Flying in...Winter?

Klonas

Senior Member
Noone can stop an RC pilot. Not even winter...Right?

So it's getting cold out here in Lithuania and i was flying with my friend today and i noticed that my plane sort of... lacks power.... That's not usually the case because my plane is well powered and takes off like a rocket :D
So I've heard that LiPo batteries are afraid of cold. So could that be the problem of my plane lacking power?
Also.... How am I soppose to get my fingers warm if its 0C (32F) here?? :D My fingers get so cold i can barely move them and im soppose to fly a plane :D. So anyone more experienced or knowledgeable about this could give some tips and basically what they do in winter to stay warm and have the best flying experience.
'Cause that's what we're all after right? :)
 

SunShine

not crazy, just stupid
lipos dont like the cold(neither do your fingers), but there is a trick to could fly in the winter: just plug in your battery before it gets cold (store the battery in your pocket or somewhere warm) and than fly hard!!!!! no seriously, just give it a little more juice (extra throttle), that keeps the battery warm and working. it also cuts down on your battery life, so your fingers don't have to freeze for an entire 10 minutes. both your problems are now solved :) (or just get a glove for your fingers and isolate your battery with depron or something, so it doesn't freeze)
 

Klonas

Senior Member
I have warm gloves with finger slots cut out.... Not good enough :D

Im still freezing...LoL
 
My son and I purchased the Turnigy glove and think its nice. We also have the glove heaters on the way. As mentioned keep the batteries warm before use. I am an auto glass installer and we use a device like this https://www.equalizerfusion.com/Pro...AQB4Y2Jry1tAzuEeX3x8+dDG9Khy/v4swOwNDyHFbLjb/ (sorry, I don't know how to make it just say "link") to keep our adhesive in a workable state. The temperature on this one is a little high but I have seen cooler/warmers at the local stores that would work wonderfully. I believe you can adjust the temps on these.
 

marzvt

Junior Member
I live in northern Vermont so I like a lot in cold conditions. In winter it is not uncommon for my to fly in 15F or below. here are some tips that might help.
1. The cold does effect batteries negitively. Keep them on an inside jacket pocket to keep them warm before you need them. I also set my timers at 75% of what they would be in summer.
2. Use fingerless gloves or an old pair you can cut the thumbs off of. Never fly with a full glove, it is amazing how much control you loose with a couple mm between you and the sticks. I lost, my favorite F-18 edf because of this.
3. Be careful of the area you are flying, studdy it each time you fly. The fluffy peice of fresh snow in the landing area can be hard enough to rip off a wing the next day. (yes this happened to me.)
4. Fly with glasses preferably goggles. Yes you look stupid but the threat of your eyes watering because of the cold and wind is a bigger threat than the glare of the sun in winter. Especially if said watery eye freezes.
5. Fly planes you know, fly with gyros if you have them. Air is more dense in winter, gusts are harder and no matter what, you have less control than in summer. Give your self all the help you can, it sucks to tromp through 100 meters of deep snow to pull your plane out of the snow.

Also I try to only fly planes with gear in the winter because belly landing on plowed runways can actually tear up the plane. Epp planes are ok to belly land.
 

ananas1301

Crazy flyer/crasher :D
Hey guys,

I just came back from flying and it was pretty cold. Not like snowcold but just a few degrees above 0.

From what I felt it is very important to have a nice pair of gloves without covered fingers. So fingerless practically. Otherwise you loose the feel for the Tx and controlling might feel odd.

Also pack yourself!!! really nice and warm. You are going do stand there outside in the cold and won´t be moving alot. Get something to cover your head. That is the place most heat is excerted from the body.

Just in addition to the other comments
 

pgerts

Old age member
Mentor
Noone can stop an RC pilot. Not even winter...Right?
Right! A transmitter glove is well worth the money. The Turnigy is fine - have used it in -5 C and 5 m/s vind. If only a little sun then the inside of the glove is getting warmer after a minute. If you need somethoíng more insulated try to ask in europe. Send a request to http://stevewebb.co.uk/ and ask for an insulated transmitter glove - not much more expensive then the Turnigy.

And keep your LiPos in your inner pocket (when not flying) and keep them from the propeller wind.
 

Klonas

Senior Member
Thanks for the replies :) Here's what Im going to try next time I fly:
1.Keep my battery in a warm place until flight.
2.Gloves. As marzvt mentioned it's very hard to control your plane with gloves without actually touching the controller with your finger. I have gloves that you can take the fingers off (sounds akward) and put them on and i forgot to take them off and I couldn't control my plane since my thumb was sliding from the stick.
Also I noticed today when flying that wind gusts were very strong though the overall wind wasn't big (4m/s maybe?). It was very hard to control my plane, ailerons weren't as responsive as they would normally be and when full ailerons barely moved my plane I knew something was up :rolleyes:

Edit: So you're telling me that the transmitter glove works great. Will probably have to try it :)
 
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ananas1301

Crazy flyer/crasher :D
Thanks for the replies :) Here's what Im going to try next time I fly:
1.Keep my battery in a warm place until flight.
2.Gloves. As marzvt mentioned it's very hard to control your plane with gloves without actually touching the controller with your finger. I have gloves that you can take the fingers off (sounds akward) and put them on and i forgot to take them off and I couldn't control my plane since my thumb was sliding from the stick.
Also I noticed today when flying that wind gusts were very strong though the overall wind wasn't big (4m/s maybe?). It was very hard to control my plane, ailerons weren't as responsive as they would normally be and when full ailerons barely moved my plane I knew something was up :rolleyes:

Edit: So you're telling me that the transmitter glove works great. Will probably have to try it :)

The transmitter glove is quite good. Imagine a very small room with only you inside it. It will heat much more quickly then a umlimetedly big room. So the the heat will be cought inside near the Tx which is nice for controllability and your fingers and your plane will thank you for that.
 

pgerts

Old age member
Mentor
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Ryan2010

Junior Member
I live in Michigan and it gets pretty cold here. One thing that I do is sit in my car and fly when it gets really cold. It makes it feel warmer because it blocks the wind. I will also fly with my window open so as to not weaken the radio signal. I also keep my batteries in my pocket to keep them warm. It’s a lot of fun to fly in the snow. It also gives you a nice cushion if you do have a hard landing.

When I don’t sit in my car I normally put a ski mask over my hands and transmitter. It’s not as fancy as the custom made transmiter casses as mentioned above, but it does keep my hands warm. :)