Whats up fellas, This is my first post.

I have just decided to get into the RC plane thing. Been wanting to do it for a while....ok i will cut to the chase...

I have never modeled before, had 1 RC car in my whole life (lobo)...But yet i want to fly....I think i am very very good when it comes to hand and eye cordination.....But i do not know how a RC plane will respond to a gust of wind or a mistake with the sticks.....

Here is my scenerio

I am flat broke
Zero experience
But the want to fly

I have picked out a plane already it is going to set me back $49.99 it is the Megatech Cosmic flyer. This package deal will give me everything I will need to fly minus the batteries...

My first contact with anyone that has a hobby with RC Planes was not a good one....I walked into a new store and just mentioned that i was interested in flying....I was hit with a used car salesman attitude trying to get me to buy a $199.99 software, $300.00 plane, $200.00 radio, and instructor time......As of right now I have just opened my own company (non related) I am surviving on Net 30 so all my money is tied up for 30 days...The flat broke part will be fixed shortly (16 days and counting) =)

Guys in my opinion this hobby should not cost this much to get into....I just told them that if i totally trash this cosmic flyer 4 times it wont even add up to the software.....I understand that i wont be using all the controls that a "real" one would use....And i know chicks wont come pounding on my door with news about me flying a Cosmic flyer i know this plane wont do loops are anythign cool.....but in my opinion you have to ride the tricycle before you jump into the 28 geared 18 wheeler.... People were very rude and very negative towards my path to take off..... with me departing I said my goodbyes and they responded "have fun crashing"

If I didnt bore you people asleep and you have finished reading this...You will know what type of plane i am getting and what i am trying to acomplish....If you know of a better plane out there that I should try let me know....If the plane is fine and there are certain things i can upgrade on it to get more experience let me know (like more channels). Is learning how to fly a Electric Park flyer a good first plane to fly? I have a problem hiring out a coach, but what is the usual cost to get lessons from them? Am I being reasonable to myself by attempting to fly this all on my own? Is it possible?

Long story short (to late) what do i need to do?

$200.00 budget
Patients like a chopping block
No experience at all
Not easly frustrated

well...If the flat broke part will be fixed in a couple of weeks, I would wait. Go to www.modelaircraft.org and join the AMA ( for the insurance) and on that web-site locate a local Club. I guess electrics are a start but you will soon "outgrow" it and want a trainer.

The usual steps are;
Join the AMA
Join a Club
Get a RTF trainer ( RTF means ready to fly) It will have most everything you need to start training. I think they are around $400.00 maybe alittle less if you shop around
Contact the club instructor and he will hook you up on the buddy box and start training you.
The buddy box is a device that allows the instructor to take over in the event of an emergancy.
by the way in the begining emergancies are quite frequent.

Ii am sure others will add to or take away from what I have said but these are the most common steps to getting started.

Good luck and welcome

I just noticed that Horizon is offering a RTF for 289.00

http://www.horizon.hobbyshopnow.com/...475&pc=HAN2475

MinioN

Welcome to the hobby. I, myself, got hooked at a local club air show. I was allowed to take a trainer up on a buddy box with the club instructor and had a BLAST.

A friend of mine who belongs to the club gave me a .60 engine because it is too small for what he flies now. He told me to get a trainer that would fit that engine and he would sell me a 4 channel radio setup to go with it. I bought a Megatech Nitro Capitol Flyer for approx. $150.00, inlcuding shipping. Currently I am waiting for the weather to get WARMER, as we got another inch or so of snow overnight[&o], before I start assembling the plane and flying it.

You may be able to hook up with a local club in your area and see if there is any used equipment for sale and go the same route that I did.

There is a thread in the beginners forum that talks about the Capitol Flyer. Use the search above for "Megatech Nitro Capitol Flyer" and you will see the thread.

Again, welcome to the hobby.

Larry

I agree that joining a club is the best way to go, but different strokes for different folks.

If you want to try learning on you rown, there are a few simple guidelines to heed, and a few simple techniques to make your learning time more enjoyable.

First and most important: find a big, vacant lot or park, away from people, structures and power lines. Somebody can easily get hurt by even the smallest of planes, and you don't need that kind of guilt or hassle.

Second: don't bang the sticks around. Small smooth movements will make things happen slower and make things easier to control.

Now, as for learning. Do you know what each of the controls will do? I'd recommend spending an evening ir two in your living room just wiggling the sticks around and getting comfortable with the controler and your thumbs.

When you do take it out, make sure the batteries are fresh. Start out by tossing it straight out and flying it straight away from you. You shouldn't have to throw it up, or very hard. Just a nice gentle level shove. Don't try to turn yet, but don't let it get too far away. Let it land after 50 or so feet. Repeat this a few times until you can make nice smooth landings. Once you can land it pretty well try turning to the right (or left, doen't much matter which direction first, just pick one). see if you can make a complete turn in one direction before you land. Remember that when it's coming toward you moving the stick in one direction will make the plane look like it's turning the other direction. Get comfortable making turns in one direction, then switch to the other direction. Once you're comfortable with that start doing turns in both directions on the same flight.

Once you've mastered flying this plane you'll be hooked for life, but that's OK because your business will be going well and you'll have loads of money. Your hobby will soon take over your life and you'll end up on a street corner holding a sign saying "Will work for a DA-150".

Good luck, and keep asking questions. Don't get discouraged by pushy salesmen, and remember:
Big vacant lot
Small smooth movements on the sitcks.
Get familiar with it
First learn how to land it straight away from you, then start turning one way, then the other way, then both ways.

this is not going to be a popular opinion, but don't join the AMA. I'm assuming since you have your own business you also have personal liability insurance? if not, get some. reason is you are just looking for a cheap park flyer anyway, ama is more then the plane you quoted!

as far as plane, i would recommend something maybe a little higher up in the food chain, but certainly not a full .40 trainer for what you are looking for... maybe a sky scooter pro 2? flys great off cheap radio shack AA packs, you might already have some of those laying around if you were into cars already. (tower has the RTF for $159)

with that said, keep in mind it would still be a good idea to hang out at the local clubs. (not flying, just talking...) remember you don't want to cause freqency interference with them and vise versa, let them know you are on a certain channel if you are within 3 miles of any club...

Franken

That is what i am going to go with. I like the way you have it set up for training. I own 27 acres here in Texas so i have plenty of room to fly. As far as the reversing on the sticks, for some reason i am able to pick up on that real quick. (Big Video game junky)

I am not a big fan on getting a more powerful plane. I think i am just going to total probably 1 or 2 of these Megatech Cosmic flyer. But once i feel comfortable i will get a bigger plane. But right now I should be flying in about a week or so. And for comic relief I will make sure to tell you guys what happen.

Thanks to all of you guys who laid some info down

Cool!

Looking forward to hearing how it goes!

Minion,
I'm a BIG advocate of local clubs, instructors, and the AMA, but if it's not the route you want to take right now, that's your choice. (By the way, 99% of RC clubs do NOT charge for instruction.)

I would strongly recommend staying the H*LL away from anything Megatech makes however. Their stuff should be called MegaCrap. [:@]

A lot of people like the Skyscooter, others swear by the Aerobird (which can be found for closer to $125), and there are a LOT of park flyers out there, all of which perform better than the Megatech stuff.

The problem with the Skyscooter, the Aerobird and most of the other $100 and under planes is that the radio equipment is exclusive to that one plane and can not be used later on. You will most likely spend much more in the long run if you stick with the hobby.

There is a flight simulator on the "market" that's free. It's called FMS and can be downloaded off the internet. You can use it with your keyboard, but not to great affect. The other option is to buy one of the after market "interface cables" which allows you to connect your transmitter (Tx) to your PC. Of course that will mean buying a Tx for it too. (Those "under $100 Tx's won't work with it.)

The cables can be bought on eBay for about $20 shipped, and you can usually find a decent used Tx there for under $40. (Don't buy AM or anything made before 1991.) I'd recommend, Futaba, Hitec, or JR.

Good luck with whatever you decide, and welcome to RCU!
Dennis-

Oh, by the way; the AMA (a national RC organization that provides insurance) has a "club locater" page, plug in your Zip Code and get a list of local clubs.

http://www.modelaircraft.org/templat...677786D06500E8
Dennis-

If you're looking for a bit of a cheaper route to starting out then you could try FMS with one of those 'twin analogue stick' USB game controllers that you can find at CompUSA and the like. That'll cost you about $20 total that way. It's not going to give you the 'true to life' control feel that you'll get from using a real Tx, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper and WILL enable you to teach your thumbs about left and right stick differentiation and control reversal (which is what the simulators are primarily about anyway.) Heck, that's the way that I started out before I decided that this was the hobby for me and upgraded to one of the 'Rolls-Royce' simulators

As others have said, don't be put off from just popping along to a local club and seeing if you can get some stick time on one of their gas trainers. Our club often lets non-members fly the trainer on a buddy-box for free, and I'm sure that plenty of others do to. Plus, you'll meet some great guys and girls, learn an awful lot from the more experienced members, and hear tall tales the likes of which would make most fishermen blush!

Whatever you do, have fun doing it and good luck!

Cheers,
Neil.

Well what do ya think guys?

Should i pick up this aerobird or skyscooter spend the extra dough and get a better plane?

Just an idea but if you have a local club could you not join and maybe get a second hand trainer off a member and have the benefit of free tuition? I myself believe that if you learn to fly one of these aerobird toys then you will have to learn how to fly a proper model after and you might just be better off learning to fly 4 channel 40 size aircraft in the first place.

I agree with Cougar, that is probably the cheapest way in the long run.

However, if you aren't sure if you'll really enjoy this hobby get the Aerobird and try it out. Keep in mind though that it is really just a toy, and that flying a full boat (four function) airplane is much more chanllenging and interesting.

I agree with several things on here..dont bother with the AMA yet...go hang in the park flyer section, they too will tell you NOT to go with a Megatech anything,,get a GWS stick or tiger moth or something ask around...dont start with a .40 and a trainer unless you want to go the club/AMA/instructer route..go ahead and get a good radio that way you can switch the stuff over to another plane later be it parkflyer or a .40 trainer...just my .02...Rog

AMA=$58/year
club dues (mine)=$35/year

Getting a good radio now will only work if you're also going to go the "GWS Stick, Cub, Tiger Moth" route. The Aerobird/Scooters will not respond to 72 mHZ radio equipment.

The problem with standard "Park Flyers" like the GWS line (and many others) is, you must buy the stuff separately; radio, battery packs, charger, speed control, and that can be a daunting task for new people. The cost for these adds up too; $125 minimum for the radio, $35 for the plane, $30 for two battery packs, $30 to $40 (minimum) for the charger, another $20 for a speed control. All in all, I think they're better than the Aerobird/Scooter, but these are RTF's (Ready to Fly) and they do fly well for what they are.

I also think that in spite of being three channels, they do a respectable job of teaching RC skills. If you get good with an Aerobird/Scooter type of plane, I'd still recommend an instructor for the first few flights if converting to a glow trainer.
Dennis-

Personally I wouldnt approach the hobby from the perspective that I am just going to trash a couple of cheap planes in order to learn. Its better to start out with a little more appreciation for the equipment and learn to fly correctly from the start. Instead of buying several planes you want to trash why not by 1 good plane and some equipment that is upgradable. As far as stick controls, video game experience is not going to make you an expert flyer. RC flying has its own set of requirements. Personal opinion... fly with a club or at least with someone who has experience and wait till you can afford a basic entry level plane that you wont outgrow really quick. Trust me, its better to invest a little more in the beginning bc you wont regret it in the long run.

If I were in your situation, I would buy $5 worth of balsa and build up a couple of freeflight hand-launch gliders and go out and fly. I would learn a lot about adjustment and what makes an airplane do what, as well as get some good exercise chasing them. By the time I managed to lose my gliders in thermals, the money would be rolling in and I could get whatever RC airplane I wanted. More than one way to skin a cat, they say.

Jim

Minion,

If you're in Spring and have plenty of space, then I can help you a bit. I'm in Copperfield off 290, so not all that far away. I have a beat up old Avistar trainer I got off e-bay for $130 almost-RTF (some re-assembly required). I'm not instuctor quality by any means, but I'd be happy to bring it by sometime and if you've got a level surface we can mess around and you can get a feel for it. Also, I can bring a GWS Tiger Moth electric for you to try solo to get a feel for the controls before tackling the bigger plane.

For big trainers, my 2 cents worth is to be patient and watch e-bay. I see used trainers going on e-bay regularly for under $200 in the RTF package. If you are mechanically handy, you can pick one up with some light repair required for under $150. Alternatively, you could get one of the cheap ARF trainers w/o engine and radio gear for about $80 new and then pick up the other stuff on e-bay for relatively cheap. Lghtly used OS 40 engine goes for about $45 shipped, get Transmitter/RX/servos for maybe another $80-$100. Either way, you could be in the running at $200 with patience and some light epoxy work.

For electrics, you can easily be in the air under $200, but you may get bored rapidly and higher quality/performance electric equipment gets expensive fast.

Some examples of glow trainer packages on e-bay: search for item #
3180127705

3180578409 (this one will be over $200, but you could probably e-mail the guy and ask if he'll pay shipping if you did the buy it now price)

3180359905 (this one will also likely go for over $200 due to larger OS46 engine and more advanced TX, but if you like the hobby, you will end up with the better TX sooner of later anyway)

3181055416 (plane and engine, but if it goes for under $100, then you can get other and still be under $200)

3180067154 ($270 shipped)

These are just the flavor of the moment, over the course of the month, you'll see several good deals come through.

Drop me a PM if you're interested.
Duke

I think park flyers are not the way to go. My friend on the second floor of my apartment went with TWO cheapo Firebird XL's, crashed both repeatedly to splinters, and still is not very good at flying. Then he wants a fully aerobatic 3D glow plane and he thinks its OK because it's his "third" plane (not in the regular sense) but never got one cuz I talked him out of it. Now he's out of the hobby because "It's too darn expensive and hard."

well i think all of u have made a great statement but i am in the same position the guy that started this is(almost). i am only 13 and dont have much money i saved and saved to get a firebird commander and i loved but the stupid wind took it away and never gave it back LOL. so i am going to get a cosmic flyer because of the cheap price so if it gets blown away too then i will only be out 52.00 instead of 109.00. i only got to fly my commander 4 times. so i figure that if i get a cosmic flyer and something happens to it then i am out a lot less $$$. or contrary to popular BELIEF it may be the flyinist thing there ever was. so in the end i would much rather crash or loose a 50.00 plane than some 300.00 .40 trainer.

Not sure why you resurrected this ancient thread instead of starting a new one, but I'll respond to your last sentence.

IF you start with a $300 glow plane AND an instructor, you won't lose the plane to the wind, you won't crash it (the instructor will save it), and in the end you'll have a $300 plane that YOU are able to fly.

Your way you'll have a Firebird ($80)lost to the wind, probably three totaled Cosmic Flyers ($150), and still won't be able to fly a glow plane. What exactly did your $230 save you?
Dennis-

Most clubs have some great people who enjoy helping new guys...like all of us at one time. My instructor offered the radios and his own trainer to help me get started. You can't beat that deal. It happens all the time at the club. Sometimes, you may find an instructor with a good trainer that he is willing to sell you at a bargain...along with all the instruction you need. My instructor has helped me learn to fly, build, and he still helps any time I need it. He has loaned me his tools to build kits until I gear up with my own. You sound like a friendly guy, so give a club a chance.

Ahem, as to video games....I've been playing them for 25 years and I was a full time pilot for 15. Most of my experiences didn't help much once the prop was turning and the nerves started getting jumpy. Joysticks and radio sticks aren't that similar at all. I know it seems that way, but it ain't.

well i just cant figure out why everything has to be soooooo complicated. All i wanted to do is get a plane to fly but it seems that everyone i talk to has this attitude that unless i sold everything to my name and spend this huge sum of money on a plane that i still have to have motors,radio etc for that there is no possible way i can fly. i have been into rc cars for years now and all the people on that end of the hobby just arent like that. But if fllying an rc plane has to be as complicated as trying to buy a car then i guess i'll take my cosmic flyer out in the pasture and fly the wing off it regardless of what people try to tell me.[>:]

sorry but needed to vent[][X(]

When you first start out in this hobby whether electric or glow, you have to buy alot of stuff up front. You could go this route.....
T-52 trainer from JK Aerotech.....$35
Find at bare minimum a 4 channel radio and reciever (auctioned every day on Ebay)
2 Servos at 18 grams weight (size of HS-81's)....$18
An 8 cell battery nimh pack (go to cheapbatterypacks.com for good prices)
You will need at least bare minimum speed 400 and 3 to 1 gearbox and 9x6 prop.
You'll also need a battery charger to charge the flight pack.
You will be close to $200 for the above. Depending on where you get things. The T-52 is a 52 inch wing with 10 degree dihedral. The plane flies itself! It has rudder and elevator for control. I'm building another one now just for those lazy sunday afternoons but this one is powered by a RC truck motor and belt drive gearbox.

Dave...