ORIGINAL: cjmdjm
As for using parts from the crashed alpha, I have considered it. The engine is broken. A couple pieces, I believe one of the needle valves and some other little piece, are broken off. I have those pieces, as they remained attached to the plane via the fuel hoses during the crash. I considered epoxying the engine back together, but I decided it was unlikely to stand the heat and vibration. Also the air intake was filled with dirt.
To play it safe, buy a new carb.
Take some old fuel and rinse out the engine throughly after removing the carb, muffler & glowplug
Try to flush it out repeatedly, and then lightly turn the crankshaft and check for any grittiness as if there were sand inside.
If you feel none. you are probably done.
If you feel something, don't push it, rather remove the engine backplate and flush the interior out too.
ORIGINAL: cjmdjm
As for the radio, it may have been the cause of the previous crash, so I am hesitant to use it again. I believe the receiver battery died in flight. I had charged it overnight, but it was an ancient NiCad battery. (The whole plane was at least 5 years old, given to me by a relative).
Get a new battery pack, they are fairly inexpensive.
Put the pack on the receiver with a couple of servos installed, and with the antenna down, do a range check.
If it passes, then while tapping lightly on the receiver move and hold the sticks into different positions.
If the positions vary when you tap, the receiver may be bad. If not you should be fine.
ORIGINAL: cjmdjm
So both batteries would have to be replaced, and the engine is probably questionable. Besides, I need a dsm2 transmitter for a PZ sukhoi I have reserved anyway.
From the sound of it, fixing the engine is trivial.
You could fix this, and use the money saved to purchase a better DSM2 radio, than that included with the RTF's, which tends to be rather basic.
ORIGINAL: cjmdjm
Considering a second plane would be nice too, but they don't seem to make many of them rtf, so I would have to use the old equipment to stay within budget.
There is nothing wrong with that. You have the right engine, servos, and are merely missing a few items.
ORIGINAL: cjmdjm
I might give some more thought to using that old equipment though now that you mention it. I have to wait till I get back home in a couple weeks to check the exact condition of the engine/radio (Im in college now). Thats actually another reason Id like an electric, if I could find one reasonably priced, with glow 40 performance or close to it. Then I could take it back to college with me and fly it here, where glow planes are prohibited by ordinance on campus. There is a very large field area with several baseball, football, and soccer fields to fly.
Anyway, thanks for the help guys!
Remember that with electrics you'll also have to factor in the cost of additional battery packs ( I usually recommend 2-4 packs ), so you can fly while charging an already spent pack.
To get .40 glow performance you'll need at least 5000mAh 14.8v or higher voltage packs, an ESC capable of handling that voltage, an 800 watt motor, a computer controlled balance charger, maybe a power supply for the charger, etc.
All told that alone will run you more than you are looking to spend for a complete setup, even if you do it on the cheap.
Consider trying to utilize what you can salvage out of the crash.
Most places prohibit flying RC planes, even the electrics. ( Park flyers, HAH! Find me a government park that will not run you off. ) so you really should see if there are any RC clubs in your area.
= You also may be able to buy a used plane inexpensively from someone at one of these clubs. =
I've seen some amazing deals...