Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Hi EveryOne,

would you please tell me what u think of this ARF package as a first plane .. i fly a Heli and i'm still a beginer , and i would like to give planes alil try .. it's called (The Modeltech Extra) so is it a good choice ?? .. here's a link to it's full Specifications ...

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXRF43&P=0

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

no sorry more like a 2nd or 3rd plane. you need to go with a trainer; top wing flat bottom or try a averstar 40 size.
good luck
curly

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

is it that hard to start with a lower wing ?


Thanx curly ..

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Start with a Sig LT-40 with an OS 46. Join a club and get an instructor. That is the best way to learn. Stay away from low wings until yo have some experience.

John

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Yes, it is.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

I agree with the other guys.

I had a high-wing trainer and put about 15 flights on it before I got bored. I have the Modeltech Magic now(the high wing one) and it's a blast. The Magic Extra is even more agile from what I hear. With that agileness comes instability. I'd strongly recommend you go with a high wing trainer style airplane to start out with if you have no prior experience.

-Bill

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

My first plane was the telemaster 40. Excellent trainer. Also hear the hobbico nextar is nice also. $400 for the nextar gets you a radio, engine (46FX), and the real flight software so you can practice at home. Also it has the co-pilot that if you don't know what to do in, just let go of all the sticks and it will right itself.
Mark

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Thanx alot guys .. i really appreciate the inputs

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

My first plane was a low wing Super Sportster ARF of GP and I can tell you that after I flew that plane trainers felt difficult to me. I can say that this plane is THE trainer of low wing planes, and it is also a good aerobatic plane. You won't regret it. I used an OS FS70 engine on it and it was great.

First you must learn to fly...
 

Bad first choice, not stable enough for instruction.
You have to "FLY" the Extra "ALL THE TIME" whereas the trainer pretty much go's where you point it. I would hate to train someone on a Extra or anything like it, I would be very busy "taking over" all the time during the session and landing approaches would frazzle my nerves.
Get yourself a World Models Mach 1 ($69.95) and a good 46, install a dual wire nose wheel strut and use 10x6 Master Airscrew props (they last longer) and don't use the spinner, too much of a hastle to change props at the field and get a Higgly spinner nut.
If the plane turns out a little tail heavy, use a "brass" Higgly spinner nut.[sm=bananahead.gif]

RE: First you must learn to fly...
 

well i dont want to go against the norm or recommend anything incorrect, as i do believe, i guess , that the high wing is the way to go.

BUT...theres always a but.

i flew a high wing trainer that my club owns and then solo'd on my own high wing trainer shortly after...but only days later flew a low wing warbird...the kyosho corsair 46 size.

now although it was harder..i wouldnt say alot harder..

back then i decided to use rfg2 and went from bronze wings to gold in about 3 weeks...now i know this sounds a bit quick, but all i did was practice on rfg2 and it became so amazingly easy that i havent stopped recommending this method of practice/training.

my thoughts might be that if u can fly a heli, then you can fly a plane..but some familiarity is needed. i fly helis too, and rfg2 absolutely helps with that also.

even fms was useful..very useful actually.

so....my receommendation is to find a tricycle low wing if you have your heart set on a low wing, or even look for a mid winger. I personally like the shoestring..scale and very mildly mannered when setup conservatively.... but there's another BUT.... these planes are more expensive if you dork them...

good luck.

Tim.

RE: First you must learn to fly...
 

If one is really against starting off with a high wing trainer, the Great Planes Easy Sport 40 (mid-wing) is not a bad plane to learn on, and the turn up the throws as you progress............[8D]

RE: First you must learn to fly...
 

Another suggestion if you MUST have a low wing is the Sig 4-star .40 or .60. Can be extremely stable, floats very well, and also is capable of doing some good aerobatics as your skill progresses.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

IIVII, If I may give you some advice.
Take a trip to an RC club that is close to where you live and where you will probably learn to fly and ask the instructors what they recommend. I can tell you that very few competent instructors will even consider teaching you on the Extra 300 you are looking at. Most clubs have a preferred airplane (and radio brand) that they are comfortable teaching with and usually have a package deal worked out with a Local Hobby Shop. My club prefers the Hanger 9 Alpha or Arrow package that comes complete with radio and engine for $289.99. There are many good trainers on the market, Sig LT-40 also is an excellent airplane to learn with and is available as an ARF. Could you learn to fly with a mid wing airplane, .....yes, but it will depend on your instructors teaching ability and your ability to master the basic skills.
You can find the clubs near you if you stop at a local Hobby Shop or go online the Academy of Model Aeronautics.
A good instructor to help you get through the basics and will be a tremendous asset to your success. There will be a few posters here who will reply " I taught myself to fly and didn't need an instructor!", but they are the rare exception to the rule. Find a club, find an instructor and make some friends while learning to fly.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

The reason why i wanna start with a low wing plane is , the way i've learned flyin' my Heli ,, 2 months ago i knew basically nothin' about R/C World , i bought a Caliber_30 and with the help from (Quattr0 & siclick33) i managed settin' it up .. i kept readin' here and there for basics to get the bird flyin' and landin' safely , so one day i decided .. enough with the readin' .. i took my Heli to the field without knowin' what to expect , i put it on the training gear and i fired it up ,, and there was my first 2 feet hover ,, i put it back on the ground and did some trimmin' then kept practicin' that day , till i realized that i'm doin' a fairly stable hover at 30 to 40 feet , so from there i kept goin' from one lesson to another and today i can do all the basics in flyin' a heli .. all it took was just readin' .. no instructor nor simulator .. so you could say i learned it the hard way .. why ,, cuz i live in alil town where the nearest R/C Club is about 300 mil's from where i live .. so i think if i could learn flyin' Heli's by myself , why not tryin' the same thing with a low wing plane ..

Is flyin a low wing harder than flyin' a heli ?

once again thanx alot for your valuable inputs ,, i truly appreciate dem ..

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Flying a heli is much different from airplanes. Some people would say that if you fly one you can fly the other. With heli's you really have to just practice, nobody can really teach you. Planes are much different, all different kinds of wings, engines, styles. If you don't have access to a field or instructor, get the GP G2 simulator and practice a lot. You can't just take a plane up a few feet at a time. It is all or nothing, and usually nothing in the beginning.

Good Luck

John

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

IIVII, If you have no access to a club or help of any kind, RC Foolish is correct on recommending the G2 simulator. If you are all by yourself I strongly advise a large slow flying trainer like the LT-40 from Sig. You may want to consider a Park flyer or electric sailplane to start with.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

One other thing to remember:

With a heli, you can inch your way up. Hover a few inches off the ground, and if it gets squirrely, you can set it down usually with little damage by chopping the throttle/pitch stick.

With an airplane, you MAY end up more than a foot or two off the ground, next thing you know, you're way up in the air. Now you get disoriented and now you're completely out of control. And you end up with a useless pile of sticks.

I'd agree that if you can get your hands on a simulator like RFG2, it will go a long way to teaching yourself how to fly. It's not the MOST realistic thing but it will teach you coordination of the sticks and also help you to learn orientation and which stick to move where when the plane is in different directions/attitudes.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

I beleave that a HIGH WING PLAT BOTTOM is the best way to learn how to fly! I started with a hanger 9 Alpha Trainer .40!! Any trainer you get if you get one that the main wing just tapes together then you needa use a little epoxy to help hold it together!! I know 5 people that have lost their plane because the tape came lose and that caused a big pile of wood and parts on the ground so it's a good idea to epoxy them together and then tape the main wing!!

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

i think that this high wing thing for beginners is garbage!i was advised to buy this plane,that engine blah,blah,blah,i ignored them all and bought what i wanted-a low wing aerobatic model,i learnt to fly with it and had a blast,i suppose it may have helped that i had flown full-size aircraft before but who knows?

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

Bigchap,

Good for you, but not all people are the same. What was good for you might not be right for someone else.

R/C Foolish

RE: bigchap
 

I Agree with R/C Foolish.

RE: bigchap
 

i must admit, i'm a bit with bigchap on this one..although a little more reserved.

i'm sure that i couldve ,earnt with a low wing., and i'm also sure that with control surface throws on my seagull boomerang and a 46 2 stroke in it...that thing flies aggressively and aerobatically enough.

one thing for sure though, flying helis IS harder than flying planes.

no question about it.

orientation with helis is harder, throttle control all the time is required and so on.

it i very different...but certain aspects make it harder. I'm not sure how one would go from a heli to a plane though...i'd suspect it'd be much easier than the other way around..but then again, i didnt go that way.

:D

ps. teach yourself on a sim, then fly if you dont have instructors...

seagull have a very nice PC9 which really is a superb aRF. ailerons glued and pinned, rudder, elevator the same etc. Very stable and docile..but easily made to snap and do anything your heart desires. Tricycle undercarriage also.

Tim.

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

copy that

RE: Is This a Good Choice for a 1st Plane ??
 

I would say that a "high wing trainer" is good and it is what I learned on... I learned on a Telemaster... I'm sure I could have learned on a Big stik on low rates though just as good... If you have a buddy box and fly at a reasonable altitude you can learn on anything IMO... A trainer is probably the most forgiving but if you understand basic aerodynamics and flight, and have an experienced pilot that can recover you from a dumb thumb episode I think you could start on a good "second plane" with the rates dialed down a bit... The key for me was starting with a good engine and radio that I ended putting in 3 subsequent planes...