Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

I'm an RC vet with cars, but I'm looking to expand into planes. Is this a good starter?

Here is the info on it: http://www.towerhobbies.com/products...o/hcaa17r.html


Edit: Fix the typo on beginner in the title.

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

That plane is a great starter. However, it is my opinion that you are paying for a lot of features that aren't necessary, and that your instructor will probably have you remove anyway. Any of the trainers that tower sells would be good--as well as other trainers out there that tower doesn't sell. Personally, I learned on an alpha 40 from hanger 9 (horizonhobby.com)

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

This is a good trainer plane. It has some unnecessary options that run the price up a bit IMO but it is a good plane. As it says in the add, you need to find an instructor though. That is the single most important thing to do. I would also recommend disabling the AFS system as it will actually hinder you in many respects. Your instructor may disagree but I doubt it. There are also other trainers out there that will save you money if that is a concern but if not this is fine. You will also need a variety of field equipment to get the plane operational such as fuel, glow starter battery, spare prop, chicken stick or electric starter, prop wrench and misc small tools for minor maintenance.

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

It s a good plane but buy a cheaper tower trainer which is just as good and simple to understand and spend the xtra $$$ on a flight simulator. Its no substitute for a good instructor but it will get you to solo alot faster. I just solo'd a kid first time in the air because he spent 60 hours on flight sim G2. Ikarus and Rectifier sell very good ones too. Just my opinion. :D

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

Well, part of the appeal of this is that it comes with a $50 rebate (which is like getting $50 off for me because I spend a lot at Tower) and a G2 Flight Simulator. It's not the full version, but enough to practice on.

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

Ok, that puts you at $340.00, the sim you get in the box, well, let say you get what you pay for. This one: http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...=LXCXF4**&P=ML will do the same for $90 less and for $100 more you get a kick-ass sim. But that's just because I fly the sim all the time, rain, snow, wind, sick, baby-sitting, etc. If you don't plan to use the sim again, then it's not for you. Go get the that Nex.:D

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

I think it's a great plane, and not a bad deal with the rebate and the sim. The O.S. .46 fxi is a very good engine. I also like having Futaba gear, even if the transmitter is entry level. The quality of the airplane itself is top-notch.

I don't own one, but have helped two people learn to fly using one. I made both of them disconnect the AFS and we didn't use the flaps either. We did use the wing droops. It's a great flying plane. One thing that you need to do before flying is reduce the throw on the nose wheel. It is WAY too sensitive. This can be done by moving the clevis at the servo to the innermost hole on the servo arm.

I would recommend the NexStar.

-Scott

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

Thank you all for your responses. I actually found one for cheaper on Ebay that I might bid on.

RE: Is this a good plane for a begginer?
 

I see that there are several there. Be careful of course and don't forget sometimes shipping damage occurs.

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

yup a verry good starter:D

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

I'm not knocking you but the first move in getting into planes is to Download FMS , and practice the basic keep the plane in the air flight patterns. Unless you have somebody to walk side by side with you as far as learning to fly I would't start with something less complicated like a three channel electric.

Other than that advice the plane is perfect for a first plane. Remember it's made from balsa and will break into pieces unlike allot of the electric planes.

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

For what it's worth, I'm on the Tower Trainer RTF, $249, I also have the G2-Lite sim. I've seen a couple NexStars. I think the quality difference is vary apparent! My Tower arrived with more wrinkles than a retirement home! Sent it back, next one same thing, finally a sales supervisor went thru several boxes in the warehouse trying to find a descently covered plane, She sent me the best one she could find which was still subpar. Perfectly good airplane to learn to fly on, but certainly not as nice as any of NexStars I have seen.
The G2-Lite sim I have seems more than sufficient as well. I think it has like 11 or 12 planes & 2 Heli's. 3 airport choices and full control of weather conditions, wind speed & gusts, stuff like that. I don't know how much better those other sims are, or how much more beyond what this one has is neccessary, but I thought they cost alot more than $100, I guess I must of been wrong about that.
I think if you can afford the NexStar, you'll probably be very happy with it. There's a kid @ the club where I'm trying to learn to fly who has been flying for a couple years now & all he flys is his NexStar. He loves the plane and burns thru fuel like he's gotta pump in his back yard! Good luck in whatever choice you make.


Mark

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

Just wanted to add, apparently My Tower is $259,, my mistake. You mentioned finding some cheaper on E-bay. Bruce mentioned that shipping damage occurs. You might also consider that when dealing with E-bay it's all about buyer beware! I've been fortunate in that I have never gotten burned, but I know some people who have. I've also noticed that anymore it's mostly stores selling on E-bay & their starting bid or buy now price is what you can buy the thing for anyway. If they do have it listed much cheaper it's usually cause they're gonna rape ya on the shipping, just saying check that feedback, & do the math including shipping. We just got a new LHS, Hobbytown USA in town & they are coming right in @ Tower prices without the cost of shipping so far. I try to support the LHS when I can, hoping they will make it. So many fold within a year or two, and it's a bummer to have to drive to a bigger town or wait for shipping for something as small as a prop or something. Just food for thought.

Mark


P.S. At the LHS you can open the box & see what you're buying, without having to go thru the hassle of paying for return shipping to get a good one, then have to wait to get re-imbursed for the $$$ you put out.[:@]

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

As an instructor let me throw my 2¢ worth in here. I've seen a lot of different trainers come with the students that I've taught. I've seen several of the Nexstars so I've had a chance to base my opinion on first had experience. As far as the plane itself goes, it's pretty much the same as all of the other trainers that are out there. It's not any worse or better than the others. It's a pretty decent flying trainer. Ok, so why is it more expensive than the other RTF trainers out there? First off, it's a little bit bigger plane (approx. 60 size) with a bigger engine (OS 46 FX). But the other part that makes it more expensive is the "gadgets" on it (wing droops, speed brakes, and the AFS). It also comes with a flight simulator too, albeit a limited simulator (the Nexstar is the only plane you can fly with this simulator). These gadgets are supposed to make it easier to fly and therefore easier to learn. When I get a student show up with one of these trainers the first things I do is to disconnect the AFS and remove the wing droops and speed brakes. What?? But didn't you pay for those features? You may have paid for them, but I prefer to not use them to teach. First of all, the AFS is a sort of "auto pilot" that will help return the plane to level flight. Ok then, why do you need an instructor if the plane does it for you? IMHO it's next to impossible to learn to fly if you don't actually "do" the tasks. If the plane is leveling out for you then you will never learn to do it yourself. What's going to happen when you move to a second plane? Are you going to put the AFS on it? As far as the wing droops and speed brakes go, I consider them actually a hindrance making the plane a bit harder to teach on. So I prefer to remove them.

Ok, so with the "extras" that you paid for being disconnected or removed why would you spend the extra money in the first place? This is my point, why pay for them if you aren't going to use them? Now I will say that the flight simulator you get is a good thing. It helps the student practice at the times that they aren't at the field. But I will say that I don't think a student should touch the simulator before they have seen an instructor. A lot of times a student will jump on the simulator and start "practicing" before they ever go out to the field. The problem with this is that the student can learn bad techniques and develop bad habits because of this. Since they haven't seen an instructor they just do whatever seems right. Then when the start with the instructor these bad habits will need to be un-learned before before the instructor can start teaching them the correct way to fly. As I said above, the simulator is ok to practice with after the student starts with the instructor, but it should stay in the box until they find an instructor.

If the simulator is important to you, then get the Nexstar. If your trying to save money, forget about the Nexstar and get one of the cheaper RTF packages out there (which can save over $100 in some cases). The choice is yours.

Hope this helps

Ken

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

I must admit that I'm one of those being un-teached from playing on the sim first[&:] Oh well, live & crash & learn I guess.

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

Thank you all for the input. You've given me a lot to think about. In terms of getting an instructor, what does that usually entai? Joining an RC club? Paying a tutoring fee? Like I said in my first post, I'm pretty knowledgable with RC matters relating to cars, but I'm brand spankin' new with planes.

RE: Is this a good plane for a beginner?
 

Visit your local clubs and talk them. That's where you'll find out what you need. Most clubs are going to require you to join the AMA first. Some will require club membership while some may not. Like I said, speak with the local clubs. Most instructors do not charge anything for teaching you to fly. Although a lot of clubs do have specific nights days set aside for teaching students to fly.

Ken