Team_Monkey
New member
OK so it's not a flying event but where else was I supposed to put this? 
I read on another "live" thread that they thought attendance was down. I don't know, I've been attending the show for years and I felt the main show floor felt just as full as usual Saturday but the second floor swap shop was noticeably vacant. Less of the small internet re-sellers showed up. I don't know if that's because folks are more comfortable buying things over the web now or if those small re-sellers are out of business.
I ran into the FliteTest guys again and spent a few minutes talking with Chad. I had met most of the guys at NEF so I didn't feel like too much of a troll saying hello. LOL They are really down to earth guys that haven't let their fame get to their heads. Heck, I had to tap Alex a few times just to launch my EDF at NEF and he was cool about it. I also noticed SleepyC from Flying Giants walking around but didn't want to be "that guy"... "Hi I'm a forum troll that recognizes you...". I had never met him before and needed to keep my boys moving at that point.
I spent a good amount of time talking with the guys from RedwingRC. They took the time to learn what style of gasser noob flying I was planning before recommending an airframe. I have plenty of RC experience but only a little experience with gasser planes of 72"+. I need a new mower for the runway this year but next year it looks like a 50cc MXSR red deal should be in my future. :applause:
Don't rant all over this thread, but radios were my thing to investigate this year. There are plenty of radio threads to continue those rants. The aileron pot on my trusty Futaba 8U (converted to 2.4) is starting to go bad so it's time to upgrade. With their established hardware, and my proclivity to keep radios a looooong time, I'm drawn to stay with Futaba. I didn't realize they were phasing out the 8FG so it looks like a 14SG might fit the bill. All manufacturers had radios to hold and reps to speak with, it was ideal for window shopping. Spektrum, JR, Hitec, I think I saw them all and talked to most. The radio absent was Taranis. The only one there was a display model used by ReadyMadeRC to hold an FPV screen. I know they have a devoted following but I'd feel better seeing more direct manufacturer support and presence at events. I'm an engineer, I want to talk to factory people that know a product inside and out.
ReadyMadeRC had a sweet setup with all the FatShark goggles on mannequin heads with a feed from a plane up in the rafters. I currently have a Teleporter set and have been thinking of an Attitude set. After seeing them in person I can tell you there is a pretty decent jump in picture quality and size moving up to the Attitude set. The Teleporter isn't a bad set, it's just lower picture quality.
I was talking with the reps at the RCGF engine booth and mentioned that a friend really likes his 56cc engine. Before I left they gave me an on board tach display! (The link is for a DLE unit but they look the same.) It makes me wish I had one of their engines, but it should work fine on my DLE 30.
Prices were on par with what you'd find as a "decent deal" online. Nothing earth shattering but good deals could be found. There were tons of foamies in kit form and plenty of RTF E-Flite type "plane in a box" for sale. There were also a bunch of "stores" there that I see at almost every event. These are folks I've purchased from and keep in my favorites folder. Lukes RC, West Michigan Park Flyers and Lazer Toys. It seemed like almost every booth was selling the little Estes Proto X quads. There were tons of other heli's, quads, toys, etc... But since I'm pretty much a fan of anything RC, it was all good eye candy for my boys and I. Of course I bought a Proto, a little bit of a bribe for my boys but also for us to have another indoor quad to play together. It does fly really well and is teaching my 10 yr. old better throttle control. A couple servos, tools and tires were all I picked up this year for myself.
I didn't take pictures of many vendor booths but the heads up LED display and instruments from iflytailies were too cool. I didn't realize I only caught one active in my pic.
The Foam Casualty 3D CNC machine was really sweet too.
Most of my pics were of the private models, stuff you can't find on a web page somewhere. Once in the folder feel free to look around at the other show pics. No sense bodging up the thread with my pics.
If you can make it next year it is definitely worth it. There are many sales booths to set you up with radios, chargers, motors, props, servos, hardware, etc... if you need supplies. There are also many booths showing off the latest and greatest in most every facet of Radio Control if you just want to window shop a bit. Like me, I'm sure you'll run into many friends too.
I read on another "live" thread that they thought attendance was down. I don't know, I've been attending the show for years and I felt the main show floor felt just as full as usual Saturday but the second floor swap shop was noticeably vacant. Less of the small internet re-sellers showed up. I don't know if that's because folks are more comfortable buying things over the web now or if those small re-sellers are out of business.
I ran into the FliteTest guys again and spent a few minutes talking with Chad. I had met most of the guys at NEF so I didn't feel like too much of a troll saying hello. LOL They are really down to earth guys that haven't let their fame get to their heads.
Heck, I had to tap Alex a few times just to launch my EDF at NEF and he was cool about it. I also noticed SleepyC from Flying Giants walking around but didn't want to be "that guy"... "Hi I'm a forum troll that recognizes you...". I had never met him before and needed to keep my boys moving at that point. I spent a good amount of time talking with the guys from RedwingRC. They took the time to learn what style of gasser noob flying I was planning before recommending an airframe. I have plenty of RC experience but only a little experience with gasser planes of 72"+. I need a new mower for the runway this year but next year it looks like a 50cc MXSR red deal should be in my future. :applause:
Don't rant all over this thread, but radios were my thing to investigate this year. There are plenty of radio threads to continue those rants.
The aileron pot on my trusty Futaba 8U (converted to 2.4) is starting to go bad so it's time to upgrade. With their established hardware, and my proclivity to keep radios a looooong time, I'm drawn to stay with Futaba. I didn't realize they were phasing out the 8FG so it looks like a 14SG might fit the bill. All manufacturers had radios to hold and reps to speak with, it was ideal for window shopping. Spektrum, JR, Hitec, I think I saw them all and talked to most. The radio absent was Taranis. The only one there was a display model used by ReadyMadeRC to hold an FPV screen. I know they have a devoted following but I'd feel better seeing more direct manufacturer support and presence at events. I'm an engineer, I want to talk to factory people that know a product inside and out.ReadyMadeRC had a sweet setup with all the FatShark goggles on mannequin heads with a feed from a plane up in the rafters. I currently have a Teleporter set and have been thinking of an Attitude set. After seeing them in person I can tell you there is a pretty decent jump in picture quality and size moving up to the Attitude set. The Teleporter isn't a bad set, it's just lower picture quality.
I was talking with the reps at the RCGF engine booth and mentioned that a friend really likes his 56cc engine. Before I left they gave me an on board tach display! (The link is for a DLE unit but they look the same.) It makes me wish I had one of their engines, but it should work fine on my DLE 30.
Prices were on par with what you'd find as a "decent deal" online. Nothing earth shattering but good deals could be found. There were tons of foamies in kit form and plenty of RTF E-Flite type "plane in a box" for sale. There were also a bunch of "stores" there that I see at almost every event. These are folks I've purchased from and keep in my favorites folder. Lukes RC, West Michigan Park Flyers and Lazer Toys. It seemed like almost every booth was selling the little Estes Proto X quads. There were tons of other heli's, quads, toys, etc... But since I'm pretty much a fan of anything RC, it was all good eye candy for my boys and I. Of course I bought a Proto, a little bit of a bribe for my boys but also for us to have another indoor quad to play together. It does fly really well and is teaching my 10 yr. old better throttle control. A couple servos, tools and tires were all I picked up this year for myself.
I didn't take pictures of many vendor booths but the heads up LED display and instruments from iflytailies were too cool. I didn't realize I only caught one active in my pic.
The Foam Casualty 3D CNC machine was really sweet too.
Most of my pics were of the private models, stuff you can't find on a web page somewhere. Once in the folder feel free to look around at the other show pics. No sense bodging up the thread with my pics.
If you can make it next year it is definitely worth it. There are many sales booths to set you up with radios, chargers, motors, props, servos, hardware, etc... if you need supplies. There are also many booths showing off the latest and greatest in most every facet of Radio Control if you just want to window shop a bit. Like me, I'm sure you'll run into many friends too.
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