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Trying to buy a Durafly Tundra


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Take as a good clue, when you arrive at the field, and no one else is there.

BBC weather app for wind should state " plus 5 mph "

As in open spaces you can add 5 mph onto their prediction.

As others have said, wait for your man and with your enthusiasm you will be adept in no time

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Yep, you are all indeed right.

Patience is not my strong point.

 

I'll have to mow the lawn instead!

 

Glue is all set now, sp if the BBC are nearly right, might have a go tomorrow morning.

I've only been on Thursdays so far, mixed engine day, so might be in luck to get a friendly bit of coaching.

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Hillclimber you've found out the hard way that flying an r/c model is harder than it looks.

 

The son of one of my trainees is called Timmi. He has a private pilot's licence and has bought an Eflite Timber. He set it up with all of the bells and whistles including flaps. He was convinced that he needed flaps in order to take off despite my advice to the contrary. It practically stalled on take off and he just managed a couple shakey circuits with me talking to him through everything before a hurried landing. Afterwards he said that he would have crashed if I hadn't been there.We'll go up on linked transmitters next time.

 

Best of luck tomorrow. Take advantage of all of the help you can get from experienced pilots and be sure to let us know how you got on.

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Hi, Following along with your posts and IMHO try a couple of things if you can't get an instructor and a buddy lead. The really big problem without an instructor is that you are going to spend a lot of time gluing the Kingfisher back together when you could be learning to fly.

 

Get hold of a PC RC model simulator and practice loads until you can fly away and towards without crashing

Secondly, don't use flaps with the Kingfisher (I have one) its just harder to fly and it needs a flap to elevator mix to stop it pitching up. It will fly slowly and is well behaved just as it is.

Can't see why you need a stabilizer with it so turn it off and leave it off, but if you have "SAFE" and can find the right button in time then use it, I find people have either recovered the model or crashed before they find the button to press!

 

All the best and hope you can keep your enthusiasm going.

 

PS - apologies as a bit off topic, but one of our club members was pretty much self taught by flying very small/cheap/easy to fix 3 channel foam gliders. Good as it teaches rudder/elevator control and flies slow. low mass so don't get too damaged with unplanned meetings the ground.

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I'm determined to master this game. Just need to be able to fly with confidence and amble around with this plane and the Buccaneer I've built, plus the Stoll I bought finished in 1986.

Somehow, I have 4 planes built and have flown none by myself!

Cant have another, no room in this computor room/bedroom/hobby room.

 

Take everything you say about the flaps, they sit still now at the right place so will remain 'static'.

The stabiliser seemed to do very little to calm the plane today and is probably best left off, esp taking the point previously that anyone in the club trained without one or before one was invented.

Last outing I shared a sport plane with a strong 4 stroke with Mark. He buddied his spare Tx with the plane's Tx and seamlessly took over flying when I regularly got in trouble, but I did fly a lot of circuits using the ailerons. It was Mark who suggested getting a trainer in foam and going from there leaving the Bucaneer for nice evenings and when the sock was pointing south!

Even had the Buccaneer in the air with help.

I must try harder.

 

IMG_1330 (2).JPG

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Please join a club and get some help!.

 

Although this type of model is a great beginners aircraft, they must be set up properly!.

 

If you end up hitting somebody / something it could all end in tears.

 

Most clubs are very helpful, so if possible try and find one, before your pride and joy is really badly damaged.

 

Good luck............we have all been where you are now, one way or the other!.

Edited by SIMON CRAGG
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Hillclimber, please don't beat yourself up about not being able to fly straight away. I learned to fly r/c in 1988 at the age of forty having previously built and flown free flight and control-line models as a youth. If it's any comfort to you on my second flight I put the model, a St Leonard's Models Gemini (over) powered by an Irvine 20 car racing engine, into a tree because I had confused left and right with the model flying towards me. My Sanwa Conquest had no buddy box facility and my instructor was unable to grab the transmitter from me fast enough! I learned the hard way to "prop up the lower wing" when a model is flying towards you. I.e push the stick towards the lower wing and the model will right itself. 

 

Fearing that the Gemini was too fast I bought a Flair Junior 60 kit, put the engine and radio into that and with its free flight stability, it was much more successful.

 

Nowadays buddy boxes and computer simulators are very useful in learning to fly without having to repair the model too often but I'm less convinced about stabilising devices. We all have our prejudices but when flying with a stabiliser is it you flying the model or the technology? I realise that stabilisers can be switched to different levels of effectiveness and I'm sure that some have learned to fly by using them but I've heard that some novices find it difficult to move from one stage to another. I've no experience of these devices so I'll keep quiet.

 

However, I am convinced that a vintage model like your Buccaneer is an ideal first model for an older beginner, mind you I don't know how old you are! Of course they cannot be flown by a novice in a wind much above Force 2 but they are great tools for getting in stick-time and for building confidence but trying to learn to fly in a wind even with a relatively heavy ARTF trainer like the Seagull Boomerang is not very productive at first in my view. Your Kingfisher is smaller and probably faster than your Buccaneer and you will require an instructor on a buddy box for the first few flights until you get used to it.

 

Finally it's all about practise. Practise flying the Buccaneer, practise flying the Kingfisher, and practise flying the club's trainer if your club has one and you'll get there!

 

PS. I kept the Gemini plan and about five years ago I built a second Gemini with the optional ailerons just to prove to myself that I could now fly one. Electric powered this time, I found it so boring that i gave it to a clubmate!

Junior 60 in Flight.jpg

Finished Gemini 1 (Small).JPG

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As ever, all good advice. Sounds windy in the video!

It is frustrating, but I just want to get to a good proficiency, obviously too quickly...

 

I'm 69 and a month and last flew (well) control line in the local park, a KK Marquis with an Enya glow and wearing short trousers almost.

Left it all alone as life developed but always hankered to try it all again but radio and electric.

 

Bought a Super Scorpion about 15 years ago but stopped at the frame when done, the one side of the wing warped so it is still in the loft and will be resurrected over winter.

 

In 1986 bought a finished and flown Stoll which I converted to electrics with the help of many on here in the vintage section, but I wanted to build a plane foremost.

 

Too many Youtube vids of floating Junior 60's and resulted in a birthday pressie of the Buccaneer, something a bit different.

Really enjoyed doing it and have actually flown it with the help of a gent at the field.

Did this when I joined the local club in March this year, wife goes shopping on thurs mornings, so going to the field at the same time was ideal. She is very supportive of me following this 'new' hobby, I am a compulsive tinkerer as someone once described me.

 

I joined the club and also the BMFA so insured. It is a condition of joining the Club.

 

There is no formal trainer/training but experienced members are encouraged to help raw beginners who turn up and this has been the case with Mark and Gurth.

Today looks very grey and the trees are swaying! I'll wait until 10 and see, and if looks ok will go to the field. If nobody there I'll come back!

 

I thought yesterday after the crunch to switch the stabiliser off, just adds another factor to frett over, it is there if I change my mind.

Mark tried to buddy his Tx to my Tx and could not get the two identical Tx's to wireless link. It would be v helpful to fix this as Mark was comfortable when I flew his sport model knowing he could take over the instant he moved a stick on his Tx.

Edited by 911hillclimber
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Hillwalker....so some hills bear you .....have you seen any birds soaring on your walks ?

 

A simple 2 channel glider r +e on a slope with good lift will teach you a lot. Learn to do the book with that, then an e + a 2 channel soarer will expand your skills. Learn to do the book with that then add the third dimension, throttle.

 

Do the book with that, gaining skill level certificates as you go.

 

Eventually you will reach b level.

 

Learn to crawl, walk, run, then the marathon.

 

You have a good grounding having done c/l and f/f.

 

Relying on "electronic stability" imho is not that good an idea.

 

The model will have some inbuilt stability of sorts, the flying is down to you, unless you intend making a eurofighter....

 

Take your time, learn to fly the socks off each model, including induced spins and recovery, and enjoy.

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Thanks, but can't go for yet another plane!

Just chatted with an experienced light aircraft pilot who is thinking of a return with his super 60/Merco 61 but single channel.

There are several parallel's and his weather app shows next thursday at 1 mph 'wind' and today up to 40!!

Next week could be a whole different game.

I feel I've crowded my mind with this stabiliser thing and will fly 'raw' and hopefully buddied-up Tx with Mark or Durth.

 

I'm getting the same feeling about the ailerons too, leave them out of the learning and fly throttle. ele, rudder only just as the big Buccaneer is.

Thoughts most welcomed.

 

sorry this thread is a bit long winded, but I do appreciate all the advice and everyone is really giving the same reasoning too.

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10 minutes ago, 911hillclimber said:

......

I'm getting the same feeling about the ailerons too, leave them out of the learning and fly throttle. ele, rudder only just as the big Buccaneer is.

Thoughts most welcomed.

......

 

Now that you've got your Tundra pretty much ready to fly, I'd stick to that. You will get more opportunities to fly that than you would a 3 channel with lots of dihedral. Also, don't think that you will be able to fly your Tundra using rudder and elevator, without touching the aileron  - it doesn't work like that.

 

This could get confusing at your stage, so read on with caution. The most important bit is what I've already said in the paragraph above.

 

Your Tundra is now set up as Mode 2 with the PRIMARY controls (aileron and elevator) on the right stick. This allows you to fly "bank and yank" style i.e. use aileron to bank the model to a suitable angle, then use the elevator to control it through the turn, then use the aileron (if necessary) to straighten the model up again. You don't really need to use the rudder to perform this manoeuvre, so you are in effect flying using only 2 controls. The rudder will be used later for steering on the ground (and much later for compensating for cross winds and some aerobatic moves), and the throttle for controlling your height (not speed as you would think).

 

If you was to set up your 3 channel model, you would move the rudder to the right stick, so that the PRIMARY controls (now rudder and elevator) work as they do on a 4 channel model i.e bank and yank. The 3 channel model takes advantage of the large amount of wing dihedral in order to give the rudder the ability of banking the model in order to start a turn. The elevator then controls the turn. When you let go of the sticks, the model should self level much better than the 4 channel model due to the wing dihedral. This is what makes 3 channel models easier to fly on calm days. It is also what makes them more difficult to fly on windy days.

 

Hope this helps. GOTO paragraph 1.

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Don't stress about buying more new stuff (yet). 

Just get the Kingfisher test flown and trimmed by an experienced flyer, then get some stick time. 

Try to only fly in low wind or at least not gusty conditions. 

When you've got some time in you can try switching the gyro on and see if you can notice the difference (you will). 

Don't worry about the stabiliser, try not to use it. Even though it won't fly the plane on it's own (despite what some people say) it may lead to you developing bad habits that you then have to unlearn. 

Don't hurry things and most of all enjoy the experience. 

Kim 

 

Eta and what Gary said, use all 4 primary controls, it really is much better. 

Edited by Kim Taylor
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Good stuff.

The FMS is all ready to go and repaired.

Just found the weather ap on the CMFC home page and gives great detail to the location on weather and wind. 46mph  gust today.

 

Next thursday estimated to be 1 to 4 mph gust strength, so that sock should be deflated.

That will be the plan, get there, expect the others I've met will be there too and try to buddy my Tx to Mark's.

Keep the full function of the Kingfisher, and stabilization Off.

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Each to their own and I work on the basis of gusting wind is more tricky (less pleasurable) than constant so  10 mph gusting 20 mph is a general limit unless its a manhole cover!

 

Data always comes from the met office web site and the formula I use is gust mph squared then divided by windspeed. Anything with score over 40...head to the shed!

 

image.thumb.png.c20a2c5a55973074825d795bbb95a1e2.png

 

 

 

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6 minutes ago, Chris Walby said:

Each to their own and I work on the basis of gusting wind is more tricky (less pleasurable) than constant so  10 mph gusting 20 mph is a general limit unless its a manhole cover!

 

Data always comes from the met office web site and the formula I use is gust mph squared then divided by windspeed. Anything with score over 40...head to the shed!

 

image.thumb.png.c20a2c5a55973074825d795bbb95a1e2.png

 

 

 

 

But surely not in this case, where '911 is trying to take his first learning steps with a foamy (and has already had a bad experience.

Once you're comfortable with flying circuits, etc. then yes, a bit of wind can be helpful and a few gusts all adds to the fun.

But like you say, each to their own.?

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On the TX / Buddy lead side of life, this is what we do:

 

In the old days it was fairly straightforward as there were limited TX on the market etc.

 

These days, there are a plethora of different brands / voltages / plug types etc.

 

To save time, we recommend that the new flyer purchase two TX / lead of the same brand.

 

They can be set up at home, and on arrival at the field there is limited "faffing about", and more stick time.

 

It need not be mad expensive with a bit of shopping around, and most importantly more safe time in the air on the buddy lead.

 

All our current crop of newbies are using this system which works well for us.

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I've been in touch with another flying club who possibly can get me 'taught' the basics, we shall see how that works but it is close to me and one I was not aware of.

Next week I'll see them if the weather is ok, but the BBC says it will be rough.

The field I've been using have a weather data point and that gives the conditions of the actual field so that will save some pointless journeys.

Rain has stopped play.

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Download phoenix RC of the net to practice with, realy helped me learn to fly and the cheap ebay dongles work fine with the TX.  Best thing I did was build a Flitetest tiny trainer, start of with the std wing and then switch to the aileron wing, all cheap and if you break it just gaffa tape/hot glue back together, cheapo 9g servos and about a 5ers worth of foam board from hobbycraft.

 

links

 

https://www.rc-thoughts.com/phoenix-sim/

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/402725677553?_trkparms=ispr%3D1&hash=item5dc45229f1:g:VL0AAOSws09gP03D&amdata=enc%3AAQAFAAACgBaobrjLl8XobRIiIML1V4Imu%2Fn%2BzU5L90Z278x5ickkTboA95HSvGa1O5UmCCGJLu%2FgMSX3u%2BzDY5mrF3tYMzvU0dCbeIyry4qxycpRErNNy%2BgAQdNTn%2FOjob%2BtmMV33TXDPDMEBuYRX%2B%2BhbOUsAECEwQfw6SA4ilSvhKgAiXoP7Mp8JQFVx3jSfRYzzOdAidQotPModv0s3jMr8%2FeRlzXOxnaO%2FDvVf1eSWisdgDpxvD8wwW%2BFViJLnw9Qq6DlzKUG%2FqigIq%2F0r3ArRFZ%2BY95aP%2BQ%2F33qofW%2BSvDhsaaO%2FIEMRej49IF5sJ%2Bvt3FFSmbjwSFpA7vMfKcxtv0Td6vd1jqTy37H7gLP5Xw4LJKsQA%2FMe08kWmfL8mlda46HrxR3QQ347T7ng0UMID0UOafTrgvJxuNufWwutO2L%2BD78rpiIvgLgFzTknHJC27T6kfrRy5JmWw1ssvHN5Nu%2FBDKagdVhm4ZCEfrOauLI8iD%2BIsxDNA3aKi5ieXtzvdcb6Xhs5%2FULqPtaCSOG0BGOOBa4qWvDS5SQd5dZQwSQ8hjMqPT9X%2BEyuVWYesOorV5OXRn1THpSDEAqwvoUfgKvbI%2FfpoW5b5r52lxmxL%2BkT0AYijFudJ99qrpoSaJ%2BlWvF%2B7UJ5wyKH4wQ%2FR8F68hPDNe00c1rIshnCd4gD3Rc7Vi40do0%2Bgz3k7C3bAfX1b00nkStL%2Fdax9LkUjBXpzCyIpUm5M0Ye73gAP8N%2BfjfxhF6%2F6%2BBRluslUJ2Bt%2BI6MQWzkB8oUaIqtQqtme6vHvqmCWGGRWWL5mWeI60v8JszmZH%2BXtYRTJVUwYUDp9sHgA9%2FOk3QMcRtAmatdZzTvbshruU%3D|cksum%3A4027256775538ffad20a77f54e40b450fde3a21ce3cf|ampid%3APL_CLK|clp%3A2334524

 

https://www.flitetest.com/articles/flite-test-tiny-trainer, scroll down for free plans. Use a cheap 1806 quad motor to power it, 1000mah 3s battery

 

Good luck

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