I started RC planes in 1979 with a $79 Pilot ARF Cessna(55" wingspan) with plastic fuse, plastic wingtips and plastic stab tips. However, Pilot used a very attractive apple green color on the plastic plus attractive red trim so that the plane really looked good(at least for me). The display model was hanging from the ceiling at the Hobby Shack(Hobby People now) branch store in Encino, Calif. and I was drooling. Purchased one in the box, assembled it and installed a brand new $35 OS .25 bushed non-schnuerle engine in it. Without any prior RC experience or skills, I took off without an instructor at the Apollo flying field at the Sepulveda Basin and promptly crashed and totalled the Cessna into the cornfield surrounding the flying field. I replaced it with a 55" wingspan 100% foam $24 ARF Cessna and installed a $21 .25 Thunder Tiger. This time I hired for $10/hour a teenager named Brian to instruct me. So after two hours of flying instructions I was able to fly, take-off and land on my own. Next, I bought a Pilot low wing $75 .25 ARF with the same color plastic as the crashed Cessna and I also replaced that crashed Cessna with an identical Pilot Cessna ARF. In 1981 I completely stopped the hobby because of the expense and the hassle of driving from West L.A. where I live to the Apollo Field. I came back into the hobby last year because of the cheap electric RTF planes. Now I am back with a vengeance with dozens of electric RTF's and Nitro ARF's. Once you are bitten by the RC bug as Arnold the Terminator said......I'll be back.
I still have intact and completely flyable those plastic Pilot ARF's and OS and Thunder Tiger bushed engines sitting in my garage and plan to bring them back from storage into the flight line along with my recently bought fiberglass ARF's. So many planes to fly that ARF's are the only way for me.........timewise. Flying not building is what excites me. By the way......on hundreds of flights those bushed OS and Thunder Tiger engines have NEVER quit on me while in flight EXCEPT for running out of fuel. Extremely, extremely super reliable bushed engines. Never even had to replace a glow plug. Also that 1979 Futaba 4 channel radio(Futaba was the cheapo radio back then, PhilKraft Digital Proportional radio was the no.1) was always trouble free, very reliable. I still have all the 1979 stuff, radios, plastic ARF's, nicad flight batteries, charger/recyclers. Now I fly Airtronics 2.4gHz, schnuerle engines, fiberglass ARF's, brushless motors, Lipo batteries. Life is good. God Bless America.
Larrysogla.