Gas newbie

[Chuppster]

A decision many of us have come to...

Electric has every other option beat on nearly every aspect, except maybe nostalgia... and that is coming from someone who rides horses to chase cows for a living and who's daily drivers include a 20 year old pickup with almost 400k miles on it and an antique thats 45 years old...

I grew up drooling over internal combustion models, still do, but the reality is that they would never fit into my fleet and the lifestyle I have now and, as cool as they are, they are not worth the effort for me...

I'm going to disagree with you here. A 50cc equivalent electric setup is going to weigh roughly 10 lbs and cost you in the neighborhood of $500 if you want a 10 minute flight time. That's just the batteries and motor. A DLE 55 weighs about 4lbs. And costs $420 new. It's a no-brainer if you ask me.

Now, if you're talking 40-size and smaller I see an argument for electric. It's very convenient and can be affordable. But if you like to fly big (like I do) electric just doesn't make sense.

For reference, I'm 6'4".

 

[CrazyFastFlying]

Thanks for all the help guys!!

 

[CrazyFastFlying]

Look what I just found on RCgroups!!

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?3523411-Piper-cub

 

[Chuppster]

Look what I just found on RCgroups!!

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?3523411-Piper-cub

RCGroups is good, you can also check FB Marketplace.

I love my 4 strokes.

 

[CrazyFastFlying]

RCGroups is good, you can also check FB Marketplace.

I love my 4 strokes.

I bet 4-stroke sounds a lot more scale!

 

[Hondo76251]

@Chuppster Sweet plane!
That is true, the electric does start to lose out as you scale up but at that point you are heavily invested no matter the power! Even the logistics of transportation is impressive at that point, well beyond what the typical park flying crowd normally deals with.

I have old pickups, tractors, jeeps, not to mention kids that race dirt bikes, I get enough oil and grease on me as it is! 🤣

Still love watching you guys, looking forward to seeing what you find! Who knows, maybe I'll get into larger things on the commercial side if the FAA doesn't completely botch this whole transponder thing... how cool would it be to round up wild horses with a long range gasser! (Certainly safer than trimming sagebrush with a Bell)

 

[Chuppster]

I bet 4-stroke sounds a lot more scale!

2 stokes buzz, 4 strokes roar.

 

[CrazyFastFlying]

2 stokes buzz, 4 strokes roar.

I want 4-stroke!! Are they more expensive?

 

[OliverW]

I want 4-stroke!! Are they more expensive?

Yes. The fuel is the same price as 2 stroke fuel. I can link what kind I have tonight

 

[CrazyFastFlying]

Yes. The fuel is the same price as 2 stroke fuel. I can link what kind I have tonight

Ok!

 

[Chuppster]

Ok!

In short the 2-stroke is more power and less complexity and weight. The 4-stroke is heavier and more fuel efficient, with more moving parts.

 

[L Edge]

Hey does anyone know a good clean way of getting in to gas

Two external questions you need to take a look at are:

1) Where are you flying at?-- if it is 50 cc or better, you will need a large area to fly for safety reasons.
2) How quite is the setup?-- 50 cc or better can produce noise that could annoy the neighborhood. Good way to lose the flying area.

Other points:
How are your flying skills?
Dollarwise-- 30cc or less will cost about $1000 a plane while a 50 cc will run close to $2000 and above that, ?

Think about that.

 

[Chuppster]

Two external questions you need to take a look at are:

1) Where are you flying at?-- if it is 50 cc or better, you will need a large area to fly for safety reasons.
2) How quite is the setup?-- 50 cc or better can produce noise that could annoy the neighborhood. Good way to lose the flying area.

Other points:
How are your flying skills?
Dollarwise-- 30cc or less will cost about $1000 a plane while a 50 cc will run close to $2000 and above that, ?

Think about that.

My most expensive airplane I posted above. It cost me $360 receiver ready with a 100cc engine, just needs a cowl. I have a 50cc Christen Eagle that I have about $350 into. A friend gave me a 30cc RV-4 he slightly crashed, I put a $200 DLE in it and it flies great. If you want to spend $2000 on new airplanes be my guest. I love buying used.