Obi Wan Crashobi Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Hi all As per the title really, I know it was a stupid idea before I did it, but I did it anyway. Have flown a tonne of drones and a couple of planes and got enough experience to know that flying drones means nothing compared to fixed wing! Last plane a few years ago was an apprentice, managed to consistently avoid the ground, but a tree put an end to it. Now the stupid bit. I bought a Freewing A-10 64mm. I know it's far too big a leap, but it's an A-10!!! One of my favourite planes, secondhand, really good price, had the flaps mod done already. OK it's a little tatty in places, but, it's an A-10! (Yes that is my justification for this!) Right now I have put in the apprentice rx - am not going to use it as I don't believe the SAFE will be compatible, and it doesn't have enough channels, but for testing everything works, and trundling around on the ground to start getting used to it, it'll do. I was wondering what tx and rx people would recommend? Really want to have GPS on it for RTH. Think where I went wrong with the apprentice was worrying about it flying away so not giving it enough altitude or distance, so having the safety net of GPS would reduce that fear. Definitely want some form of stabilisation too, and enough channels for flaps and retracts on top of the normal four. Any suggestions? Thanks, Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyGnome Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Ask 1000 flyers for advice re transmitters and you'll get 1001 different answers! OpenTX/EdgeTX transmitters seem very popular with drone flyers - not sure if that's to do with the electrickery (GPS/stabilisation/flight controllers) but OpenTX/EdgeTX is, in my opinion, superb. If you can think of something you want to do, the software will allow it. Radiomaster TX16 transmitter seems popular with drone fliers as well as a number of fixed wing flyers on this forum - me included. The inbuilt multi-module allows this tx to talk to many other manufacturers receivers... Usual advice would be to visit a club, see what they use and find one that feels right. But...... research how you'll get GPS and RTH which is less common on fixed wing aircraft. When it comes to RTH, I'd personally forget about it, and get some tuition to remove the fear. You should never really be in a position where you don't have line of sight to your plane, unless flying fpv (in which case, your spotter should have line of sight). I'd also suggest that on your A10 you'll have such low flight time that RTH is pretty pointless - by the time it's out of sight, and the RTH turns it around, it'll likely run out of battery before it gets back! As it drops, your stabilisation will presumably try to lift the nose, lowering airspeed to a point where it may well stall and crash. Sorry. It's the usual advice. Find a club; get some tuition (there may be a club trainer); remove the line of sight fear; get some hours in on something more forgiving than an A10; get someone to check out your A10; have fun! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wookman Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Stability should be easy enough. FrSky do the S6R and S8R. If you want spekky compatibility maybe a stabilised Lemonrx job will do it. As for rth I would forget it. It is hundreds of times more likely to crash than fly away no matter who is flying it. If your flying is not up to it you need more reasoning/practice not more stabilisation. I know what you mean about about the Warthog though, kind of beautifully ugly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Walby Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 If you want something that flies itself then a Hobby Zone Carbon Cub S, all the bells and whistles including Exclusive SAFE Plus GPS-enabled drone technology. • AutoLand, Holding Pattern, and Virtual Fence functions. • Beginner, Intermediate, and Experienced flight modes. • EPO foam airframe with fully painted scale trim scheme. • Tundra tires. On the up side you won't need a lot of skill to fly it, on the down side you won't learn much about flying either..and what it will teach you will need unlearning if you progress to something else. Alternatively as suggested by many, find a club, talk to the club members and get a few trial flights before deciding on equipment and instruction. 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Davis 2 Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Ask yourself this question Stu. Did the the real A10 pilots learn to fly on an A10? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denis Watkins Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 To me too Stu, the A10 is a beautiful aeroplane, and am lucky that like so many, in my teens, I could not afford radio or large scale builds as then it was my belief and desire to build and fly a Short Sunderland ! ! ! Stay keen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obi Wan Crashobi Posted January 13, 2023 Author Share Posted January 13, 2023 Thanks all, some really useful information there for me to look into. Yes, it's 100% the plan to find a good club and get some more flight time in. It'll be a number of months before even attempting to get it off the ground - if nothing else the weather is horrendous at the moment, and would much rather take my time, research, get recommendations etc, than rush. Would rather take a few months to decide on the right tx and rx than go any buy the first thing only to have to replace it. Really interesting what people are saying about GPS and stabilisation, glad I asked! Where I went wrong with the apprentice was keeping it in too close. Maybe with the money I'll save by not going down the GPS route might be better spent on something a bit easier that I'd be less bothered about making mistakes on. Keeping the A-10 though, it will fly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bennett Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 My take on GPS-aided RTH is that you need to be a competent flyer of whatever your model is before equipping it with that functionality, for there'll be a lot of configuration/tuning to do before it works reliably. I have it on helis and quadcopters, but in my view it's not worth it on fixed-wing models (others may disagree!), so just learn on a trainer, with club help, before trying something more adventurous. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Obi, welcome, nice name. Forget the A10, put it away for a future date, if you really learn quick, a year or so. Hark to Allen, post above, very sound advice. Go to a club, get some advice from the club, including what radio gear to buy, as they want to see you using kit they understand, and you get to handle the transmitter. Not all transmitters fit all hands. Long term learn to fly without aids, and that means learning without aids from the start, then use stabilisation aids because you want to. Just bear in mind, the A10, fast, agile, will deliver into the ground, or you, roughly the same energy as a .38 bullet, probably a bit more. Not a toy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon H Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) I am a bit old school when it comes to all of these technological bells and whistles. Learning to fly is not easy, its just not..so accept that fact and learn to fly. If you are hand held by various gadgets you arent actually learning anything. This might feel good in the short term as you can get to a 'solo' standard faster, but long term you are simply not going to progress. once you find a model you want to fly (Spitfires are the classic choice, but your A10 is a similar example) you will find you lack the core skills to even start on the ladder of learning that new model. You might even have to re learn everything as the hand holding tech has taught you some bad habits. I will always recommend skills development over gadgets and they do need to be practiced from time to time to retain proficiency. Even after 30 years of flying i will practice specific things from time to time. Cross wind landings being the most obvious. This might all sound like a lot of work, and it will be, but you will be a better pilot at the end. And when you finally nail something you have been struggling with for weeks it is very satisfying. The most obvious analogy is learning to drive. Its really easy in a dodgem car with one pedal, but you wouldnt be much use on the road in a real car if that was your only driving experience...although, given the standard of driving in my area i think they would fail even in a dodgem! Edited January 13, 2023 by Jon - Laser Engines 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel R Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 As the lads have already said. Get a trainer. It is a tool for learning on. Do the learning, use the tool. Progress on to something more taxing. Forget the fancy features for now until you have the basic skills. RTH is a gimmick for fixed wing. Stability aids, maybe. But they don't teach you the basic skills. Ultimately, there's a reason most trainers end up looking like a battered bag of spanners by the time they're done with. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obi Wan Crashobi Posted January 14, 2023 Author Share Posted January 14, 2023 Thanks all, that's really useful. Some form of trainer that I don't mind potentially destroying is the next thing to do. Really glad I asked about the GPS and stabilisation as it definitely sounds like I was heading in the wrong direction. Plus it makes tx and rx choices easier if I'm not looking for those features. I got on OK with the apprentice, could take off, fly around and land repeatably, and had I trusted it and myself more and given it some range then it would have been a lot better. Definitely need to practice though. Even taxiing around with the A-10 it is so different and the way the EDFs make power is so different to props. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bennett Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 6 hours ago, Obi Wan Crashobi said: Thanks all, that's really useful. Some form of trainer that I don't mind potentially destroying is the next thing to do. Really glad I asked about the GPS and stabilisation as it definitely sounds like I was heading in the wrong direction. Plus it makes tx and rx choices easier if I'm not looking for those features. . . . GPS and stabilisation doesn't usually require a different transmitter, so long as you have at least 6 channels and enough switches to be able to switch functions on/off. You can get receivers with built-in stabilisation, which might dictate your make of Tx but they probably won't have GPS function. As you probably know from your 'drone' experience, you often use a standard Rx to send the signal to a dedicated flight controller board when you're using GPS, so that doesn't tie down your Tx choice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obi Wan Crashobi Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 Was curious about the channels. Obviously need the standard 4, plus another two for the retracts and flaps (will aim for more channels than I need for future proofing). Retracts are easy, either up or down, but what do people do for flaps? Feels like it needs to be a bit more than binary, on or off, or am I overcomplicating thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC57 Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 A 3 position switch usually in my experience. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 Obi, to refine Evils succinct explanation, most aircraft are happy with, flaps up, flying about flaps a bit down, more lift, take off is slower speed flaps full down, near on 90°, drag created, steep approach angle, easier to get an accurate touch down for landing. Hence three position switch. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyGnome Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 Yup, all mine are on 3 position switch. Lots of people put them on back/side sliders or rotary pots, for finer control, but I'm happy to minimise my finger workload on the landing phase! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obi Wan Crashobi Posted January 17, 2023 Author Share Posted January 17, 2023 Great, was hoping a 3 position switch would be enough to keep it simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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