New Comers
P.O. Box 40, St. Peters, MO 63376
Getting Started
Getting started in the hobby/sport of aeromodeling arises from decisions made in much the same manner others are made in our lives. These range from continual little nudges over an extended period, perhaps through contact with a friend or relative, to an impulsive action prompting something that had been dormant in a corner of the mind. Sometimes the reasons for wanting to become involved are structured and logical, sometimes not.
The litany of my own moves to involvement are fairly representative and should help to act as a "what not to do" scenario in some cases.
I built model airplanes as a kid. These included a variety of models, including Thermic 50 towline models, scratch-built control line models, and even a scratch-built free flight that was most unsuccessful. Mom and Dad weren't involved, but they were supportive. I even thought about becoming an aeronautical engineer.
The modeling interest faded by the start of high school. It was not replaced with girls and cars, but with photography and track. The aeronautical engineer bit also faded.
College and two years of military service followed. No modeling interest was evident.
Then one Saturday after my military service ended in 1956, I was sitting around our apartment. My wife Rae was not feeling well and was asleep. The Yellow Pages yielded news of a nearby hobby shop named Charlie's, and I paid a visit.
But it wasn't a model airplane that followed me home; it was a 50-inch model of a cargo ship that was built on the back of a table leaf placed on a footstool in our living room. (Yes, Rae and I remained married. However, the term "happily" may have been strained a bit at times.)
Several years and several ships later, discontent set in. I gravitated to HO gauge trains and had the start of a really neat layout in our first home. But quite frankly, that became a real drag for me—especially trying to keep the rails clean.
So, on one of my trips to Charlie's, a casual question from me in the form of "have you ever thought about model airplanes?" was all it took. I became the proud owner of a Falcon 56 kit, a K&B .19 engine, and a six-channel (three-function) Citizen-Ship reed radio system. The year was 1966, and I was 35 years old.
In the year or two that followed, I figured out how to make just about every possible mistake. In a day when models often tended to be more "free flight" than radio "controlled," I painted the Falcon two-tone green—sorta leaf green!
I then proceeded to try to teach myself to fly. This came after a first-flight attempt almost ended in disaster, and I was saved by an experienced modeler. My problem? Well, the reed radio equipment had neither simultaneous nor proportional functions. When the model circled away, I frantically tried to bring it back and simply canceled any functions by trying to give it two signals at once. It didn't work.
But I wasn't deterred. All summer I struggled onward, teaching myself to fly. Actually it was more like "teaching myself different ways to crash." Rae was patient, and always knew I'd be home in an hour or so with a model to repair. I did sneak out to the field during the week (I was a teacher and it was summer) when no one was there to help me. Because I was a little embarrassed, relatively stubborn, and very dumb, I actually could fly (somewhat) before I found that the Signal Chasers RC Club contained people who were very knowledgeable and helpful.
And why this long tale? To let you know that there may be a number of parallels between your aeromodeling career and mine. If not (to this point), use me as an example of what not to do.
Some steps to follow
- Contact AMA's Membership Department and request a chartered club list for your area. Touch base with one or more clubs. Their interest is identified as RC (Radio Control), FF (Free Flight), CL (Control Line) or MU (multiple interest). If the club has an instruction program, give it a try.
- Look up hobby shops in your area. Ask questions. Try to get a sense of the clerk's involvement in aeromodeling.
- Try to locate a flying site in the area. Haunt it! Ask questions.
- Buy a variety of model magazines at the newsstand or bookstore. Compare what you've noted at the shop and field with what's available in ads. Try hard to separate what you think is an ultimate modeling goal (flying multi-engine scale models) from the reality of what's needed to learn to fly.
- Assess your skill level. Are you handy with tools and things; better at following directions; what?
- Consider your immediate goal. Do you want to get something in the air to fly? Or will you enjoy putting it together in stages?
Now we're left with some real decision points. First: is your primary interest free flight, control line, or radio control? Please resist the philosophy espoused by some that any one discipline is a beginning and another an end. Each of the three has a simple-to-complex venue. Quite frankly, however, my personal experience suggests that if you can be successful with free flight models, you will learn the modeling skills necessary to be successful in the other two.
Getting something in the air quickly
So, you've decided your answer to question number six above is that you want to get something in the air—quickly—with little or no cutting, sanding, or covering. What are your options?
- Locate and attend one of the commercial programs that will teach you to fly.
- Buy a model built by someone else, ready to fly.
- Go for an ARF (Almost Ready to Fly).
If you are interested in free flight, about the only one of those three options available is number two. There really aren't free flight ARFs. Control line has a few, although they tend to be the snap-together plastic types. Radio control has a wide variety, ranging from smaller molded-foam types up to fairly large built-up-and-covered models.
You will find the largest number of RC ARFs are designed around the .40 cubic inch two-stroke to .60 cubic inch four-stroke engines. This yields a model large enough to be seen easily and fly well, yet still small enough to be economical and easily transported. Most are high-wing (wing placed above the engine thrust line), have a flat (or almost flat) bottomed airfoil shape on the wing, and have tricycle gear (steerable nose wheel with two main gear wheels). One factor to consider with any trainer is the ease of repair. Some ARFs are made of materials that may be difficult to repair due to the nature of the material. Plastics sometimes present a problem. The newer built-up wood ARFs occasionally have a plastic/foam covering that may be difficult to patch. So ask questions before you buy.
A few important points
- Don't rely on a single "expert!" Gather as much information as possible. Are the thoughts put forth in this column the only or best way to go? The answer is, of course, no. That's why it's important for you to have contact with many sources.
- Try to prevent impulse buying or involvement.
- Determine immediate goals up front. Is this new interest prompted by a desire to learn skills, relaxation, fill a long-time urge to fly, or what? Don't focus solely on long-term goals. More often than not, that leads to frustration and a lack of patience with the early development. Be realistic with goals and expectations.
- Learn to enjoy the people you come in contact with as you learn!
Next month we'll look at some equipment selection.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
