rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

Clean,

Man.....your post hit me like a bolt of lightning! I had no idea that there could be such a much easier solution to learning to fly instead of having to buy 30 acres tomorrow, or,having to be a PIA buddy boxer at an RC club again.

I have spent many years building planes and 7 years ago last worked my way up to building large 20Lb planes powered with 2.1 Moki's. Never mind glo ARF's which I was never fond of, I had always cringed at the advent of all the cheap "toy" looking electrics that started flooding the market! So, I had a closed mind to electric until I followed your advice and googled that Flitetest websight. I also googled around the web and discovered the mini electric 45" wingspan Telemaster driven by a $25 motor, $8 servos, and an $18 lipo battery!! I had no clue that all the RC components could be bought that cheap! The kit is also traditional balsa and light ply build-up which I will enjoy, while I'd also convert it to 4 channel ailerons for more fun. These 45" winged 9oz telemasters fly gentle too! (as seen on you-tube).

It just never dawned on me that I can learn to fly on one of these electrics, and it would be the solution to learning to fly WITHOUT MY HAVING TO BUY 30 ACRES NEXT WEEK! LOL ......or bothering people to buddy box me. These electrics are small, quiet, and none-threatening to anybody who might see me at the other end of the local park or vacant soccer field. Most people hear the zzzzzz of an electric motor and just think it's a grown man with a toy. I still want to buy acreage, but I won't have to wait how to learn to fly until then!!

Thanks for that GREAT TIP.

ArcadeAir

This is a great thread.
I have 18 acres in western NY about 40 miles south of Buffalo. The property is all hay field minus the house and barn and the dimensions are 400ft by 18 acres (Cant remember the length exactly.. 1600 feet maybe?)
I want to start a club here, AMA rules to apply religiously. I would not be able to have this open to the public, just maybe 6 or 8 members, a small private club abiding to the AMA rules. I would limit the plane size to fit this size field.
What are your thoughts about a situation like this?

If you click on the link in my signature, you can get an birds eye view of the flying area.

on_your_six

My Feedback: (11)

If you were to fly above my land and over my cattle, you would be looking for pieces of aircraft. Your planes scare my cattle, and that costs me money. Just because my land is handy, does not make it yours to use.

jester_s1

ArcadeAir- How smooth is your actual runway surface? Every club I've seen with a dirt field has had to put considerable effort into getting out the little divots and weed clumps that will really play havoc on these little tires. It doesn't have to quite be a putting green, but it does have to be smooth enough to allow smooth takeoff and landing rolls. I would think an unaltered hay field would have lots of tractor tire marks and at least the occasional rock or hole. It's great that you want to start a club on your property, but if the runway isn't good enough it will never get going.

ArcadeAir

Yes, the runway needs work for sure but I plan on rolling it once the weather breaks, then rough cut it 2x per week. That should make it "lawn" like. I have an old Jacobson reel type mower that can be used before flying that will give a nice low finish cut I have to try these things to see how well it works.
I have also replaced the small wheels on my cub with larger ones. I have not been able to fly with the larger wheels yet; there is a good 3 feet of snow out back.

JerryEl

It depends on the land surrounding the land you look at. I live on a 3 acre site (1 wide x 3 long) but have a small lake for a backyard.
Right now I'm only flying quadcopters but have plenty of room and stay at least 100' over anyone's house and so far no complaints. With electric, should be no problem with fixed wing models either. But then again it all depends how well you get along with the neighbors. Only have two neighbors, one next door and one across the street. I invite them over and let them watch on the FPV monitor and they love it. I'm building another setup using an older 22" computer monitor with a hood and its own receiver so they don't breathe on me.

Gas powered is another story. No one likes the noise they make except modelers although many are less loud than a lawnmower on an early Sunday morning. I no longer am interested in messing with gas models. Too noisy, messy, and too much trouble. I see more and more of the older dudes switching to electric now after griping about it as not "real" model flying but more like toys even if they were hand built.

Speaking of angry neighbors...There's a video on YouTube where a guy throws rocks at a FPV quadcopter racing down the road in front of his house, then gets a baseball bat and takes a swing at it (too high and fast to hit it). Finally he sees the pilot (didn't realize it was FPV equipped) and approaches the pilot with the bat in his hand, the pilot then calls the police. He had permission to fly there by the developer and the cop didn't like the idea of the man approaching with a bat and then spent some time watching the guy fly. Only about 5-6 houses in the failed development, the pilot had a spotter, and the streets looked deserted. But still, he should of approached the guy prior to flying and ask him if it bothered him.

I think someone said you were in Texas. Don't they have subdivisions that are like 3 acres and up. There are many around here in NW Florida, especially 5 acres sites and not expensive if you don't mind someone living in a mobile home across the street. A 5 acre site out of the city should work fine

Rv7garage

My Feedback: (10)

Better yet, there are planned communities (lots with more or less acreage, your choice / budget- I remember seeing ads for a nice-looking one in TN) that are geared toward RC flight! It's like, if you buy a home here, you are required to be a model aviator. Just like the full-scale air park communities.