new to rc planes!
 

hi im new tot the rc air plane scene, ive seen them since ive been smaller and was really interested, im only 15 and wanted to start flying planes, but have no clue about them. I do race rc cars i have nitro I know how to tune them and maintain them just dont know the differnce in much wen it comes to planes.

Can anyone give me some ideas and tips, please!

RE: new to rc planes!
 

This site has some good reading for those wanting good information in regards to what it takes, and the process of learning to fly. You can also find alot of good reading here in the beginners forum on RCU.
http://www.masportaviator.com/index.asp

RE: new to rc planes!
 

UH...

Tips: Join a club, get an instructor and buy NOTHING without his/her advice. You will find your car experience is largely useless when it comes to glow planes, but the familiarity with steering toward yourself will help, along with engine basics.

Planes are MUCH more fun and much more challenging than rc cars. Within a year, you will sell all of your car stuff and buy a 50cc edge or extra and be looking into trailers for your 40% ambitions.

Welcome to the end of 'free-time' and 'disposable-income' as you know them.

RE: new to rc planes!
 

I also forgot to mention that I have used rc planes simulators and i was able to steer, fly, land and take off perfectly every time, dont know how much simulators help but just wanted to say that.

RE: new to rc planes!
 

They help, but trust me/us...they do not help enough.

With a simulator, you miss the unusual experience of 'making diamonds' while you fly your first solo. There is no space-bar and sims are um..simulations. Planes do not fly that way, not even close IMHO.

Do yourself a favor and get an experienced person to help you before you spend any money. Trust me, you will spend plenty on this hobby in the next few years so start slowly. HAVE FUN!!!

RE: new to rc planes!
 

I was like you.....raced cars both gas and electric. Then went to airplanes.

Get an instructor! I had one and soloed on the first day, but he still had lots to teach me for the next month. You'll find the coming at you part easy but the inverted part gets most people (even advanced fliers screw it up once in awhile).

You'll also find smaller airplanes are cheaper than cars. When I raced it was 20-50 bucks every week of racing in fuel/parts/tires entry fees etc.

With planes (if you don't crash) its only fuel. But I think you'll find that once you get comfortable flying that IMAC or pattern may be for you if you were racing cars.

I found them and love the competition and its helped my flying out alot

RE: new to rc planes!
 

i wish i could choose between cars and planes like that. I thought when i got into planes i wouldn't want to run the cars anymore, thing is though, if the weather isn't favourable for flying more often than not it's perfectly good for some land based fun. All this was of course a number of years ago now, and i will admit my plane collection is expanding faster than my car collection [:-]


Anyway, pretty much as above, Your knowledge will help with radio installation, and to a small extent the tuning too as with planes you go WOT tweak the needle for max RPM then back it off a bit, sooo much easier than with cars. Your experience with cars will give you a slight advantage when flying towards you too but it wont help much for the general flying :)


The sims are pretty fun, but once you at the field with a couple of hundred quids worth of parts strapped to few thin bits of balsa and ply it's a whole other story :D unless of course you one of these new fliers who seem to know no fear [X(] hehe ;)



Bottom line, find a club, go for a visit and take it from there [8D]

RE: new to rc planes!
 

I agree with ICE.

I went out and bought a plane,radio, and a few other things. I went to the fied and low and behold, I need an AMA card, club membership. I just jumped in to quickly. I should have asked an instructor what to buy and what steeps to take. It whould have saved a lot of time and headache.

Just my opinion