Around '94 I was younger, stupider, more impulsive, etc.. Purchased an ARF trainer, flew it, landed it, repaired it, etc.. Thing ended up looking more like a bridge than a plane when I got done, purchased a sport plane from a friend from the field, moved servos, reciever to the new plane, installed a spanky lookin new OS Max .46 on it...

.... and proceeded to auger it into the ground at full throttle as my trainer was pulling into the field lot.

*shrug*

Decided to start again due to the fact that I have entirely too much time and money on my hands, and more importantly, more patience and attention to detail.

Having been not a bad pilot and hearing good things about this plane, I purchased a Goldberg Tiger 2 .60 kit today - planning on not doing much of anything without a trainer.

Primary concern (and main reason for this topic) is the usefulness of some of the hardware that's been sitting in boxes for 9 years. For starters the engine I was using (the OS Max .46 survived the augering, the mount didn't, but the engine runs well) still turns well, don't see any reason to not use it. Is there some safety concern I haven't considered or discovered yet? Also the transmitter/reciever I have is a Futaba Conquest FP-T6NFK unit, which (to my surprise) still holds a good charge and I still have all the original items for (minus 1 servo, which I assume didn't survive the demise of the 2nd plane). Is there some reason I shouldn't use any of this hardware?

Thanks in advance, any comments, criticisms (yo dog homey - you're goin about it all wrong!! <--- even that's fine) suggestions are more than appreciated.

- T

yes that stuff is fine you mite want to replace both battery packs it cheap insurance and peace of mind

Interesting question...
I too put up my gear for an extended period of time. Did the flying thing for about a year. Wife found that I was needed around the house with 2 kids under age 5. Spent more money on formula than fuel. Most can relate to the time line. Anyway, this past fall, I got right back into it after 10 years of waiting. Have most of my old gear but... the interesting thing is that I also had a 90% gallon of glow fuel. Hummmm any good after sitting on the shelf for a decade????

You Bet.

In the past 3 weeks or so, I have burned all that fuel in a 4 stroker that was on the shelf just sealed in a bag. No true cleanup beforehand either. The fuel fired like it was new. I too would say you should replace the battery packs but as for everything else... letterip!!!

Yes. it's just as good the second time around..

I think its better the second time around!

I think you should definitely change those battery packs. All nicads only have a certain lifespan before they short themselves out. The $20 you'll have to spend is a lot less than the damage you might do to your plane or something else.

Happy flying,

chris

Other than the OS .46 being a tad small for the tiger .60, sure use the old stuff. I have a buch of active stuff that is around 18yrs old (eegads, I shouldn't do the math on that one, suddenly I feel old). Transmitters and receivers from too long ago (pre '91 timeframe) may or may not be useable, and replacing batteries isn't a bad idea as others have said. But engines, servos and such are fine. (my oldest operational parts are servos, as it happens. I still have the first 4 servos I ever owned, and they are still flying plus or minus a gearset or mounting lug here or there).

And my JR x-347 TX from around '91 is still going strong and still as the same batteries in it. (shhh). The TX has a nice voltage monitor on screen, so I'm comfortable using old cells in there, but I'm using all new RX packs. And right now, I'm in the process of refirbing an old Cap 21 kit from around '90 that's been gathering dust in the basement. The OS .61FS is a bit gummy, but no signs of rust, and I didn't even do much to it prior to storage.

Oh, old gear at the field is also good for some other types of fun as well. I was using my x-347 as a buddy box on one of my student's Alpha (we have a shortage of JR buddy boxes). While were flying, I asked how old he was. He's 11. So I say "hmm, that transmitter you're holding is older than you are". And he says "really, it was desgined before I was born?" and I said "yes, but I meant that I bought that particular transmitter before you were born". His father got a good laugh out of that one.

Having done this as well, I suggest you go ahead and price the NiCads at ServoCity (www.servocity.com) and get them on their way. You will find that the transmitter will charge but it won't hold its charge for more than a few days and then less and less as the batterys will begin to decay exponentially. Same thing happened to me and it got worse fairly quickly. The new batterys will hold for a week with no huge noticeable drop. Mine started at 3 days, then 2 day, then 1 day, then 12 hours, 6 hours and so forth.

Zzyyxx -- Too much TIME and MONEY? Gawd, you are gonna love THIS hobby/sport! <big envious grin>

I think the other gentlemen covered your questions sufficiently

Said hell with it - my old transmitter was too chewed up (couldn't stand to show up at a field with that thing and call myself anything resembling a pilot) and through various questions I've submitted I don't have much faith for my 9 year old tx/rx.

Ordered a 9C, reciever, servos, etc... tonight from Bruckner. Should get them next week. Will give me a good 4 months lead time on my first crash!!

Nice work on the 9C purchase. That radio will last you a very long time. I took four years off when I went to college and found myself lost when I was getting back into it. You'll pick up on it pretty quick though! You might want to hang on to your old radio to use as a buddy box.

Welcome back! You and I are on the same boat. I used to build and fly planes with my dad back when I was 12. I stopped flying halfway through high school to focus more on getting into college and the sports I played. And its only now, after college and establishing a career, that I'm getting back into the hobby. I've been out of the game now for about 10 years. Everything's changed LOL.<br type="_moz" />

I just got back in after 15, loving it. Got a cheap Nexstar, soloed on my 3rd flight. Still have some work to do but I look forward to the weekends a lot now.