Gary Manuel Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Hi all, I'm Gary. I'm 54 years old and from Doncaster. I'm a member of Don Valley Model Flying Club (DVMFC) and the BMFA.>> I have had an interest in model aircraft since my school-days. Back then, I used to fly control line as that was the only thing I could afford on my pocket money. In those days, there were 2 routes to get airborne. One was to buy a plastic, ready to fly thing that broke on the first heavy landing and was impossible to repair. The other route, which I chose, was to build my own, either from kits or plans. I did both and even did a bit of my own design for a racing plane made from a simple ply fuselage and solid balsa wings. I learnt a number of skills back then which I still have today. C/L flying lasted a couple of years and then me and my mates moved on to something else. Something about it stuck though. Every time I heard the high pitched buzz of a glow engine, or got the whiff of Nitro, I was immediately transported back there.>> I am a Railway Signalling Engineer by trade. I started as a trainee technician and then moved into Design and Test, Technical Support Engineer and now back in Design as a Project Design Manager. When your train is delayed or diverted during a bank holiday, that's probably my fault as we re-signal another part of the Railway. This career has been very enjoyable, and has given me the training and developed a mind-set to design and build things and to think in 3D. I can picture a finished product quite easily from a set of drawings, which comes in handy for modelling.>> In my late 20's, the bug bit again and having a bit of spare cash, I decided to have a go at RC modelling. I bought a Yamamoto kit, OS25 engine and Futaba FM 35Mhz radio set and built myself a reasonable looking trainer. I knew a couple of guys who flew models, so I got one of them to test fly my model and hand the controls to me mid-flight. He landed the plane and I took it home in one piece. Then I got impatient and tried to fly it myself - and that was the end of that. I didn't have enough cash or time to allow me to build another but I half promised myself that I would have another go at some point in time. Again every time I saw a model being flown, I had to stop and watch.>> About 7 or 8 years ago, I was watching a group of modellers fly at my current club and was kindly asked if I fancied having a go - using a new- fangled thing called a buddy box. I jumped at the chance. 5 minutes later, I was hooked. I immediately decided that I would get back into flying. Most people these days would nip to the local model shop and buy an ARTF trainer at this point. I wanted to get a bit more out of the hobby than that and knew with absolute certainty that I was in it for the long haul, so I bought myself a Flair Cub kit. This was the best thing I ever did. I built it, had it checked out by the club members, rebuilt it (!), learnt to fly on it and still have it to this day. I wouldn't part with it for the world.>> I had a short break from flying due to work commitments / serious skiing injury, but am now back into it with a vengeance. I now have a large shed full of models. Mostly ARTF for economic reasons, but I'm also back into building. My last two projects have been a WOT4 Mk2 Classic kit (every modeller has to have owned at least 1 WOT4 I was told) and my latest is a Traplet Farmhand 90 kit with a DLE55RA up front.>> I spend all my spare time (wife says too much) on modelling. I'm also keen on photography, DIY, walking and cycling. I have managed to incorporate photography into the hobby by making built logs; DIY by building the large log cabin where my hobby is based and walking to recover my models after unscheduled landings. Now if I only had a cycle trailer that I could throw a small electric model into ....>> I'm not a great flyer or builder, but I enjoy the hobby immensely. I am gaining confidence and over the next few weeks am helping a new Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ashby - Moderator Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Welcome back Gary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manuel Posted April 5, 2014 Author Share Posted April 5, 2014 Thanks David My initial post must have been too "wordy" because the end of my final paragraph was cut off. It should have read: I'm not a great flyer or builder, but I enjoy the hobby immensely. I am gaining confidence and over the next few weeks am helping a new member of our club to learn to fly. I am a keen participant in our local club forum. I’ve just discovered this one which looks very interesting and will no doubt participate in it, once I learn the ropes. Until then, I’ll probably hover in the background, picking a few tips up as I go.>> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Concorde Speedbird Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 I'm not a great flyer or builder, but I enjoy the hobby immensely. I am gaining confidence and over the next few weeks am helping a new And that is all that matters! Welcome aboard, I look forwards to reading your valuable contribution. CS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Hello Gary nobody talking to you ? Might have been the Don Valley bit that did it Have you still got photo's of wot 4 and farmhand builds, might go down well on here might need a bit of editing first though eh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avtur Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Hi Gary, Welcome to the forum. I am quite sure that your progression is very similar to many folks here, certainly that's the case for me. Only one of my intermediate steps in life was to own and run the Local Model Shop (LMS) How do you make a small fortune out of r/c modelling??? well you start off with a large fortune, then you open a shop, then you end up with a small fortune ... well actually you end up with nothing and homeless ... but that was years ago. After that event It took many years for me return to the hobby as a simple participant, but eventually I did. Since then, only a couple of years ago, I have thoroughly enjoyed it and I have to say that the one thing that helped me back was ARTF models, which were unheard of last time I flew. Thanks to ARTF and Bind'n'Fly I have reconnected with the fun of model flying. I know that many purists will take exception to the route I have taken but the simple fact is that has made my rejoin achievable. I would love to have the time and space for good old fashioned building, but that just isn't possible at the moment. I hope you enjoy your return our wonderful hobby as much as I have ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manuel Posted April 5, 2014 Author Share Posted April 5, 2014 There are many facets to this hobby: building, assembling, flying, meeting people, browsing for products / materials, reading magazines / forums, posting on forums etc. Whatever rocks your boat. Main thing is, there's something for everyone and there's no right or wrong way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Hi Gary, and welcome to the forum! BEB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iqon Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 Looking forward to a build blog of the farmhand if you do one, i always fancied one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manuel Posted April 6, 2014 Author Share Posted April 6, 2014 Is that right Mr W? Well as it happens, I am half way through posting a blog of this build on my club forum. I could re-post on here if anyone is interested in a Build log of a Traplet Farmhand 90. Its already been done before of these forums, but I can do another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken anderson. Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 welcome from me Gary.. ken Anderson ne..1 .welcome dept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaunie Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 Hi Gary and welcome. You'll find many like minded people on here! Shaunie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josip Vrandecic -Mes Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 Hello Gary , welcome and greetings from Adriatic Sea.. Rgds Jo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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