First Flight
 

Well, I finally got my Nexstar airborne today! And let me tell you, it flies really nice! It's been a long awaited flight. I've been wanting to do this for 20 years, since I was ten. I finally decided to take the plunge when I got my taxes back this year. I have had my plane for 2.5 months now, mostly sitting on my wall looking pretty (thanks so much to all of you who put up with my questions through the assembly...these planes don't just 'snap together' like some might expect, and the recommended assembly time is drastically reduced, especially if it is your first ARF.)

I was able to ready my OS 46AX for flight in in one tank (the needle does need to be out 3 to 4 turns, not 1.5 to 2 like is says in the manual). Then I spent a half tank of fuel optimizing the mixture to good performance (accelerating with 'virtually' no hesitation, nice and rich), then taxied around for a bit (2/3 throttle got it off the ground!) Wasn't ready for that 'solo' but I was in plenty of control, kept it straight, and cut the throttle...no harm done (whew!) Then the buddy cord showed up...

I flew with the speed flaps and the wing droops there's no good reason not to. I might not have needed them, but I can always take them off in the future. 3 flights on the buddy cord...the last one I was in control the whole time! Take off, figure eights, approach, and landing, all on my own! (I got so excited when I landed I forgot to steer a little and the tall weeds kind of helped me stop the plane though [:@] )

My instructors were impressed from the start (leaving the ground on first taxi and keeping control) and said I'm almost done training! FMS simulator has been huge. People say it doesn't teach you how to fly, but it's pretty darn close! The similarity is totally amazing. Of course it doesn't teach you any rules of thumb or safety habits though, nor does it replicate the knee chattering or panic attacks.

I really want to thank everyone on this site, for helping me with EVERYTHING from assembly to break in questions to equipment recommendations. I showed up to the field with a lot of knowledge. It definitely does not take the place of experience whatsoever, but when the instructor got to the field and saw my plane properly tethered, everything set up properly, and enough knowledge to break in my engine with only a little help (starts with ONE FLIP OF THE PROP with my chicken stick!) all I could think of is all your advice. I couldn't wait to come back here and share.

Thanks everyone! Hopefully Saturday the weather will be nice and you'll hear about my real solo!

Cheers,

Joe

RE: First Flight
 

Hey FatOrangeKat, Con gratulations. You are fullfilling a 20 yr dream. Good goin.

Oldernut

RE: First Flight
 

WELL DONE!!

And for my VERY small part, your welcome!

I too use FMS, and I believe firmly it gave me a large edge in my journey, but it don't teach you landings too good!

RE: First Flight
 

Way to go! Take your time, though. Let the experiences sink in, no shame in keeping the buddy box hooked up for a few flights. Only shame would be putting it in due to too much confidence. You WILL know when you are really ready. (Not that the knee knocking goes away too quickly...[)])

RE: First Flight
 

Congratulations. It's a cool feeling isn't it?

That's odd that you need the needle 3-4 turns out on that engine. Usually 2 is typical and can be tweaked slightly from there. If that's what it wants though then that's what it wants. I wouldn't call the engine broken in after 1 tank. The OS's are good and don't require a lot of complicate break in but it will get even better over the next few flights and probably require a little more mixture adjustment after that.

It sounds like you have a knack for flying but don't get too confident right off the bat. I don't mean that to be discouraging or negative in any way. It's just that you will have some bad days flying and learning doesn't happen overnight. A lot of us have had a great experience the first couple trips to the field only to have the plane teach us a lesson the next time out. If and when that happens, don't get discouraged. Just analyze the problem, decide how to avoid it next time and keep at it. The simulator is great tool for learning basics and not to over-control the plane. The goal is to learn to fly the real thing though, not master a simulator. I only say that because I see to many people who get overconfident on a simulator and put their actual plane into the ground.

You know what is going to happen now don't you? You will rationalize a way to buy every plane and engine you see. There will be a garage full before you know it just like the rest of us addicts.

RE: First Flight
 

This will be a real problem for me; I dont have a garage!! (Yes honey I really do need that airplane, it will look EXCELLENT hanging next to the other ones in our bedroom)

(Actually my one bird hangs in my office, but i can see this scenario LOL)

RE: First Flight
 

Ha ha! Mine hangs on the wall in my bedroom! Moving to a new apartment next month, so it will be making it's way to the office (right now my bedroom is my office and my living room!) I can fit one more plane on the rack without taking up too much more space, so believe me, I'm looking!

They look so much different in real life from the pics on the websites!

RE: First Flight
 

Way to go Joe!

RE: First Flight
 

Glad to hear you got her up, Good for you. :D

RE: First Flight
 

I'm not suggesting that this is the case at all, but sometimes people confuse 1/2 a turn with a whole turn on the needle valve.
Anyway, as long as your engine is tuned good, that's all that matters. Remember, from day to day it may require small adjustments as the air density changes with the weather.
Good luck on your journey to solo!

RE: First Flight
 

That's awesome dude! Congrats!:)

RE: First Flight
 

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
I will save myself some hunting and pecking and second exactly what ChuckW said here. The Nexstar with the OS is a really nice setup. Have fun, and let us know when you solo!

RE: First Flight
 

I hear what you guys are saying. I'm sure there may have been some beginner's luck involved, and I'm sure I will have some tough flights/landings coming up. The only thing I really feel confident about is not being afraid to throttle up and go around if an approach doesn't feel right. We spent the whole second flight 'shooting approaches', and I didn't need to be told to try again too often. And the simulator has been great in teaching orientation, and how to correct a stall up in the air. Also, it taught me to not over-correct something, i.e. not to crank on the stick for an adjustment. Landing on the sim is similar, but different, and RCKen gave some good advice in telling me not to practice landing too much on the simulator to avoid learning bad habits. I'll be flying again tomorrow, and I'm really in no hurry to get off the cord. When I'm ready, I'm ready, whether it's tomorrow, next week, or next month. And I am looking for a second plane, and now I even have a third in the back of my head! RCKen was right about this too; you can't really know what you want until you start flying. I thought I wanted a scale plane with flaps and retracts, and I still do, but now I want something that's sporty and flies with authority (any recommendations for a higher-end, sporty plane that's still good for a second plane???:))

Well, it's a really cool feeling to know that I finally got my plane flying; it's a feeling I don't think anyone else (except other RC fliers) will ever understand, but that's ok! I really can't wait to do it again.

Thanks guys!

RE: First Flight
 

Good point, I've flown a lot of different plans thinking I would like them but it doesn't always work out that way. I sometimes end up throwing them in the rafters or selling to someone else. For instance, I always thought 3D looked cool. I built a Fun Fly Hots, bought a H-9 Twist and even got an Edge-540 profile for some serious 3D stuff. It was neat for a while but it got old. I found that I liked the "locked in" feeling of a plane at high speed or inverted a few feet off the deck. I discovered I was more of a sport flyer. I also like warbirds and I'm building a TF P-47. I'm not sure if I want to get serious about all the scale detail like some guys do though so we'll see where that goes.

I hear the Goldberg Tiger is a good second plane but performs pretty well too. I'm way beyond plane #2 now but I just ordered a Tiger-2 kit so I can have another basic sport plane around. The GP Rapture is good as is the Sig 4-Star. I've never flown a H-9 Pulse-XT but hear it is an excellent airplane too. The World Models Sky Raider Mach-2 isn't much to look at but it flys excellent. Another option is a Stik of some sort. The Super Sportsters are great airplanes too but probably for plane #3 in my opinion. I had the .40 size ARF and currently fly a kit built .60 size. Other third plane options might be the Kaos, Ultra-Sport, World Models Rambler and a whole bunch of other stuff (too many to mention).

I almost forgot about the Parkzone T-28. I know it's electric, I know it's small and I know it's foam. I would have never believed I would recommend a plane like that but it really does fly nice and is a lot of fun. Great, inexpensive second plane material or as an addition to your hangar any time.