choosing the right swappable for me.

[nawoj]

So as of a few weeks ago RC flight wasn't even on my radar. I somehow stumbled across a flite test episode (one of the multi rotor episodes) and got hooked. ive always thought multicopters were neat from a robotics aspect, but never really thought of them as a RC platform (like i said, RC flight wasnt even on my radar). so when i saw that a mutlicopter could be had for a fraction of what i assumed, and built in such a way that crashing wouldnt be devastating, i got EXCITED.

now im still not quite ready financially to go out and drop money on a radio and lipos and chargers and the initial investment for the (semi) durable goods required, but i want to get started building.

and if im gonna (eventually) buy a radio for multicopters, i might as well learn fixed wing flight at the same time right?

so im looking at these swappables, and the spitfire is such a cool looking plane... as is the cruiser... delta wings? yes please! and who wouldn't want a baby blender?

now i know these planes are not "total noob, never touched a rc plane before" friendly. but i'm not really that excited about the FT flyer, or the nutball for that matter.

so i am here asking, would something like the old fogey or the old speedster be a plane i could build and have a quality first time experience with? or should i really start with the flyer?

 

[checker]

I just started flying last year but I have MY OPINIONS from one noob to another: The FT-Flyer is easy to fly easy to repair but I went through alot of props and 2 motors before I was actually flying. I would recommend a pusher plane for financial reasons. Problems with that are- the best FT pusher is the versa-wing (again my opinion) and you need a good radio that will do elevon mixing (at least the DX6 ) but I think it has to be programed from your computer to do this, therefor I got the DX9 because it has a programming screen built in. Now I did manage to to fly a delta and an F-22 using a 4 channel but I had to mix my elevons mechanically on the plane https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFY90eJiIeo That being said these are all "bank and yank" planes for some reason I find it more difficult to fly with a rudder. This is what makes the swappables so cool you can build 3-4 of them and fly them all in one day so you can decide for yourself ,and if you have the luxury of a smooth landing surface and not learning to fly like this http://flitetest.com/articles/beginner-series-launching-and-landing could have saved me some props. Hope this helps I'm sure I have the first of many opinions, there are so many nice experienced people on this forum I'm sure you will succeed

 

[Craftydan]

Nawoj,

Welcome to the forum!

first of all, the sim route is an excellent way to save airframes, and in some cases won't cost much more than the radio. I will say while it's *like* flying, you'll quickly discover it's nowhere near the same rush of a successful flight (success being a relative term).

If you haven't heard it yet, best beginner advice is if you're gonna stick with this, your money is best spent upfront on a "nice" radio and a "good" battery charger.

There are plenty of inexpensive radio kits, from $10-50 that I *do not* recommend. you'll just have to replace it soon anyways. I'd agree with checker and say something similar to the DX6i, Turnigy 9x/9xr, or Orange T-6 are the minimum you should look for. These all have their quirks/advantages/disadvantages, but should meet your needs for a while, however,spending more the right way now can save more later. I'm flying with the DX7s, and have maxed it out on one plane, but not yet needed more. the DX8 and DX9 are very nice but pricy. the FRSky Tarranis is exceptionally capable, supports other TX modules (to work with competing brands) and is very well priced, but kinda hard to find in stock.

For battery chargers start looking for programmable chargers. Automatic chargers are convenient, but dumb -- they will destroy batteries if you use more than the size they were designed for. Basically you want to have to tell the charger what to do with the pack, when to start, and when it's done or senses something wrong, it stops on it's own. You won't need this until you've bought/built your first airframe, so if you go the sim route, you've got time to research and shop. Personally I'm happy with the Acucell6 I use, but it's not the only charger out there. Research care and feeding of lipo batteries, then the "Why charger X is better" answers will make more sense.

As for first airframe, pushers are nice for preserving electronics, but flying wings aren't a good place to start. a great third or fourth plane, but while the Versa is a very friendly wing, wings can be hard to launch and are really touchy to setup (CG placement & Throws). It's no fun fighting a plane that's way out of trim, and if you're doing that while you're fighting learning controls and orentation, it can make for a rough day on the field. That being said, wings, when built right, are very rugged.

IMO, the flyer or the old fogey are a fair place to start. The nutball makes a good second plane, but not really a good first -- it looks great in the air, but it can be a bit of a handful if the air if your throws aren't right. I'd say the flyer trumps the fogey, in that the flyer is crazy fast to build and simple.

Expect to break props (though the sim will save many), expect to break airframes (hopefully not on maiden), expect to crash anytime you fly. Embrace the crash -- you only stop crashing after you stop flying. Learning to ignore the pain of the crash and enjoy the repair and re-maiden is a satisfying aspect that is hidden in this hobby.

 

[Bolvon72]

The Fogey and the Speedster are great starter planes, but flying is only part of the hobby. Starting with the Flyer teaches you building techniques on a very simple airframe. Spend a buck, fly it around a bit, crash it, rebuild it, then spend two more bucks and build the Fogey or Speedster. I actually say build the Fogey, then the Speedster as they incrementally add techniques. You will build a better plane that way and your Baby Blender will be sweet.

After you get the techniques of building those along with some flying experience, then step up to the 4 channel "cool" looking planes.

 

[Dreamwalker]

...but i'm not really that excited about the FT flyer...should i really start with the flyer?

On the face of it I'd have to agree that the Flyer is a bit dowdy, but with a little imagination and some creative cutting and paint...




(These are my latest Flyers. The orange & blue/checkered one I built for a friend. He soloed it on his third flight.)

Don't take me wrong, the Old Fogey and Speedster are great planes too, but are a bit more complicated for first builds.
The Flyer teaches all the basic FT build concepts that transfer to all the other FT designs.
Field repairs are a breeze, just a bit of packing tape and you're back in action.

Another thing to consider is, are you going to have the help of an instructor or are you going to learn on your own?
If you chose the latter, like many do, myself included, the Flyer will be much more forgiving and robust.
My first Flyer lasted all of one afternoon. It was overweight and some parts were crooked.
I went through eight props, depleted four batteries, and had packing tape repairs all over the air-frame,
but I was able to fly it relatively well in spite of it all.

If you have an interest in building your own models, then I would recommend starting with the FT Flyer.

 

[NewZee]

Hi Nawoj,
I just started in the fall, and built the Spitfire first, it flew great, but was a lot to handle for me ! I crashed and rebuilt(repaired) a few times, I then built another "Swappable" of my own design "Cub" I figured a high wing trainer type plane would help me, and it did the cub was a bit easier to fly. I then built the Old Fogey, and it was very forgiving and gave me many minutes in the air which I really needed! For Christmas I got a real flight simulator and have been practicing a lot! I am anxious to get back in the air (winter in upstate NY sucks) I think you'd be fine with the Fogey it is a easy build, and the wing is great! it is a three channel plane (just rudder and elevator) for control, and jumps into the air, it wants to fly stable and self correct. +1 on getting a decent radio (I have the Dx6i), look at motors, Rx's, ESC's, Batteries etc. as investments that can be used in all the swappables you will build and fly. Welcome to the forum, and this great hobby!f

 

[Ron B]

I have to agree with everyone else as I was into R/C over 42 ys. ago and just started back into it so I started out with the Old Fogey and got the tail section a bit off and had trouble flying it so I built the Flyer and it went together a lot faster and there is less to break on it. It is all lined up great and with my 3 cell 1300 I have moved it around to get the cg right on with the plans. Weather has kept me from doing a maiden flight but I am not as nervous aabout doing it as I was with the Old Fogey. After some flight time on the Flyer I will be doing the Old Fogey again as I like the looks of old time planes. Good luck have fun and great landings. Welcome to the forum and there are a great bunch of people on here.

 

[rcspaceflight]

My advice is to start with a simulator. Just figuring out which radio to go with can be incredibly daunting. However, getting a Transmitter shaped USB computer controller can be a cheap way to get into the hobby right away. I spent $20 on mine and I say it's $20 well spent. This way you can figure out what you want the hobby to be and you'll be able to make a better decision on which radio is right for you. Whether that is a $25 radio, or a $200 radio.

The flight simulator controller that I use: http://www.amazon.com/Volantex-Simu...7&sr=8-5&keywords=flight+simulator+controller

That controller also comes with FMS flight simulator, which isn't very good. I don't use it, but it's worth the $20 just for the controller. Although, I admit that the controller feels light and the sticks are a little weird, but you'll still learn everything you can learn with a sim using that controller.

With all of that being said, I recommend taking a look at this thread: http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?6822-FT-Planes-for-RC-Desk-Pilot

I'm told that the FT Nutball I made for RCDP is great, realistic, except it can be difficult to get in the air as compared to real life. I'm also told that the FT Versa I made is realistic. Currently the Baby Blender is off, but is still fun to fly.

If you do go with a simulator and use RC Desk Pilot, I say to download the FT Flyer, FT Nutball, and FT Delta from the article I wrote, there is a link to it in the thread. And then download the Versa wing and Baby Blender from the thread. The latest versions that I have up.

You'd be surprised how fun the FT Flyer can be. Definitely fly it in RCDP. You may change your mind about it.

 

[nawoj]

thanks for all the responses.

i do already have my radio chosen. i plan to buy a turnigy 9x. i am rather proficient with a soldering iron, and really like the idea of modifying the radio so i can upgrade the firmware, and making the wired in module actually modular. plus the bang for the buck seems really really good.

from the sounds of it i should really look into sims, and an analog for a radio for my computer (from what i understand the turnigy 9x is a bit of a hack job to get working with sims). and i think im gonna go find me some foam and make some models, if only because it looks like a lot of fun to make, and eventually i will get to fly them (probably into trees, or maybe even the lake).

again, thank you for the responses, i always though of RC flight as WAY too expensive to even consider, i am really glad the guys at flite test caught my eye and showed me it can be done on the cheap.

 

[nawoj]

so i took rcspaceflights suggestion and took a look at RC Desk Pilot with my PS3 sixaxis hooked up to my PC... ive been flying all sorts of planes around for the past few hours and got a bit of a feel for what does what... now i am even more excited.

 

[Craftydan]

Very cool!

Now pick up that 9x and you can get the feel of it using the same sticks you'll fly your airframes on

 

[rcspaceflight]

so i took rcspaceflights suggestion and took a look at RC Desk Pilot with my PS3 sixaxis hooked up to my PC... ive been flying all sorts of planes around for the past few hours and got a bit of a feel for what does what... now i am even more excited.

Awesome. I hope flying the FT Flyer (assuming you downloaded it) changed your mind about building one. They're fun! And definitely do what CraftyDan said and hook up your Tx, when you get it, to the sim so you can get a feel for the new controller.

 

[nawoj]

went out and got some dollar tree foam board today (wow that stuff feels flimsy), nabbed a hot glue gun @ walmart. later tonight i shall begin making a total mess, and hopefully out will come a plane (or two).

 

[nawoj]

a few things i've learned whilst making a FT flyer.

1. dollar tree foam board feels super flimsy, but when you add packing tape and hot glue it becomes surprisingly rigid.

2. hot glue is hot.

3. lining things up perfectly is hard.

4. time runs away from you while your building planes


but, i got an entire FT flyer out of a single piece of foam board, so i got that going for me. now i just need electronics, a firewall, and a radio.

now, i think im gonna try to tackle an FT old speedster. if for no other reason than ive got the material, and ive got the time.