Why New RC Airplane Pilots Usually Find Themselves Frustrated
The biggest reason that most new RC pilots have a frustrating experience is that the airplanes that are commercially available to them in hobby stores and toy stores have inherent flaws. Some cheap toy RC Airplane manufacturer is going to be ticked off when I let out the secret here. MOST OUT-OF-THE-BOX RC AIRPLANES AVAILABLE AT TOY STORES ARE JUNK! And even those airplanes that are fairly respectable have some real problems. Here's why:
Problem #1: Poor Flight Characteristics
- Small power-to-weight ratio: This means that the motor is too small for how heavy the airplane is. Not only does this make it less fun to fly, but also much more difficult to fly. Extra power is really helpful when you are trying to avoid a crash.
- Insufficient Control Surfaces: This means that the parts of the airplane that are used for steering are too small, or don't function well. I remember trying to help a guy with one of these planes. I could hold the contrrol stick to the right for 3 seconds before the airplane would begin to turn right.
- Too heavy & too fast: Don't get me wrong here. I like fast airplanes. The trouble is that I need to be able to choose to go fast or slow. These commercially produced airplanes can't go slow or they drop like a rock. A good beginner airplane will be able to fly VERY SLOW; and as the pilot becomes more experienced, that same airplane should be able to fly fast.
Problem #2: Crashes, Parts & Repairs
There's nothing more frustrating than spending a couple hundred bucks on a new airplane, flying it for 10 seconds (see poor flight characteristics above), crashing it, and realizing that you either have to spend days trying to repair it or buy a whole new airplane. Following are some of the difficulties you'll encounter with commercially produced airplanes:
- The Wrong Materials: I don't know which is worse for a beginner--An airplane made of balsa wood, or an airplane made of plastic. My first airplane was made of balsa wood, and it flew for about 10 seconds, crashed; and all that was left was a pile of toothpics and mangled electronics. My cousin's first airplane was made of plastic; and within his first hour of attempted flights, the thing was covered in duct tape and weighed twice what it started of as (which was too heavy in the first place).
- No Replacement Parts: Simply put, many of the airplanes that you can buy out there don't even have replacement parts. I guess they just figure you'll buy a new airplane after your first 10 second joyride.
- No Airplane Plans: To be fair, I've got to admit that there are some decent foam airplane kits out there. I was flying with a guy last week who had one. He was telling me how great it was, and in a moment of weakness; he crashed. He was like "That's the good thing about these. I can just buy a new one for fifty bucks, and it will be just like new". I don't know about you readers, but I don't have $50 to spare every time I crash. If your not crashing, you're probably not having enough fun. A GOOD BEGINNER AIRPLANE SHOULD BE MADE OF FOAM AND COME WITH THE ACTUAL AIRPLANE PLANS. This way, when you break some or all of your airplane, it costs you a couple of dollars to buy a new sheet of foam and fix it. With a good foam airplane, most crashes will only require 2 minutes and a little hot glue to get your airborne again.