and catch it. I love flyer the glider. trade altitude for air speed, do a loop, pull back up with little altitude loss from the beginning. I think the longest flight I had was about 15 minutes. The only bad thing is don't get down wind on a windy day. One time I didn't think I was going to get back. I used all my altitude to get airspeed to get back.

You will get as many arguments as to what is the best first plane as what is the best car to get. Well not here of coarse. Everybody here knows it's the Vette.

[thenuge876]

Thanks, I will definitely have to keep researching and reading before making any decisions, the simulator seems like a really good idea too, being able to do the crashing without losing money every time seems like it is worth the investment. Thanks guys this should get me started!

[DJ Taso]

First decide whether you want to go the gas route or electric route and we'll take it from there.

[thenuge876]

I was looking at that and could not really make up my mind, it seems like to start off the electric route might be a bit easier, but what would you say are the pros/cons of those two options?

[DJ Taso]

Glad you asked..

Check out this link,

http://www.rc-airplane-world.com/gas...rc-flying.html

I agree with most of it, but not all. For instance, yes, electrics are more quieter, but a 4 stroke gives you an authentic sound of a real plane, especially a warbird. Electrics you can't hear them at all at WOT.

Also, with electrics, your flight time is extremely limited. With gas, fuel is your only limit; land refuel, take off. With electric; land, take home, recharge, come back tomorrow. You can always bring extra battery packs with you, but it gets expensive.

There's 2 types of pilots: gas flyers and electric flyers. Just like Chevy guys and Ford guys. Harley guys and crotch rocket guys.

Your first plane should be a trainer. They are exactly that, a trainer. Everyone starts off with a trainer. This was my first plane. If you're going to go gas, check it out. You can't go wrong with it. For electric, click here Now these are just suggestions, you can pick any plane you want from Tower Hobbies Make sure you get the combo with the motor and radio! You'll save a lot!

In no time you'll be up in the air and having a blast. I went from ARF (almost ready to fly) to building my own planes. There's nothing more than building your own and watching it fly. It's quite an accomplishment.

[Joe 1320]

I was looking at that and could not really make up my mind, it seems like to start off the electric route might be a bit easier, but what would you say are the pros/cons of those two options?

I think as a beginner, electric is the way to go. You can get trainers that are constructed of EPP foam, it's a flexible foam that literally bounces on mild to moderate hits and is easy to repair if you really pound it. I like fuel too, but electrics can literally be flown about anywhere. With fuel you should really fly at a dedicated flight field. With electrics, multiple battery packs are the way to go. Advances is lithium batteries make for long flight times too.

Don't get me wrong, I like fuel planes. Big ones! Turbines too.


This one is one heck of a good performer and easy to repair. highly recommended for a beginner. When you master that, start moving on up.

http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...rodID=MPU13203

[thenuge876]

Thanks again for all the info guys, I will let you know how things go once I get started!