Hello to everyone in RCuniverse

A little bit about me Im from Montreal, Canada, I used to fly RC Nitro planes size 40 low wing about 5-6 years back, had few crashes here and there
I have no experience in Assembling as i used to buy them RTF and not ARF, im planning to start back now from scratch and need some advise from where i start off

First, welcome to RCU. You will find lots of advice here, some good, some not so good, but everyone tries. We will need some further information to answer your question, like, do you have a radio system, are you intending to build from a kit, are you going nitro/gas or electric power, etc. Since you have flown previously, how do you stand right now as far as equipment and supplies are concerned?

Hi

Thanks for lightning fast respond, As for now i dont have any equiptment, I just ordered the RF7 simulator and getting used it with, I really wanted to learn from Scratch so im confused if i should start from Electric or gas powered, I bugdet around $1000 for a start

OK, you will need to buy everything new. The simulator is a very good idea assuming you don't develop any bad habits that you will find hard to break when you start flying for real. Anyway, your budget will allow you to acquire very good equipment and I would start with a radio system. This is the one area in which you want to buy the best you can afford and then go a little bit better. Planes come and go as do engines, but your radio will serve you well for years if you choose well and don't scrimp. There are the big four brands, any of which are very good, Futaba, Hitec, Airtronics and JR. There are others as well but any of these will serve you well. You will probably want to go 2.4 with at least six channels. A good radio system will cost you anywhere from $200.00 to $600.00 or more if you go for more channels and more bells and whistles. I can't stress enough how important starting with a good radio system is to begin with and will save money in the long run because you won't be replacing it next year because a lesser system does not suit your purpose as you progress. The best way to choose what brand radio you will buy is to establish a relationship with people who are flying in your area (find a club and learn from them). Buy the brand radio that folks in the club are using as you will be able to share knowledge about them and buddy box with them if necessary. A computer radio is not the easiest thing in the world to figure out and being able to talk to people who have been there and done that is priceless.

Once you have a radio system, buy a trainer plane. Sig or Great Planes would be good choices because their plans and instruction books are so good. It makes building much easier than if you buy a kit from a lesser supplier whose plans and instructions are not as good. A Sig LT40 would be my first choice or a Sig Kadet would be good as well as the Great Planes PT40., not only because they fly so well but for the reasons stated previously. Your new friends from the club will be more than happy to help you with any problems you encounter with building. Again, they have been there and done that. While you are building your new plane, you will have plenty of time to decide whether you want to go nitro or electric. An electric setup will probably run you more money assuming you will buy a couple good batteries and a balance charger to support the electric plane and this stuff adds up quickly. Electrics are a bit cleaner to fly than nitro, but many of us are addicted to nitro fumes. Cleaning a nitrio plane after flying just gives you a good opportunity to look the plane over very closely for loose parts or damage you might not have noticed. Whether you go nitro or electric is entirely your choice; both have good points and bad points.

Again, a really good radio system is the most important single item you will buy and establishing relationships with the local flyers is worth more than money. For the most part, people who partake in this addiction are really good people and friendships you make with them will last for years. You will probably find in the next year or so that sitting at the field with a group of good friends and solving the world's problems is just as enjoyable as flying.

Thanks a lot for the guide JP, Im thinking to go with Futaba 10C as years before i had that radio and it really worked well

get yourself a dx6i and a maxthrust riot awesome begineer electric plane all you need is a Tx Rx and a 11.1v 3s 2.2 lipo.

The Futaba 10C is an awesome radio, I had the 8C, 9C and now the 10C 2.4, very happy with it.

Definetly STAY with Futaba!!!!

All major radio brands are good. If you're comfortable with Futaba, go with them.

Jolly Popper offers good advice on how to get started.

You frequent usage of the word "scratch" has me a bit confused. Do you mean that you are starting with nothing, or want to build a kit, rather than assemble an ARF ?

Either way, JP's suggestion of the Sig Kadet line of trainers is a good one. The LT-40 and Kadet Senior are available in both kit and ARF versions. They offer excellent instructions and flying characteristics. Both fly well with electric and glow power.

My choice would be the Kadet Senior ARF. Even with 20+ years of flying experience, I find enjoyment in flying it.

Yes thats what i mean, sorry for the confusion

Hello, and welcome back to the hobby!

Theres a huge range of aircraft available nowadays, and you'll find a lot has changed in the past five years.

I never thought I'd be saying this, but I'd recommend an electric model to refresh your flying skills with - the costs have dropped astronomically, and it's going to be more reliable than a glow/ nitro model.

If you want to build your model, I'd highly recommend one of the aircraft put out by Sig (http://www.sigmfg.com). They sell the Herr model line, and the Cloud Ranger is an easy build if you want something a bit smaller. For power, you can get a small glow engine, but an electric setup will be far more reliable in the long run, for about the same price. If you want a "Full sized" trainer, the Sig Seniorita is fantastic, and it's probably the gentlest flying aircraft in its size range. It can take either a small 2 stroke, around the 30-40 range, or a brushless out runner and LiPo pack with some light modifications.

For ARTF and RTF models, the Hobbyking Bixler is a really nice flying aircraft. I've flown the Bixler V1.1, and I'd recommend it to anyone. It's can fly like a glider with that high aspect ratio wing, but can also do pretty much any aerobatic manoeuvre when you become comfortable enough. With a 1300 mAh 3 cell pack, it has about fifteen minutes endurance for a mixed flying style, and easily 20+ minutes if you are just floating around. It runs about $100, but I'd recommend you buy the receiver ready model and a nicer radio.

The ARTF link, without a radio, ESC or battery, is below:

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...00mm_ARF_.html


Brand name radio gear is pretty much universally good. You'll hear a lot of rhetoric one way or the other, but chances are, if it's a 2.4 gHz setup from Spektrum, Hitec, Futaba, or one of the other big brands, you'll be fine. Receivers are largely brand specific nowadays, so you'll want to pick a brand and stick with it. I'd recommend at least a 6 channel computer radio from one of the above companies, so you'll have decent programming functions and mixing for down the line.

Keep us updated on your choice, and good luck!

Thanks for the Advise DD, btw i seen some video on youtube guys flying during winter using float type gears, is that something available for every model?

Very few it any ARF or RTF come with floats but yes just about any airplane can be equiped with floats however it usually requires some skills from you setting up the struts. Floats work great if done right on snow or water however I would suggest you first learn to fly on wheels before going to floats. Also may I suggest you first decide if you want to go glow power or electric otherwise it will be difficult to answer your questions. Glow or Electric? That you will have to decide but my feeling is you really want to go glow so I would stick with that. Electric is not always all its made out to be, but one thing you can count on its always more expensive in the long haul. Yup thats my opinion.

Here is an example of arguably the very best glow trainer in the history RC that I set up on floats and recently tested for one of my ex students, its a superb flyer. If you choose to go electric hands down the best in my book (there goes that opinion thing agine) I highly recommend the Sensai form Great Planes at Tower hobbies even over the more expensive Apprentice form Horizon.

John

Few years back i used to fly Low wing glow power size 60 plane, I love the power flying glow for sure, but im more interested in Flying jets and thats the reason i am considering going into electric

If your route is EDFs, you'll definitely want to start with the electric route.

I had a good experience with the original Habu a few years back, but it would be a bit of a handful for a first EDF. Another was the Art-Tech Sukhoi Su-27, which was better suited to a new EDF pilot, being somewhat slow and underpowered. Very docile to fly, though.

I'd suggest that you work your way up with faster prop models before getting your first jet - they will get you used to the speed and control inputs needed to keep it in sight and under control, but a prop will also help get you out of trouble when you nee it: EDFs take some time to accelerate, and that can be a problem if you end up low and slow, or in a stall.

There's a lot more inexpensive RTF and ARTF jets available now, too, but you'll want to consult the EDF guys on RCU for advice on those.

I think a great stepping stone into jets is the parkzone Stryker. They are indestructible for one thing, they are fast, and the flying characteristics are similar enough to jets to get you used to the quirks. Plus it's an any day kind of plane. I've had mine in 30 mph wind before with lots of turbulence, and it just shook its tail and kept flying. The Stryker wouldn't be a good first plane for anybody because of its speed and no self righting characteristics, but once a guy feels that the trainer is slow he'll be ready for one.