Looking to get into R/C planes on a budget.

[Kurt0326]

Oh you like designing, I use Sketchup. I found it very useful in designing. Helps me figure out where I will put all the electronics, and make cutting plans.

Shows you what I'm talking about.
http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?7792-Hydroplane-in-the-works

This helped me
http://flitetest.com/articles/sketchup-for-rc-tutorials

 

[Mik3]

Oh you like designing, I use Sketchup. I found it very useful in designing. Helps me figure out where I will put all the electronics, and make cutting plans.

Shows you what I'm talking about.
http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?7792-Hydroplane-in-the-works

This helped me
http://flitetest.com/articles/sketchup-for-rc-tutorials

Oh man that hydro plane looks fantastic! Thanks for the sketchup tuts as well! I have used Blender for a little 3d modelling in the past. Here is an example of something I did a few months back. http://imgur.com/a/rqOSh

 

[Tactical Ex]

UPDATE: So was just taxi-ing the Taylorcraft around a little bit on my road (no flight) getting used to controls coming towards me an away from me and I guess the wheel caught a rock and BOOM nosed into the pavement. This is what the prop looks like now --> http://imgur.com/KADNU96 Now I added a piece of clear tape over that chip on the left and cut it to shape. Being such a small plane will this be ok for the maiden flight? Keep in mind I will be with a seasoned pilot. I feel sad that I did this straight away...

Nah, it will vibrate if the weight on one side is greater than the other but I don't think it is unsafe to maiden. The tape was a good idea.

 

[Mik3]

Nah, it will vibrate if the weight on one side is greater than the other but I don't think it is unsafe to maiden. The tape was a good idea.

Thanks man, good to know! I will attempt a maiden with this prop ((assumming I read this correctly "I don't think it is unsafe to maiden.") and if it gives me any fuss I will put on the 2 spares I am gonna pick up today.

 

[xuzme720]

Run it up and see if there is any vibration. Make sure to hold on to it tightly and increase the throttle slowly so it doesn't get away from you. If it seems to vibrate excessively, go ahead and pop on a new prop for the maiden. I would also suggest picking up more than 2 props. When you're learning, those seem to last only a flight or two...

 

[Mik3]

xuzme720, Ok, I will grab all 3 that they have in stock at the Hobby shop. I ran up the motor as you suggested holding on to the plane and it really didn't seem to vibrate much. At full throttle it felt silky smooth, at about half throttle or a little less I noticed a slight vibration but seems like that could've been anything on a plane that size?

 

[xuzme720]

It sounds like it could be alright. Good luck on the maiden!

 

[snuffy]

Tim, this is super helpful. I am leaning towards your recommendation even though it may cost a little bit more with that FrSky XJT combo pack with module and X8R. It looks like it would be friendly enough to learn on yet feature packed enough to grow with. Also I looked at that FT Bloody Wonder, and that thing looks like a blast to fly! Josh was barrel rolling it and tuning on a dime as well as nearly stalling it into the wind. Would be be a good one to learn on? It looks easy enough to build.

Sorry Mike, I don't seem to be getting the email updates like I'm supposed to so missed your post. I had my first flight on the Versa Wing at the weekend; scary but great! Much faster (and more difficult) than playing on the Simulators with similar models. Crashed it 20 feet from take-off on first attempt, but threw it at a higher angle from there and it was great. Twitchy as anything though; need to dial down the throws and up the expo on the next go, but for a first flight ever, thought I did ok; managed to get it up and flying around, managed some sketchy low passes, and did some nice floaty landings. The nose is a bit bashed in now, but I can say I'm hooked.

I think I'll make a Bloody Wonder next. If I can fly the versa wing, I think the Bloody wonder can be flown slower with more control than I had on the versa wing!

I had a quick scan of the posts, saw the plane you bought, but what radio did you go for in the end?


My Versa Wing Build photos and Video of first flight.

 

[Ron B]

mik3
also wondering what radio you went with.
Were you flying in vid or was it your friend?

 

[Mik3]

Hey guys, here is the link to the maiden video. Maiden-flight-with-my-first-ever-R-C-Plane

It is me, Mike, who is flying. My son, Gavin was throwing rocks in the pond behind me, and Josh was filming/coaching me as I flew.

I am still debating on a Tx but it is so hard to pass up the price on that FlySky FS-T6. Also loving the Orange T-Six... decisions decisions

 

[bensgreentrain]

starting on the cheap

Hey, I am Mike from Arkansas. I have been interested in R/C planes for a long time. My dad built and flew planes back when it was nothing but Balsa with gas engines and 27MHz transmitters.

I would like to try breaking into the R/C plane hobby so my son and I can enjoy it when he gets a little older. I have watched a few videos and plan on finishing the Beginner R/C planes series from Flitetest soon. I have been looking for a way to get into this without breaking the bank.

One of the transmitters I have been looking at is the Tactic TTX404 4-Channel SLT 2.4GHz. It seems to be priced reasonably at about $80 and comes with a 6 channel receiver. Being a 4 Channel Tx it would probably be all I would ever need as I am not really interested in flying overly complex machines. Am I wrong in assuming that? Can someone recommend a better Tx for the same price point that doesn't require the "Anylink" addon?

I would like to build a decent slow flying plane to learn on. I was looking at the FT Fogey for that (probably order a speed build kit) - is this a good choice? I wanted something that actually resembles a plane but isn't too hard to build or learn to fly on. My goal is to be able to fly the Great Planes (ElectriFly) Gee Bee R-1 (I love the Gee Bee), then build an FT Racer.

Thanks for any advice and/or suggestions!

EDIT: Or would it be best to just start out with something like the Super Cub DSM RTF by HobbyZone?

I am just getting back into rc myself. I got a Specktrum Dx6i 6 channel, great radio, but Hobby king has a comparable 6 channel 2.4 orange transmitter for 64.95, wish I had discovered it first! If you want to scratch build FT swapables are great. I found good deals on ebay for servos & receivers. Personally I like Grayson Hobby for their motor & esc combos, good service great selection. Check out the Armin wing, this guy has a lot of great vids on scratch building with dollar tree foam board. I like slightly larger planes so I built a cub 60" wing span. I flew it once so far but it did great first time out. Good luck, I know you'll have fun.