Remote Control Airplane Buying Tips

When looking into buying an Expensive kit like an R/C airplane, you need to take a few things into consideration.

1. How much money do I want to spend?
2. RTR or build?
3. Electric or gas?
4. What size plane to buy?
5. What extras will I need?
6. Where can I fly my new plane?
7. Are they hard to fly?
8. Are there training aids?

All of these points are very good questions because R/C airplanes can get to be pretty expensive. This has to be something you love due to the price. Most model airplane kits range in price from a starter plane beginning at $49.00 to an accelerated flier’s model kit that can cost around $399.00. These kits are made of balsa wood and can either be electric or gas design. They do make RTF kits, which means ready to fly, to make it easy to learn for a new R/C pilot. No assembly required, just add batteries and gas, or both, and you’re ready to fly. There is no hassle with trying to figure out how it all goes together with the RTF kit. For the more experienced model airplane builder there is a wide variety of models and sizes to choose from. Large kits will almost always require some assembly and will never come complete or ready to run. The larger planes will require engines, radio and radio gear. Some of the larger scale planes do come more than 50% complete, right out of the box. The larger scale planes are the best for learning because they have greater stability while flying, because of their size. When I say size, I mean they have wing spans of up to 81” and can be up to 75” long. That’s a big toy airplane. This is an adult hobby that can be a lot of fun. Some of these planes will achieve speeds of 150MPH and some even faster. You’ll need to check your local area for locations of parks or R/C air fields near you. You can fly them almost anywhere, but you will need a little room for the big ones. You will need plenty of runway area to take off and land the giant scale planes. Being a beginner you might be thinking I can’t fly. Well, you can, these kits fly better and easier than the real thing. They land very smooth and they handle exceptionally well, even under heavy wind conditions. It will take some getting use to, but it really is easy. They do make training simulators for your computer that will link to your airplanes remote control allowing you to practice your flying on your computer instead of risking your plane, when your not quite sure if your ready yet. They also make controllers that can be cable linked together for training purposes. If you loose control, during a real flight, the experienced flier can just take over the controls and avoid a crash. Radio controlled flying has been made very easy and fun no matter what level hobbyist you are. Tower Hobbies is the biggest R/C shop I’ve ever heard of or seen and they have everything you want or need related to R/C. If this sounds like something you would enjoy, then check them out. This is great hobby and a lot of fun.

Happy Flying,

The Auto Tech