Complete Beginner

[Barry G.]

Hi, I am a complete new beginner, and I am interested into getting into RC flying. Always been interested but never had the time, and now I am retired I am going to give it a go. Spending my time reading up on it so I don't have to waste money getting the wrong things. Looking at joining a club. So any help in getting started would be a great help.

[kc]

If you state your approx location you may get some specific info here about clubs. Otherwise look at the BMFA website to find your local clubs. Go along to a flying session ( phone the secretary and ask if they give instruction)and see what models people fly. Decide for yourself whether glow or electric appeals to you. Find out what make of radio the instructors use ( very important so you have the same for a buddy lead)
Ask the forum any specific questions you have, but first look at the info avail here on Modelflying.

[kc]

It's also worth saying that most of the books on RC are now out of date insofar as they dont cover 2.4ghz radio or brushless motors / Lipo batteries. However all the other info in books by David Boddington, Peter Miller & Adrian Vale is still relevant. Read the books and then update the info here on Modelflying. Itis quite important not to buy secondhand radio gear especially 35 mhz which is not used much nowadays. If the radio came from a known good background ( ie known not to have been crashed ) or if you are sure that 35mhz will suit you then buying secondhand might be considered. However 2.4 gear is so cheap now it's hardly worth buying old stuff.

Edited By kc on 29/11/2013 13:29:15

Edited By kc on 29/11/2013 13:30:37

[IanR]

Hello, Barry, and welcome from another beginner. RC flying is a truly wonderful hobby with many different aspects to it. Definitely do as kc advises, above, re joining a club but may I also add - get yourself an rc flight simulator.

A popular one with the forumites here seems to be Phoenix. It can be bought with an actual functioning Spektrum transmitter but note kc's comments re matching transmitters so you can use a buddy lead.

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

Hi Barry,

welcome on board and please feel free to ask for any advice you may need - they're a pretty friendly and helpful bunch on here.

I'd just like to back up the advice from kc and Ian. Joining a good club will be a smart move that will save you the membership fee many times over! Most clubs offer an instruction scheme and its free.

I'd definitely agree about getting down to the club's flying site before separating yourself from any money on modelling gear. See if you can get an introduction to one of the instructors - the sec should be able to do this. Ask about what trainers they like, what radio gear is popular and what "mode" they fly. The mode decribes how the controls are distributed around the transmitter controls - the two most popular modes are mode 1 and mode 2, the latter being slightly the more popular. There isn't a "right" or "wrong" one - but its better to be the same as everyone else in the club - or at least the same as the instructors!

So, enjoy yourself, but remember,....this hobby is very addictive! You have been warned!

BEB

[kc]

BEB is right( as usual) but I would say Mode 2 (throttle left ) is a lot more popular than Mode 1 (throttle right )but it depends on areas.
The reasons you will want to fly the same Mode as the rest of the club are 1. if you get a problem such as something in your eye, stung by a wasp,feel ill etc so you need to shout for someone to help instantly. or 2. When a friend thinks you are doing well enough to trust you with his model to " have a go" with something a bit more advanced.
I say this as a Mode 1 flyer belonging to a club which is almost all Mode 2 - only one other person could grab my Tx and save my model..... and only that one person can give me a chance to try his model. ( reason is I trained at one club and later moved house....)

[Barry G.]

Thanks for the welcome, and for the advice you have given. I have been to the Retford club field and had a chat with some flyers there. One of the club organizers took my number and would be in contact. I live in Ollerton, Notts. There are a few other clubs nearby at Mansfield and Nottingham area. On what I have been reading I think I will start with getting a controller, something like a DX6 or maybe even an 8 channel if I can warrant it. Then to look at what type of plane to get, most likely the electric type to start with. There is so much choice out there and the prices don't seem bad even for a high spec plane. I know I have a lot to learn and electronics is my thing as well as computers. Thanks.

[IanR]

Just a quickie, Barry. I believe the Phoenix flight sim is (or at least was - I haven't checked) available with a DX6i transmitter. If you're going to buy one anyway, it may make Phoenix seem a bit more value-for-money.

[Steve Hargreaves - Moderator]

Welcome to the forum & to your new hobby Barry.....be warned it is very adictive & before long you will doubtless have a hangar full of toy aeroplanes.

I would echo the advise already given in that you can't beat the practical hands on advise you will get from a club...find & visit a few & see which one you feel you fit in with best...then ask lots of questions.....think about the answers...then ask lots more questions!!!!

What sort of models do you intend to fly do you think? Scale, aerobatic?? Do you think you wil go down the IC or electric route??

[Birgir]

Hi Barry

I‘m also a freshmen, so to speak. When I came back to this hobby, last year, after a pause for a few decades I got me a simulator. That idea turned out to be a very good gesture and saved me a lot of disappointments. On top of that I also had a very good time at the computer managing the “imaginary” models.

I downloaded a free simulator, ClearView SE RC Flight Simulator from **LINK**

There is a one or two free models in the package but soon I bought a few more models and an airfield at a very reasonable price.

In the beginning I even used my keyboard as a control but after I got my Futaba 6J I bought a cable form dx.com and now I fly with the same transmitter as I fly my models.

Regards,
Birgir

[Barry G.]

Thanks for that info Birgir. It looks good but not very competent on the keyboard so will have a look at getting my transmitter and cable. Looking at the Hitec 7 channel or a spectrum. Does it matter which make I get or are they all about the same quality. Some models are DX and other are DXi, is it worth going for a DXi rather than just a DX.

[kc]

A beginners choice is really limited to what Tx his instructor uses. Likely to be either Futaba or Spektrum. But depends on the club and instructor Otherwise the learner would have to provide an extra Tx & buddy lead himself. You dont want to be tied to the one instructor who uses an unusual Tx because he may not always be at the field when you want.
Futaba 6EX 2.4 or T6J or Spektrum Dx6i are popular for learners at my club. Nobody uses Hitec at my club although there is nothing wrong with them. Anyway dont start learning on a simulator before you have found which Mode your instructor will use. Unlearning one mode and switching to another would likely be disastrous in the air! RealityCraft is a cheap simulator at under 20 pounds complete with dummy Tx. But you either specify Mode 1 or Mode 2 when you buy it. Club membership year usually starts 1st Jan and many good clubs reach membership limit by February, so go around the clubs now, make your decision on club and their Mode then buy a Tx or simulator.....

Edited By kc on 29/11/2013 17:58:02

[Roger 2]

Welcome Barry

Well this is certainly a very addictive hobby,

I am rather a crinkley and have been flying r/c since the 70's.

You will get a lot of very good info here. My suggestion for what it is worth is..... foamies are every where cheap and easy to fly cos they are usuall fairly slow and give you stick time.

If you learn on an i.c trainer around 40 size 4 chan it will help you fly any type . It will be faster than most foam planes and will fly in poor weather better............Just a thought

Cheers

Roger

[..]

Hello Barry , welcome to the forum. It looks like your doing all the rite things club wise etc.

You will get some great help in the club and on here, you already have something in common with us all in that everyone was a beginner once and we all know how it feels.

Good luck and enjoy yourself.

[Josip Vrandecic -Mes]

Hello Barry , welcome and greetings from Adriatic Sea

Cheers

Joe

Note : Magical and unforgettable journey begins with the first step.

[Shaunie]

Hello Barry and welcome.

I suggest you buy nothing until you have joined a club. As has been mentioned, your transmitter choice may depend on what predominates at your new club. They may also advise on what model to buy. Bear in mind the club may also have a trainer for you to have a try on. When this has happened the advice on your first model may change, some have a natural aptitude, others like myself, have to work at it!

Shaunie.

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

One general observation I would make about trainers: a lot of beginners make the mistake of turning up at the club with a very small foamie. Now don't get me wrong - small foamies are great, they just don't make great all-weather trainers!

When you are learning the key is "stick time" - the more practice you get, the faster you will learn. To do this you need a trainer that can cope with at least a "firm" breeze. We live in a windy corner of the world!

Some beginners think that a small model will be easier to learn on - not necessarily true. Your trainer needs to be big enough, and heavy enough, to fly reasonably steadily in a bit of a blow. Its not for nothing that the classic trainer is a "40-sized" model with a wing span of about 60". That's just a nice size. There is a wide range of such trainers available for both IC and electric power (many can be built for either). Exactly which one is a matter of choice and, as folks have said, the club instructors might have a favourite. But to get an idea of the sort of model I'm talking about check out; the Arising Star, the Boomerang, the Irvine Tutor etc.

BEB

[Barry G.]

Hi, and thanks again for the info.

I have been reading and looking around various sites and see there is a bewildering array of transmitters. I so far have narrowed it down to a Spectrum DX7 or even the DX8. Some of them come with receivers and some without. I have seen a DX8 for under £200 without the receiver. I know I would then have to purchase a receiver separately. Question is will any receiver work with it or do I have to buy a specific 8 channel one.

Barry.

[Pete B]

Any Rx, regardless of the number of channels, will work with the DX8 provided it uses the DSMX or DSM2 protocol, Barry. A major difference between 35MHz and 2.4GHz systems is that 2.4GHz is not universal - you need to use a receiver matched to the transmitter's protocol.

DSMX/DSM2 has the largest range of non-Spektrum manufactured receivers, such as Orange or Lemon, but there are also non-marque Rx's available for Futaba and, IIRC, Hitec.

Pete

[Barry G.]

Thanks for the info Pete. Am I right in thinking that the number of channels does not matter, i.e. use 5 or 6 channel receiver on an 8 channel transmitter.

[Pete B]

Yes, anything from a 4-ch Rx can be used. Equally you can use a 12-ch Rx on a 4 or 6-ch Tx, to take the extreme example - just use the channels you need.

Pete

[Chuck Plains]

All good advice here Barry.

Flight sim first is the best way these days.

Having had RC cars on and off over the last 30 years, it's likely that my start in flight was marginally easier than for them as never held a transmitter before.

Anyhoo, my personal experience of learning to fly RC 'cheaply' last year was as follows.

Subscribed to RCME at the right time to aquire their flight sim package including transmitter style controller. Partly my fault for only using the Ubuntu (linux) operating system on my PC, I couldn't get it to play properly. So I bought a very cheap flight sim, (Easyfly 3) on special offer £7.99 at my Local model shop. That worked!

I could eventually see roughly what was needed to control the simulated trainer plane. I did say 'roughly' didn't I?

I built a 'stick' fuselage type slow flier with foam wings/tail/tailplane and installed an axis stabilizer on it that came from a drift car. But I hadn't understood the correct way to orient it for the rudder. So a club member was immediately embarrassed on it's maiden, er, crash.

My available time and travelling expenses made me begin to train myself in a field at the back of my workplace. That was using paper covered artboard and building techniques from the now famous Experimental Airlines on Youtube. It flew, and I flew it, but it was a windy 2013 spring time and after 8 cheap propellers had bit the mud/dust I retired the beast to a crumpled shelf life.

I then bought a Max Thrust Riot, and took it to the club where, it flew so much like the simulator trainer I couldn't believe it. one of the club tutors had even bought one as a club trainer!

But. The times I could get to the club didn't match too well and I also bought a Bixler2, which I figured could belly land in the field at work, where the Riot could not.

The Bixler2 has been my most flown plane since then and I sold the Riot while it was still pristine. I'm now getting into gliding and shall continue in that direction for a while, with the exception of a slow flier or two.

When you do eventually buy a plane, think big-ish. 1.5 meter span minimum. They definitely are easier to fly. The Bixler2 is cheap, the Max Thrust Riot is not. But both are tough enough, can fly relatively slowly without stalling and are easily repairable.

Welcome to the fun mate and fly high. No, higher than that, yeap, that's better, it gives you more time to correct mistakes.

[Barry G.]

Hi again, been doing lots of reading and looking at getting the transmitter first. Got my eye on a Spectrum model. Is it advisable to stick with a DX6i as I am also looking at a DX8 for the extra channels for later on. Do many of the planes use more than 6 channels. As for the plane, Chuck Plains recommends a Bixler 2 which sounds like a good starter, then progress when I have gained some experience.

Thanks for the feedback.

Barry

[Chuck Plains]

Posted by Barry G. on 08/12/2013 12:07:19:

Is it advisable to stick with a DX6i as I am also looking at a DX8 for the extra channels for later on.

Thanks for the feedback.

Barry

6 is good, 8 is better. so if you can afford it, go for it. Many of the more advanced gliders need more than 6 channels. I'm saving my pennies for a Hitec Aurora 9, even though it costs over £100 more than than my Optic 5. But Spectrum is a good choice as there are so many cheap clone type receivers available. I chose Hitec as I'd used them for years with my RC cars. And, luckily for me, there are one or two Hitec compatible 6 and 8 channel flight receivers available now.

[Barry G.]

Thanks for your info Chuck, much appreciated.