Mark's Intro into RC Flying

Sometime around the year 2001 I saw an ad for a complete ready to fly airplane for under $300. The kit included everything including the transmitter. I was amazed because as a kid I remember RC stuff being too expensive. I decided to do some searching online and something. After a few days of searching I decided a moto-glider would be the most fun. I could climb up high and take my time gliding down. I could hardly wait for the USP guy to deliver my plane.

Needless to say I was a bit disappointed when the UPS guy showed up. The biggest problem was the transmitter. Instead of a standard layout it my left thumb operated the elevator, my right thumb the rudder and on the bottom of the transmitter one of my fingers operated the throttle. Needless to say this was a bit confusing. I also failed to realize what a poor pilot I would be the first few times out. My first flying field was a field with a bunch of Christmas trees with a grass patch along the side that I figured I would easily land on. As you can image after less than a minute of flight time I broke the wing after hitting several Christmas trees. I ordered a new wing and broke it the second time out. I then lost interest in the moro-glider.

Several years later I once again saw another ad, this time for a ready to fly electric RC helicopter for under $300. I have always loved helicopters and decided to get one. After spending several days searching I decided I wanted one with cyclic and collective control - full 3D. This really excited me because I would be able to practice in my back yard. No need to find a HUGE field. I was not disappointed with the helicopter. I learned to hover it even in strong winds. However, I never learned to fly towards myself. It was just too confusing to control the hover and navigate with everything reversed. This didn't really matter because it was fun to fly around with the tail facing me. I flew the helicopter for several years replacing many parts before losing interest.

As I mentioned on my main RC page, near the end of 2007 a friend re-sparked my interest in RC planes. We decided to go flying with a mutual friend. My brother had also loaned me one of his planes along with a standard radio. Quite a bit had changed since I started with my moto-glider. Brushless electric motors had dropped in price to the point where they were affordable. Batteries had also improved to the point where instead of a four to five minute flight; you could fly from ten to fifteen minutes on a single charge. Batteries also became lighter allowing for smaller aircraft. Smaller aircraft meant I didn't need the huge field to fly in that I had before. Basically, flying electric RCs is now affordable, practical and fun! That day I brought my helicopter, moto-glider and my brother's plane. My friend brought one plane, and our mutual friend brought a helicopter and a plane. Needless to say we had loads of fun for an hour or so. By the end of the morning we had crashed (and broken) one helicopter and three planes. I was hooked!

As a kid some of my favorite memories are of building planes with my dad. We built a plastic model B-17, a scratch built balsa U-control biplane, a plastic U-control PT-19, and various other models. My favorite was one we never finished. It was a scratch built 47" wingspan balsa, silk covered plane that was designed for RC controls. We completed enough if it that I turned it into a glider and can remember it gliding a foot or so off the front lawn for what seemed like forever. I was fascinated how it would just keep gliding. I credit that moment as one of the reasons I'm so fascinated with flight today. (My wife probably wishes I was inside watching TV that day.)

I also strangely enjoy stress - at least stress that I have some control over. The idea of spending a month building something and then test flying it is something I truly enjoy. Although there are a lot of already built planes that can be purchased for about the same cost of building one I just can't see the excitement of trying not to crash something I purchased. So, I decided to purchase a balsa kit - a Telemaster.