IF HPR was like the airplane hobby

As a rocketeer who is an AMA member and flys RC planes as well, I'll agree - Model Airplane News is a class publication.

But the number of folks who are involved in RC worldwide dwarf the entire hobby rocket crowd - model, mid and high power rocketry combined. This huge number of participants makes economies of scale possible, and naturally allows for more companies which offer more and more varied products (waiting on that Hangar 9 giant scale P-47 ARF, myself)

With the relatively recent introduction of good quality ARFs and excellent simulators, it's never been easier to get into RC flying - but it isn't hard to get into rockets either, and you don't have to learn piloting skills:)

Despite the fact that hobby rocketry will never approach RC in size and is a peanut by comparison, there are currently scads of rocketry vendors with innovative, affordable and diverse product lines - enough good stuff to keep any rocketeer plenty busy in the shop and flying high at the field!

Jerry O

TRA is untrainable.

jerry, What does your bone headed, idiotic statement above, have to do with anything in Almax's post?

Hi Jerry, glad to meet another fellow R/C pilot.

Some items that don't keep them busy in any shop but flying high at the fields are about what we need right now.

And ways to get motors to them and hobby stores without encumbrances.

ARF's are a good tool to get people flying airplanes and are a good way to replace a busted up machine. I do not think it really translates well into rockets however. I fly model sailplanes. This means that I will fly ONE plane for hours at a time (unfortunately not one launch) half of the summer The skill is more in the flying than the prep. The thermals are always in different places and the fun is in keeping the plane up until you want to land it. I have several sailplanes that I fly that I did not build, but rather enjoy flying anyway. I have an Aerotech HV Arcas that I bought, completed, from a flyer getting out of the hobby. If I did not build the motor and enjoy the challenge of tweaking the delay for the flight, I would probably have flown it once and just put it away. I had no "connection" to it. I've flown it enough now that I consider it mine, but remember sometimes that I did not build it and lose a little enthusiasm for a bit.

There are a lot of airplane guys that frown on flying ARF's. Some contests used to stipulate that you built the plane you fly. On the other hand, there are a significant number of guys that will never build another airplane again. ARF may be cool for the rocket starter kits, but would you really enjoy a K powered rocket if you just wrote a check, opened a box and stuffed a motor in it?

There are interesting contrast in the two different hobbies, especially when you talk about the model sailplanes. (I will probably build a boost glider some time soon just because its a good 'tweener)

Airplane, servos, battery, receiver - expensive. Successful flight - nearly free. Model to mid-powered Rocket - cheap to moderate expensive. Successful flight - $3 to $20. Sailplane flight - 2 minutes to 2 hours. Rocket flight - 30 seconds to 5 minutes.

I thought you were lamenting that there were too many ads... :-)

Eldred

I'll probably take up model airplanes because I cant do model rocketry (except bottle rockets which gets BORING after a while!) now I could build a model rocket and stuff a bottle into it but thats no fun if you only get to fly it once...