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-

Great advice from DBCherry. If you have intentions of moving up to glow power, (which it sounds as though you do) I would highly recommend a .40 size high wing trainer as your next plane, preferably with a .46 ball bearing engine so if all goes well you can move the engine into the next plane from there. There are a lot of planes that look appealing, especially when you are just starting out, but don't rush things. Caps, bipes, warbirds, or anything fully aerobatic requires plenty of experience to fly. Start out with a trainer and give yourself time to learn the basics.

Thanks to DBCherry& Stick Jammer ..great advice. I thought I'd skip the trainer and go for a 4ch plane direct since I am a fast learner. I am 30 yrs old What if I say ..get a bipe and fly it with no aerobatics for a few weeks , learn and then do some aerobatics , Am I taking a risk? This is just to go the model I want and save $ otherwise spent on a Trainer arf .

Guys can you recommend a glow trainer for me as Stick Jammer suggested?(Which I can fly in a field w/o joining a club) A .40 size high wing trainer as mynext planewith a .46 ball bearing engine ? Ther e is so many its confusing! And whats the diff between a .40(2-stroke) and a .40(4-stroke)?

Also can I put bigger wheels to my landing gear for my aerobird so it can take off from grass w/o topping over?

Are Bipes in general harder to control n fly? than a monoplane?

For my case is a glow engine better than a gas?..whats the difference?

DBCherry, did you say gas planes do better in landings than electric s in general ? Why? I am not clear.
Thanks!

The Aerobird won't have you ready for a bipe or acrobatic glow plane. The speed things happen is much faster.

There are electrics that are comperable to glow powered planes, but they are in the same size and weight range as the glow planes, the Aerobird isn't one of them.

Bipes are a bit harder to fly than monoplanes, mostly because of the dramatically increased airframe drag. It's not uncommon for a new bipe pilot to stall and crash on landing.

Most of the .40 sized trainers fly well, and they are more or less the same. The Alpha and the LT-40 are two of the best, IMHO. There are many other very good ones. Just read some of the other threads here where guys talk about their successes and solo flights. The planes they mention are almost always good choices.

You can try bigger wheels on the aerobird, but the question is weither it can handle the weight.

Glow engines produce more power than gas in the same displacement, but gas is cheaper and makes less mess. It's rare to see gas below about a 1.4 (23cc) size. Partly because gas requires a spark system that adds weight.