Well guys I'm just back from the hobby store after picking up my plane. It's a Super Chipmonk. I CAN'T TO TRY IT OUT! I have flown before and I was really good so I thought I was ready for it. Don't worry I didnt pick up a Chipmonk. I just got a good old trainer. It had a big bigger engine in it, so it should climb much easier. Thanks again for all you help. You guys steered me away from crashing some good money.
~me~

What kind of trainer man...and some pics...sheesh, we gotta walk these new guys through everything.... j/k

Yeah, you do have to walk us new guys through everything. Maybe I'll get a pic up eventually.
~me~

The guys in hobby dealer need your money and you will crashed your first low wing model.

Listen here, it is better to begin with hi wing model and a instructor. 100% sure all will be happy for you after you learned how to fly..

Jens Eirik

No offence motor boy...but hes alreadybought his high-wing now...read through please...

Adding a bit to the excellent advice that's already here, I would comment that this hobby, like many things in life, confronts you with lots of decisions and you have to endure the results of those decisions.

At your stage in flying, there is a simple decision in front of you. Either you buy a trainer, that will take you from the basics to the first aerobatics with fun and, hopefully, hours of pleasure, or you could buy a cooler looking low wing plane which is extremely likely to give you 6 seconds of frantic flight followed by weeks of time back in the workshop repairing it!

The decision is yours! [sm=bananahead.gif]

Don't worry about getting bored with a trainer quickly. You won't. I know quite a few people who have jet planes costing 10 grand, and which are impossible to fly successfully without hours of previous experience who still buy trainers just to have fun.

The thrill of controlling it will still be there when you fly a trainer, and it will let you enjoy this thrill as it is much less likely to hit that hard, flat obstacle called the ground!

Good luck, and welcome to the hobby that has everything (if you do it in approximately the right order!)!

-David C.

tr21triton, I don't need to fly it. You told me not to by repeatedly pointing out the "looks cool" factor. That's exactly what the hobby shops and manufacturers want to hear. To go back to my boats for a minute, that's the very reason so many Pro Boat Buds and Llumars have been sold, the "it looks cool" factor. It's also why there are so many on Ebay, new boaters in over their heads trying to get their money out of them. Your Mustang, with it's tip stalling tendacies, would not last 90+% of the new "wanna be pilots" more than the first day before going down. If yours is still flyable, consider yourself lucky, Very lucky.

martno1fan, glad you liked my suggestion. It's what I'm doing with my under construction Kadet. I'm also building a second modified Kadet Jr. This one has a 54" wing, instead of the 48, no dihedral, ailerons, increased sized elevators and rudder, all with counterbalances, AND TWIN FLOATS!!!!!!!!!!! Who says trainers are boring[sm=spinnyeyes.gif]

o.k hydro.you are into boats.....notice my screen name,i can speak in your language.lets say someone new to boating buys a racing boat...now this boat will run 90mph+ with a 14x27 prop(it will chinewalk and get very unstable at these speeds)....so they install a 14x24 prop on it with a rev limiter(it only runs 60 but as the new owner learns to handle the chinewalk they can change props to a 25,26 and then to the 27 pitch racing prop)but that couldn't be done in a racing boat could it ?i only said it looks cool 1 time, fly one of these with all the training aids on it and then well talk. 2 slow if you read that thread i had removed all the training stuff and got too cocky,i knew better.....


newb enjoy your new plane no matter what it is.you will find this is a exciting hobby and you'll end up with many planes in time.i wish i had started at 14 instead of 40.find a good instructor,and dont be tempted to go up without him until your ready.take off is easy,flying is no problem but landing in 1 piece is a problem.....

hey i hope youve got some pics of the float set up for us that sounds really cool.[img][/img]
heres a pic of the damage i did to my boring trainer newb!!![img][/img].and hers some of the rebuld and just before she maidened after she was finnished.i put a lot of work into her and guess what she dead sticked on her third flight after the rebuild lucky for me only the tail came adrift so it wasnt hard to fixstick with the trainer for a while mate and youll do fine!!.

I wouldnt even wan't to fly one let alone learn on one. Get an avistar with a supertigre gs40-45-51 or whatever and learn to fly on it. Then you can mod it and have a hotrod that will never get boring. If you wan't I can pm you the mods I did to mine with some pics and instructions.

I for one thank you all for being responsive and honest to all us beginners [sm=thumbup.gif][sm=thumbup.gif][sm=thumbup.gif]
Like Newb Flyer, when it comes to flying I am a complete beginner myself who has never flown. Unlike Newb Flyer I have built a few airplane kits through the years but just never gotten around to completing them enough to fly'em. But I am in the process of finishing an Air Scout trainer and a low-wing Skylark 56 Mark II just because I loved the look of it. But I would never, NEVER learn to fly on the Skylark. When that is completed it is going to be put aside until I learn on the 3-channel Air Scout. Below is the almost complete Air Scout - looks like a real fun flyer, and slow enough to correct mistakes - as it says anyway.
Newb Flyer - congratulations on making your first purchase and taking the advice of these friendly members to learn on a high-wing trainer, you'll be glad you did. If you will be in it a long time like I will be, you will have plenty of time to have fun with low-wings.

~Steve~

Well guys I just talked to my trainer and I'm going to have my first flight today. He says I should easily get to take-offs and possibly landing if I do well enough. (because I have flown before) Also, for the heck of it I pre-ordered a Yak to build. Since I didn't get to build my trainer[] Don't worry I will not be flying it until I am %100 ready. Thanks again for all your help guys, I'll make a post on how my flight went later on tonight.
~me~

Hi Newb, and welcome to RCU!

I myself just started in the hobby and I purchaced a nice trainer as well (A Hobbico Nexstar). After about 5 flights, I am on track to solo it within 2 weeks. But at 17 years old, I have the pressures of college decision, so I can only fly on the weekends... wish I started at your age!

Anyway, that trainer will certianly last you a while. I am not getting another plane until I can do all my aerobatics nice and smoothly. And yes, it may not seem like it, but trainers DO go up to the 65 MPH range! By the way, what is the exact model of your trainer?

I think I am in the same situation as you as far as the cashflow goes, but I did one thing to fix that problem... I got my dad into the hobby! I've went from $0 to unlimited cash funds!

Have fun, and welcome to the addiction...yes, you will LOVE it!

-MikeG

Well guys, first day of flying went awsome! I had 3 sucessful take offs and 1 sucessful landing! I'm very very happy with myself. No crashed, or even any scary moments. (accept landing for the first time of course, thats quite a rush) So I'm just curious, have I progressed well for 3 hours of flying?
~me~

Heh. You seem like a fast learner to me. My instructor wouldn't let me land the plane until my 4th flight. Trust me, it only gets better from here. Also, see my last post. Get your dad into the hobby, you won't regret it! He'll have a ton of fun, and you'll get some new planes/

I always try mike. Once I'm good enough that I can easily take off and land w/o any difficulties I'll let my dad try it out. Or just have my instructor teach him a couple of flights. He seems like he's somewhat interested in it, so it should be interesting! However I highly doubt he will be buying me an free planes.[&o]
~me~

well done newb and keep up the good work!!,but please dont let your dad have a go when you feel you can land properly lol.theres a difference between knowing how to do it yourseld and showing others how its done!!.if you must let him have a go my advice is buy a buddy box or wear a hard hat lol.ever thought of building a plane from scratch?,take a look at the spad forum theres some cool planes and they only cost arround $10 or so to build.strong and cheap .less repairing if you do crash lol just an idea thats what im doing for my next plane!!.

The Spad Forum? I meant I would let him fly it around, not land it! I really wouldn't do that!
~me~

You don't have to "let" him land it, it's the unintentional landings that will cost you!

Unfortunately 2slow, I think your right. He's buying his own plane. So if he asks me to fly the plane and I tell him no I'm telling him it's just because the guys on RC Universe said not to. So what are these Spud Forums anyway?
~me~

A spad is basically a cheaply produced airplane utilizing components that can be bought at Lowes, or Home Depot, or such. The fusealage is generaly made from PVC or Aluminum downspout (like off of rain guttering) and the wings and other flying surfaces are made from corogated plastic like you would use to make a sign. There is a website called www.spadtothebone.com that will tell you everything you want to know about spad (simple plastic airplane design). There is also a spad forum here on RCU.
FYI

Great thanks a lot 2slow. Even though I got that Yak 55 to work on, well there's no such thing as working on too many things at the same times is there?
~me~

there are also some great spads that use the correx or coroplas for the fuse as well as the wings so the planes have a more realistic shape too.plus theyre lighter but still much stronger than balsa.you can build 10 spads for the cost of a balsa kit!!.