ORIGINAL: 747
Hi !
I have been flying only for a few months now. I have an aerobird (like Wings!) and I have sort of mastered it... Now I wanna go to the next level with ailerons. These are the questions I have:
1.Do I have to go for an electric or a Gas or a Glow engine? If electric ,I like the Wattage Cap 232 or the Ultimate Bipe
2. Bipes look soo cool! and real! Is there Any advantage of the parallel wings? Or is the 2nd wing just for looks?
I want my next plane to be of park scale not more than 42 inch wingspan.
3. For flight duration..Do gas/glow engines have a much longer duration than an electric motor? Say for the same model. What are the advantages/disadvantages with a Gas or electric engine/motor?
Thanks to other discussions I am going to get a 6 -ch radio.
4. Can I use the same radio with 3 or 4 planes? How does that system work? Do I have to ask when I buy like " I have a XXXX radio with YYY Freq socan I have a CAP232 for that freq"?
Thanks in advance... !
Highflyer thanks for all your info.
747
The Aerobird is about as basic as you can get. I would highly recommend that you stay away from glow planes unless you have an instructor.
You are not ready for a Cap, even an electric version, and if you want a bipe, try a GWS Tiger Moth. Although it doesn't have ailerons, it will still be a step in the right direction from the Aerobird.
There's no real advantage to a biplane. The second wing is certainly not "just for looks". The second wing provides additional lift. (A biplane will have a shorter overall wingspan than a comparable monoplane, because the second wing replaces some of that span.)
Gas or glow powered planes will generally have more duration for the same overall weight because the energy density of the liquid fuels is currently much higher than in a battery pack.
In my opinion, the disadvantage of electrics is the requirement to keep the airframe to a bare minimum in structure in order to keep weight down. Add to that the fact that the "fuel" is a lot heavier means more damage in less than perfect landings or minor accidents.
Gas and glow aircraft will have a great deal more power, and fly with much more authority than an equal size and weight electric.
If you get a 6 channel radio, be sure it's a computer radio. You CAN use them with more than one plane, but it's not the "plane" that comes on any given channe;", it's the radio equipment. So you need a new receiver and servos for each new plane; it's the rexeiver you have to get on the right channel. (You can of course move the receiver and the servos from one plane to another, but what's the point of that??
)
Dennis-