Jumped In The Deep End!
 

G'day all,

I am a new to the hobby, i have been flying now for around 3 month i have an excel 2000 that i throw around in the air loops snaps stalls and so on, i picked it up quick because i found that the RealFlight G3 helped in speeding things up to an extent i was solo flying within 5 lessons i have a no fear atitude i figure if i crash then i will learn from it, i have a bad habit of flying around 2-3 feet off the ground, its something i need to break because its going to get me in trouble one day, my instructor keeps saying to me height is your friend how true it is (plenty of recovery time) just not for me hahaha, not to worry like i said i need to break this habit of mine.

Now here is where i "jumped in the deep end" i need some advice as my instructor has gone away for awhile i got my second plane, i am getting very bored with the excel 2000 trainer so my second plane i got is a SUKHOI SU31 hehe yep for my second plane! i hear alot of you saying im insane but ill say this, i am only building the SUKHOI SU31 (Black Horse ARF) NOT flying it on my own just yet i will have my instructor do that for me take off and land throw it around abit see what it can do then hand the controls to me so i can get a feel for it not take off or land not for awhile atleast, Now throwing it all together i have come across a problem with mounting the engine, how do i find centre? the manual only shows me what it will look like when it is mounted and not how to get it to that stage and help on this would be great its the only thing stoping me from finishing off the SUKOI SU31, i looked around at afew websites and they said the motor has a templet to mount the engine but mine does not the recomended engine for the plane is a 46, when i got my trainer i was given a MDS .48 so ill just use that motor.

Cheers guys Thankyou for reading any advice would be great and tips ta boot, take care and happy flying!

RE: Jumped In The Deep End!
 

I cant help with the engine prob, but I can tell you that it makes it much easier to read your posts if you use better sentance structure and peredos and other punctuation than just commas.
Karter

RE: Jumped In The Deep End!
 

This hobby is known for rewarding those who "jump into the deep end" by "drowning" them.

You said it yourself: a Sukhoi is not a good second plane. It is too advanced for a beginner's 2nd plane for more reasons that just its flying characteristics. As you have found out yourself, the instructions are not as in-depth and laid out as beginner's/training planes. Your Sukhoi is not designed for someone new to the hobby; it demands a level of skill that only comes with experience. In your case, it doesnt state how to mount the engine or the center, but it leaves it to the builder, which the instructions assume has had previous experience with. In other words, you have to collect skills as you progress in the hobby. You can simply get a "hot-stuff" plane and ask for help from people online. You need to learn either from experience with planes that are designed to teach a beginner, or learn from someone in person who is more experienced that you, i.e. your instructor. You need to build your way up to these planes! You cant just take a big leap and expect everything to go smoothly.

Let's not even go into how its not a good 2nd plane flying-wise....

Please, for your own sake, your money's sake, a most importantly the planes sake, put it away for now. You need more experience. And the truth of the matter is that, no matter how many times you tell yourself you'll be responsible and not fly it when its finished and that you'll wait until you have more flying time, the temptation of flying a ready-to-fly plane is too great, and you'll undoubtately fly it before your flying skills are up to par. Leave it unfinished, and get a 2nd and 3rd plane, like a Sig 4-Star or Sig Somethin' Extra. You'll have a better chance of succeeding in the end, and less likelihood of messing up.

RE: Jumped In The Deep End!
 

I definitely don't want to dampen your enthusiasm, but I do have to agree with Spitfire here. There is more to and advanced plane that having the ability to fly it. Just like you improve your flying skills by moving up increasingly more advanced planes, you also improve your building skills by working on different planes as you advance. A lot of times on more advanced planes they will assume that you know how to certain things (like locating the center of the firewall for your motor mount). My advice here would be one of two different things. First, put the Sukhoi aside until you get some more experience in both flying and assembling. Second, if you must do the Sukhoi next you may want to find somebody locally that can show you how to properly set up the plane. I know that this isn't the advice that you wanted to hear, but sometimes it's the best advice to give in cases like this. I would much rather see you have great success with this plane being flown later on down the road than see it turn into a pile of splinters in the very near future.

Hope this helps

Ken

RE: Jumped In The Deep End!
 

Cheers & thanks for replies,

I'm going to get a low wing trainer maybe even a scanner, if you have any others that you would recomend leave a link and ill check them out.

i have been flying almost 3 months as you know.....i fly just about every day and i love it more than anything else the weather here has been great but alittle hot at times.


Please please keep the helpful info (tips) coming,

Cheers and happy flying.

Paul :)

RE: Jumped In The Deep End!
 

Paul,

I think you'll be happy to know that many 2nd planes that people here recommend are surprisingly aerobatic. :D While they may not be as flashy and cool looking as the Sukhoi, they will teach a lot. Of course, people on online forums cant judge your flying/building ability directly, but if you work hard enough for it, that Sukhoi will probably be your 3rd plane. [sm=thumbup.gif] [8D]