Hi everyone. I just want to start off by saying that I love this forum!!!

I have been off and on in R/C cars for several years now. When I was a kid my parents bought me a cox lazy bee. It was a horrible experience and it took off by itself and into the woods on the 1st flight. This was in the hands of an experienced pilot! I didnt think much of airplanes after that and started racing 1/10 elec buggies and trucks. I got much older and then progressed to 1/8 gas buggies, but got married and sold all my equipment. Several months ago, I moved back to FL, to my hometown. We now have a nice townhome about 75yds from the water. We absolutely love it and plan to stay here until my wife's career begins and think about purchasing a home (ridiculous home prices here!!!!)

I started to get the r/c itch again, but no more cars. I wanted an airplane! I have always admired the planes during frequent trips to the hobby shop over the years, loving the construction and 3d environment planes travel in (cars are stuck on the ground!) The local club president contacted me personally after emailing him soon after finding their website and this one as well. Very nice guy and very encouraging.

I feel very confident in a future-flying success. Im thinking my experience with cars will help. I am good at setting up servo linkages, operating radios, breaking and tuning glow engines. I have great manual dexterity (master auto technician by day) and really good hand eye coordination (years of video games [8D]) Plane transportation is not an issue either.

I have a few concerns though. One is about the lacking of modeling space and storage for the planes. I have a some what enclosed but spacious carport. I already have a workbench, shelving, lighting, power and water, but all exposed to outside humidity and temp. Water intrusion is a non issue. Everything locks as well. I can store the plane in my laundry room inside. But I am afraid that working on the plane outside will harm it somehow??? Not much room inside to put things together. I am afraid a .40 sized trainer would take up a lot of room when trying to work on it inside. I know models require a lot of "tinkering". Please help and give insight and blessing I need some sort of push to stop second guessing myself whether or not I want to get into this hobby. Money not really a problem. But nitro fuel inside the hose stains the carpet (dont ask how I know[sm=lol.gif])

Welcome back Jason -
Without speaking to specific models, I have a story to relate that may help with your space concerns. I have build .049 to 10-foot wingspan sailplanes from boxes full of balsa, so I do have a little experience in this realm.
Some years ago my wife and I owned a small 19' motor home, on a Toyota truck frame, called a Dolphin. On one of our trips, I took along a balsa buildup model of a Cessna 182, .20 sized. While we camped for 2 weeks in a small RV park, next to the lake, I worked on that model every day, usually while I sat at the wooden picnic bench at our RV site, provided by the park. It provided more than enough room to work as CA glues are really fast, and I usually just left everything at one end of the bench while we ate meals at the other end.
I'll bet that building a .40 sized model will not take much more space than that for you. [8D]

I live in a 650SqFt apartment and I have enough room to build and store planes, will need to get a storage unit one day however, but for now loads of room.

Jason,

Imagine going to Home Depot, buying a hollow core door and finding a place for it horizontally in your living space. If you can make this happen go ahead and order your first kit. Be forewarned however that some wives do not appreciate the smell of CA.[:'(] You did however address the issue of a carport which is not a good idea. You can't store planes in the carport and moving back and forth while building from the carport to inside would be a PIA.

My planes hang in the garage or occupy space in the living room - go figure I'm divorced Work it out with your better half!

Thanks for the replies guys. I think I can swing a door inside. Anyone know the dimensions and weight roughly?? have no plans to store the plane outside, but would like to work on it outside. Its fully enclosed except for the entrance. I plan on attending the club meeting this Tuesday, so I can get the ball rolling on this. Now just to butter up the wife. I dont think she will have a problem with it, and I know my 5 year old will be on board all the way!

Thanks again!

Home Depot has hollow door slabs from 24 inches to 36 inches. A 24 x78 is $20.00 . What works nice is 2 kitchen cabinets side by side with the door on top,
I`m building one this weekend and will post some pics.

Or you can do what I did and get the door core and put it on a pair of those plastic collapsable saw horses. They take up hardly any room and are stable for the door to act as a building platform. Put a piece of plastic "drop cloth" on the floor to catch any drippings from glue, fuel, whatever, and go for it.

I bought some 3/8" cork sheeting and glued it to cover my door core so I could pin plans to it. Keeps things light and you have a work surface that is solid and large enough to build on that you can pin plans to. What else do you need!!

Welcome to RC aviation, jason!

Couple of ideas/thoughts for ya here...

1) Several have suggested a hollow core door. While I agree that doors make great build tables (I use one myself), and CG's idea of using portable sawhorses to hold it is a great one, I WOULD suggest a solid core door, rather than a hollow core one. Hollow core doors tend to sag, bend, or warp over time, particularly when only supported at each end as sawhorses might do...this can lead to some annoying issues when building. granted, solid core doors are heavier, but ime, worth the hassle. if one's not practical, at least be aware of the issue and check your table often to make sure it's flat and straight

2) As others have aid, working on a plane outdoors won't harm it a bit...whadya think we do at the field? I've done several builds in my garage, and always during the warmer months have the garage door open to the outside...no issues.

3) Storage : Don't forget to think "up". There are dozens of creative ways to come up with some method of hanging planes from the ceiling, rafters, whatever. If you're interested in seeing my own particular method (certainly not the only or best...but it works for me ) let me know. I'll provide some pics and such.

Hope some of that helps...good luck!

I use a piece of drywall the real thin cheap kind over a plastic table so I can stick pins in it will buliding . It works great and if you CA something to the the paper it easily rips off and you can slip a razor under it help it off.

Working on planes outside should not hurt it at all. My son-in-law works on his planes outside in a storage shed and stores his planes there also. The Texas heat hasn't hurt them yet!

I live in a 3100 sq ft 4 level home and have no space for my model hobby. Wife has dedicated sewing area, our 2 kids each have a bedroom, have taken over the office as well as the family room and rec rooms. Living room and formal dining room are rarely used but off limits.

Only useable space is a 4 season porch which is relatively (on purpose) unheated in the winter and uncooled in the summers. There is a nice room under the porch but it is finished off as a guest room and full of antique furniture. I have some kits in boxes stored in the closet shelf but that's it. This is actually the most promising space in the entire house but...

I was planning on adding a dedicated 8x17 workshop onto our attached 2 car garage a few years ago but an untimely layoff and subsequent problems replacing my mid mgmt income killed that project. Income has now been replaced but oldest child is starting college this fall.

And our dog thinks he owns the entire house.

Thanks for all the tips! My first plane I think will be an RTF. Is a kit suitable for beginners?? I think I would enjoy such a project but would worry about building the plane "straight and square" the first time out. Or the ARF option, then i could get the radio and motor I really wanted. Do arf's require any other finishing items??

I see what you guys are saying with the doors, but it might be down the road before building kits. My work bench in the carport is a really nice craftsman with galvanized top and lotsa drawers.I think this will make an excellent place for "fiddling" with the plane. But kit building would be inappropiate outside correct??

One more question. Is an airplane specific stand a good idea?? I am refering to a stand that cradles the plane like I see in various pictures. Where would I purchase one, or better yet, make one myself

I have so many questions and thanks to all for taking the time to answer them. I nice to stop wondering about something and finally say "ohhhhhhh, thats why!"

If you go RTF, make sure you check the forums for any up grades, or concerns with the plane you buy..

* COUGH *



* HACK *

You can build using Titebond II as well. I built both my kit planes with Titebond II due to CA's properties(runny, smelly on a caustic level, fumes stinking up the house, etc) plus Titebond II allows you more time to adjust stuff, thicker so it doesn't run as easily... I could go on but there are threads discussing the pro's and cons of both. CA has it's uses in a few places but 99% of my plane building used Titebond II. Just another option.

Nice you're pondering a build. Nothing cooler than seeing a plane you kit built take flight!

This forum is a great community. The moderators have done their share as well to ensure this is a friendly environment. You've found a good place to hang out and discuss this great hobby/addiction.

somegeek

Well once it is done you can always hang them from the ceiling in you garage either from the strong points of the plane or hang a large wood deck from the garage ceiling

I had the Tower Trainer .40 in mind for my first plane. The price seems right. It has good reviews here on this site. I took your advice insanemoondoggie and search the forums for threads on the plane. Everyone seemed to love it, and said it would be an easy kit for a 1st time builder. Some members seemed to agree that actually building a kit the 1st time around has its benifits in the long run. Like being able to make repairs and such.

Any advice on that whole subject would be greatly appreciated Im not really afraid of trying to build a kit. Sounds like a lot of fun actually. Advise me please

I am going to go against the grain and recommend the RTF, or at least an ARF. (plus .46 engine, radio and starting accessories) I have always suggested that your first plane should NOT have a high emotional investment. Any of the common hi-wing trainers will work just fine. Once you can fly on your own, the possibilities are endless.

I have to agree, seeing a box of sticks take flight is a great feeling. But I feel it is not the best choice for learning to fly.

Another question

When I go to purchase my RTF, should I order some extra crystals?? That way I could ensure no conflicts. Correct if I am wrong, not too sure about 72 mhz. I used to keep several different crystals with my cars since you have 8-10 cars on the track at once. If I were to get some extras, what are the most unused channels??

If you get a RTF, it will include a basic transmitter and receiver with crystals. Most transmitters are "tuned" for the specific frequency of the crystal included. Changing the crystal in the transmitter is not recommended without sending it to the manufacturer for "re-tuning" - so. to answer your question - don't buy extra crystals. As far as what channel is best - you almost have to check out the flying field where you fly to see which channels are used less. The good news, is that if you have to wait to fly cause your channel is in use, it will give you time to talk to the experienced flyers. A lot to be learned.

Good Luck! Larry

Thanks notanaceyet for clarifying that.


My next question: When tuning a plane engine, how important is a tachometer and temp gun?? I know that tuning an r/c car engine requires close checking of the max temp reached during runs. I also payed close attention to the low speed idle for curing the little bogs accelerating corner to corner. What are the criteria to be met on plane engines?

Jason - temperature isn't a major concern with airplane engines. Helicopters yes - but not airplanes as they have a lot of air flow across the cooling fins. As far as a tachometer - I have one, but never used it until I got into four stroke engines. An experienced ear can hear the proper needle valve setting for a two stroke. It's harder to hear on a four stroke. Having a plane engine that idles well is very important as you'll cut the throttle to idle upon approach for a landing, but you don't want it to die and have to do a deadstick landing. Getting an engine to idle well comes through adjustment, but also breaking in the engine per the manufacturers specs.

L

Only thing different on the airplane two-stroke engines is that you do NOT tune for max RPM on the ground. The prop unloading in moving air tends to cause the engine to lean out a bit once airborne. After reaching max rpm, back off the high speed needle until there is a noticeable audible rpm drop. 300 rpm from max is the norm. In other words, just slightly rich of perfect. A little too rich wont hurt anything except fuel mileage. Obviously, the idle transition is much more critical. You need to be able to sustain an idle for at least 30 seconds without the engine loading or dieing.

While you are considering how deep to jump in, I would visit every field in your area and find the one that best suits you. Ideally, you would find a club that welcomes newcomers, has a club trainer and instructors ready to let you take swing at it with you are on the buddy box. I feel you should meet your instructor to be, before laying out cash on a plane and radio system that may not be compatible with his.

My club has beginner Mondays during the summer months. Anyone can show up and fly the club trainer planes. Follow this link to search for AMA clubs in your area. http://www.modelaircraft.org/clubsearch.aspx

Airplane engines usually get excellent cooling. And we run fuel that has more oil than cars, I think. Nobody I know uses a temp gun because it won't record the inflight temp (unless you are very tall and very fast on your feet). People who fly 4cycle should probably use tachs but 2cycle engines are easy to needle.

Most new 2cycle engines nowadays are very easy to break in and have the lowspeed needle set almost perfectly for the initial flight breakin time. Matter of fact, an experienced modeler can key off of how the engine transitions to know when the flight breakin period is complete. There is usually a technique mentioned for the first couple of tanks of fuel run through the new engine. Setting the highspeed needle is part of that. Then you fly with a rich highspeed. At some point in the initial flights, you'll notice the transition gets a bit hesitant. The engine has started to free up and the rich lowspeed that was perfect for the first flights is now just a bit rich. You make sure by doing the pinch test, but they're almost always a touch rich. And the pinch test helps you set them perfectly. BTW, do it right before the first flights on an engine to insure the low is rich.

Airplanes store in a small area once the wing is off. I flew the tower 40 trainer its a good trainer . The room Im sure wont be a problem till after you have 2-20 aircraft hahaha. With an ARF the need for a building bench isnt a big deal yet. Tuning is very simple once the engine is brokin. I geuss Id just say make sure you use after run oil. Since your in the higher humitity part of the country. This hobby is just a blast and Id hate to see someone miss out being in it just because of a maybe I wont have room LOL happy flying and welcome back to the R/C world

Thanks for all the tips guys!!

I have been in contact with the president of the club I plan to join.Havent met them in person but sound really nice like everyone on this forum seems to be. Its a great indication of the type of people I will be "hobbying" with.Even more of an incentive IMO. Its the actual club where the Cox flew by itself like 13 years ago. Wasnt able to come to the most recent meeting, but contacting the instructor is one of my next steps. I am researching everything right now on this wonderful forum, and it has been a big help!! That way when I am ready to take the plunge, and will feel 100% informed and ready

So I can take the tachometer and temp gun off my shopping list. Sweet! frees up a little more so It makes it even easier to show my wife when it comes time[sm=teeth_smile.gif]