CafeenMan

If she's working anyway, why not just tell her to get a better job so you can quit yours and have more time to build model airplanes?

CafeenMan

When someone tells me they don't have time I ask them how much time they spend watching TV. It's amazing how much more time you have when the television is always off.

CafeenMan

Well, I've yet to hear of the mass shooting at the local RC field by the guy who lost interest in the hobby and he's taking as many as he can with him. Maybe I shouldn't be giving anyone ideas though.

willig10

Well, I guess I am a tad different than most. I enjoy building and I also enjoy ARF's. I also like to fly.

Here is a link to a build I am doing now and some pictures of my next project.

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/gian...-williams.html

Glenn

DeferredDefect

Are we still going on about ARF's? Seriously?

They've been around since the 1970s, and a major part of the hobby for over 20 years.

I fly only one personally, but it doesn't bother me that others do. Why should it matter when someone else is having just as much fun flying their ARTF model as my kit build sailplane, or a foam board trainer against my Kadet Senior? It's the exact same hobby, and those models are just as much fun to fly.

Yes, I can build a balsa model better than a low cost balsa ARF, but not for that cost, time, convenience, support, or availability, and frankly bragging about the fact is childish. The quality is also simply not a problem anymore. The one ARF I've got, a Great Planes Escapade was less than a hundred bucks, and has been practically flown into the ground over several years without a scratch or sign of weakness. What's more, this was a model that I was warned against as being prone to breakup and poor quality. Models today are even better quality from what I've seen in person.

They've brought a lot of people into the hobby, and there is still a strong builders community. I would be willing to bet that there are twice as many people in the hobby than ten years ago, no doubt partially to the availability of RTF and ARTF models. Building too is having a second renaissance, but with updated and more modern materials. Balsa is great, and will no doubt be a part of the hobby for decades, but we now have more inexpensive foams and fibreglasses that people are turning into some of the most stunning models I've seen in years... at a fraction of the cost!

The hobby is as strong as ever, it's just evolving, like everything else in life. We can be more accepting of it and be a part of it while maintaining our personal preferences, or be left behind blindly thinking we are in the lead.

tailskid

My Feedback: (34)

Glenn, that looks like a Sbach...but what size? I just picked up one of those from Fun Fly Models....30cc size

Granpooba

My Feedback: (5)

After your statement, I really do not think that their is any more to be said on this subject !

willig10

Hey it is a redwing 30cc

Glenn

Rob2160

As others have mentioned its a personal thing.

I never enjoyed the building process when I was younger. I started in the late 70s and if you wanted to fly an RC plane, you had to learn to cut and glue balsa.

I built a number of planes for myself and others, but the real enjoyment came from flying them. Building was a necessary evil for me, though I had a friend at school who loved the building process more than flying and his aircraft always looked nicer than mine.

So I found totally renewed interest in this hobby with the range of Bind and Fly and ARF kits available. I have bought 10 times more planes in the past 4 years than I did in the first 32 years.

Assembling Helicopters and more recently, multi rotors is actually enjoyable and I do have that sense of pride and accomplishment when I see them fly. Maybe I was just allergic to Balsa.

Just my experience.

TomCrump

If accumulation is your goal, that's great.

Your statement pretty much sums up the ARF point of view. Buying, instead of doing.

There's nothing wrong with that, but it summerizes the differences in philosophy between builders and ARFers.

I have ARFs. Don't get me wrong. They have their place. I like the emotional dis-attachement. I have no sweat equity in them. I can go out and fly the heck out of them without thinking about how much time, effort, and soul I had to put into it.

guille2006

Don't let the actual tendence to delude you; I've the same situation on my club (actually I'm the only mn standing DESIGNING AND BUILDING MY PLANES) but to be sincere; I don't care. I do my stuff and that's OK for everyone, specially me.
BTW, I'm the last one flyng glow too, all the rest is flying electric while jsut a couple are flying gas...
Stay with us!!! Cheers;
G.

cloudancer03

My Feedback: (22)

Admittedly I have alot of time being retired.but when I started in 1971 if you planned to fly you built a plane.i can remember working late into a Friday night getting ready for a sat flying session and not having the weather cooperate.as Tom said building is a choice.i worked as a administrator and spent a lot of hours at work raising 2 kids and doing community work.but somehow managed to find time to build model planes.i love this hobby and plane to stay active as long as the good Lord let's me.i was visiting an old friend he still builds and flies.he is 92 years old and built his first plane in 13 for many years he ran a farm and had 4 kids.he just started a Cessna 182.

guille2006

AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
TV IS GREAT for destroying minds, making people stupid, and giving people LIES instead of a life.

BTW; I don't have TV, instead I have books, sex, workshop, beer...

Dblex

My Feedback: (81)

To the original thread, one must embrace change. I have been flying for 33 years myself and I remember the fun of building 1/2 a kits to full scale kits. But now, my time is valuable. I don't get time to watch TV. Work full time, board member, church and kids. All my responsibilities come first. Especially time with my kids. I still love to fly hard core. I'm lucky if i Get a Saturday morning free. But when I do, I don't go to the field to chat.. Although I love all the guys I fly with, but I'm gonna fuel up and fly... And fly, and fly.

Look at the at the car guys now a days. They aren't tinkering in the garage anymore, they are buying ready to hit the road classics that have been upgraded. It's the new thing.


It boils down to how much your time is worth, and what you want to do with your time.

TomCrump

My time is valuable, too. That's whay I spend so much time in the shop..................building.

049flyer

My Feedback: (18)

The ARF guys are usually in and out of the hobby so fast, about the time you learn their name they're gone. They are often the same ones that try golf and think that buying a $500 driver will make them hit a straight ball. It takes time and effort to do anything well.

There are an incredible number of facets to this hobby it astounds me that anyone could possibly get bored with it. The big ones for me are designing, building, tinkering with engines and checking out what my friends have built. Take away any ONE of those and the hobby experience loses it's luster.

Therefore here is what I do:

First, ignore the hype and continue with the hobby as you always have, do what ever YOU enjoy. Fly what you like, build what you like.

Second and most important, seek out those that share your interest and passion, if you are a builder don't hang out with the ARF guys, if you like engines don't hang with the electric crowd, if you like diesels hang out with others that like diesels. People that don't share your interest don't like your stuff any more than you like theirs.

There was a time when we all flew pretty much the same thing, .25 to .40 size glow planes which we built ourselves, we all had a common interest. Today the hobby is much more diverse and it's unlikely that a guy that likes to build and fly small glow powered planes will have anything in common with a giant scale ARF type except a flying field.

The hobby will never again be like it was BUT if you are lucky you might find one or two friends that share your passion, if not there is always RCU.

dirtybird

My Feedback: (5)

To the OP. I lived in Washington and worked at Boeing. After my retirement (2001 ) I moved to AZ and would go back to Wa in the summer.
In the begining there was a meet every weekend in the Puget Sound area.The last time I went to Concrete I was the only one to show up outside of the organizers.That was two years ago. The Boeing club gave up several years ago.
I AZ in the winter its quite different. Last winter you could hardly find a parking place at the field during the week, It was full of snowbirds flying electrics. They buy a Chinese toy and go fly.
On the weekend the IMAC people show up. They fly $10000 Chinese toys. The still use engines though. I seldom see a home build in the mix either day.
The hobby has changed.
I build. I feel like a missfit. As a result I dont fly a lot.

davevh

I agree. I recently attended an RC airshow at the Robertson Airport in Cape Town, and even though there was a great turnout it was mostly a yawnfest of ARF's sprinkled with a few scratch/kit built's.
Contrast that with one of the countries other large airshows that I went to in the 90's, in which there was only one "ARF" and that was a Byron P51D.
I remember in the 90's flying when every modeller I knew would show up with their kit built's, and it was such an exciting time with tons of variety and personal touches. Ironically, if a rare ARF did show up, it was a novelty and generated some excitement since it was exotic (for example, an EZ T38-Talon). Anyone remember the phone book size bohemoth that was the Tower-Hobbies catalogue with all the kits? I used to marvel at how many different and exciting designs were available.
Now I show up to a club, no matter where, and it feels like I am attending a Horizon Hobby copy and paste.

To be fair, I will not begrudge those that enjoy ARF's (heck, I have a park flyer in the cupboard myself), especially if it gets them into the air when it otherwise would not happen.

Sigh.

I will however, contrast this with a slightly different view.
Look at full size aircraft aishows, you will see production built aircraft which are mostly the same cookie cutter designs put out by the various manufacturers, just like our ARF's!
So, RC has in a way mimicked the full size industry.

049flyer

My Feedback: (18)

I think when I retire I would like to pack my car up with my small glow planes and travel around the country to hang out for a day of flying with some like minded RCU guys whom I have never met. I won't retire for a few more years but it sounds like fun.

p510851

My Feedback: (60)

Hey Raptureboy, i can appreciate your sticking up for this generation and the "younger Guys" but remember the sharing of chores in the house started with the Baby Boomers. it comes down to what you prefer to do, choices. Remember this is a hobby and is to be done in your spare time if you have any. I found myself watching a load of TV shows at night because I was tired from work and the kids. I finally realized if I got off of the sofa and drifted into the shop I would spend the TV time working on my model. so it's not that the young people don't have the time it's their decision of how to use it.

bafflerback

My Feedback: (6)

Like it or not the world had changed. My parents generation was called the Greatest Generation. My generation is called the Me Generation. I call my children's generation the I Want It Now Generation. Most have lost total touch with reality and they want it now. They don't plant bushes and wait for a tree to grow. they buy trees. The don't build airplanes they but them. And from what I see if it isn't on a computer or a smart phone they aren't going to do it long.

Unfortunately this is the way of their generation. Along with Flying R/C I also race cars. Whether I go to the flying field or the track it looks like the Gerital Generation. When cheaper ARF's hit I was hoping it would bring some younger blood into the hobby. It did for a short time but as there generation does they moved on. As it looks FPV flying might be what their generation is looking for. Let's face it they can fly and airplane on a TV screen they appear to be all for it. Unfortunately this could also prove to be the end of the hobby as we know it.

I guess what I'm getting at here is we need to stop worrying about ARF's diluting the hobby and come up with a way to get the I Want It Now Generation from in front of their screen and out to the flying field where we can help guide them. Before one of them, in a search for instant stardom does something really stupid, post it on Youtube and we end up with a situation that all the ARF's in the world can't fix.

turkey hunter

My Feedback: (10)

I don't know why people are bothered by what someone else fly's! I built rubber powered planes in the 50's, went to U Control and the to RC. Kind of a natural progression. I still build all 3 plus I own several ARF's. I own 4 Precision Aerobatics 3D ARF's, and I just finished a Sterling Ringmaster U Control and put a vintage McCoy 35 Redhead on it. I do believe one should take some interest in what others are flying. Example, I will never own a turbine, but after spending some time with turbine flyers, I have a pretty good understanding how the RC turbine setup works. It's aviation, embrace it, enjoy it!

combatpigg

My Feedback: (3)

Lots of great comments here guys..!
Both "pro, con" and in between.
In the end, nobody is responsible for my happiness but me and it is up to me to create my own conditions.
That being said, this area has tripled in size over the past 25 years but activity at the local RC fields has diminished. In some cases to the point of extinction.
This leads me to believe that what I've observed isn't just a figment of my imagination.
CafeenMan, I have NEVER ran across a single man who claims that he does not have enough time to build a plane EVER admit that if he cut down on his TV / computer time, he could build a plane or two instead of spending every night with his electronic baby sitters.
Ironically, it's never been easier to design and build a plane than it is nowadays, or just simply build from a self locking, self alligning kit..

TimJ

Are we back to this conversation again?

FACT, ARFS have kept this hobby alive.
FACT, RTFS have continued to keep the hobby alive.

To have an attitude of dislike for ARFS and RTFS is exactly the attitude this hobby does not need. Times have changed. Embrace the change. Welcome new RTF hobbyist with open arms. With nurturing of the newcomer and interest in different aircraft rise, the interest in building an aircraft come along with it. You can't look down your nose or have a dislike for people that have purchased and ARF or RTF aircraft. They have the same interest you do in model aviation. The new generation has an advantage we did not, learning to fly without months of building first. The modern hobby works in reverse order now. Learn to fly first, then learn to build.

I will say it AGAIN! Welcome new RTF hobbyist with open arms. With nurturing of the newcomer and interest in different aircraft rise, the interest in building an aircraft come along with it.

If you want to grow and keep the hobby, I believe embracing the new comer regardless of what aircraft purchased is the best way. If that person truly enjoys aviation, said person will eventually build a forest-in-a-box of their favorite aircraft.

turkey hunter

My Feedback: (10)

TimJ, AMEN!