bglogo

I need some purchase advise from you guys here. I am getting the Nexstar Select for Xmas so I will get all the basics. There was a $50 gift certificate from Tower Hobbies with the purchase. I would like some advise on what other basic equipment/supplies I will need other than fuel. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. I have no experience or equipment now as I am new to the hobby. Thanks in advance.

raideron

My Feedback: (1)

Hi bglogo... And Welcome to this great hobby!!

Well I guess you do not have any equipment?? The min. you will need is a fuel pump
or bulb to fuel the plane, fuel tubing etc., a glow driver for the glow plug to start the
engine and a chicken stick.. But you could find something at home to use I'm sure..
A thick pair of gloves will work among a lot of other things.. But be carful, That prop
and engine will bit and it WILL hurt!!! That's if your lucky... They have been known to
remove body parts if your not careful and watch what your doing!! Those are really
the basic things you need to get going... Extra glow plugs/props etc. is also a big plus...
And the list will go on and on!! If you have not already, Check out clubs in your area...
They will give you all the info you need and how to safely enjoy this great hobby!!..
You can also find great deals!! Hope this helps.. I'm sure others will post a lot more...

bglogo

Thanks for the info!! I will be joining a club as I don't want to fly without an instructor. Don't want to come home with a pile of pieces. I've been wanting to get started for quite some time and finally decided to take the leap. I live in PA so I'll have the rest of the winter to practice on the sim and acquire the equipment you've mentioned. Thanks.

Campy

My Feedback: (1)

Talk to the people at the club before buying anything. You will be suprised at how much 'spare/extra' stuff people have. Then they realize they are not going to use this stuff so they will USUALLY sell it dirt cheap or in a lot of cases give it away. You might just wind up with a lot of the peripheral equipment for nothing or next to it. Then you can use the certificate for something you really want - like put it towards your next plane

roltech

You may want electric starter, spare props, spare glow plug OS #8 or #3, and a glow plug driver,fuel natrualy, some basic hand tools, cleaning rags and windex, handy is a voltmeter, to check your batteries ,you may want a instructor and get in a club, get your AMA. That should get you started. Good choice of plane! I started with this one too and it got my wings.

roltech

MikeEast

My Feedback: (3)

Roltech hit on a very worthwhile investment. A voltage tester with a load. The [link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXWW16&P=ML]hobbico tester [/link] is great one.

There is not a single componant of an RC plane that is more important than a battery with a good charge. You can have a $5000 plane with all the best equipment, but if your $20 Nicad battery goes dead or runs out of charge during a flight,,, there is a 100% certainty that you will crash. A $25 voltmeter WITH A LOAD TEST is an essential part of your arsenal of goodies.... I would borrow one if you must, but its much better to have one of your own to ensure that your plane has the power to land safely. You should check your batteries between every flight.

There are a ton of goodies that you can use in your box like a set of ball drivers, glow plug wrench, extra glow plugs, small pair of pliers, zip ties, rubber bands, hemostats, misc socket head screw accessories, fuel pump, electric starter or chicken stick, tachometer, .... As was mentioned, see what the guys at the club have, they may have some things they will unload on you for free or cheap before you go spending a bunch of money.

2slow2matter

My Feedback: (1)

Don't buy your fuel from tower, if you can avoid it. The haz-mat charge on shipping fuel is rediculous. Go to the LHS and buy it there.

RCKen

My Feedback: (9)

Even buying it from some LHS won't avoid the surcharge on shipping. If your LHS gets his fuel delivered by UPS then he has to pay a $20/case charge on the fuel. If he gets his fuel delivered by freight then he doesn't have to pay that charge. If you can, shop around to different LHS and see who has the best prices on fuel. I've seen it make up to $4-$5/gallon difference in the price of the fuel. To me that's well worth the effort of looking around.

Ken

bruce88123

Not to mention the fun of looking at all of the STUFF!

SoonerAce

My Feedback: (1)

Sounds like a Great plan as a newbie in the sport. I congratulate you on your research/decisions so far..

Did anyone mention Tail Restraint? It can be as complex as the foot pedal release-type, or as simple(my favorite) as a tentpeg and a piece of 1/4" rope. Just something to keep your baby from gettin loose and wild in your lap when you start it, or when your running it up.

RCKen

My Feedback: (9)

I can't agree with Sooner Ace about the restraints for the plane. When I started I had a fancy setup that had a foot pedal to release it that cost me $50 at a swap meet. I didn't want to pay that much to replace it, so I use a rope and a tent stake. It works just as well (if not better) and only cost about $1, so you won't cry if it gets left at the flying field by mistake.

Since we're on the topic of purchasing stuff you will need, there are a lot of items that you can pay for from a hobby shop or an online supply house (i.e. Tower Hobbies) but you can find cheaper if you look for them. For instance, a chicken stick. You can pay for one, or do like did and cut of a bit of old broomstick and wrap some electrical tape around. I've been using it for 9 years now, and when the tape gets cup up I just peel it off and put some more on. Another item is a neck strap. You can find them online or at a LHS for anywhere from $5.99 and up. I picked up a saxophone strap at a local music shop and it only cost me $1.99. A couple of bucks doesn't seem like a lot, but if you add up everything a new person buys a few bucks here and there sure adds up in a hurry.

Hope this helps.

Ken

MikeEast

My Feedback: (3)

We save a ton of money by buying fuel in bulk at our club. We go in together and buy 20 cases give or take at a time and its a LOT cheaper that way. I think you can get that price with less volume but whatever you do its STILL cheaper than buying it a gallon or a case at a time.

We buy Magnum fuel (which is excellent by the way), typically 1.5 grade which is relatively equal to 30%. We get it for $14/gallon delivered that way. It doesnt all have to be the same %nitro to make a bulk order either. You can mix it up as long as you buy it by the case which is 4 gallons from Magnum. Power Master will do the same but it comes in a case of 6.

I am really picky about my fuel because I fly pattern pretty competitively so I MUST have fuel that will perform consistantly well in my YS engines. For me its cool power 30% heli (which is expensive), magnum 1.5 or powermaster DZ for 4 strokes.

If you have 10-15 guys that are willing to spend about $50-$60 each for a case (4 gallons) of fuel depending on what %nitro you want, it can save you a lot of money and you get a VERY high quality fuel.

Talk to your club and see what they think.
[link=http://Magnum Fuels]http://www.magnumfuels.com/[/link]

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

Then don't add!

samolot

My Feedback: (14)

In my case, i would go ahead and buy 10 spare glow plugs because they go out and they are darn expensive. I have the Tower Hobbies .46 engine, which pretty much destroyed the second half of my flying season. I sent it for repairs but it got to the wrong place and is now hopelessly lost in the world. I even put the return address but no one ever returned it. So im in a pretty grim mood right now. I have two planes, one radio setup and no engine, and a totaled glider (bad high start launch, asphalt, get the picture?). But during the days when i had the plane and the engine, i always had to buy glow plugs from other club members, and it also ticks them off when i dont have something and i need to ask for it for the tenth time. This Xmas, i need to do some serious hobby supply shopping.

bruce88123

You're right Samolot. Most guys don't mind helping out at the field but not the same thing every time, every week. It's a little different though dealing with a beginner or someone you know is on a tight budget. You learn to make allowances and do it cheerfully.

If you are going through that many plugs you have another problem anyway. Probably running too lean or too much Nitro.

As for losing a TH .46, How is losing that a loss? Gives you another excuse to buy an OS 46AX. Bite the bullet and place the order

raideron

My Feedback: (1)

samolot.... As Bruce said you may have adjustment problems if your going through
that many plugs... Not unless you just got a bad engine, but still that's alot of plugs..
I tried a few plugs... But I only use OS now... They work Great for me!!!

I'm not pushing the Tower engine, But if on a budget the few I saw at the field ran
great and they had good power IMO.....

RCKen

My Feedback: (9)

I would recommend sticking to the OS plugs also. I use A3 plugs in all of my 2-strokes and the F plug for my 4-strokes. I have just a bit over 90 hours worth of flying this year and I've replaced exactly one plug all summer, an A3 in one of my OS 46 FX motors.

If you're going through that many plugs something is definitely wrong.

Ken

bruce88123

Samolot said he was buying plugs from the other club members. I made the assumption that it was not the same member each time and that all of the members didn't buy cheap plugs. Not cheap if you must always replace them BTW. Assuming that he has tried different brands, including OS, I feel he is running too lean and simply burning them up which may have caused the other engine damage he spoke of too.

samolot

My Feedback: (14)

I buy em from roughly the same people, and even though they dont mention it, i can feel the alarm clock going off in their heads whenever i ask for it. I want to have a day at the field where i dont ask for any help if anything lend things to others. By the way, the TH .46 does suck and eats glow plugs. I had the engine pro come to my plane and listen to the engine. The engine is gone now. THis xmas, i asked for an rc car to have some rc fun between weekends when i would fly them, but since i lost the engine, i have to wait till my bday in february. Planes rock, cars do too ever since i started driving myself, so i got to give credit for it. Plus i saw a racing program on the discovery channel so i had to try it out. Planes are and will always be my first love. I am only getting the drivers lisence to drive myself to the airport and back to fly real planes, and of couse, to the flying field . By the way, my glider, if anyone knows of it, is the GP Spirit. Currently, it bit the dust and i will post a thread with pictures. I need to fix this up, i need help. Later though.

Cheers

SoonerAce

My Feedback: (1)

Oops, perhaps I'm tired, did you mean you can't agree with me more?

RCKen

My Feedback: (9)

Opps on my part. Yes, I couldn't agree more!!!!!

Even spell check isn't perfect!!!!!

Ken

SoonerAce

My Feedback: (1)

Its ok Ken, I knew what ya meant.

MikeEast

My Feedback: (3)

awwww, isnt that nice just kidding!!!!

Red B.

In this case less is more.

I have found that I tend to bring fewer and fewer items with me to the flying field. In no particular order, this is what I consider essentials:

One fuel container with a fuel pump that doesn't rely on electricity. The Dave Brown Sixshooter is inexpensive and almost bomproof.

One glow plug connector with a rechargeable 1.2 V NimH or NiCd battery. I prefer a Du-Bro RC Kwik-Klip II with leads to the battery as I find it more versatile than the ones where the battery and connector is integrated into one unit.

A chicken stick (a dowel with a with a piece of garden hose slipped over it) to help preserving fingers when starting the engine.

A piece of rope and an old screwdriver that can be driven into the ground in order to restrain the aircraft when starting.

A small first aid kit for cuts and bruises.

A 35-mm film container with some spare links and an assortment of screws and bolts to fit your aircraft.

A couple of extra glow plugs (stay away from the cheap ones, OS 8 and Enya 3 or 4 are safe bets). You only need one or two extra ones unless you run fuel with a lot of nitro.

A couple of extra propellers (if you buy a brand such as APC they are sufficiently well balanced that a prop balancer is not necesary at this stage).

Some screwdrivers and pliers suitable for the fittings on your aircraft. A glow plug / propeller nut wrench.

Some means of checking the Rx battery status, either externally in the form of a digital voltmeter (or expanded scale voltmeter) that puts a load on the battery or simpler, a battery checker that is mounted inside the aircraft. I find that the latter is usually sufficient.

/Red B.