Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

I'm researching what I need to get back involved in the hobby. I took some lessons and had a trainer plane set-up about 10 yrs ago but circumstances required me to sell the plane and gear and get out of the hobby. I want to buy quality gear that will last and allow me to keep using it as my skills advance.

As far as a trainer plane, I've done a lot of reading and it seems most people tend to recommend the plane they learned on as a good trainer. I've also read that most of the trainer planes are quite similar. I'd like to build my plane from a kit since I think creating something from a box of wood and flying it is part of the reward of model aircraft. I'm leaning toward a Sig LT-40.. From what I've hard its a well constructed kit, sturdy plane, and a little larger than other trainers. Any other suggestions?

Any comments on converting my trainer plane to a tail dragger and beginning my flight training with it? I figure pretty much all the planes I'm thinking of flying in the future will be tail draggers so I figure why not start out learning on one.

Any suggestions on radio gear? I want something that I can buy once and use now and on models down the road when my skills and aircraft become more advanced. I was thinking about a 6-channel computer radio such as the Futaba 6EXAS. (not committed to Futaba just always had good experiences with futaba from back in my RC car days)

Thanks for any suggestions, I'm sure I'll have more questions in the future.

Nedd

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

Hi Nedd, I would go with the 6 ch Futaba, because I did too, but I went with the EAgle 11 kit and it was some years ago...if I started over I think I would go ARF...but a lot of trainers are very similar,,they are also set up with trike gear for a reason....start out that way and then when you can solo and are comfortable you might try and make it a tail dragger...you'll screw up the CG trying to make a trike set up into a tail dragger, plus it will want to take off before it reaches enough speed making it stall faster so you'll need more power than is called for..if you have a local hobby shop (lhs) go see what they recommend and/or see what most of the club members have..its likely there is someone wanting to move up and sell theirs and you'll just need field supplies and radio.....I went to a shop yesterday that had the OS .46ax on sale for $95 ,which according to the guys I was with is a heck of a buy (I fly the small stuff mostly .049) but they didnt need one....also your local club may have a trainer set up to use that you can learn on...Rog

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

The LT 40 is an excellent trainer, and an easy kit to build. I'd leave it as a trike until you get the takeoff and landing sequences dialed in. Then, switching to a tail dragger don't be hard, and the conversion is easy to do on the plane.

I'm very partial to Hitec radios. I really like the Flash 5x system, unless you're gonna need more radio down the line. There's a lot of bang for the buck there. The Futaba 6XAS is also a great radio, and will handle about 95% of you radio needs for a long time.

That's what I'd do. Good luck, and welcome back to R/C

Dr.1

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

Nedd, welcome to RCU and welcome back to R/C flying. As Rog said, most people choose to begin with an ARF to start with. However, if you've got your heart set on building a kit, go for it. Sig makes great kits, I think it would be a great choice.

Here are my thoughts on radios. I have a Futaba 6EXA. For me it does everything I want, except for two things, not enough memory (only 6 planes [X(]) and I would like a timer with an alarm (nice to have, but not a necessity). A small number of people report that they outgrow the features of such a radio due to them wanting advanced mixing, more than 6 channels, etc. However, since something like 80% of the people will never require such stuff, I often suggest it for beginners who are willing to spend a bit more.

However, there are other choices. If you buy a basic 4 channel radio, such as the Futaba 4YF it's going to cost you a little more than $100. This radio will work just fine to begin with. Once you've learned to fly your trainer you will begin to have a better idea where you want to go with this hobby. If you think you'll mostly fly traditional 4 channel planes, but perhaps try out retracts, smoke, bomb drops, or a few other gadgets, then a 6 channel should do just fine. However, if you start drooling over quarter scale, 3D, and other planes that can demand more radio features, then you may want more than a 6 channel radio offers.

By starting out with the 4 channel radio you give yourself a bit of time hanging out at the field checking out other types of planes before you decide. When you do make a choice, you'll probably think "why did I waste my money on a 4 channel?" However, when you look at the money, it's not really wasted at all. The cost of a typical flight pack (receiver, battery, servos, switch harness, etc) is around $100. If you begin with a 6 channel computer radio you will need to buy a flight pack when you get your second plane. Buying the 4 channel means you bought the flight pack first and just happened to get a basic transmitter for free. When you upgrade to a more advanced radio you'll be able to use the flight pack with it, and you'll have a spare transmitter in case you need to send in the better radio for service.

And finally my thoughts on converting to a tail dragger. As Rog said, most trainers are trike gear for a reason, they offer easier ground handling. However, many people over the years have learned to fly with tail draggers (such as me). So, while it's possible to learn with a tail dragger, I agree that trike gear is the preferred setup. If you really want a tail dragger, there are kits out there that come as tail draggers. Here are a few examples:
Telemaster: http://www.hobby-lobby.com/tel40gas.htm
Senior Telemaster: http://www.hobby-lobby.com/srtele.htm (if you like big)
Sig Kadet LT-25 (going toward the small side)

And while it is possible to convert a trike kit to a tail dragger, you face the challenge of getting the gear in the right place, and slightly more difficult take offs. A compromise would be to choose a trike gear kit, and build it as a trike, but while you are building, install the pieces needed to move the main gear to the appropriate place to fly it as a tail dragger. Once you've learned to fly it as a trike, it would be a simple task to relocate the mains and add a tail wheel.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

Look at the features provided by all radio manufacturer's and buy the one that fills the bill for you. I don't understand why people recommend a specific radio manufacture to a beginner, as this is simply based on their own personal bias. My opinion is they are all probably equal in quality, durability and usability. A more important point, is compatibliity with your instructors radio as this is the radio you will link with through a buddy cord.

By simple popularity, I would say Futaba is the leader, followed by JR, then HiTec and/or Airtornics. There are other radios available too.

My reccommendation is to get with a club and find someone to teach you how to fly, then buy what they will recommend.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

Welcome back to the insanity........er, I mean hobby.

The LT-40 is an excellent kit/plane.

Converting to a taildragger is a relatively simple thing, especially since you will be building it.

1. You should imbed/insert a piece of 1/8" - 3/16" lite ply in the bottom of the fuselage from the tail forward about 2 1/2 ". I would suggest having this piece of ply run the full width of the fuselage. The Sullivan tailwheels are (in my opinion ) one of the best tailwheel assemblies out there. They are easy to install using some pan head sheet metal screws OR some socket head screws.

2. For the main gear You need to build in a piece of REGULAR 1/4" plywood. This piece of ply should be the full width of the fuselage and extend about 2" forward and aft of where the wing's leading edge will be. For the gear itself use one of the preformed metal landing gears. You will drill holes through the landing gear and plywood. Then eith install blind nuts in the plywood OR use bolts and nuts. In either case be sure you use washers on BOTH sides so the bolts will not tear through the LG OR imbed regular nuts into the ply. The axles should be even with the leading edge of the main wing.

For radio gear the 6EXAS is a decent entry level 6 channel radio. These days, all the major manufacturer's radios are quality units. You may also want to investigate Polk's Tracker III

http://www.polkshobby.com/

The 6 channel radio is $180 and the 8 channel is $200. The big feature of this radio is that it is fully synthesized - NO CRYSTALS. The radio can be used on ANY channel with ANY brand of receiver (the Polk's Seeker receiver does not require crystals either ). I have a Tracker radio and love it. Service (if you need it ) is excellent - no run around or hassles and a quick turn around time. The warranty is a 5 year warranty. For the money you should check it out though.

Hope this is of some help.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

My 2 cents. ARF or kit? If you will have more than 1 plane (Is there anyone out there who has only 1 RC plane?) Why not get an ARF and learn to fly with that And while you are learning to fly and land and takeoff etc, sneak a kit into the cellar to build in the off season. Tail dragger or nose gear? Someone made the point that all trainers are nose gear for a reason. That's a good point but since landings are a very important part of flying and you are more than likely flying off grass ask yourself this question. Will you be making some rather sloppy landings? A sloppy landing with a tail wheel may involve replacing the prop or bending the main gear or replacing the nylon bolts. A sloppy landing with a nose gear involves those also, but sometimes, since the nose gear is attached to the firewall, It breaks also and sometimes the force from a rough landing is transfered back to your rudder servo. Radio? I'm not qualified to talk about any brand but Futaba. Other than some interference problems on a 1/4 scale Fokker eindecker, I have not had any problems with futaba. My first radio was a 4 channel. My next was a 6 channel. Adding recievers and servos and battery packs to a computerized 6 channel radio is not much less than buying a four channel radio.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

If we're going to be recommending these radios with synthisized frequencis, I think it's doubly, even triply important for the owner to understand frequency control! Any of you guys come out to my flying field an shoot me, or one of my flying buddies down with one of these things and their is going to heck to pay!

Truthfully, I wonder about some folk's ability to comprehend the complication of, or potential for distruction these things might cause! They scare the liven BE JEEBERS outa me! Once again the ol' Mode One is maybe being conroversial. Maybe I don't understand their operation or the safety measures built into these systems. However, I just don't see the need for them, anyway.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

Mode, you raise a valid concern. People who have these systems should not just randomly switch frequencies. Getting the correct frequency pin is critical. Polks has done something interesting to prevent shoot downs. When the transmitter is first turned on, it scans the current frequency. If it detects someone already on that frequency, it won't send a signal. Of course this doesn't prevent the owner of one of these from forgetting to get the pin, being up in the air and someone else shooting him down, but that would be his fault for not getting the pin.

RE: Equip. suggestions for a beginner.
 

The SIG LT-25 is a tail dragger kit. It has a 63 inch wing span (about the same as most 40 size ARF trainers) and is a light, strong plane. One instructor I know recommends the LT-25 (because it is a tail dragger) with an OS 40 LA. This 40 is similar in size and weight to the 25 FX but costs $25 less.

OS 25 FX weighs 8.8 ounces without muffler. It costs about $85
75.6mm distance from the backplate to drive washer
30mm width of engine neglecting engine mounting flanges
38mm distance between centers of the mounting holes

OS 40 LA weighs 9.5 ounces without muffler. It costs about $60
70.0mm distance from backplate to front of drive washer
32mm width of engine neglecting engine mounting flanges.
40.5mm distance between the centers of mounting holes.

Pretty much all current radio equipment is excellent quality. If you have the money I think a 6 channel computer radio is a good choice. Right now I have 3 planes and all can be flown with a standard 4 channel radio. Since I do have a computer transmitter, all 3 are programmed in the one transmitter. There are lots of good 6 channel choices:
Airtronics RD6000 Super
Futaba 6EXAS
Hitec Optic 6
JR 6102 ,
Polk Tracker III