Author Topic: Anyone fly RC planes? (Read 5748 times)

crashwg · « **on:** July 09, 2005, 10:45:00 am »

I just got a Hobbico SkyRunner for free from someone on on freecycle. I was thinking about how to repair it and I thought I'd get a few opinions before I attempted anything that I couldn't go back on.

There's two fuselages that are both pretty beat up. Both have damages in differen't places though, so I was thinking that perhaps I could make a frankenstein of sorts and take the best of the best and make one working plane. To hopefully add to the structural integrety of the plane I was considering fiberglassing the entire thing once I got everything together but as a fiberglass newbie I'm not sure if it would add too much weight.

Another option would be to get a replacement fuselage. I did a quick google search and found out that I can get one for about $25. I might end up paying that much for everything I need to fiberglass it but what if I crash it? I've never flown before!

So, yea.

Grafting: Good idea, bad idea?
Fiberglass: Good idea, bad idea?
Say "Fark it!" and buy the fuselage... You get the idea

Oh, one other thing that may be important information is that the entire tail section is glued to the fuselage and I'm not sure I could get it off cleanly for a new fuselage so I may end up haveing to buy a new wing set wich I can't find on google and may verrywell not be available anymore since this plane was discontinued.

pointdablame · « **Reply #1 on:** July 09, 2005, 11:32:39 am »

Have you EVER flown an R/C plane before? If you haven't I'd just piece together what you could.. because frankly... you're going to crash it.

Your plane is a beginner's plane, which is exactly what you want. But realize, if you have no experiences with planes, you WILL crash it. Wait til you get used to it and then buy yourself whatever you need. That way you'll have some time with it, and hopefully can avoid anything else, at least for the most part.

I used to "work" in a hobby store that my dad's friend owned. I was in there all the time, and I had to see dozens of people come in with a load of cash burning a hole in their pocket. They'd buy a plane... and then be back in a few days to buy all the parts for what they'd destroy

R/C planes and especially helicopters are not quite user friendly heh.

crashwg · « **Reply #2 on:** July 09, 2005, 12:02:46 pm »

Ok, so that's definitly a vote for not buying a new fuselage but what about the fiberglass idea? I'm affraid that when I crash it the tail will break off exactly where it appears to have done so at least 3 times now. The cone where the motor is held also was broken off and that would definitly be something that you don't want breaking off mid-air!

Another related question I've got now that I went ahead and glued it back together is... The cone, with the motor in it, is kinda crooked. Being that way will cause the propeller to be crooked also. I was thinking that that could be made up for by having the tail set a little in the oposite direction. Does that make sense to anyone else? Here I'll draw a picture! It's exagerated to get the point accross.

btoddkelley · « **Reply #3 on:** July 09, 2005, 12:54:33 pm »

Its supposed to be crooked. Trainers a built that way to add stability. It wont fly sideways and you do not need any yaw to keep it straight. I would suggest that you find a local flying club and have someone teach you how to fly. I have been flying about 5 years and let me assure you that if you go out and just "try it' you will be able to measure the planes lifespan with a stopwatch.

Todd

pointdablame · « **Reply #4 on:** July 09, 2005, 02:24:02 pm »

Quote from: btoddkelley on July 09, 2005, 12:54:33 pm

I have been flying about 5 years and let me assure you that if you go out and just "try it' you will be able to measure the planes lifespan with a stopwatch.

Todd

I'm glad someone else said it too, because when I told people that in the store they just gave me a 'yeah, maybe if you are stupid' kind of look. It really will get destroyed pretty quick.

The fibeglass idea is not bad. Do your best with the fuselage you have currently and find someone who can help you get it in the air. And Todd is right, the cone/prop is supposed to be slightly off center.

HaRuMaN · « **Reply #5 on:** July 09, 2005, 03:29:40 pm »

Fiberglass can be a pain if you're not used to it. I would suggest maybe using Mylar instead. While it won't be as strong as fiberglass, it still adds some stiffness, and it's easier to deal with.

danny_galaga · « **Reply #6 on:** July 10, 2005, 01:29:02 am »

yep, dont be precious with it. you will have some bingles. aslo be careful with fibreglassing as you dont want to put any extra weight in the plane, particularly the tail end. i drifted into boats and cars because they are toughter and i got tired of wrecking my planes. i only ever figured out how to fly a model once i soloed a REAL plane! ( i never told any of my passengers that though...)

Tailgunner · « **Reply #7 on:** July 10, 2005, 01:53:39 am »

No, but I've flown quite a few RC buggies and trucks.

Only RC plane I seriously concidered was built much like a full size ultralight. Pusher prop setup, the fuselage consisted of carbon fiber rods and nylon fabric. It's main feature was it was pretty much newbie proof, on the sight the manufacturer had a video of the plane shrugging off a high speed dive into a chain link fence.

crashwg · « **Reply #8 on:** July 10, 2005, 02:32:41 pm »

Update for all who care. I fixed it up enough to fly it. Went out today to the park across the street and gave it a try.

The first attempt either I didn't throw it hard enough, the small gust of wind took it down or a combination of the two.

The second attempt went a little better. I think I flew it a hundred yards or so. Didn't do too bad. Then I crashed it, wasn't a horable crash though because I was only like 10 feet from the ground when it started to go down. The tail end broke off.

It's glueing currently so I'll be giving it another try in a couple hours.

crashwg · « **Reply #9 on:** July 10, 2005, 06:13:01 pm »

Well, I think 3 flights is all I'll get from this fuselage. I just did the second and third flights and on the second one, it decided to fly over a fence which happened to be a tennis court and crashed. Broke the propeller. Flight number three, I tried to just keep it straight and low but all I could manage doing was weave back and forth and then crash it.

It now has the tail broken off (again) and where the wings attach is pretty much destroyed. I'll most likely buy a new fuselage and give fiberglassing a shot. Till then I guess I'll be staying grounded.

Tailgunner · « **Reply #10 on:** July 10, 2005, 09:15:53 pm »

At least you didn't spend weeks of work building it. That's why I've never gotten into RC planes, after all that work building it, the first time I crashed it hard I'd likely pile up the entire flying setup, pour all the remaining fuel on the pile, set it on fire, and walk away.

paigeoliver · « **Reply #11 on:** July 11, 2005, 03:59:38 am »

Mostly off topic, but are those small man-sized gyrocopters (like in Mad Max) hard to fly or easy to fly? I have been (non-seriously) browsing them on ebay, not sure why, probably because real airplanes cost too much, ultralights look like kites with motors to me, and those flying parachutes look like a joke.

Samstag · « **Reply #12 on:** July 11, 2005, 11:47:20 am »

Quote from: paigeoliver on July 11, 2005, 03:59:38 am

Mostly off topic, but are those small man-sized gyrocopters (like in Mad Max) hard to fly or easy to fly? I have been (non-seriously) browsing them on ebay, not sure why, probably because real airplanes cost too much, ultralights look like kites with motors to me, and those flying parachutes look like a joke.

Unless I'm mistaken that was an autogyro in Mad Max. That's a pretty easy aircraft to fly, even though it looks like a helicopter. It's really not much different from an ultralight. The top rotor is unpowered and acts as a wing because it's tilted back to catch the air and generate lift as it spins in resistance.

That said, I wouldn't buy one somebody else built unless I knew the guy and trusted him with my life.

ChadTower · « **Reply #13 on:** July 11, 2005, 12:48:32 pm »

You know what is better than fiberglass, light, and works perfectly for the training planes? Duct tape, dude. Duct tape. Who cares what it looks like, you're going to crash it again anyway. Just keep this one together until you're better at it. I've seen some training planes that are more duct tape than fuselage and they still fly just fine.

SirPoonga · « **Reply #14 on:** July 11, 2005, 01:00:22 pm »

Interesting way of starting out in R/C. Not the best way, but interesting.

What material is this plane made out of? EPP foam? Plastic?
Fiberglassing it would be nice and study but that adds weight. Even though you think it is light it is heavy compared to foam or other materials used in beginner planes. You might have to compensate with a much more powerful engine.

Anyway, to address issues others have some up with and my opinion...
Someone starting out should get a start plane made of EPP foam, like parkzone's planes. If it breaks it is easy to fix. But EPP can take a beating before it breaks. Most cases it gets softer instead of breaking. Note, Zagi combat wings are all EPP foam, and people purposely crash them into each other. *If* they break it is pretty cheap and easy to repair or rpelace.

Tailgunner, that's the old fashion thinking. Today there are affordable ARF and RTF planes (almost ready to fly and ready to fly). Take Parkzone's P51 Mustange, an RTF that has good scale graphics and such

In most cases the difference between ARF and RTF is RTF includes radio equipment and servos while ARF doesn't.
But you have to stick with park fylers, you aren't going to find large scale planes like that.

I have been out of R/C planes for many many years. This weekend I found a plane on ebay. I haven't flown it yet, been too windy. But it was a 4ch RTF made completely out of foam. Here's a pic:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/SirPoonga/patriot.jpg
It's not big, which is good as I just want to be able to fly in smaller areas. It's only 27Hz (or is it Mhz) so it doesn't have the range like the 72Hz (or Mhz) planes do. But then again it is a park flyer.
The plane came as you see it, except I needed to put the vertical tail, landing gear, and prop on. And connect the tail linkages. Took all but 5 minutes to do. Battery charges in 2 hours for only 7-10 minutes of use

I'd love to make an IC-3 mod to it, but will wait on the next plane.

After I get use to planes again with this little trainer I am going to find a plane with xport that I like and play around with bomb drops

ChadTower, duct tape is heavy. There's skinning/repair tape for planes which would be better, very thin and light material. Do research on combat wings (most people use Zagi brand) and see how they repair their wings. Whatever they do is probably the best as they purposely crash the flying swings into each other

Thinking of the old fashion way of thinking, they improved helis too. You can get a beginner 4ch heli for about $100, add a $20 computerized stabilizer and trainer kit and you have a good beginner heli. The computer assists to make it easier to hover, turn, etc. The trainer kit is counter balanced "landing gear". It's 4 long sticks with foam balls on the end that are hinged in such a way that as you land if you start landing crooked they will straighten you up.

Also, if you buy a plane get at least a 3ch (channel) plane, preferably a 4ch trainer. 2ch is ultra beginner. You use throttle to control height, faster you go the more lift on the wings. And you use rudder to control left and right so you don't get dramatic turns. You will get bored of that really quick since they are generally really slow in speed and turning. Not much you can do but go in large circles.

picasso · « **Reply #15 on:** July 11, 2005, 06:36:44 pm »

I have flown RC Planes quite a bit. It is a fun hobby but, can be one of the most frustrating as well. You get your plane all fixed and pretty and when WHAM! its all over. Depending on what you are flying it is not cheap either. IMHO the best bang for the buck is to buy a flying wing. www.wingwarrior.com or something like it. You can crash them head first into the ground and pick it up and fly it again no problem. You can also soup them up so they fly over 100 mph if you want. Anyway, that is my 2 cents. It is alot of fun.

Paul

SirPoonga · « **Reply #16 on:** July 11, 2005, 07:11:31 pm »

If you have a way to hook up your radio to your computer (dependig on the radio) or have a dual analog gamepad check out
http://fms.pathbot.com/
http://www.webx.dk/rc/sim-serial/sim-serial.htm

Crazy Cooter · « **Reply #17 on:** July 12, 2005, 12:00:48 pm »

Definately buy a beginner type plane. I didn't and I can't keep mine in the air. It's so frustrating that I'm going to have to put mine on the shelf and get something else to learn on.

MameMaster! · « **Reply #18 on:** July 12, 2005, 03:25:26 pm »

...you know in of all places I saw this past weekend a beginner RC plane at Bed Bath & Beyond. It even came w/a digital camera all fully built for a sale price of $49.99.

Had I not just moved to NYC I think I would have tried it out.

I didn't inspect the thing closely...but it looked similar to this one but it came w/a digital camera--

http://www.redrockethobbies.com/product_p/gws1030.htm

MameMaster! (tm)

05SRT4 · « **Reply #19 on:** July 25, 2013, 02:56:42 am »

It sounds like the money your going to invest in this plane you might be able to gut it and just buy a complete somewhere else. Hobby King is a great place to get RC parts. I've been flying RC for over 10 years Electric, Thermal, Slope.

Brian74 · « **Reply #20 on:** July 25, 2013, 04:06:29 am »

I have a P-47 thunderbolt, made by parkzone I believe. It was a rtf. I had never flown a real rc, other then airhogs. My buddy was teaching me to fly. He had a cord that connected the transmitters together. That way, if I lost control, he could recover. Also, I didnt see anyone suggest getting a flight Sim. They have ones where you can use a real transmitter with. There is one called realflight and one called Phoenix. Just remember to fly 3 mistakes high

)

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

crashwg · « **Reply #21 on:** July 25, 2013, 11:42:25 am »

Quote from: 05SRT4 on July 25, 2013, 02:56:42 am

It sounds like the money your going to invest in this plane you might be able to gut it and just buy a complete somewhere else. Hobby King is a great place to get RC parts. I've been flying RC for over 10 years Electric, Thermal, Slope.

Way to resurrect an eight year old thread!

Funny story I have to share though, now that this thread is back from the dead...
So I'm doing my usual internet thing, going to the websites I frequent. I come to BYOAC and see this thread in everything else. My inner dialogue goes something like this: "Oooh, RC planes. That's something I've always wanted to try." Clickypoo. "Weird, this is an old thread." Scroll up "Weird, I posted in this thread. Oh yea, I remember getting that RC plane and subsequently busting it." Scroll up "Hahaha, I started this thread!"

HaRuMaN · « **Reply #22 on:** July 25, 2013, 11:44:33 am »

Spammer actually ressurected it. I nuked the post & the spammer.

Brian74 · « **Reply #23 on:** July 25, 2013, 12:41:04 pm »

Well wtf..

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

lilshawn · « **Reply #24 on:** July 25, 2013, 02:00:38 pm »

ZOMBIE THREAD WANTS BRRRRAAAAAIIINNNNNSSSSS!

spoot · « **Reply #25 on:** July 25, 2013, 02:06:23 pm »

Quote from: lilshawn on July 25, 2013, 02:00:38 pm

ZOMBIE THREAD WANTS BRRRRAAAAAIIINNNNNSSSSS!

OH Noes! Oh wait, I'm probably safe then.

Howard_Casto · « **Reply #26 on:** July 27, 2013, 08:03:16 am »

I get that the spammers resurrect this stuff but for the other people... is it so hard to read the date before you respond?

lilshawn · « **Reply #27 on:** July 27, 2013, 05:13:36 pm »

Quote from: Howard_Casto on July 27, 2013, 08:03:16 am

I get that the spammers resurrect this stuff but for the other people... is it so hard to read the date before you respond?

You could ask the same question to the spammers.

05SRT4 · « **Reply #28 on:** July 29, 2013, 12:51:57 am »

I am still learning what to watch for with forums. This is my first and only forum that I am apart of.

Noob mistake

ark_ader · « **Reply #29 on:** July 29, 2013, 06:28:41 pm »

This is awesome:

CoryBee · « **Reply #30 on:** July 29, 2013, 08:13:23 pm »

He should be careful when hacking life, could freeze up the system...

Mad skills


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