Radio Control Plane Hobby |
My interest in airplanes as well as control line and RC models began when I was a kid. Our church had a boys club called Sky Pilots where they built rubber band free flight and glow powered control line planes. I was too young for most of it but was fascinated by my brother's cox .049 powered control line planes which spent a lot more time trying to be started than flying, most likely thanks to the old retired telephone batteries they used to "light" the glow plugs! Some years later I almost ventured into the hobby but was dissuaded by finances and the sobering reality that they (almost all) crash, even in the hands of experienced pilots. But that all changed in 2011 when my son (now our pastor) gave me a little Helio Courier kit for my birthday. I had been watching him build and fly them for a few months and was already "smitten" but that kit put me over the edge....
My first real plane was a Great Planes PT-40 trainer which I built from a kit and installed an old OS FS-48 Surpass 4 stroke engine I got off eBay. It turned out well and is still flying in spite of a few mishaps. From there I assembled the Great Planes .40 sized Escapade sport ARF plane. It initially flew with an ASP FS52AR 4 stroke engine (I love 4 stroke engines!) but now has a very old .40 Irvine engine purchased through eBay. Along the way I also purchased a couple electric foam planes. Perhaps my best buy was a Horizon Hobbies Super Cub, which is also still flying and in some ways is my go-to plane. I pretty much learned to fly with it. It has crashed many times (see photo below) and is now held together by packing tape and foam CA but still flies well. I added ailerons and converted it to a brushless motor so it would fly like a "real" airplane. Our beautiful flying field is sponsored by the Silver Eagles RC Club and is in the middle of a tree farm. Two of my most spectacular (though unintentional) aerobatic performances have ended up in the trees!
My first real plane was a Great Planes PT-40 trainer which I built from a kit and installed an old OS FS-48 Surpass 4 stroke engine I got off eBay. It turned out well and is still flying in spite of a few mishaps. From there I assembled the Great Planes .40 sized Escapade sport ARF plane. It initially flew with an ASP FS52AR 4 stroke engine (I love 4 stroke engines!) but now has a very old .40 Irvine engine purchased through eBay. Along the way I also purchased a couple electric foam planes. Perhaps my best buy was a Horizon Hobbies Super Cub, which is also still flying and in some ways is my go-to plane. I pretty much learned to fly with it. It has crashed many times (see photo below) and is now held together by packing tape and foam CA but still flies well. I added ailerons and converted it to a brushless motor so it would fly like a "real" airplane. Our beautiful flying field is sponsored by the Silver Eagles RC Club and is in the middle of a tree farm. Two of my most spectacular (though unintentional) aerobatic performances have ended up in the trees!
2015 New Years Day Fly...
Our Silver Eagles Flying Club, like many others has a tradition of going out to the field and flying on New Years Day. So five of us met there at 10:00am. The temperature was about 18 degrees and the wind was blowing a steady 15 mph or so with gusts much greater - crosswind of course! Four of us managed to get planes in the air and all returned to the field with neither fatalities nor serious damage. But none of the takeoffs or landings were pretty! I flew my Apprentice S15 which handled the wind amazingly well but took concentrated effort to keep it near the airstrip. Had to abort my first landing attempt but got it "safely" on the airstrip the second time. Chilled and happy to be intact we abandoned the flying after about 45 minutes to seek the warmth of a local restaurant where we ate, talked and laughed for another hour and a half. Good day overall!
