DJSE7EN

Well to start i've built three planes in the past but never bought
the radio's,engines,etc...... to fly them because of work and the day to day things we all gotta do to live well I'am 26 now and the
r/c bug has always been around these last few years. I go to
local and statewide fly in's as my vacations. Now i wanna jump outa the pits as a spectator and onto the flight line and fly. I've been spending the last 5-7 days reading and reading everything i can on r/c trainer airplanes there are great selections out there and i've really been looking hard at the SIG KADET MARK II for my first plane. I've pretty much decided on a mid level computer radio,engine well that depends of course on the airplane i go with but if i go with the sig i've been looking at a OS .40-.46 or THUNDER TIGER .40-.46. Just wondered what everyone thought on this and your opinions thanks.

Groundforce-RCU

My Feedback: (20)

You wont be sorry if you get the Kadet LT 40, and put a good .46 (I bought a Magnum, its a great engine for the price) up front.
The plane is large enough to see when your learning to fly, 2-3 mistakes high, and the .46, if you choose to do so, will go good on a second plane after youve soloed, and would like to move on.
So far as the radio goes, Id wait till your hooked up with a club to see what radios they use. Dont think theres anything much worse than buying a nice radio, only to get to the club and find out they have nothin to connect you to a buddy box. Hope this helps ya.

lownslo

DITTO ... to everything Groundforce said!!! I learned on a Hobbico Superstar40 with a .40 LA. The trainer was very good... but I like the extra size of the LT-40. I didn't care for the LA engine. It was VERY reliable but just didn't have much power. I am bringing out of storage this spring and going to put it on a LT-25 I am going to build for my grandsons. That plane is very light even though it has a 63" span. If you really think you will stay with this hobby, get a ball bearing .46 just as Groundforce suggested. ..lownslo..

Bob

P-51B

My Feedback: (5)

I don't like any of the choices.

They all have flat bottom wings, which you will outgrow about halfway through your first flight. Get something with a semi-symetrical wing like a Goldberg Falcon, or Gp Easy Sport. There are some arfs that also fit the bill, but...well you know.

Tattoo

I've had the OS .46LA (Gave it away, nuff said on that one)

I've got one O.S. .46 FX, two TT Pro .46's, two TT Gp .42's and a GMS .47.

If mony is not and issue, get the O.S. .46 FX. It is the best in the user friendly catagory with a minimum of fiddling with it. It also just keeps getting better smoother and stronger with age! It's tough, survives crashes well, and is slightly stronger than the TT Pro .46

If money is and issue, the TT Gp .42 is a good strong running low priced engine...but it's carburator design is rather weak, and a crash could mean needing to buy an new carb.

The TT Pro .46 is a GREAT engine, but has some quirks...as well as needing more TLC than the O.S. The throttle arm set screw is chincy and likes to strip...and the carb set screw will vibrate out if not locktighted in. This engine is VERY tough and will survive all but the worst of crashes.

The GMS .47 is the best bang for the buck, my favorite, and the most powerful of these engine running away...but it also needs the most TLC to keep it that way. The biggest thing is keeping the muffler through bolt tight. I finally had to drill mine out, re-tap and replace it with allthread. This engine would be my choice, and I would trade all my other ones in for more of these, but I also have a lot of engine experience.

From my experiences with these engines, and from the many weekends I've spent at the field watching other pilots...my opinion is that if you are serious about the hobby, want a reliable long lasting engine with the least amount of tinkering, and want plenty of power for future projects...the O. S. .46 FX is the best choice for your first engine.

Chuckr53-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

I think it's good to get into the air immediately, and I prefer the size (visibility) of the 60 size planes.

I'd buy a 60 size ARF trainer with an engine like an OS61FX or a Thunder Tiger 61 and get the training on it. While you're training, build a good 60 size 2d plane that you transfer the engine into when you're ready to move up. A good building choice for the 2d plane would be the Sig 4*60.

A bit more of an investment, but you get the fun of flying right away and the satisfaction of building at the same time.

As for the electronics...I agree with Groundforce...hook up with a club and get whichever brand the club trainers use.

My $.02

DJSE7EN

__________________________________________________ __
"think it's good to get into air immediately"
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hey chuckr53 thanks for the reply but just to let everyone know i
prefer kits because you get full size plans and if i do crash repair can be made quicker


P.S. it's cold here right now really cold got time on my hands to build

Chuckr53-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

Put skis on it!

DJSE7EN

True true i'll give you that one lol

redbluffwingnut

My Feedback: (2)

if you don't mind building a kit the CG eagle 2 is the best trainer i have found

LarryC

The LT-40 is as large as most of the 60 size trainers.

Larry

P-51B

My Feedback: (5)

Good! :thumbup:

Goinstraightup

My Feedback: (26)

I learned on a Kadet MKII and it is an excellent plane. It even held up to flying from an oat field, which is where I learned. I wouldn't hesitate to go with the Kadet MKII. Later I flew it with Skis and Floats and it handles everything like a champ.

I highly agree with the mid level computer radio. You'll never regret that. I'm quite sure that I will never buy a standard radio again.

As for engines you are wise to look at OS and TT, especially OS. While groundforce had good luck with his Magnum, many including me, have not had good luck with them. The OS 40LA is a good and reliable engine and has plenty of power when run on 15% fuel. The OS 46FX is a screamer and would be more than plenty of power for the MKII.

Make sure you find a club, and have an instructor for the first flights and everything will go great.

DJSE7EN

now i should of made my poll bigger i didn't think of the carl goldberg selections for trainers




hmmm what should i get a jr or a futaba crap so many decisions
but i guess that's what makes it fun

P40 Maniac

My Feedback: (15)

I started out with pt 40 with a 40 super tiger. But got the bug before fling the trainer and went out bought the easy sport started build it. Put os 46 fx on it. Was flying by the time finished the the easy sport. Had both planes with me one day had problems with the trainer so we set up the easy sport and trimmed it in I LOVED IT HOW IT FLEW OVER TRAINER by far. The guy training me said I should of skip the trainer. My vote is for the easy sport I flew so much better than the trainer. This will be my four year in flying. I have to easy sports now there are most flown planes I have.

Warby

My Feedback: (69)

SIG There is no question!

DJSE7EN

hey P40 Maniac what engines and radios have u used all together and like just like to know thanks

P40 Maniac

My Feedback: (15)

I have a futaba 6xas radio that I use. I have 40 super tiger in one easy sport tail dragger which is faster than the easy sport tricycle with os 46 fx. I have slow poke sport 40 with os 46 fx on it to much power. I have sig something extra with os 46 fx with a tuned pipe which is assume. working on a learjet 40 with retracts and with os 46 fx on it. Have built rv-4 and a super decathlon for a Friend. build a sail plane for another frond. Have crashed pt-40,easy sport, something extra will fly again with fuselage kit.

DJSE7EN

one thing i wanted to add was should the plane be made tail wheel or tricycle i see alot of people talking about turning there plane into a tail wheel setup or should i not worry about it being the first plane i'am gonna learn with ??

P40 Maniac

My Feedback: (15)

The taildraggers are hard to handle on the ground. I would differently use the tricycle for first plane. I went with the easy sport taildragger to learn on for something extra and up coming kits waiting in the wings to be build. It was a plane I knew how it handled was not expensed kit. The arf version of the easy sport has 5/32 landing gear on and the kit version has 3/16 landing gear on mains and 5/32 on front gear.

balsa brain

I think that the Sig LT-40 would be an excellent choice for your first plane.I built and flew one just to get my thumbs back after having not flown for about five years.I put an Enya 45 CX on mine and that was plenty of power.I may be wrong,but I think the Enya will out turn an OS 46 FX.The only problem I had was in getting it slowed down enough to quit flying.The LT-40 will float.It's also a great kit to build.My two cents worth.

Bill

DJSE7EN

Well to let you all know i have narrowed my radio choices down to a JR XF631 or a Futaba Futaba 6XAS the local club say's i can go with either one the use a just about all the different radio's out there but i was wondering i've been studying tonight. i've been reading about radio's with mode 1 and mode 2 what is the mode thing about haven't found much on it like one of the listing at tower's web site say's one of there radio's can't be converted to mode 1 and i've seen the jr xf631 can be bought with either mode 1 or 2 so far i've liked the wealth of knowledge on the web site and the people are great

hookedonrc

I started with an Avistar Trainer with an OS 46FX and still fly it today. It is fun to fly, has a semi-symetrical wing, and has been easy to repair when I have had small accidents. I took the tail off at a bulkhead, added some triangle stock, glued the tail in place. It fit so good, I didn't even have to change the trim. The only thing to watch is the angle of deflection on the engine and the downthrust on the prop. The downthrust on my Avistar was at 4.5* and it really was a handful on the runway. I actually started landing before taking off because of this. Once fixed, I really love flying it. Not I have a 4*60 and a Ultrastick 60 on the workbench. Now it's just the weather holding me up.

DJSE7EN

ya weather is not to great here we just got 9 inch's on saturday
but that life up north in the midwest : ) : )

aston70

My Feedback: (1)

DjSE7EN,

Some good advice is make sure some experienced rc pilots look at your airplane before you fly it. When I got into this I had flown control line planes and thought I knew enough to do RC. Wrong.

Also I just finished a Lanier ST-40. Everything is laser cut and it's super easy to build. It's probably the easiest I've built yet. It says it's a flat bottom wing, but it looks semi-semmetrical to me. You can look at mine and see what you think. I haven't had a chance to fly it yet. TN hasn't seen much good weather in the past few months, so I can't yet tell you how well it flies.

I had a SIg Kadet. Crashed it twice. My brother had a used Kadet. I think there's a tombstone for it somewhere. I am not saying it's a bad plane, but some people will have good luck with a particular plane and others won't. I was the later as far as the Kadet is concerned.

My Lanier ST-40
Lanier ST-40 information

I have an OS 40 on my new ST-40, that I've had for probably 15 years now. It was used when I got it. Say what you want, but with all I've put it through it still runs great. I think most .40 2-cycle engines you buy will be good enough. At some point you may wind up with some strap-on mufflers though. Like it or not. After all, trees and grass can jump out in front of anyone.

I also have a 40 size ARF trainer with a .50 Fox. The engine is okay, but I like having the extra speed and power of a .50. It's a Thunder-Tiger .40 and I've had two. Both were excellent fliers for me.