Red Scholefield

My Feedback: (9)

This cartoon just about nails it.

phlpsfrnk

Sad but true. The fascination for aviation just doesn't seem to be there for the kids today like it was when we were kids.

Regards
Frank

littlecrankshaf

My Feedback: (58)

I think you may have a point...that kid will probably just grow up to join a club and AMA only to be active in the organizational workings and such...never fly or build much of anything but be at every meeting actively trying to install more procedure on those of us that do... But one thing is for certain... He will recant how long ago he got that first model and how long he has been a modeler...over and over and over and over again...But I guess we do need someone to do that kind of stuff as well as post cartoons on the AMA forums...

Oberst

How I got interested in this hobby when I became an adult, is my parents refused to help me buy a flying model back in the 70's-80's back when I was a kid when I really wanted one.

I plan on doing the same thing with my 3 year old son. If he becomes interested, I'm not going to run out and buy him one at the drop of the hat. We always want we can't have.


Pete

littlecrankshaf

My Feedback: (58)

Great insight!

jp_boud

My Feedback: (2)

I guess I lucked out, my 7 year old is in love with planes. He flys a PZ T-28, a tower trainer, and my birdy forty all the time. And lord help the guy at the airport that invites him to check out his plane. How many 7 years olds can ID a 172, from a 182, or Citabria, Cub, Mooney, Cherokee, and just about every other plane on the ramp.....and don't even start on WWII aircraft! My biggest challenge is finding new aviation things for him. Hopefully I can keep him in it for a long while to come.

ARUP

Oberst's situation mirror's mine (I'm older- was a kid in 50's and 60's). Building models was considered a waste of time and money by parents. Kids aren't much interested in airplanes and technology has taken a lot of the fun away from hobbies. People 'buy' their fun instead of 'making' it!

littlecrankshaf

My Feedback: (58)

I guess there must be some relevance to AMA... Just not sure what it is though...looks likely a plastic model kit to me...

NorfolkSouthern

I think part of the problem is the over-regulation of general aviation. One example is that there is a surprising amount of younger folks who can't pass the FAA medical due to prescriptions, or even a simple medical condition that would not be looked at as disabling in the workplace. That significantly reduces the population of those qualified to solo. The FAA was on the right track with their light-sport ticket, but the so-called "catch-22" has discouraged most potential light-sport pilots from even considering the possibility. If full-scale aviation is not obtainable for most people, then flying models is not going to inspire them much either. The heightened security after the 9-11 incidents (long lines, full body scans, etc) and the barriers put up against airplane spotters and photographers only adds to the discouragement and lack of interest in aviation by the general public. People will not go where they don't feel welcome, or where they feel restricted, somehow. Airplanes, in general, are considered by some to be part of an unfriendly and unwelcoming environment, and this reflects on the modelers.

And finally: The current economy makes pursuit of the hobby prohibitive for most anybody who must live paycheck to paycheck, and I would say this includes the majority of folks who are still holding jobs. If my car needs new tires, and I have to get back and forth to work, then that means I can't afford a new set of LiPo batteries, ESC, and 40-power brushless motor. If gas is $4.00 per gallon and increasing, then I have to put off AMA membership for another month, and maybe even another year if the situation is bad enough. It's a sad truth, but the X-Box is going to cost far less to own and operate than a Funtana-X. It's just the harsh reality we live in.

NorfolkSouthern

MetallicaJunkie

most kids i know of lose interest by 14-15 or so when they discover girls.....i was one of them, but luckily i was only sidetracked for a couple of years... i saw my dad and my older brother having too much fun so i came back to it in the late 90s



i was fortunate that i was exposed to RC planes since birth... some of my first memories are of watching my dad work on his planes..... i was always making scratch built balsa gliders, my dad would encourage me to fly the real thing(RC) finally at age 12 i learned to fly... i dont know what the hell took me so long to do it.... i wish i would have learned when i was younger

Bozarth

My Feedback: (15)

Deleted

Red Scholefield

My Feedback: (9)

During the great depression (the one in the 30's) just about every kid built model airplanes. It was about the most fun you could have for a dime.

MetallicaJunkie

you were around in the 30s?

Red Scholefield

My Feedback: (9)

You bet I was, all of them. I wouldn't have missed it for the world. :-) You would probably have enjoyed it also, No CA, just Amboid, Comet and Duco.

MetallicaJunkie

very cool... im glad you are still enjoying the hobby!!!!

AERORICH73

Yes Red, those early days were great. Born in 1934, as I grew up, the milkman dropped off a piece of balsa wood which had an inked outline of an model. I tried to use a blunt steak knife to cutout the parts with very little luck. My grandfather, broke an early designed razor blade in half, and I was amazed at the smooth cut the blade made in the balsa wood. My mother came unglued when she saw the blade in my hand. Had to wrap it in something in order to continue cutting out the model. Did not know at the time that it was not a flying model. Just fell on the floor when tossed. Did not read very well at the time; so built stick models with two sides, and two tops, and did not know why I ran out of sticks, and could not understand where the formers were to go. Wiped all the excess glue on my pants which really lit a fire under my mother. Model building was always under attack while growing up. Even after making my career of repairing airline aircraft, she wondered why I was still playing with the dam things. Now I have a house full of planes which need to be moved into the new hobby room away from the flying vacuum cleaner my wife operates. At least she understands the skill, and craftsmanship that goes into building these operating models.

Cheers!!!

Richard

Red Scholefield

My Feedback: (9)

Richard,

And I bet in addition to building and flying models you made rubber band guns, bow and arrows, dams across streams, then bridges across them, kites, go carts with no breaks, and boats/rafts if you lived anywhere near a body of water more than afoot deep, tree houses, forts - all without any help from adults. Building things was part of growing up. Where are today's young builders?

Avaiojet

Richard,

Many model builders share these common interest as a child growing up. The thing is, not to grow up.

There are no young builders today and, and unfortunately, there won't be.

Sure, a few here and there, but the "days," I myself have lived and enjoyed, along with other accomplished model builders, are long gone.

How do you "influence" someone's children?

They way I was introduced to the hobby, wouldn't work today. Kids are under lock and key.

Oberst

Yes, back in the mid 70's there was no such thing as ARF as I recall. Matter in fact my first radio was a pulse rudder control to be put in my .049/ rubber band powered Guillows P-40. I never did complete it because I didn't know what I was doing and my parents didn't help. The only thing you could buy- what I can remember was a Cox U control plastic warbird that you could by at K-mart.

My mother is in her 80's and she still thinks my hobby is a waste of money and time.

When I was 7, there was a airport about 1/4 mile away from my house in Delanson, NY. On a quiet evening I would hear engines that sounded like pissed off hornets, and I could look out in the distance and see little dots flying around.

One day, I heard the noise and I ran through the woods to the airport that was on top of the hill and saw 2 guys with their flying models. One of them told me to come over and hold his plane while he tuned his engine.

I was hooked!

I still remember the sights and smell of castor like it was yesterday. Sorry to say the owner of the airport died about 15 years ago and the airport has since been abandoned. But I showed my wife where I got my interest in this hobby, and I'm sorry to say it doesn't much look like a airport anymore except for a few rotted out hangers. Very sad.


Pete

Jim Thomerson

Lets say your club has decided to try to get some young folks into model aviation. You have the resources and time to put into it.Here are some ideas.

Find your local home school association. Parents who home school are investing time and resources into their kids, and would drive them to the flying field. The kids are not (I suppose) scheduled 24/7 like kids in regular school.

If you do try a school, ignore the science and math clubs. Those kids are already scheduled 24/7. Find the kids in detention, in school suspension, etc. The school may be happy for you to baby sit them and you might make a real difference for some of them. If you have a county school for kids under county supervision, give that a try.

How about a Girl Scout Troop? The girl scouts are looking for not specifically female activities. In any case, get the parents, or person in charge, involved. This is for your own protection and also gives you the possibility of recruiting a parent.

sscherin

My Feedback: (1)

Who says kids don't want to build..

My daughter has been a great helper and is interested in learning to fly.


I think she's old enough now to learn without getting frustrated and quitting..
Any time I get the balsa box out she pops up asking to build a glider..

I think it really has allot to do with the kid.. some just don't have the interest to stick with it like my oldest step son..
He was never all that much into it and I think just went along to make me happy.

Now my youngest son I have no doubts about.. He's 5 and has already declared that my Dirty Birdy is HIS plane and and wants to keep my T-rex in his room..

Oberst

My 3 year old son helps me as well, I usually have Walter do the final sanding. But he's not going to have a plane until he's much older. I'm going to make him want, but I am going to have my club train him if he gets interested down the road. If he doesn't get interested, then I look at it as more planes for me.







Pete

Red Scholefield

My Feedback: (9)

Here is a new member I recruited, my great grandson.

Hossfly

Oberst you were in the wrong place. Lanier had a number of ARFs manufactured in this US of A. Dubro marketed a line of their own ARFs for a few years during the "70s. Unfortunately Dubro failed to really market their products and they never really moved.
From 1971 until in 1978 I started and owned a Hobby Shop on Northwest Highway in eastern Mt. Prospect Il. These years were during a phenominal change in RC. Reliable proportional radios were in manufacture, both USA made, and some imports.
Hobby Shack in LA, CA was importing a really nice sport ARF, far better than anything we had ever seen. I purchased a number of them, as many as they would sell me over several years, at a 10% discount, then sold them at 10% above HS's advertised prices.
I made that public ,and they still went. ARFs were in demand, so a whole 'nother RC world got started.

As a long time very competitive CL and FF competition modeler, I imported a 27 Mhz. radio called Hinode. While a standard Kraft or Proline ran around $500 (1970 $$) I could sell the Hinode at $150. They went like hotcakes. That stopped when the FCC got on my butt because there was no FCC license on them. Heck, I never knew there was supposed to be one. Anyway I learned to fly with that and then got myself a couple Krafts. About 1975 +/-MRC brought in their 6 channel @ a retail of $250, +/-, and the other RCs fell into the line/s.

There were no Cox plastics allowed in my Hobby Shop. All pure garbage and did more to turn folks away from aeromodeling than anything anywhere, else. I carried all the hard-to-get items. It took work but it was worth it. During the '70s, there were plenty CL model kits available, especially the 1/2 As. They were NOT in the stores other than Hobby Shops. During the years 1970 through 1980, there were many 1/2A kits in all disciplines RC, CL, and FF readily available.
I don't need a kit. Grab some balsa and in 2-3 hours I can fashion a model for 1/2 A ready to fly with a wingspan range of 18 to 24 inches. Have 4 that I keep ready to fly with kids in my back yard.

In the late '70s I deternmined that I was not going to get furloughed from UAL, so I sold out, mostly to Venture Hobby, now in Wheeling, IL.

Building a CL or RC model for 1/2A or to a .15 size is only a day's work at most. Draw some lines, From the 25% back from LE of wing, measure a length to the prop. Measure 4 times that distance to the hinge line of the stabilizer. Total stabilizer should be 15-20% of the wing area. The rest is up to what you think is pretty. Vertical stab should be about 20-30% of the total stabilizer area. Balance at 25% of the wing's Mean Aerodynamic Chord, actually for CL about 20% and you have a flyable machine.



So did my father. He burned up my first CL model and a Thor spark engine one day because I left it in a mess in his workshop. Just made me more determined!!! [:@]

Lifer

My Feedback: (1)

I suspect that the number of active modelers in the country are a very small percentage of the total population and that percentage will likely be the same from now on. Whatever portion of our DNA that sparks our interest remains in the gene pool. I didn't need any outside influence to generate the lifelong fascination for these obsessions we hold. I was about 5 years old when I first spotted a control-line plane flying in a park in KC. A couple of years later, I got hooked. I'll be 56 next month but the kid inside is still alive and well.

Our hobby isn't going away anytime soon. The tecnology changes but the spirit never does. We all support the involvement of youth but I remain confident of the continuation of this very unique passion we share.