Futura57

Why reinvent the wheel 🤣

The video looks like harmless fun to me. Horizontal visibility is plenty and it's easy to moderate ones altitude to skim under the cloudbase. I've flown in worse conditions, though these days I like the extra security of some bright LEDs to gain an extra few metres if I need them. Happy New Year peeps. 20241227_102122.mp4

The bravery of our pilots chokes me up every time I watch B of B. I wonder what they would think of the country now that they saved. 😪 I salute them.

No they ain't, they're Heinkels 🤣 Who the hell's he trying to kid. You can teach a monkey to land better than that Good afternoon, my a*s. Come on, put yer hands up 🤪 (sanitised version) I love it

I've never been one for keeping a diary. Despite trying, I've never got beyond January. In the last 12 months or so I've kept a mental note of the number of flights of one particular model. My original Top Quark prototype is still un-crashed! I gave up keeping a tally after exceeding 250 flights in the Autumn. I'm joining a second club in 2025, which is a 45 minute drive from home in the opposite direction to the 30 minute drive to Epsom Downs Race Course. The new club will cost me £180 for the first year, which includes a joining fee and a gate key. Expensive compared to £10 at Epsom. My intention is to initially purchase a large model over 7.5kg and possibly move on to turbine jets. To justify all this i intend to start keeping a log of club visits and model flights to see if the new club is cost effective. In the end it will come down to how welcoming the new club is and whether it's worth making the effort beyond 2025.

Flight time of the Mig can be stretched to 4 mins if you are prepared to shutdown the fans on every downward part of a manoeuvre, but it completely spoils the jet illusion. Our club received a complaint just a few days ago that someone was illegally flying a gas turbine model at Epsom Downs. Turns out they had seen the afterburner LEDs of this Mig, which otherwise sounds very convincing. A pair of Admiral 6s 6000 lipos is £250, which is a lot for 3 minutes of power. The owner has two ammo boxes containing a dozen! Almost cheaper to buy a proper turbine model.

Yes, it is the Freewing Mig, but not mine. It flies very well, though only for a little over 3 mins on a couple of 6S 6000 lipos. My fellow member has just bought the Phantom too.

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I just took a punt on the half hour drive to Epsom Downs for a few flights. There were a few other optimists standing in the fog, but it didn't clear so we all went home after an hour with no breakages.

I wouldn't say I suffer with it. However, from time to time, maybe half a dozen times a year, I do suddenly hear a very noticeable high pitched tone for about half hour or so. It can be brought on by a cough or sneeze. I am wondering, is this how it starts? A little occasional episode which gets longer and more frequent?

Ouch! I've knocked a Stanley knife off my workbench before. My impulsive reaction was to catch it 🙄 Ouch!

Dogs. Dogs. Dogs. And small children. Our club flying site is Epsom Downs Race Course, and so is a public space. We get a lot of people coming to look at the models and asking questions, which is a very rewarding side to the hobby. We offer a free buddy flight and have acquired a few new members via their continued interest. Unfortunately we are also a magnet for dogs, mostly off a lead, when they shouldn't be. The owners insist their animals are well behaved, etc, until they walk between and over the models, sometimes damaging them. They are often not apologetic and simply walk off. I've had the wings of a small foamie separated from its fuselage in a way that wasn't intended. A friend had his rudder servo stripped earlier this year. Over the years I've had my sandwiches taken from my bag and my bag and flight box urinated on. I now carry dog repellant with me in the form of a large super soaker water pistol and a compressed air powered fog horn. They seem to have the desired effect. Although one dog owner was abusive as he approached me while I was standing guard around a friend's model while he was flying another. The barrel was pointed down and the safety was on 😉 Small children running around the models and jumping over them is also an issue sometimes. Many a time I have saved a model being trampled on by intervening when a spectator, gawping up at the flying models, unconsciously walks backwards. It's a jungle out there.

As featured in RCM&E Jan 2025 letters 😉

Neat. Typical combined weight of the green and yellow bits?

That's top of my list on my next outing. Not something I think to do very often, but should 👍 No problem. I was specifically after Assan's recommendation for their receivers, but still can't find any. Hey ho.