Good starter plane..which one?

EasyStar Ready-To-Fly

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Yes, go to

and look at the beginners forum. You will see lots of threads asking the same question. If you are going glow (they use an alcohol based fuel commononly called glow fuel), the typical recommendation is a .40 size trainer and a 4 or 6 channel radio. There are many brands and models that do well. I'm less familiar with electric trainers, although I know the GWS Slow Stick is highly recommended. Before you decide, check with your local hobby shop to see what clubs are in your area and then pay the clubs a visit. While some people have learned on their own, it you get help from an instructor you will learn faster and with less crashes.

thankyou very much!!!!!!!!

thankyou :)!!!!!!!!

thankyou!!!!!!!!!!!

Choices are huge and so will be the recommendations. As someone who has only been flying for under a year I will try to offer advice based on my personal experience.

Find a club and ask around. You'll hear all sorts of recommendations. Weigh them up and make a choice. Bias your choice towards whatever your future instructors recommend.

Radio gear and engine choice is something to think about carefully. Do you want something just to get you through training, something through a few basic models, or something that will last for a heck of a long time? A good "first few planes" setup would be a 5 channel radio and a decent 46 sized engine. However if budget is tight you can do well with a "lesser" engine.

My first radio is a Hitec Flash 5, while I'm about to swicth to an Eclipse 7 I really have no need to upgrade other than I wanted to. So, whatever brand you choose I would suggest looking at a minimum of 5 channels with a few model memories (most brands will do this).

Engine choice is going to be something in the 40-46sizes. You could buy something like an OS 46AX but that's typically overkill for a trainer. However, it will see you into any 46sized aircraft you will ever buy. If you want cheap and reliable go for an OS LA engine. Ignore the negative comments you read about them, I've never met anyone who's had one that didn't like them. The engines aren't powerhouses but do deliver more power than many credit them with. They are easy to start, easy to tune, and will run all day without a single problem. My own LA engine is approaching the 40litres of fuel consumed mark. Runs like a clock, which is not something I can say for some other more expensive non-OS engines.

For your plane, I won't recommend any particular one as every part of the world seems to have a favorite. However, you're after: a 40ish sized trainer, tricycle undercarriage, high wing, semi-symetrical, 4 channel.

You may want electric but it's going to be harder to learn on. Many instructors don't train on electics, flight times are generally shorter (which means shorter lessons). If the trainer is a hand launch variety, you miss out on learning ground handling and engine starting. While that may sound trivial, it's important safety stuff to learn should you every go to glow motors.

Hope this helps. I know I rambled but forgive me, I've been bedridden with the flu for the last few days and this is the first time I've felt human enough to get online.... ;-)

.

Total Bull......

Mt Great Planes PT Electric ( 56" span, 500 sq wing area ) large electric with outrunner and lipo upgrade will stay in the air for over

20 min. OBTW it taxis on the ground darn good. Instructors DO train on electrics. Check out this club at and look in there photo gallery for the most recent Electric Fly in event. Some very nice planes....all types...small to large electric

Small electric/gas ( aka parkflyers ) handle on the groundnd just as well as the larger gas/electric planes. Small planes need a smoother surface ( hard dirt or asphalt ). My Great Planes E-Cub ( parkflyer )can rog. My GWS Slow Stick rog's in about 10 feet on asphalt.

Safety????.........Electric's are a bit safer then glow. 1 You do not have to have your fingers close to the prop to start it. 2 Less vibration/ wear and tear on gear. 3 Queit and clean. Bottom Line: If the club refuses to train you on any size electric. DO NOT JOIN THAT CLUB

Mike

Could you answer a few more questions for us, RiverMan?

Do you live in a city or a rural area/small town? Is there a flying club in your area that you can join? Do you have a local hobby store near by (if so, what do they stock/recommend)? Do you want a starter plane to "try out" r/c flying, or a dedicated trainer so you can really learn how to fly solo with advanced airplanes? Do you have any experience with other R/C craft, like cars, boats, or trucks? Have you seen a plane that you like, but you're not sure if you should start out with it? Will you have any help learning how to fly, or will you be figuring it out on your own?

All of these things will affect what shoud be recommended for you. Also, if you had any kind of budget anticipated, it would be helpful. You can buy a complete ready-to-fly electric plane for $29.99, or you can spend over $500 buying a ready-to-fly nitro trainer package and field equipment.

thankyou very much for helping me!!!! :)

i live in small town Pendleton Oregon. I will be mostly trying to figure this out on my own. there is a flying club about 40 min away in walla walla wa but i cant drive or anything so im stuck here unless i can get my dad to take me. there arent really in hobby stores nearby because i live in a small place. i just decided one day that i wanted one but had no idea what would be good for me!!!!

thanks

OK, that helps a lot as far as being able to make some specific recommendations.

With no flying club nearby and no sanctioned flying field in your area, nitro powered planes are not a good idea. They are quite good to learn with IF you have an experienced flyer to train you and an approved place to fly them.

You're going to want an electric plane of some kind. You're going to need to purchase it from a good online retailer. I'd recommend shopping at:

or

or

These are major radio control hobby distributors with a wide selection of products.

You still have a few choices to make, though:

1) How much do you want to spend? 2) Will you be flying indoors (school gymnasium), in a small outdoor area (baseball field), or a larger outdoor area (soccer/football field or larger)? 3) Is it worth it to you to spend extra for a larger, heavier plane that you can fly outside when the wind isn't calm? 4) Is this a hobby you want to "try out," or are you pretty sure you'll enjoy flying enough that investing in a high quality plane at the very beginning makes sense?

Answer a few more of these questions, and recommending specific planes for you should become easy.

How much would you recomend me spending at least???????????

ill be flying outside. im dont really want to join a club or anything but just want a good plane for me to use and not just fall apart. i will be mostly flying it in a pretty good size field but dont want to spend too much on it.

How much are u willing to spend????

Mike

You don't have to spend a lot to get a good plane, but like everything else in life there is always something a little bit better available for a little bit more money.

Considering that:

-You're flying alone

-You haven't indicated previous r/c experience

-You don't want to spend a lot of money if you don't have to

-You don't want to join a club

-You will be flying outdoors

-You have a reasonably good sized area to fly in outside

-You don't have a hobby store nearby and you will need to order parts online

I can make a couple of good recommendations:

Hobbyzone Firebird IIST

or

Hobbico Flyzone Mini Ventura

The Firebird IIST is $85, the Mini Ventura is $90

Horizon Hobby carries a full line of replacement parts for the Firebird IIST while Tower Hobbies carries a full line of replacement parts for the Mini Ventura.

While neither of these planes will be able to fly in wind much over 5 to 7 mph, both will be good fliers in nearly calm outdoor conditions. The Mini Ventura is a slightly more sophisticated 3-channel design (seperate elevator and rudder) versus the Firebird IIST's 2-channel (elevon v-tail) design, but for all practical purposes they should fly very similarly to one another.

These plastic-and-foam planes are rugged enough to be crashed repeatedly without permanently wrecking them. You may want to consider ordering an extra wing, tail assembly, and prop when you order your plane. These are the three items most likely to break while you're learning to toss around your plane.

Both planes come with an instructional video disc to walk you through initial setup and basic flight instruction.

If either of these choices in the $85 to $90 range is a bit too expensive for what you had in mind, I'd recommend Hobby Zone's Firebird Scout plane at $50 to $55. It's basically just a smaller version of the Firebird IIST (but even more sensitive to slightly windy conditions) that should be suitable for the lowest of budgets. Hobbico makes some less expensive FlyZone models, but I haven't heard much about them.

Good luck, and let us know what you picked out and how things are going!

thankyou!!!!!

i chose the 55 dollar plane because i didnt want to spend the 100 until later.i ordered an extra wing and two propellers to come with it. i really appreciate you guys helping and THANKYOU again!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm pretty comfortable declaring the Hobby Zone Firebird Scout the best $55 Ready-to-Fly airplane package available on the market. RC Universe reviewed the plane pretty thoroughly recently, I thought you might like to read about it while you await your shipment:

There is video of the plane flying, too.

Be sure to tell us how you're doing and how you like the plane. You'll likely end up putting it into the ground a few times, that's quite normal while you're figuring things out. Hopefully you'll figure your Scout out faster than I figured out my Aerobird Challenger and that extra wing and those extra propellers will last you a good long time!

Good choice.....just remember to fly in as little wind as you can. Save your flights for calm days. I had the Firebird Outlaw....fun plane.

Good luck

Mike