Hi, I'm planning on getting into RC flying after getting my feet wet with RC cars. I keep seeing the advertisement for that flight simulator that Tower sells. Is it worth the money? Are there better ones out there? Does it mimic the flying experience well?

I bought the GP G2 Lite Sim and I can tell you that it gives you a huge amount of help.

I am not sure that the cars will help you when it come to flight, there are so many more variables in flight, including 2 additional axies to worry about. Plus there is very little room for error in flight.

Get a good sim, it will help.

Hi breakin, Welcome to flying 101. I came from R/C cars also and I'm going to do my solo test this weekend. I would suggest the Realflight G2 or G2 lite. You can get those from Tower. There is also the FMS simulator but is a pain in the butt to configure on your computer.
Simulator flying, while not perfect, gives you stick time when you can't go out and fly. Just treat the simulator as the real thing and you'll be way ahead. I found that any mistakes I made on the simulator were showing up while flying at the flying field. Anyway, goodluck and have fun. I've found it to be a very rewarding change to go from cars to planes.

Thanks! I know that I'm not just going to be able to pick up a transmitter and start flying. I thought one of the simulators would be a good way to get experience before I go and fly. I want to get a kit and take my time building it so I can learn how the plane works. I found this very useful in working with my cars. I figure I'll work with the simulator and build a plane and maybe try to get into the air in a couple months.

breakin2, Re: flight sims, download the free FMS and try it. It works pretty good and there are lots of free planes that the FMS uses have made that you can add. The G2 sim is powerful but is expensive and needs lots of puter HP to get it to work. Check this out before you buy! It sounds like you think that after some flight sim time, you can just go out to the field and start flying! This isn't the case! The sim does give you the basic idea of what to do but "big sky view" is not the same as "small puter screen view"! Also without someone showing you how to set the engine properly it will probably die a few seconds after takeoff leaving you with an airplane with no engine! Do yourself and everyone else a favor and go vist the nearest RC flying club. Training is free at most RC clubs and will save your plane many times over while you learn. It will also prevent accidents that reflects badly on the whole hobby. [8D]

Hi breakin2:-) G2 is a great sim from what I heard.. Never own
one.. But it's cost is up there.. Another option is AeroFly Pro..
I just bought mine and I love it.. It's a bit cheaper than G2 and
works just as good if not better, And it's a lot better in 3D flying!!
You can but the interface version $139.99(use your own transmitter)
or I think it's called the Commander version(comes with a controller)
$189. It also comes with a free expansion pack which gives you more
scenery and a total of 35 models.. You can also download more of
each from it's forum.. It's worth a look see.. Mine came with a
german manual, but you can download the manual from OMP site
and also the prices above is from the same site with free shipping..
You can look and purchase if you choose here:

http://www.ohiomodelproducts.com/

raideron - That sounds really cool too. I'll look into it.

click Here and read about what most people agree is the best flight sim....in my opinion from what i have read AVP would be best for me considering cost and what i want from the sim...which is learning to fly 3D and from what i understand RF2 doesnt do a very good job of it and is a little more expensive.

Anyone have a link to the FMS?

Here

what do people think about the aerobird challenger for a beginner compared to the freedom flyer by venom

thanks

I bought the Aerobird Fighterbird for my son last Christmas and then an Aerobird Challenger for myself the next day! Just two months later that were both collecting dust as we had moved on to "real" RC. By that I mean a gas-powered trainer. I don't mean to put down electric RC but these Aerobird planes (and other similar offerings) are little more than toys and the set-up of the transmitter (left thumb up/down for throttle, right thumb left/right to turn) doesn't really prepare you to fly with a normal transmitter (left thumb trottle AND rudder, right thumb elevator AND ailerons). Besides with what you'll spend on additional batteries (ONE absolutely isn't enough) and replacement parts (you WILL need replacement parts) they aren't all that cheap.

Best setup to learn with (though not the cheapest): 1) RealFlight G2 2) a gas trainer and 3) an instructor at the local club.

I bought it for my 12 yr old daughter and she flew with no help the first day....I only took off and landed for her...

I trained on the G2 for a month or so while finishing my LT40. Went out to the field with my new LT40, and here's what happened:
-The instructor took it up and trimmed it out (it just needed a little down elevator)
-We hooked up the buddy box and I made an entire flight from take-off to landing without the instructor having to take over at any time.
-We unhooked the buddy box, I soloed, landed, and got my "papers".
I had not flown RC before.
Best $200 I've ever spent.
Glen

RF G2 is a good investment (when I bought there weren't many on the market, so real flight it was.) for thumb training.

Takes some getting used to using rudder and ailerons when the plane is flying towards or away from you.

As far as airplanes have 2 more axis... I live in a 3d world. cars use x and y, airplanes use x y and z (height).

i just got real flight G2 this past weekend and love it! i'm new to this hobby as well and am glad i didn't just go buy a plane and try to fly right away... the sim will show you how foolish that would have been, and expensive.

definitely recommend real flight... looks and plays great