i recently ordered the yellow bee ( http://www.hobby-estore.com/electric...ellow-bee.html ) as it said it should be a decent trainer, any personal opinions, its my first, something cheap so when i crash im not broke...what you think about it?

peace

I liked this part best:

"sturdy enough to "crash without being trashed". "

Followed by a list of repair parts.

These are very lightweight planes of marginal value that express the term: "You get what you pay for". Hopefully you will have good luck with it and learn enough to get some value out of it. I am not personally a big fan of this type of plane and it may not be fair for me to give an opinion but you asked and I'm giving mine. Do not, IMO, sink a lot of money into planes of this type but get with a club instead and a glow powered plane (or a more serious electric plane). The club people will be able to advise you better in person. I really don't mean to be discouraging, just honest.

I wouldn't base my flight experience on something like this. Our normal response to a beginner is find an AMA club you can put your zip code in here
[link=http://www.modelaircraft.org/clubsearch.aspx]ama club[/link]
talk to them. find out what they'er using and get equipment that is compatible with theirs. The misconception I see from new people to the hobby is that they immediately associate electric with cheap which is just not true, unless this kinda toy is all you ever want to fly. In the long run with the current price of components gas is the cheaper route. With a modern gas trainer and radio system you'll plug your radio into an instructors and they will fly your plane and teach you to fly for free and take over immediately when you get into trouble. here is a a good trainer set up
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXMU53**&P=0]trainer[/link]

Well, This probably isnt what you want to hear but, that plane looks to me like the two channels are L engine R engine. It is best to start out with a .40 size glow trainer. Also the first thing you should do is find a club and join it, then get with an instructer from said club and see what trainer he prefers. If you really want to go electric then take a look at [link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXJKU3**&P=0]this[/link] But most people will reccomend glow. here are a few to look at.
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXEXK2**&P=0]NexStar[/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXMU53**&P=0]Avistar[/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXFG19&P=0]LT-40[/link]This one is an ARF (meaning that you must also buy an engine, radio, radio gear,ect...
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXDJE4&P=0]Eagle 2[/link]Also ARF
Now for the club. There are 3 clubs within 50 miles of Lebanon. Here is the [link=http://www.modelaircraft.org/ClubZipLocator.aspx?s=CT&c=l]page[/link] The Blacksheep Squadron is closest to you. Get together with an instructer from one of the three clubs and talk to them further.
Karter

I learned the basics of flight on a Yellow Bee and occasionally take it up on a calm day in a small area for some fun. It flys good, if you adjust the tail just right and don't over charge the batteries or you'll ruin them(slight warm to the touch 2-3 hours max). I fly nitro/gas planes too, but the yellow be is a fun park flyer that takes away the fear of a crash that would usually cost you $200 or more on a nitro/gas/expensive electric plane. If you can learn to fly the Yellow Bee and land it with out crashing, your next step is a flight club and an investment in a good trainer plane. Good Luck.

Hey NoMore, If that thing puts a smile on your face, I say go for it..everybody in here is gonna tell you , you need a .40 trainer (except me),,if you look in the electrics forum under micro flight and indoor planes there is a plane called the aeroace from airhogs,,I think everyone in the 1/2a forum has one ..its the most fun you can have in your front yard..target has them for $29..if you decide you want to go into glow (and you likely will) come over to the 1/2A forum where we have a thread on building a 1/2A trainer,,you'll still need a trainer to help you, and a club to fly at..and the plane you got is a TOY ,but anything that gets you in the air thats fun for you,is whats important...what you got is just a knock off of the firebird line of planes..now lets talk money...$58 for AMA, gotta have it to fly at an AMA field,,club dues yearly anywhere from $35 to $250,,mine are $75/year and we have 2 fields about 15 miles apart....club may have a trainer you can use to learn on (bonus) maybe not..$350 plane/engine/radio/field equip I would say minimum even with ARF trainers at an all time low cost...Rog

alright thanks alot, i had no idea there were fields that close to here, never heard of em. yea i only expect to learn some basics of flying with this and once i find a decent job i can actually start getting some real equipment.

thanks

I would say that there is some value in this type plane from a training standpoint. For one thing, it will get you used to the orientation of an rc plane the air while controlling it from the ground, which is no small thing. It doesn't turn using control surfaces, but the end result is still pretty much the same. One thing to be careful of though is to make sure that the throttle control is variable and not just on / off, otherwise your flying will consist of an endless series of climb / glide movements. You need to be able to fly a level route to get a good feel for flying compared to a "real" rc plane IMO.

I like to tinker with stuff like this and have been considering picking up one myself just to see what it would do. I have an AeroAce mentioned above and it is well worth 30 bucks just for the fun factor and the fact that you can pretty much fly in in any space. It is really cool and there are a lot of good mods for it on the discussion boards. Everybody that likes RC planes should have one of these in their trunks for instant stress relief!.

I have a ParkZone Slo-V electric that in my opinion is a pretty good starter plane, if you live somewhere that affords you some frequent calm wind conditions. I consider it a good step between the "toys" and a .40 gas trainer.

If / when you decide to go gas, buy a true TRAINER. Don't buy anything referring to itself as a 3D plane, intermediate plane, or anything that doesn't have the wing on top of the plane. Also, I would not attempt to fly even a .40 gas trainer without being on a buddy box with an instructor. Even if you've flown electrics a lot, the gas plane is going to be faster, and beginners have the tendency to want to fly too low when they are starting out. This is false security as a crash from 50' is probably going to do about as much damage as one from 150' and you don't have as much time to get out of trouble.

I'm fairly new to this, and these are just my opinions (some based on lessons learned the hard and expensive way).

If you decide you want to try the "bee", it's only $30...and you'll probably learn something and have a little fun in the process.

Happy Flying.

I have three. Got them on sale from Harbor freight. I think it is great and very simple. Don' t try to fly to long on a charge. About 10 Mins. When the battery gets low, land it. I have not had any trouble.
Remember that the controls work only the motors. This is different than having elevator control.

If you like this plane, join a club and get some help on a more advanced plane.
Good luck and have fun.

John Smith