Live Wire

Larry Kutchar 67 retired , Certified Harley Mech. and owned a LHS. Back to 14 planes in hanger??????? none on the run way!!!!!

Ptarmigan

My name is Raymond. I started RC flying in 2002 and recently solo in July of 2004. I am thinking about building a RC dirigible. I plan to go to electric. I recently started work for AFLAC. I work for the duck. AFLAC! AFLAC! AFLAC!

bowencutie

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Hi, My name is Mary Bowen and I live in Florida on the Gulf Coast. I work in Ocala at a factory that builds firefighting equipment like fire trucks and rescue squads etc....
My flying hobby is a new passion of mine. I was able to get my first solo flight in on Oct. 8th, after all the Hurricanes passed through here.
I have a few planes already in my Hangar, a PT40 was my first kit build and I still fly her for warm ups, a Falcon that my husband built and I enjoy flying it. I also have a Dragon 40 that was my first ARF and went on her maiden flight just last Sunday she is a joy to fly. My newest addition is a Funtana 40 that I can hardly wait to get in the air. And last but not least a T-Rex that my hubby is building for us to fly in the upcoming IMAA event. It is his fault that I'm "plane" crazy but he doesn't mind much- says I fly ten times better than him. He loves to brag about me. I am at the moment the only female flyer in our club and I love to go out every Sunday and Fly all morning.
Happy to meet you Daryl.
Mary

MinnFlyer

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Mary, I hope your company doesn't make fire hydrants....

You'd never find a place to park

bowencutie

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No just the truck things you hook to them

BasinBum

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This thread reads like an AA meeting!

Richard Dragin....I built Guillows models as a kid growing up in Cleveland in the 70's and they never flew worth a crap. I'd look at them for about a week and then it was time for lighter fluid and firecrackers. We lived near an RC field that is now condos and everytime we drove by I'd bug my dad to get us a plane. He figured he'd learn to fly and then teach me but he was a slow learner and it took awhile. In the meantime I built a Sterling Fledgeling and was to impatient to wait for him to get off work so mom dropped me off at the field with it. The only guy I knew that day was a lousy pilot but that didn't stop him from offering to do the maiden and he dumped it on takeoff. I got discouraged and never fixed it.

Fast forward to the late 90's after we all ended up in Los Angeles and dad retired and continued to fly. I was busy with other things but one day saw the movie "Field of Dreams", now this is pretty sappy but it effected me enough that I vowed not to let dad pass on without teaching me to fly a fricken RC plane. I got a Kadet Senorita and after 8 flights (without a buddy box) I was solo and addicted. I was on and off but for the last 5 years have been a pretty steady fixture out at the Basin.

I work in the film industry doing Special Effects (mechanical and physical NOT computer) and the experiance blowing up models is pretty common among my co-workers, not to mention mixing home made gun powder in my basement when I wasn't building planes. I have several explosives licenses and don't even play with firecrackers on the 4th of July. When I am working I have very little time but there is time off between jobs to build, fly and post on RCU. Don't ask me how to get into the film industry because I couldn't help you and wouldn't recommend it.

The dog in the avitar is Drew and he's our surrogate child and very photogenic. Cindy is my wife who barely tolerates the hobby but, is glad I have something I enjoy so much.

I fly aerobatics, pylon race and judge, have foamy electrics to quarter scale gasoline and many in between. I build professionally sometimes and might be doing reviews soon and I love hanging out at the Basin with all my friends and aquaintances. If you ever come out to L.A. let me know so I can show you around the Basin.

P.S. I don't use smiley faces or LOL's but 99% of the time I'm just joking around. Don't take anything online personal.

Deadeye

Well it should! Haven't you ever heard of Aircraftaholics Anonymous?

Groucho fan

My name is Jon Williams, just turned 50 last month. I'm a service manager for an independent Firestone in Minneapolis. I've had an interest in airplanes since my youth, but didn't get into R/C until 3 yrs. ago. I worked in my dad's aircraft instrument shop for a few years, decided it wasn't for me. I've enjoyed R/C experience, but only have 1 airplane at this time,a GP Spacewalker. My other interests are hunting and fishing. Hey, Flyboy, I see you live in Missoula, my uncle lives in Victor, he's been into R/C for many years.

Phlip

My name is Phil Duncan, age 42. My oldest brother, Spence (Spenc on RCU), built and flew model airplanes, C/L, when I was a kid, and he taught me to build and fly in my early teens.

I first moved from C/L into R/C circa 1982, but gave up all model aircraft around '84 (yup, that's the year I got married) until about '96, when my son turned 6 and we blasted-off a few rockets together. Shortly after, I got back into building airplanes, even though my son is more interested in football than airplanes. Go figure!

I still like to build the occasional rubber powered, C/L or even static model, but R/C has become my biggest model airplane passion.

I recently broke down and bought my first ARF, the TopFlite Flite Streak C/L plane. Primarily because it only costs $10 more than the kit. But I still like building as much as, if not more than, flying.

khodges

My Feedback: (1)

You got that right! My name is Ken, and I am a Flyaholic. It's been 15 minutes since my last flight, and........excuse me, I'll be back in a little while, I uh, hear the phone ringing out at the club field, uh, gotta go, gotta go, gotta go right now!

Spaceclam

well, i figure i would chime in and bore you all with one of my incoherent, babbling posts. My name is Andrew, and i have been in this hobby for around 4 years, since i was 10, and i am now 14, and like to play around with 3d stuff when nobody else is in the air. So far, i only have two operable planes because i have to sell all my other planes to fund my next ones. those two are the Extreme Flight yak 54 and the H9 Twist 3d. i waste most of my free time here on rcu.

J3FAN

Among some of the first memories in my life :
It's 1940 and I am 3 1/2 years old and my Dad takes me to a toy store to pick a gift. I picked a rubber powered RTF plane. (!). After, I NEVER played with any toy, other than a "Plane"
Today, 64 years later, I am taking my plane and my Glider (RC) to the field.....I fly them BOTH simultaneously !!!!
I am a LIFETIME planeAholic !
( the ONLY part of model planes I could never learn was U/C, even today, I can't do it ! - and I still have a RingMaster and a Midwest ME-109 )

charliey

Back 65 years ago, age 13, I used to wind up the rubber bands of a 12" span balsa thing & chuck it to see what would happen. Usually did, too. Never touched the things since then until, a year ago, in Adelaide Oz, I ran into a bunch of model glider guiders and have been hooked ever since. Gliders only - NO power. That bug hit me 30 years ago when I got to "fullscale" soaring - the true champagne of aviation. Now my reflexes - also nerve and finances - are much less. Model sailplanes are a wonderful substitute.
Now, just arrived back in the good ole' US of A, Salem OR, and I NEED to find a bunch of mates to do the thing with.
Looking for you!

Ian Fairnington

granpac

My name is Dick Carroll and I grew up in Shelby Montana 67 years ago. I started RC modeling back in the 60s with single channel equipment in Spokane, WA.
I now return to Conrad, MT for at least a month every summer and fly with Deadeye and his friends. We then move on to Idaho and fly there with old flying friends from Spokane before returning to Florence, AZ for the winter. This has got to be one of the greatest hobby/sports you can get into. We meet and fly with people from all ever the USA. We have even flown from the field where they used to hold the TOC in Las Vegas.[8D]

BigSkyRCFlyer

My Feedback: (36)

Dick,
Good to hear from you, Cut Bank here. When your done flying in Conrad, come on over here, your welcome to fly here any time. I do not fly in Conrad, I am more active into our great club here. We fly at the airport on the way to Valier, the Old B-17 Base,etc. I bet you know all the old guys around here. Lindberg, Reese, Ross,Watson, etc. I moved to Cut Bank about 4 1/2 years ago and have flown non stop. I grew up in Miles City and flew there a lot, good ol Eastern Montana. Take Care
Mark B

granpac

Mark:
We may just see you in the spring. I do know some of the guys from Cut Bank and around the state. Montana has a lot of fliers both full size and model, I do both.
Take care and stay warm.

Tx_RcFlyer

My Feedback: (7)

Ted here, 40.5 years young. One wife, two daughters and two female poodles. Regional Network Administrator for a large flight training company.

I have had affection for aviation since I was about 8 years old. Tried the full scale route, found that piloting a full size aircraft was as interesting as running a front end loader. I ran that loader for seven years. I wasn't about to spend any more time in a job I disliked.
Tried RC many times through out the years. Usually had to give it up for lack of resources.

I built my first RC plane (Falcon 56) on the box top that it came in. covered it in metallic green monokote and then proceeded to teach myself to fly that green airplane against the tall green pine trees in the Florida panhandle. Amazingly it survived and I was hooked.

Finally got back into the hobby about 8 years ago. Have enjoyed every minute of it. Even the days when I leave home with an airplane and returned home with nothing more than a few broken servos and a feeling of stupidity. (I.e.. inverted over the runway at full throttle and pulled back before rolling upright.)


In the last two years I have entered the realm of gassers and will be hard pressed to return to glow powered engines. I enjoy all aspects of the hobby and prefer building to flying most of the time.

Happy Holidays!

JNorton

My Feedback: (2)

Might as well join the party.

My name is John Norton. I'm 54. I'm a Controls Engineer - I'm the guy that programs intelligence and safety into factory machines. I've been an electronics nut since I was 9. I've designed and built my own shortwave receivers, transmitters, power supplies, CMOS TTL machine controls etc. I've built with tubes and transistors - designed my own printed circuit boards. Today however I find it is usually always cheaper to buy it instead of building it, beside I can't see the SMC components without an 8" diameter magnifying glass!

I started building and failing to fly U/C in my teens. Built a CG Little Satin - with a Black Widow - over controlled it into a wing over into the blacktop. Maximum flight time 2 seconds.

I started flying RC four years ago. I needed a hobby that wasn't computer orientated, and it was great fun with my father-in-law as a flight partner.

I really love doing RC aircraft as there as are many disciplines to learn. Designing, scratch building, plans building, kit building, painting, motor tuning, covering, fun flying, pattern flying, 3D flying.

John

SAS902

...and from the other side of the pond: Krister Lindblad, 36 year old male from Eskilstuna, Sweden. Married with two kids. I work for Volvo Construction Equipment. My "aeromodelling career" started in free flight in the 1970's. I more or less grew up at the local airfield, as my father has been a very active model aviator for a long time (since 1948).

I converted to R/C in 1981. My first R/C model was a Sig Kavalier which I received as a Christmas present in 1978, but I did not get to fly it myself until '82-'83 or something. It is still airworthy after very close to 26 years. Nowadays I mostly fly my Sig SE, Kyosho Majestic or our club trainer (I am an R/C flight instructor). Hopefully getting started in R/C helicopters next year. I have got a brand-new Caliber 30 ready to fly as soon as the winter ends, which probably will be awhile I am afraid... :-(

BR,
Krister

bladerunner1955

My Feedback: (72)

Do we have to say how many planes we have? Dang it I thought so. Stoped counting at 50, well my wife and daughter were kind enough to tell me how many I have, they never even looked in the second hanger, ha! Don Hofeldt here in Huntington Beach California where they think it is a crime to fly a gas plane. So electrics it is, BIG electrics for me. Actualy got to work on the model of the Spruce Goose used in the movie The Aviator, the Goose is electric and has a 23 foot wing and weighs over 275 pounds(thats another story) . I dig talking with all of the people I have meet here on RCU. I have bought almost all of my planes from here that were gas at one time and then I convert them into electric flight, sorry gas guys but these are not your everyday run of the mill electrics. My small planes swing 18/12 props and move out just fine. Here are a couple shots of some of my daily flyers. Nice to have meet you all, have a great weekend and keep em flyen, remember if it aint a warbird its a target. I saw that here on RCU and have about worn that one out. Later guys! From Don the electric guy.

GPutt33

My Feedback: (2)

Hello Everyone - Well I guess I need to admit that yes, I have an RC problem My brother and I get to blame our Dad for that. The pictures of the Culver Kadet are of one my Dad rebuilt after the previous owner failed to get the locking pin in one gear while landing. He bought it for salvage and rebuilt it from scratch from the ground floor up. If you look at the B&W photo you'll notice a very small face peering out of the cockpit window, thats my brother (maybe 3). In the color photo that's my Mom and Dad and ME We got to spend a LOT of time with my Dad in the hangar and at the airport at a very young age (I was about 5 I guess). It was cool to see the occaisional WWII fighter come in and get to go sit in them!! Well anyway, this got us both started into our love affair with anything that flew.

My brother started into RC many years ago, but I only got started about 8 years ago. Kids and stuff have a way of keeping funds short. Now both kids are long gone, and I can't get enough of building kits in the winter, the occasional ARF in between and all of the flying I can get in. I got started into this great sport while on a long company transfer from Wyoming to Findlay, Ohio where I got hooked up with a great club called the Flying Circuits. Spent about 5 years flying with these guys and attended fly-ins all over the place back there. I finally got my transfer back home to Wyoming in late 2004 and have once again got hooked up with a fantastic club and a great flying site. We call our selfs the Sagehoppers and anyone is welcome to come and fly with us when ever your close.

I guess one other thing that is unique about my RC thing is having created a database over the past 7 years of the location of over 1200 RC Club's Runways (Yes, the actual field location). To go along with this info besides the Latitude and Longitudes are closest city, state and country info as well as club web links. I then have links of two different forms of satillite imagery, local weather links, number and surface types of the the runways etc etc. If anyone is interested in the Excel files you can download them from my little MSN site at [link=http://groups.msn.com/PuttsRCHomePage/_whatsnew.msnw]Putt's RC Home Page.[/link] I have alos created a file in Google Earth if you just want to fly around and look at all of the RC Sites at [link=http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/showthreaded.php/Cat/0/Number/402368/page/]Putts Google Earth RC File[/link] and then click on the "View In Google Earth" link at the top of the page. This has been very cool for me to be able to use in my GPS while traveling for business or vacation. You should see the looks on some folks faces when I show up out of the blue and introduce myself and then get asked "How in the hell did you find our field?" Have made a lot of new acquaintances and friends doing this.

The last and most recent picture is of: (L > R) My Dad - Glenn, Myself - Gregg, my Brother - Rob, and then Uncle Gregg (yes, my namesake) and Uncle Neil (yes, he is big and he played football for the Air Force). This was taken at one of my brother's events in Sheridan, Wyoming and the 75th Airport Anniversary Days celebration.

It's been great getting to know many of you here on RCU throughout the years and hope to meet many more of you in person in the future. Watch out Montana - I hope to head that way this coming summer. Still looking to get one of those new AT802's stuck in the van on the return trip

drdenny

My Feedback: (1)

OK, my name is Dennis Rogacki. I am employed as a QA technician (23 years as a QA) at a aerospace company that manufactures both rotary wing and fixed wing aircraft parts(yeah, I check them out before they are sent out to be attached to the various aircraft) . This just goes so well with my RC hobby. I have been flying RC airplanes since 1982. I did start with control line planes in the seventies. Now that I'm 43, I decided that my spare time is spent running down to our club as much as I can. As long as I can dodge the bullets from my wife (just kidding), I'm flying. I currently have 10 RC airplanes, and it seems that I build more of them than I fly. I just got done knocking down some of the walls in my shop so that I could expand it. I now have a room in the basement that's 16' X 15'. Yeah guys, THE MAN ROOM!
Nice to meet you, and have fun talking to these guys and girls at RCU. I will guarantee that you will learn something from them![8D]

Herb Calvin

Hi, my name is Herb Calvin. I am 67 yrs old and had to retire at the age of 60 due to illness. I have been involved in the hobby for 54 yrs. I fly mostly R/C but still fly a little control-line. Will corrospond with most people in model avation.

bob36

My Feedback: (3)

We need A hoosier here, my name Bob Watson, now retired age 71 still active in rc. Started in rc in1965 ,prior to rc did the usual rubber powered and controline stuff. Not very good at control line or free flight,did a lot better in rc, flew patternn 70s and 80s. Had an AMA air show team for about four years, had a great time with it, but age and health problems caught up with me and had to drop the show team. I have met the greatest people in this hobby and it is the most fun I have ever had with my clothes on.

daveopam

My Feedback: (9)

I don't how many are actually reading these but I read them all. It is interesting to me to have a little insight into the guys on here. BTW BasinBum I think we all know you are full of it. lol

I'm David Osterloh.42 years old. Grew up in Chicago. Ended up in Oklahoma for the first oil boom in the late 70s early 80s. My dad was a third generation Rock Island Rail Road man. When it went backrupt the oilfield looked good. I now manage a furniture store here in Elk City. Anybody passing down I-40 it's exit 38 behind McDonalds. Our flying site is right down the road and we like visitors. I have been flying and building for 18 years now. I like to fish ,hunt and work on hot rods but gave most of it up for this hobby. It is adictive to me. I have been an AMA all season flier for 15 years now. Most of my stuff is aerobatic. I enjoy scareing my buddys with low alt knife edge,slow rolls and inverted flight.(kind of a show off I guess). I also enjoy buddy boxing and helping to work on planes.

David