kerrydel

My Feedback: (2)

Saturday I lost my 5th plane of the season. This is my second year in the hobby, and I seem to have the sophomore jinx. The crashes have spanned the gammit. The first crash was a GP RV4 kit on it's maiden flight. I left the screw out of the servo arm on the elevator. Of course the arm held on just long enough for the plane to get airborne. Then it came off and the plane went straight up. Of course it also came straight down.

I was so pissed off that I built a new kit. I dumb thumbed it into the ground.

The third plane was a Bruce Tharpe Venture 60 kit. I flew this last season after I crashed my trainer. The throttle stuck at wide open at the wrong time. Not much left but splinters. It appeared that a gear tooth broke on the servo.

Next was a China Models 140 size Katana. I learned the hard way about going too slow. I did a split S and came out at the bottom going with the wind. The plane snapped hard and was into the ground before I could do anything to recover.

And just the other day I lost a Goldberg Sukhoi ARF. The maiden flight went well. Only required a couple clicks of trim, but the pull-pull rudder cable was a little loose. So I tighted that up. On the second flight everything was fine until I did a roll. Coming out of that I didn't have control of the plane. It acted like one of the ailerons wasn't working.

So 3 kits and 2 ARFs bit the dust this year. After 2 seasons and 7 planes, I'm left with only one. Right now I'm very down in the dumps. Winter is just around the corner and I don't know what to do. At the moment, I sure don't feel like building anything.

I really enjoy flying, but crashing is taking it's toll.

Kerry

Joe Ortiz

My Feedback: (75)

Sorry for your loss, but chances are taken when the plane goes airborne, seems like you have missed some preflight checks, I have not lost a plane yet, maybe 'cause I double and tripple check everything on the plane before I fly it.
Joe

MerlinL14

I know the feeling well, if it were not for being able to fix crashed planes, and the almost indestructability of my Ready 2, I would be on my 10th or 11th plane after only a year in this (very addictive) sport .

suitcase

My Feedback: (1)

I really know where you're coming from. I bought a used US 120 and flew it several times. Bought a G26 and converted to gas. Flew it into the trees total loss. Bought a new 120 lite and flew it into the trees on the maiden. Bought another 120 lite and flew it twice, and it went into the trees. I've crashed my spad deb 3-4 times, my qhor 2-3 times. I'm beginning to wonder if I should'nt just get out of it all together. It is very depressing after all the work and just a couple minutes of fun. AND it's expensive. I might just take up needle point! Or maybe scrapbooking! Yeah, thats the ticket!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spaceclam

man, that sucks. all but one could have been avoided. there was no way of forseeing a bad servo, that caused one of my crashes as well. if i were you i would stick to foamies for a while.

ksechler

You need to go back to the basics or something. You lost 3 planes from mechanical failures. That's alot. I think you need to work out a pre-flight checklist and stick to it. The other two were dumb thumbs and that happens to everyone. The only way to counter that is to get more experience. I'd suggest you go over your radio gear real carefully since it's been beaten around some with the crashes. Check (or better yet replace) the receiver crystals, check for stripped servos and make sure all of your batteries are ok. That way, hopefully, you won't end up with 6 crashes this season.

Tim Wiltse-RCU

See those are some of the very reasons I fly only 1/2a size planes and smaller. They still have the thrill but if something goes wrong and the landing is not so pretty they bounce most of the time. Plus they can be built for the cost of some of the props for "big" planes.

Later,
Tim

kerrydel

My Feedback: (2)

The servos in the Goldberg were brand new Hitec 635's and the receiver had be serviced by Futaba. The throttle servo that stripped had only been in that plane and it had not suffered any crashes. Plus these are only post crash "guesses" at what happened.

Leaving the screw out was totally stupid, I realize that. But I must be under some kind of black cloud, since it didn't come off until the exact wrong time. The dumb thumbs will happen, and I'm not too upset about those. It's just the sum total of the year has got me down.

I'm not independently wealthy by any means, but it's not the cost that's bothering me, it's the time that I invest. Especially in the kits.

I'm sure I'll feel different come spring.

Kerry

SkyChaser

No, no, no! Just find a flying field without (altogether now) trees!

P-40LUVR

Heck, you're not the only one getting in all the crashes!
Lets see...where do I start...[sm=lol.gif] lost a Hanger 9 Cap232 to a spin stall,Phoenix Funstar because I was hot dogging around and pancaked it into the ground...WM Skraider Mach II...into the trees it went....totally trashed....P-40 Warhawk...engine died on takeoff and stalled it trying to turn and it went in, total loss,this has all happened in the last 6 months.
Since then..built another P-40,Funstar,H9Cap, Phoenix Giles 202,Seagull Edge 540 and a WM Skyraider.
I flew the P-40 once the Cap about 10 times,Funstar about 4 times,but have not flown the Giles or the Edge for fear of crashing them!
I fly the Skraider all the time because im at ease knowing it only took 4 hours to put together and 70.00 for the plane and I will tell you it is one of the most fun planes I have to fly!
I flew the other Skraider into the trees Thursday,bought the new one Saturday and ready to fly again Sunday!
And here it is!

sir-crash-alot

My Feedback: (4)

1. Kaos elevator servo jamed down on landing
2. Kaos disoriented
3. US .40 Dead Stick
4. Lanier Razor Reversed ailerons on takeoff
5. Twist- Deadsticked out of a flatspin and hit a tree
6. Magic- Radio hit

I am 14 and pay for everything. Now i am building A SE from kit and a h9 cap 232 .40 and awaiting money for a 1.20 sized aerobat. Also a intructer at the local airfield on our club training days.

superflea

twas a brisk february day when my friend/student handed me the box for his extra 3.25 his 1st mistake and mine result was a total loss


same day same friend gives me the box for my nemesis the dreaded sig wonder ( i am currently 0-2 on the wonder) his second mistake this day my second was taking the box my third was saying ok launch it. result total loss


same day this time my beloved four star 60 many hours of work in construction many many hrs in covering i loved that plane mistake 4 for me was thinking i should quit on a gppd note result total loss.


last time i flew was in feb. but i now have my GP 60 cub almost ready to go. lesson on the 4* was that i cant solder for snot so i went through the cub and found more solder joints that some else will need to fix. and the fed ex chick should be here tomorow with my new stinson reliant. i am a little nervouse too but at least its not my arch nemesis senior sig wonder- i will conquer that beast [>:]

Vogan

Or just buy a chainsaw

twistr

My Feedback: (4)

P-40 / great looking plane!

Kerry, yes it's easy to get discouraged. I put two down today, one because of an engine died right after take off , and one dumb thumbed. One is already repaired (Epoxy is a great invention) and the second will require little repair work (surprisingly). As others have mentioned here, setup a preflight checklist. Let someone else at the field (someone with lots of experience) look over your plane for flight readiness. If all else fails, get back on your trainer for a while. It will be a confidence builder and will make you hungry again for more!

antslake

My Feedback: (1)

Get an indestructable plane, and fly that around for awhile.
Until you get up enough guts to go back into your wallet.

Spaceclam

a spad would really shine here....

cougar347

Hey Kerry,

You certainly have a right to be depressed. We all go through that period of depression whenever we lose a plane, especially one that we love. However, after reading your analysis of your different problems, I think you can see that some of your problems could have been prevented. One of the nice things about this computer age is the wealth of information that is now available to us over the internet. If you take the time to read over this RCU forum about crashes, you'll start to see a lot of common threads. Receiver problems, transmitter problems, engine problems, connectors separating, servos failing, clevice problems, hooking up ailerons backwards, becoming distracted and taking your eyes away from your plane, structural failures, mid air collisions, and on and on and on.

Some of these problems can be prevented, some can not. As others have mentioned to you here, when you have a new plane, have one of the more experienced members that you fly with look it over before that first flight, and I don't mean just give it a quick glance. Check control surfaces, make sure all connectors are in place and properly secured. Always check each and every servo to make sure that all screws are secure and in place. Make sure that the CG is where it's supposed to be. Pull on the control surfaces to make sure that they're secure. Make sure that tx and rx batteries are in good shape and fully charged. Try not to fly a new plane with a new motor. If that can't be avioded, make sure that the new motor has been carefully broken in as per the manufacturers recommendations. Run it on the ground in the plane a couple of times just to make sure that everything is O.K. Check the cowling to see if the motor is running cool enough. Make sure that the prop has been balanced. Before the actual takeoff, check the ground handling to make sure that there are no bad tendencies. We had a guy loose his plane this summer because he forgot to tighten the wing screw holding the wing on. He managed to take off, make a 90 degree turn and then watch as the wing and fuselage parted ways and went off on their own. Simple little things that can make a huge difference.

Another good rule of thumb is that with a new plane, after the first couple of flights, put it away, take it home and go over everything. Check motor mounting screws, servo screws, control horns and clevices, anything that could have vibrated loose. Check whatever trim you had to put in and make the necessary adjustments to the control surfaces. I almost lost my OMP profile this summer because three of the motor mounting screws had actually vibrated out during the first flight. They were tight when I took off, I just didn't know about the vibration problems. Now I use Loc-tite and nyloc nuts on the screws. I also check them frequently. Fuel is another source of problems, always filter your fuel. Some actually filter it twice. Make sure all your servo and servo extentions and battery connectors are secured with something-electrical tape, dental floss, whatever, but secure them when you can. Put a piece of scotch tape over your rx crystal, yes, they do fall out. Spend the money for the best clevices you can find. You're talking a few extra cents here and it can make a huge difference. How many good planes have been lost because a clevice failed? Check those control surfaces every so often, the hinges may have come loose.

Also, as mentioned here, develop a preflight check and follow it religiously. Here's mine, which I do as the airplane is sitting in front of me ready to go out on the runway. Check Tx voltage, Tx antenna fully extended, Tx strap on, sunglasses on, up elevator, down elevator, right aileron up, left aileron up, right rudder, left rudder, and then blip the throttle. Check the wind to determine take off direction, then roll out and take off.

Every week or two, take a few minutes and give your plane a quick onceover. Again, you're looking to make sure that nothing has vibrated loose. It only takes a very short time and can save your plane. A failure of any of these systems can spell disaster. Preventive maintenance is the name of the game here.

Another good rule of thumb is NEVER, ever, fly when you're in a hurry. That's when you make dumb mistakes and overlook something. Getting that one last flight in is not worth it if you lose your plane as a result.

Over the winter, get yourself a good flying ARF that you don't have to invest hundreds of hours in. There's tons of them out there and they're not that expensive. No super duper trickster, just something that has aerobatic ability but no bad tendencies. Put it together and fly the heck out of it. You need lots of stick time. You need to get your self confidence back. As they say, fly it two mistakes high for a while until you settle down and start grooving with it. Try to fly when no one else is in the air-you don't need any additional distractions. You'll be fine.[8D]


Good luck and hang in there

Vince

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

Good advice. Someone on one of the other forum areas should read your post and understand that sometime, we just screw up and it's best to find out where we went wrong and move on.

It's going to be a good winter because we all can get our heads together and build something for the spring season that we all will be proud of.

Myself, I learned a lot from my various instructors. I am fortunate to be in a club that has several very well qualified RC pilots and instructors, several of them are very polished Pattern flyers, one is a world class pilot. I get an awful lot of information from them on a day to day basis, I work with one of them. Great person and outstanding pilot and instructor. He took me through all the basics including what you said in your post above. All this is very important, to be observant of every little thing before heading up into the sky. My mistakes were minor, and I managed to soft land on the runway and correct the problem. One thing that kept haunting me was setting the engine to run to lean, so at some point, usually during an touch and go when I needed all the power available, it would quit. Bad timing.. but I did not crash. I landed it according to what I learned from my instructor's drills for dead stick, and fixed the problem and up I went for a very satisfying day of flying.

Best of luck with your winter preps for the next season. I know I will have a good one.. we are going to modify a Tiger II to adapt it to a beginner Pattern flyer... lengthen and add height the fuselage (ala pattern type plane), change the wing slightly, change some of the construction to ligthen it, and other items. It will be powered by an OS 50 Ringed.

Live Wire

It is hard to believe I am not the only one to crash planes. A trainer got me in trouble with the club for posting it on RCU. To bad we are all unsafe pilots. If you don't want to crash don't fly and if you don't fly how are you going to crash. Things happen no matter how safe you are but you learn something from every plane that goes in. These planes are not toy's and should not be handled as such I still have 9 planes waiting. Boy it would be great to be perfect like some and never crash then we could sit on the side line and make remarks.

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

If you "got into trouble" for posting it on the forum, perhaps you should find another club to fly with. These people sound like the sort that would get on your case for using the 'wrong fuel' or something. Don't let them get to you. Find another club with instructors that will work with you and understand that you can and will make mistakes. Hell, I do, even my instructor makes mistakes, although his are of a different nature. We beginners are just that, beginning and will learn. Sometimes, it's by our mistakes, but we learn. Eventually, we will be as good as those that think they are better than anybody out there.

Just move on, build another, learn by it, and fly and have fun. That's what it's all about, hell, it's a hobby fercrissakes!!!

CafeenMan

Cougar347 made some excellent points. I just want to add that you might want to consider getting a more docile plane to have as an every day plane. Something like a Telemaster or other slow flying model. They're always fun and good to warm up with before flying a plane that is more taxing.

I always take something simple to fly that always works. Then if whatever other plane I brought has a problem I'm not so tempted to fly it anyway. I can still fly my simple plane and take the other home to work on it.

Spaceclam

get a little electric plane with a lipo in it so if that one crashes and the lipo is destroyed, maybe the lithium will cheer you up. lithium i think is used as an anti depressent. or is it a mood stabilizer?

CafeenMan

Lithium is an anti-psychotic - the perfect med for the dedicated model-builder.

Live Wire

Some times (so called ) friends are the worst enemy you can have.

Downtrodden

I believe that the psychological investment that you have in your planes is too great and that many hours training on an inexpensive trainer (Sturdy Birdy II) will build confidence and enhance your flying pleasure. Too many people skip this steep, beginning part of the learning curve with obvious results.