flying in the winter
 

For those of you who live in areas where it gets cold/snowy from november to the end of feb (sometimes longer!!), do you fly? it is ok to fly if it isnt raining (cold rain of course) or if it isnt too windy? Is flying in snow ok, as long as it isnt to deep or heavy? Also, what modifications must be made to the landing gear? Just curious as winter is approaching quickly here in ohio.

RE: flying in the winter
 

yes it's ok to fly in the winter, you'll have more problems with the cold than your plane. as for landing grear, with snow on the ground you should get some snow skees.

RE: flying in the winter
 

Yeah, people fly all the time in the winter/snow. Depending on the softness of the snow you may need some skis on your plane to take off and land but no problem. If it get pretty cold where you live you may need to use some lighter fluid to get your plane to start easier.

RE: flying in the winter
 

If it gets real bad out you can always resort back to you simulator, it not the same but at least your flying.
NEDYOB

RE: flying in the winter
 

Another possibility in the winter is seaplanes. They takeoff and land very well relatively smooth snow.

If you fly electric, just be sure to keep your batteries warm; either by insulating them or blocking holes within the fuselage that are used to deliver cooling airflow during warmer months.

RE: flying in the winter
 

This site has some good info for you [link=http://www.stenulson.net/rcflight/skikits.htm]Snow skis[/link]

RE: flying in the winter
 

As the temperature drops, you'll have to watch your batteries for the TX and RX very closely as they don't last as long.

Hogflyer

RE: flying in the winter
 

As others said, buy some skis, or we make some with plastic sheeting, teflon, fridge backing etc. Some of our favorite flying is on frozen lakes over here.
One issue is cold hands, there are special mitts sold that cover both of your two hands and the radio. Personally I find them a bit inconvenient, I prefer to use fleece or knit gloves, and on colder days ski gloves with a little hole in each thumb so that the stick pokes inside.

Needless to say, if it gets really cold, invest wisely in good boots, parka and skidoo pants! Another tip we wear ski goggles to keep the face warm and act as sunglasses.

We do fly when it snows, but if it snows a lot watchout you can lose sight of the plane. We used to fly in snow or rain but it's probably not great for the transmitter.

Have fun :)

RE: flying in the winter
 

Try to play in the snow every winter. Take the tires off and install skies.

RE: flying in the winter
 

I have found floats to work better than skis, especially in powdery snow. I still use skis, but find floats much more forgiving.

RE: flying in the winter
 

I have only used skiis with my larger planes and powder belly landings for my 1/2A stuff. I would not recommend flying with floats from bare ice as it is very abrasive, but snow should be fine.

As mentioned, cold hands is the biggest concern. Buy or make a transmitter mit. (a big square insulated cover that fits over your transmitter) Trying to use even fingerless gloves is awkward and flying in gloves is madness. My best friend is the little glove and boot warmers that heat up when you expose them to air. They put out a lot of heat for over an hour and make it much more enjoyable.

Also too, remember to reset your carb to the colder (denser) air or the engine will run lean.

I have also noticed that wings seem to generate surprisingly more lift than in the dog days of summer.

To me flying in the winter is a necessity since it is a good portion of the year!

RE: flying in the winter
 

For a decent yet cheap set of skis try the spad forum... or for a tough winter plane too:D

RE: flying in the winter
 

Come on guys. Jeech, Summer is still here, even though we're past Labor Day. Do we really need to talk about snow? ;)

Ok.. ok..:( I will conform.:eek: :D

I bought a set of ski's to put on my Tiger 60 a few years ago and we didn't really have enough snow to fly the plane on, or when we did, the field was inaccessable.. so by the time we could drive up to the field, the snow was gone.

Maybe this year. After all, global warming... :eek: [sm=bananahead.gif]