Star Wars

Hi my name is Eli , im 14 and new to the Rc hobby. I love your show , its awesome. Lately i have seen a change in myself because i have been sitting around doing nothing and your show gets me up doing something and i get so much valuable information from it. I think you should have a RC Star wars series cause i know alot of people like star wars and there are so many cool aircraft in it. I know you guys have amazing ideas and i think you could make it work and i think that foam cutting would be a good solution to the sleek designs. Here is a link to a ton of flying vehicles in star wars that you could choose from. http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Air_vehicles
 

earthsciteach

Moderator
Moderator
Awesome post, Eli! I'm really glad to see that FT has inspired you to create and learn.

We've all been wanting to see flying X-wings since I was a kid! (I'm… ahem… 44, now). Great idea and a big challenge to make some of those artistic creations actually fly!
 

rcspaceflight

creator of virtual planes
I've made a few Star Wars add ons for RC Desk Pilot. (Naboo Starfighter, X-Wing, and Tie Fighter.) See signature. Although in that Flite Test article I wrote I ran out of time with the screen capture software I was using to get to the X-Wing and Tie Fighter when making the "show off" video.
 
Thanks

yeah i really love flight ...but right now i don't have money for a plane ... i have to earn it myself and i work by mowing but since its cold i have to wait until the spring .
 

Stradawhovious

"That guy"
yeah i really love flight ...but right now i don't have money for a plane ... I have to earn it myself and i work by mowing but since its cold i have to wait until the spring .

Grab a shovel! There are a million ways to make money in the winter. Garages to clean, cars to vaccuum out, dogs to wash... Knock on your neighbor's doors (with your folk's permission of course) and see if there are odd jobs to do. Be honest. Say you are trying to earn money to pursue a new hobby. Most adults admire the thought of a kid earning money with a thought out, reasonable plan, not like my kids who blow it on gas station candy bars. Be willing to work, be persistent be creative and do good work. You will have the money to build a couple of the FT swappables in no time.

Don't be afraid to buy second hand. If you look hard enough you can get a Spektrum DX4 for around $20 dollars. Scour Craig'sList in your area. Look for people getting out of the hobby, or selling broken planes you can cannibalize for parts fer cheep.

Be dilligent in your search for electronics. Use Intrwebz places like Value Hobby and Heads Up RC for your power plant and servos. Servos for the FT Flyer don't need to cost more than $3 a piece, and you only need two of them. A motor and ESC combo doesn't need to cost more than $25 dollars, and From LemonRX, a 6ch RX doesn't need to cost more than a $6.

Tell you what. Since I like seeing kids get into this hobby, if you go with spektrum gear, and It's OK with your folks that some stranger from the interwebz sends you things, your first reciever will be on me. That is assuming you live in the US. I can't really afford to mail freebies internationally. That ought to help defray the costs a little bit.
 
I will take you up on that offer but will that receiver work with these electronics?
x2- NTM Prop Drive Series 28-26A 1200kv / 250w
x3- Hextronic 9 Gram Servo
x2- TURNIGY Plush 25amp Speed Controller
 

whiskeyjack

Senior Member
Hold on to your horses there Eli! An NTM motor! You really don't need a motor of that quality or as expensive to start out. Most of the beginner planes use a 24gr motor. Don't forget when you are learning it's not if you crash it's when and you will. We have all been there so take it slow, ask questions and consider the answers. I am not saying not to buy the NTM but there are less expensive options that will work just as well for the beginner series.
I just realized you didn't mention what plane you wanted to build. If is the Storch then may be you should go for the NTM but on the other hand if you have never built a plane before then maybe you should try one or two of the beginner series planes. Once you have a couple of builds under your belt then try the Storch or what ever you have in mind.
The point is, you now have a bunch of guys to help you out. There is no stupid question except for the one not asked. So to answer your first question your receiver needs to be compatible with your radio and the rest plugs into the receiver. WJ.
 

rcspaceflight

creator of virtual planes
Personally I think the Tie Fighter I made is one of the funnest to fly. The good thing about trying to learn how to fly with it is that you honestly can't tell which end is which. You can only tell where it's going by how it's moving. Which is what you need to learn to fly in the real world anyway.
 

Stradawhovious

"That guy"
Look into the Blue Wonder motors the guys here have used in the past. I've seen them for around $10 on the internet sites, with a $10 esc to match. Even with $5 shipping you're still under a $25 bill for your whole power plant. The one thing I learned is that this hobby really doesn't need to be expensive. Well, that and every time you buy a new motor you might as well pick up a couple extra prop shadts for it.
 
ft cruiser

Hold on to your horses there Eli! An NTM motor! You really don't need a motor of that quality or as expensive to start out. Most of the beginner planes use a 24gr motor. Don't forget when you are learning it's not if you crash it's when and you will. We have all been there so take it slow, ask questions and consider the answers. I am not saying not to buy the NTM but there are less expensive options that will work just as well for the beginner series.
I just realized you didn't mention what plane you wanted to build. If is the Storch then may be you should go for the NTM but on the other hand if you have never built a plane before then maybe you should try one or two of the beginner series planes. Once you have a couple of builds under your belt then try the Storch or what ever you have in mind.
The point is, you now have a bunch of guys to help you out. There is no stupid question except for the one not asked. So to answer your first question your receiver needs to be compatible with your radio and the rest plugs into the receiver. WJ.

im building a ft cruiser
 
Ok so im taking Stradawhovious's advice and i have watched the begginer series and im gonna ask some questions about things i font understand ..i will also summarize what i know and if you see anything uncorrect just correct me

So i know that first if you have a brushless motor you need a brushless ESC. Brushed=2 wires Brushless=3 wires
The higher the wattage on a motor the more power
KV are rp amps per volt by the thousands
without a load your motor will pull a certain amperage ...when you add a prop depending on the diameter and the pitch the combined motor and prop will produce more amperage so you have to make sure that you get an esc with a higher amp rating than the amperage of the combined prop and motor
I also know that most ESC's come with a built in bec that powers your rx
and when buying a battery you have to make sure your esc can handle it.
1 so what i got from the video is that the esc will tell you how many cells it can take but are there other things to watch out for when buying a battery
2 how can you tell how many amps you will be pulling when you combine the motor and prop

i will try to think of some more stuff
 
3 when choosing an esc is making sure it can handle the amps from the motor and prop and making sure you have a battery thats not too big for it the only thing you need to do

4 what brands of electronics should i be looking at in this stage of the hobby and what prices should i expect
 

Lorenzo

Senior Member
Cheap stuff! Take a look at the recommended electronics for the ft flyer for example, go to HobbyKing and find the cheapest comparable gear available in their Eastern US warehouse. And yes, it looks like you've been doing your homework.
 

Lorenzo

Senior Member
The recommended setup for the flyer will show you what you need to be looking for as far as weights, sizes, kv rating, amps, etc. Check out the HobbyKing website, they have three warehouses I think, one of those is eastern US, see what you can find there that has similar stats as the recommended stuff.