anyone into RC?
 

specifically, I'm interested in RC helicopters.... I know they're pretty spendy, but are they really super hard to fly? What kinda learning curve do they have?

They are not that tough to fly... just go somewhere where they arent many trees. They dont always land where you expect them to.

I have rc cars myself.

I thought this was going to be about RC Cola and Moonpies. :glugglug

hmmm.....


the hovercrafts look pretty cool too, but I hear they eat power like mad.... only last a real short time....

I dunno about helicopters, but I too have a RC car.

yeah i would think it takes a little getting used to. like flying helicopter simulators. get the hang of it and it should be easy. then you can put a camera on it and fly it into high rise apartment windows and voyeur. lol!

if you get one, get a gas-powered. pure fun.

SixNine

:thumbsup

i remember my first RC car. the green arrow from radio shack. it was fast as hell but lasted only 5 minutes.

SixNine's got heli's?

they have dolly type things u can bolt to them to to get the basics.

Or people zip tie long dowel rods to the skids to get a larger flat landing gear so they can then start to learn by trial and error.

There are some lower priced european electric rc choppers that start out rather basic.. Electric is clean and quiet just might have short flight times. I'll see if I can find the site.

Everyone who says they are easy to fly are full of shit... I have a friend that thought that and basically crashed 1500 dollars into the ground..... You have to be taught..... Helicopter is for the very advanced..... I bought a few remote control planes from Ebay last year for kicks...... Pretty fun, one of them was a glider that I lost control and put it into traffic, that sorta looked cool but sucked at the same time :winkwink:

didnt find it yet but check out these micro electric heli's: http://www.planetinternet.be/pixel/

sweet! Those are cool, but it says they're not for sale.... :(

haha when i was a kid my father spent like a month building this kickass balsa wood glider plane... first flight he crashed it straight into me. It didn't hurt, but the thing was destroyed. :1orglaugh

www.towerhobbies.com

I got mine there.

got it: http://www.mikado-heli.de/

mikado.. . they seemed pretty sweet the logo series of choppers

do you have a sofa on your lawn by any chance?

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXLL63&P=0


Only afforable 2199 bucks. Without the accessories that you'll need extra.

Check your mail, I sent you an email through your design form regarding a design :).

haha sweet


http://www.mikado-heli.de/images/logos/10/013.jpg

LOL

spunky got me into flying r/c airplanes.. I have a piper cub.. pretty neat.. but he has some helicopters.. im sure he can contribute much to this thread.

I almost got me one of those Micro-sized R/C Cars, but my girl thought it was childish to have one :1orglaugh

Have to buy me one as soon as she is at work :Graucho

Q.

Flying RC aircraft is kinda like riding a bike.. very difficult to get the knack of the first few times, but once you've got it you can fly almost anything with no problems.

The most important thing the first few times is flying only on dead calm days. Absolutely no wind at all. Even a light breeze will have a surprisingly large effect on a small RC aircraft, and if you're not used to flying you'll overcompensate at the controls and crash.

The model shop you buy from should be more than happy to hook you up with someone to give you a few lessons.

almost impossible to escape the wind here... there's always at least a breeze.

what kinda range do these things have? If I get on top of the house, can I send it out like, a couple blocks away?

What distance can they go?

wow.... those are pretty hot... did you have to build it or did it come ready to go?

I used to be a Sponsored R/C Car racer about 7 years ago. Started racing them when I was 13. Raced 2wd offroad buggy, 4wd offroad buggy, 2wd offroad truck, and onroad nascar stylee.

Raced in the ROAR north american nationals etc.

:thumbsup

I got this one last year:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXMV54&P=0


It came preassembled, all I had to do was to install the airfilter, pour in fuel, install batteries and it was pretty much ready to go. It's not a really fast one, but really fun in muddy terrain :thumbsup

Range will vary according to your radio setup and atmospheric conditions, but even the lower end electric powered beginner planes have operating ranges of around 1/2 a mile, or 3000ft. So yeah.. a block or two should not be a problem, just perform a manual range check to be sure.

that shit is cool man.... I saw a guy in the park a few weeks ago that had a truck.... looked like something that should be offroad, but man... that thing hauled ass though the grass! :thumbsup

hmmm...


the gas powered ones must be pretty loud.... how about the electric ones? I don't wanna create too much noise and piss off the neighbors...

Yeah I've been flying RC planes for 17 years and I've had a couple of helicopters. Get a gas one, I suggest the Thundertiger Raptor because its pretty simple to build and fly and replacement parts are cheap, and you WILL be buying replacement parts.

A good, computer radio is a MUST. Dont skimp on the radio, get at least a Futaba 8UA or better. After you have your radio, get the Great Planes RealFlight simulator, and hook your radio to it. I also suggest buying the add-ons for the simulator, I believe #3 has the raptor helicopter. Use your radio to fly the simulator, dont use the one that came with it. Trust me, the radio makes flying the helo alot easier and makes you look like a better pilot.

On the simulator, practice hovering, alot. After you master hovering (with the tail facing you) practice hovering with the nose facing you. its not near as easy as it sounds. then try forward flight, fly in circles around you to the left then to the right. Then practice hovering some more and sideways flights. After you master all of that, practice backwards flight. The simulator will save you a ton of money and time.

Gas helicopters arent too loud, but if you fly it anywhere near your neighbors, you're crazy. these things can kill or seriously injur someone. Join the AMA http://www.modelaircraft.org and then find a model club and use thier field to fly your aircraft, that way you have a $1 million insurance policy.

Also go check out heliProz http://www.heliproz.com they have smoe good info on starting up and the are pretty helpful on the phone.

damn! this shit looks complicated as fuck! :(

Heh, then i suggest buying a good book or a helicopter video... also, go to your local news stand and pick up a copy of RC Modeler Magazine

its a little complicated, but you just take everything in baby steps and you'll be ok. And if you crash your helicopter and decide you dont like the helicopters, that radio is also excellant for flying planes with.

Here, just order this
http://www6.mailordercentral.com/hel...m=8&mite m=54

and also this
http://www6.mailordercentral.com/hel...=35&mit em=54

I have both of those, you cant get by without the good info they provide.

no but i used to watch him race pro guys in San Jose when we worked together a couple years ago...he's pretty good actually, but no heli's..still RC though..tight shit !

Fuck Heli's...

A rubberduck...
http://home.earthlink.net/~jaffee/rbbrduck.htm

Or an Anabat...
http://home.earthlink.net/~jaffee/anabat.html

When I was into RC I had these...its basically a flying wing design...one big airfoil with a controll surface or two. They are made out of a nearly indestructable foam. Which means..."DOGFIGHT'S"...you try and ram one another and pull out of the ensuing tailspin!

With the ocean breezes in that area, get two of these and get ready for mayhem! Harness the winds power and go at it...

Not anymore. :thumbsup