RC Logbook

[Tench745]

I thought about posting this in the (Mad) Scratch Builder's corner, but thought better of it. Even though it was from scratch, and I am certifiable.


I put in a little under an hour of flight time today on my Micro Champ, and since I often wonder just how much time I really have on the sticks, I decided it would be fun to have a logbook for exactly this.
I was inspired by my real Pilot's log, my ship's log, and Adam Savage's flight log for his DJI Inspire flights. Watch it here http://www.tested.com/art/makers/505418-adam-savages-custom-quadcopter-gear/ on Tested.com

Things I would change already:
Add a "Total Time" box
Add a few more rows for more aircraft.
More pages/bound cover. This prototype only has room for 24 days of entries.

I can make either the Excell (so you can edit it) or a PDF file available if anyone is interested.

 

[Snarls]

Awesome! I watched that episode of Tested and it also got me interested in having my own flight log. Yours looks well done just like Adams. Can I ask how you get all the paper cut and stapled together so nicely? I may DIY mine myself or use a small waterproof field journal I have laying around.

 

[Tench745]

Just a ruler and a razor blade for the cuts. I folded all the pieces together, once trimmed to the right height and then trimmed the excess off the edge opposite the fold. My stapler wouldn't reach to the center, so I broke off two individual staples and poked holes for them with a t-pin.

 

[Tench745]

For anyone interested, the templates for my logbook are attached.
The first link is to the PDF file the second is the Excel file in a zip folder. This is a modified file from what was in my pictures. The new file has space for seven planes instead of five in the first and there is now a "Total Time" box as the last line in the Notes section.

One thing to note, in your printer's advanced settings somewhere is a "print centered" checkbox. You want to make sure this is checked so the boxes will be aligned when you print on the reverse side. If it isn't clear how this all works I can do a tutorial on how I printed and bound my prototype book.

View attachment RC Logbook.pdf
View attachment RC Logbook.zip

 

[LooseBruce]

Love Your Log!!

Your log book template was just what I was looking for.
Here is mine now.

I printed the cover on some card stack. My planes are on the front and back.
I covered the cover with clear packing tape like I do my wings and then made a small tap to keep it closed.
Your tip about the staples was priceless. I wouldn't have thought of it. I can easily even add more pages now if I need to.

Thanks again. This was just what I needed for a bad weather flying day.
LooseBruce

 

[FlyingMonkey]

I thought it would be a great thing to be added to the FT store

 

[Tench745]

LooseBruce, I love that you added pictures of your planes to the cover. That picture is great too. I'm glad someone could make use of it.

 

[Joker 53150]

For those looking for an electronic option, there is an app called "RCLogbook", which I've been using for the past few years. As you can see, it logs the number of flights, flight time, average flight, etc.




It also tracks your batteries, what the favorite batteries are for each plane, cycles on each, condition of the cells, etc (or as much of this information as you want to track, at least).




It will also track the pilot's total number of flights, flight time, type of events flown, locations flown, etc.




Mine is set up to also catalog the plans I own, so when it's time to add yet another plane to the work bench I can quickly scroll through to see if any of them NEED to be built next!




Once that happens, I change their status to "Under Construction". When completed the status is changed again and the "needs work" wrench icon is removed - the plane is now ready for flight.




The timer is used to make sure I don't fly too long. Audible alerts are given each minute telling me how much time I have left or how long I've been flying.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

Nice share Joker! That's much cleaner than the ones I last looked at.

 

[RC Logbooks]

We released an rc flight log a few months back. The deluxe edition will allow you to log your flights and your maintenance that you do to your aircraft. As far as I know, we have the only rc logbook out on the market. There are some apps out there, but to my knowledge, we have the only physical logbooks for sale. You can buy them on www.rclogbooks.com or from ebay and amazon.

 

[Joker 53150]

Logging the plane along with the purchase price in a physical log book? That's what divorce attorneys would call "evidence".

 

[ridepate]

I just use a Sharpie and put a strike-mark on the fuse. Had a old Hangar-9 Cap a few years back that had 930 such marks on it.....lol

 

[RC Fly]

Easy Flight Log works from any device, anywhere. No app to crash. https://easyflightlog.com

With MAAC losing Transport Canada exemptions logs are no longer optional. Every member must now have maintenance and flight logs and retain them for years.

Rick

 

[Tench745]

Easy Flight Log works from any device, anywhere. No app to crash. https://easyflightlog.com

With MAAC losing Transport Canada exemptions logs are no longer optional. Every member must now have maintenance and flight logs and retain them for years.

Rick

A proprietary logbook I need internet access and a login to use which is entirely dependent on someone else's business model and servers? No thanks. I'll keep writing in my physical logbook. Please don't clog my thread with your ad copy anymore.