RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Your going to have to be better than that to get points

COOL MAN COOL, See now this how you get points;):D:D:D

May I POINT out I did not start this MESS:eek:

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

tenacious, you have expressed your opinion as I have in the previous post. All's right with the world. Now let's have a group hug.:)

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Sounds like he is ready to build his own!! Go for it!! You'll learn and enjoy a part of this hobby that few have the time, skill, or desire to do. Just like it states above...someone will ask you "Who's kit is that?" That alone is worth the time and effort it takes to build your own.

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

I sure hope so. I'm tired of going to the flying field, and here comes someone with his new ARF, and he's asking me how I like it......... I try to be nice, but Lordy, it's hard not to tell him how much I don't like it, or any of the other 95 that are just like it. How do they tell which on is theirs?

Bill, AMA 4720

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Our field, mostly trainers. There are a few of us that don't fly trainers. One guy and his son bring some really nice WW II aircraft, both german and US. Its like watching a WW II movie.
For me, I fly just about anything. Just finished converting a Gee Bee .25 size over to electric. No one that I've seen at our field and the fun fly's I"ve been to has had a Gee Bee.
Also no one in our club has brought a jet to the field. Not even the smallish 16 oz. types. I also completed an F-22 Raptor. Not big and its all foam but it does have twin fans and motors.
I don't own a cub. Simply because everyone has a cub. Do have a Taylorcraft though so it sorta does blend into the family.
I don't really pay attention to helis much. Not my bag. All the guys that fly helis do the same aerobatics. Good for them but I could care less.

Lucky...

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Whether this was a troll or not, you have to understand that those folks are not buying and flying for your benefit. They are buying and flying what they can afford and enjoy. If it doesn't thrill you, oh well. They are enjoying it it or they'd quit doing it. At my field, and it is not a large membership, I have seen everything from the old 10 cent balsa gliders that he has put tiny electric pusher motors on and flies around in about a 30-40 foot circle and enjoys the hell out of doing to 1/2 scale multi thousand dollar models turning huge props on gigantic gas engines. Never boring at this field. And in between flights, we sit and tell each other lies that would entertain anyone. You're at the wrong field;).

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

i guess after those pics, you redeemed yourself ....lol[X(]

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

I wondered if anybody else seen that sprinkler. That sure would ruin Sir Live Wire's day !! I hate to even think about something like that happening ..

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

We have a combination of 'cookie cutter' and 'original.' Most of our planes are pretty small. A few have gas engines up to a G38 or G45 class but most are 120 size and smaller. Most of us do not have models with retracts.

We rarely have anyone flying a heli so they always seem 'new' when we see one.

I have kits and ARFs. I like flying my ARFs, and have fun doing it, but there is not the feeling of accomplishment that I get when I fly one of the planes I built.

I am not really interested in having detailed scale models. I like seeing them but I do not want them.

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

My yard:eek:
I can grow what I want. The grass is fake I don't like real grass[:@]

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Hey, Live Wire, what is that white bipe in the foreground? Beautiful.

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

JollyPopper,

I can answer that one for you![8D][8D] It's a WACO, either a YMF or a UMF. It's probably a UMF, since the kit that it's from was mis-labeled, as a YMF, but used the cowl from the Continental engine. It's okay though, because you can now order the correct YMF cowl from Stan's Fibertech.

Bill Waco Brother #1

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Hey Bug,

I agree with the meaning of your post in that there seems to be a lot of identical planes on the field these days. Here's what I think happens...

A guy (or girl) meets someone who is into R/C and before long, he or she becomes interested in the hobby and wants to give it a try. So the friend suggests that they buy a cheap RTF (or even an ARF/radio combo) so that the newbie can see if this will be a lifelong interest or just a passing fad without having to invest a lot of money or time to find out. So far so good.

The newbie has a really good time flying the cheapie and eventually wants to move up to something better. So they buy a bigger ARF and continue to have fun boring holes in the sky. Eventually, someone suggests that they try building a kit. So the newbie buys one (and I don't know if you've taken much notice in kit prices these days but the non-junk ones aren't cheap) and after shelling out a good percentage of their paycheck for a kit, engine, wheels, covering materials (and all of the other supplies and tools the guy at the hobby shop can talk the newbie into buying), the newbie takes the stuff home all excited to be embarking on a new facet of this great hobby.

The newbie opens the box on the kitchen table and is immediately hit with a lack of confidence in their ability to turn the bewildering mass of balsa into something that might eventually look like the picture on the box. Uh oh, not a good sign. "But the guy at the hobby shop PROMISED me that this is going to be easy!" Well, the newbie spends the first evening cutting balsa into the wrong lengths, occasionally cutting his fingertips and gluing the balsa AND his fingertips into something that doesn't even come close to anything in the color picture on the box. After a couple of hours of this, the newbie says "Screw This!", slides the box under the bed and buys one of the fancy PREBUILT Yaks, Extras, or Stiks. And because of the bad memory of that night at the kitchen table, this person will probably forever show up at the field with the ubiquitious Yak, Extra, or Stik ARF.

How did this happen? Well, maybe it was the kit manufacturer's fault by labling the kit as great for beginners even though it didn't include instructions clearly written with a beginner in mind. Maybe the hobby shop (or discount store) guy was to blame for talking the beginner into buying an expensive and complicated kit all for the sake of making a big sale. Maybe it was the "someone who suggested that the newbie try a kit" who pointed the newbie towards the hobby shop, even though that someone had no desire or time to teach the newbie how to build. (Maybe all of us builders on RCU, who insist that building is the ultimate R/C satisfaction, also contribute to that problem?)

Anyway, the above may be just my own opinion but it is also a fact that building from kits or scratch just doesn''t appeal to everyone. And for those, ARFs and RTFs are their only way to fly R/C. And I guess that's still a good thing.

Harvey
(A builder)

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Harvey, I have to agree with you wholeheartedly, the hobby can be a victim of many of the situations you stated. Anyone that has built a kit and especially if you bash it trying to make it a bit nicer by adding details and more scale parts, often the kit is the cheap part of the process. I was at a local hobby shop wanting some #4 X 1/2 inch screws. I needed 28 of them. I found a pack of four of them for only $3 and some change, that would have been $24 for enough screws to hold the heavy duty Control horns on my plane. I wondered why a hobby shop would sell them like this, but not in larger quantities that a hobbyst would need. Maybe there is not enough profit margin for them to mess with quantities of screws? I have heard many hobby shop owners goiding people in the direction that is not in the best interest of someone trying to get into the hobby. The term ARF is such a joke, maybe NRARF (NRARF) would be more accurate, at least we could trust what was printed on the boxes. Thank goodness that RCU is here so people can learn the hobby from the people that would like people to enjoy and succeed in the hobby instead of profit from it. Add the time required for most kits to be built, it is no surprise that ARFs are so popular.
Its like cars, there are only so many manufacturers, pick one and drive it. At best add some trim, wheels and some paint, otherwise its the same most people drive. Even in cars I enjoy variety, if you want to be different, make it yourself.
The world is changing, not many people build their own cars or planes any more. Thanks to all that take the time to build the airplanes, cars and other works of art we can all enjoy.
Denny

PS I enjoy kit built unique planes the most, even my RC plane hauler is kinda a custom built .

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Hi fella's.  To carellh...I started out in this hobby back around 1986.  I was in the Northlake RC club at .....of course, Northlake.  It is in Irving TX, in sight of Texas stadium.  I apublic park with tons of members.  It had, if I recall correctly a 650 ft long, 75 ft wide paved runway and excellent facilities for pilots and spectators.  I know its a little of a drive from Garland.  But not that much really on the expressway.  Ever check it out?  There are so many planes there that the odds are you will see something unique fairly often.  That is assuming of course that the city hasnt changed everything.  
As to the original posters comments, it is cool to see something unique.  But since I had a layoff from this hobby for many years, I am basically still a beginner.  I also fly off grass at my local club here in Alabama now and it is very rural.  It will be a couple of years before I get up to Scale caliber again.  And I definatly want something other than cookie cutter.  My mom is full blodded German and I had Uncles in the German army and nave during the war.  No fliers.  But because of my heritage I want to build a German WWII and II warbird.  I do not see any of those at my field so I will be kinda unique when I do show up with one.  But my reason for building one of those is just because They are interesting A/C to me personally.  I cannot explain the reasoning behind everyones apperant desire to fly the same models at fiels after field.  But just seeing how popular ARF's are, I would guess that there are just not that many  builders out there these days.  Building is what I dig about this hobby the most.  But I seem to be in the minority.  I would bet that the ARF manufacturers stock the shelves with models that cost them the least to produce.  Mass production and all that.  Profits are king.  It is just not profitable to produce 12 differant airframes when you can sell as many by only producing 6.  The choices available probably lend to the problem you see.  Just my guess of course.  I could be full of dodo.   

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Love the Studebaker Street Machine truck.

Bill, Waco Brother #1

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

thanks Bill, its my favorite thing to drive, I have a hitch on it and it does a great job hauling my planes around. But I do I do have to admit, I own one of those ARF Chrysler Sebrings, just like ARF planes, it is good for just driving day to day but not my favorite by far.
Denny

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

This one is easy...

To the author of this thread...no one, and I mean "no one" builds and or flies for "your" enjoyment. Like me, we do it for ourselves.

That said, if "you" are bored, go find something else to do and let the rest of us have our fun... :D

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

I guess this is boring also???

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

Smacka,

I don't think the OP was condemning anyone for flying common ARFs. It seems to me that he was simply stating what he saw a lot of at the field. Just how many times can someone get excited over seeing YET ANOTHER Great Planes or Hangar 9 ARF in the exact same color scheme as the last 2000 that they saw?

I can appreciate the OP's sentiment; not only at the flying field but also in the hobby shops and in the catalogs. Walk into any hobby shop these days and you'll see shelves full of the same ARFs and RTFs of the same planes and in the same colors as in the other hobby shops. A hobby shop in Dallas sells the same ARFs of the same planes in the same colors as one in Milwaukee, and one in Sacramento, and one in... well, you get my point. I do a lot of travelling for my job and the first thing I used to do each time I checked into the motel was to check the phone book for hobby shops to visit while I was in town. That was until it finally occured to me that I was not seeing anything different in those shops that I visited. All the products on all of the shelves in all of the hobby shops look alike these days. Did I see good products, yes, but was my visit ultimately boring? Absolutely!

Stevenmax50 brought up a good point in that ARF manufacturers are only going to produce products that sell and hobby shops are only going to stock products that produce an income. That's Business 101 and cannot be argued. Nonetheless, it can still result in a boring walk down an R/C flightline sometimes.

Harvey

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

The manufactures make what we buy !!

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

here is my boring plane.. yet to fly as now installing os 91fx on it.
os 65 were to small..

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

I didn't say anything about everyone at the field should build for my enjoyment, some of you need to get that knot out of your panties and take a chill pill or something..I'm merely stating that there seems to be a lack of variety..I don't care what ya fly but variety is the spice of life as they say, try a FW-190 or a Cesna kit..break away from the pack..: )

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

This hobby is kind of like being in a dog sled team. If you ain't the lead dog, the scenery never changes! :D

Biggest problem with most who are in the Sport today, they have not a clue how to build, or even have a desire to do so. They will fix the blame for that on everything from the kids being involved in sports, to their job. It's like we (those who have always built) didn't have kids, or jobs. It's all about being dedicated enough, or disciplined enough.

Bill, Waco Brother #1

RE: All I see is boring planes and boring helicopters
 

That's only partially true. The manufacturers introduce products that they hope we'll buy. If we like the products, we buy them. The manufacturers will then continue to produce them as long as we continue to buy them.

Therefore, it can be argued that while the manufacturers may start the market, it's the consumer who ultimately determines whether the product will die immediately, fluorish ad nauseum, or lie somewhere in between.

Can't blame the manufacturers for what we buy!

Harvey