A question for beginners

[Andy Harris]

oops - 24th March

 Andy

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Andy Harris wrote (see)

oops - 24th March

 Andy

Not bad as you say Andy, ahh..... 24/3 - I was going to say - that's going some in 4 weeks - I thought I flew a lot!

Thanks, all comments noted. I've not flown the Mini Pulse but I'm told it does fly very well?  

[Andy Harris]

   Hmmm  David I'm fairly sure there is a building versus flying thing here.

  Some 'novices' are modellers of  old returning to the  sport with scratch building skills,  others will be enjoying the outdoors and the challenge of 'sky calligraphy'.

  I got my 7 mins of air time at 0536 this morning, but I can't see the joy in protracted builds.

  I know that others can, I'm aware that planes are taken to the flight line and not flown, this appears to be a proper and socialable pursuit.  It is accompanied by warm welcomes. appreciative nods, much pacing and considering of the weather.

  Perhaps you could do an article about overcoming the fear or flying after weeks of bench time.

Andy

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Funny, I was flying at 5.40 this morning in the park behind my house - an early summer morning fly is very fine thing indeed .

For me the model must always fly and it's got to fly very well so a long build is ok but it has to be for a reason.

Overcoming the fear after weeks of bench time? - my advice is have a fleet that can be used any time and virtually anywhere so you never get in that position. I was flying the slow stick  at 10pm last night - the model had lights

[Former Member]

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[Former Member]

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[Andries Bisdee]

Good forum so far! I started i9n 1980 . Back in those days ARTF as non existent and you had to build it from scratch. I followed the Gospel according to St David (Boddington) and built his BAT  Basic Aircraft Trainer. It had the advantage of having a flat bottomed wing for starters , which could be replaced by a low dihedral symmetrical section one for aileron work. The best bit was the Thetford and Bury St edmunds club who flew at RAF Honington. superb runways and the occasional Tornado on reheat to liven up proceedings! I progressed to low wingers and even scale like Bipes such as the DB Scout and the Flair Nieuport like sesquiplane. But , Living Australia by now, I lost most of my sight for some years and haven't flown since 1994 . I now want to start again as I can see again if only with one eye. I have an Astro Hog in the roof  but don't want to go there yet, as though it was a beautiful flyer on an OS FS 61 it will all need re fettling to be sure not to fail. Do servos seize up after all that time? So I bought a sim last weekend from Dave King at A! Models in Colchester and have been practising....not as easy as I remember but of course you can't glance around or see the ground too well till its too late! So Now it back to trainers. Would an ARTF electric be the way to go? Clean and relatively quick to get started with. What do any of my fellow returning old codgers think?  I wish we'd ahd the internet in the 70's and 80's would have made life much more interesting.

All the best

Andries

[Andy Harris]

Andries

  If you've done it before, the SIM will quickly re-acquaint your thumbs with the process.

  Not quite an old codger yet, but one eye will be affecting your depth of perception, so you'll be wanting something that will fly close it.

  Check out the Addiction, its Aussie made and very docile on low rates, and fairly happy in a space of 100m upwind and downwind.  The only downside for you would be the colour scheme which might be tricky if you let it get too far away.

   And in terms of trainers, I'd like to have recommendations on a low wing 1-1.2m electric for my son, if any one knows one that builds beautifully in 2-3 evenings - let me know.

  As life would have it, my lad is weak in one eye, he tends to misjudge the far right hand turn of the circuit, visual separation is key in that corner.

Regards

Andy 

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Some great posts gents - doesn anyone mind if a borrow some comments for the beginners series. I think it'll be nice to reflect what beginners have found in reality.

[David Ashby - Moderator]

 No I'm not ashamed Ron. There are several early morning dog walkers who I now chat to and all seem very interested in the models. I've never had a cross word said to me in the last 5 years of my early morning sorties.

It also good because on the odd occassion when I splatter a model - perhaps I'm pushing things too far or I've had the odd glitch on 35MHZ (and when you're flying low then a glitch can be fatal) then I do so in private - crash in private that's my moto.  

[Andries Bisdee]

Thanks Andy, I will look into the Addiction. Who sells it? I should emphasise I now live in England again, my eye condition was too rare for Oz: only one other person in the state (WA) had it!... Doesn't make for expertise and as an ex GP myself I have a well developed Bull***t detector! I hope your son's eyes get sorted, you don't notice what you aren't seeing until it's fixed when the wow factor is just amazing.

 All the best Andries.

[Louis Benjamin]

hi,

I`ve done a few early mornin flights lately too. I was test flying an e-flite t6 texan. It`s my first low winger, first plane with flaps and retracts, first taildragger, so i thought an early mornin sortie was the way to go. After an airy takeoff and a bit of trimming all went well i`m glad to say.

[Andy Harris]

Andries:

Would have sent you a PM because its a bit off-topic.  Als Hobbies sells the Addiction along with suggested motors, ESC etc.  I use mine for early morning sorties flying close in, and full rates when I get to the club field.

Electric seems easy and logical to me. IC seems to have the voodoo magic when it comes to starting, I've seen people talk to thier engines. 

Ron:

Do you read Cosmo and Vogue ?  Both have suggested that real men are to be found flying model planes in fields ... probably something to do with spatial awarness and a prediliction for precision fettling.

 Regards

Andy 

[BB]

I grew up round models and flying my Dad being of the rubberband chuckem and see fraternity, way,way back in the fifties. I can remember him using a large grey box with a switch and button on the front with an ariel you could catch Carp with !  Then it was over to the club field on Sunday mornings, though I went, I never caught the 'bug'.

Years later, Im in my 40's. Last year I started flying those little foamies when I saw one on a shelf in a well known supermarket .  Not long after that I bought a Hobbyzone Supercub, taught myself the easy stuff, take off and turning,as only a 3 channel affair can do.  The hard stuff, approach and landing was hit and hope, most common mistake was to forget to reduce power just before the final approach turn and line up.

This week I've started flying a Parkzone Typhoon 3D.  I love it.  Pure freedom !  Scary too.  But so much fun.  I had 3 flights this morning on my way home from my night work.  For me throwing myself into the situation of 'flying' worked.  I applied some basic safe principles and stuck to them.

I taught myself flying the same way I learned to drive.  By looking over my Dads shoulder.  I wouldn't advise it too everyone.  But for me, that little bit of knowhow learn't years ago watching my Dad, stuck in the grey stuff of me ed !  I wasn't caught by the bug then, but, I certainly am now, and enjoying it too.  I'm hoping to join a club soon and get into IC.

Till then and as long as the 'summer' lasts I will be packing my P51,Supercub and Typhoon into the car and flying quietly in the mornings, with my 'boys toys', till the batteries run out.

I have downloaded  'Up and Away' from the BMFA, I find it and sites like this very useful.

Biggles

[Shaun Bellringer]

hi david

i`m all new to this.i`m also very shy to meet people when i don`t know them or when there are a group of people i go all gibberish's if you get what i mean.

i wanted to take up flying for years but never have till now.what really interested me to make the personal push is ,the deagostini spitfire magazine yes i know all the off putting write ups about it , to exspensive, hard to fly ect,ect. but it`s  very informative step by step guide and everything and all the differant products  given to you it aloud me to get to know the different parts of a plane about the radio ,frequencies and all. so for that i wish experience modellers would stop rubbishing that type of forum that was in the magazine.

because of that i was more confident going in the model shop asking questions. who i find very of putting unless your spending money " i interpret there approach as they can`t be really bothered other wise " any how i brought a ready2 trainer and all required equipment . gone down to the local flying club they have a chained gate about 1 mile from tarmac..so you can`t get on to invite yourself. i have been on the net got information , sent off the relevant forms with cheque for £70 and waited . one month later i cancelled cheque . the address for sending form is over 15 mile away. and to shy to go around as not really the done thing to strangers. " i you read this sedge moor flying clud then please email "

so i went on a days flying at a flying school won`t say which one , but found to be a bit of a rip off as instructor was more interested in smoking than  i payed for 1 days tuition £230 for 6 hour ,and only flew about 2 hour 30 min so won`t be doing that again.

also brought phoenixrc simulation very good ,would recommend to all like me. i am now saving for electric instead to fly in the local fields .as a beginner i do and preach the safety regulations that come with the hobby ie noise ect,ect.

so my views are still exited and can`t wait to start flying properly .hopefully with tuition? love the magazine bye the way buying if for years. oh also i am 43yrs married ,kid mortgage  ,job and all that stuff.

so please especially the shop owners be more happy and cheerful when someone come into your shops and don`t be so demanding on the proper jargon being use by us it`s very intimidating and it does keep us away.

[Shaun Bellringer]

oh thank david i looked up about Sky 40 (i.c. or electric) very good but i was wishing for more information ,

beginners i think don`t know about what to buy ,the right type of glues ,it was only the adverts on ebay i found out about what type to use for balsa wood "still don`t know about what is good balsa or bad balsa? i don`t .

Don't get me wrong i thing you and everyone like you who give up there time to answer sometime by your standard very stupid questions,but i and all beginners are very grateful money can not buy this type of information so a heart warming thank you.

i wish the magazine `s would dedicate one page to this ,silly question asked by beginners ,for most time for me anyhow to much information is just more confusing .

[Former Member]

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[David Ashby - Moderator]

Hi Shaun, good to hear from you and welcome.

I know what you mean about approaching clubs but sometimes you're just got to force yourself through the introduction stage - do this and you'll be fine, you'll never look back. Every one of us was a beginner once so the vast majority of clubs should be welcoming. Show enthusiasm and interest and your new club mates will realise that you're serious and help you learn to fly.

Good luck and thank you for your thoughts, don't hesitate to ask here on the forum if you need any help going forward.

[Jack Bagley]

Hi Shaun,

                 Must say you bring out a lot of guilt in us all!  We just bumble along thinking that "everyone knows that", quite forgetting the help and tolerance we all once recieved with advice, instruction and the passing down of valuable experience! In my case, and I suspect Erics, that was a "very long time ago"!

I must whole heartedly agree with what both Eric and David have just said, and it has made me realise that I must be tolerant of others who are new to the game, get off my complacent old butt and help a lot more. Best wishes with head hung low, Jack

[Myron Beaumont]

Moi non plus !

[Shaun Bellringer]

hi all

thanks for you comments ,been reading learning to fly alone very interesting thread.

one for you though Eric if i may as i mentioned before i love i.c ,but going electric what do you recommend ? as a lone flying plane only to be flown in isolated field away from major roads houses or pylon's ,was thinking park-zone spitfire after watching many u tube clips,but sort of changed my mind .now thinking protect swinger as described in rcme i liked what the article had to say your views please also ,what sort of money would that set you back i liked the 20-30min flight time perfect for lunch breaks .

thank you for your time ,much appreciated

[Shaun Bellringer]

oh bye the way got hold off new phone no. for local club ,going to ring tommorrow after work ,let you know how i got on.

[Former Member]

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[Mr Sam]

having just got back into the hobby after a few years brake when i first started getting the flying time in was a nightmare what with waiting for good weather hope that the instructor is free and that my mum would drive the 30mile round trip and find something to entertain herself in the meantime

 having just joined a new club where ive moved to its great all very welcoming people (although they were at the last) very helpful instructor with a designated night of the week for instructing should the weather hold out and also now my own transport

so i guess now its just having the time and the weather to get some hours under my belt

[Phil Winks]

Well my prized copy of the mag hit the hall floor this morning and  I felt so good when on reading Davids article for begginers "into the blue" I suddenly recognised what I was reading yep I'd written it have a look lads he's very kindly quoted some of us in the article. Made me feel like I'd achieved something my advice/views on club mebership is being passed on to "begginers" some thing I considered myself to be untill now. Its one thing to see your words on here something else to see them in print. A good feeling I can tell you thanks David.