Recreation Aviation Blog

Development kits are a great alternative to building an rc from scratch. In fact, I’d suggest starting out with a kit. It will save you a lot of headaches your first time around and provide some invaluable information on how rc aviation works. With that in mind, the NexSTAR Select EP is ready to fly straight out of the box. This airplane is a good choice for beginners learning to operate and build an rc aircraft. All you need to get started are battery packs, a charger and screwdriver. Recreation Aviation gave this rc a test run and here’s what we found out:

Hobbico is the manufacturer of this aircraft that’s sells for about $400 from most retailers I     found. As you can [...] Continue Reading…

Spend your money on new rc airplane components–not the schematics. We’ve got a new page directing you to a variety of free sources for rc airplane plans. And you can find it here.

These links will guide you to free, downloadable schematics. There links to well over 50 designs. My personal favorite is the Boeing 747 replica.

If you know of more sources, leave a link to it in the comments. I’m going to be continually updating the page with high-quality links. So if you’ve got some sources you like, let me know!

McBrett

Since the beginning of the internet people have searched for ways to connect with one another online. Today “Way_Kill,” of PilotSpeak.net, has created a social-networking site for members of the aviation community that combine elements of the old-school interweb with on-topic forums and classifieds amid essentials of Web 2.0 like profile pages to engage visitors.

PilotSpeak.net makes it easy to create a profile and join the conversation quickly. But unlike large social sites like Facebook or MySpace, PilotSpeak.net delivers a more personal experience for members. The community is small, but friendly and quick to respond. It really is like a club. And if you come across any problems, you can get in contact with the owner Way_Kill himself.

We sent Way_Kill a list of questions via [...] Continue Reading…

There are a few reasons to consider adding a low-cost rc airplane to your collection, even if you’re not a beginner.  1.) In my experience it’s always nice to have a spare airplane around to thrash. I’m not going to try a new flight technique without experimenting on one of my lesser models first. Having an economic alternative allows me to test away without worry. 2.) Maybe you want to get the little guy into rc’s. Purchasing a budget model will allow him to be in the sky minutes after opening. 3.) The damn recession!

When it comes to rc planes in the $100 range, keep your expectations low… very low in most cases. But if you’re going to go the cheap route anyway, you [...] Continue Reading…

Don’t take your new bird to the sky without going through this checklist first. Yes, I know how hard it’s going to be to postpone your maiden voyage by another 30 minutes. But trust me, it will be well worth your time when the aircraft returns home in one piece. So lets get checking:

Fuel:

Are your batteries fully charged? Gas tank full? This should include a check of your radio controller as well.

Weight:

Is your bird too heavy for flight?

Equilibrium:

Is your airplane balanced correctly. The weight of the aircraft should be in the center. A little to the left or right is no good for safe flight.

Check landing gear/wings/rudder:

Make sure all are secure and undamaged.

Radio Control:

- batteries
- confirm that all channels are working properly
- [...] Continue Reading…

Recreation Aviation would like to announce its newest contributor–drum roll please… Paul! Paul will be introducing you to some novel ideas in rc aviation through his column Leaving the Nest. But first we need to introduce him.

First of all, Paul is an Aussie which makes him sweet. Second, he does a stellar job putting together instructional rc plane videos in his spare time.  Third, we’ll let him explain.

We emailed Paul a list of questions about life, flight and five random things about himself. You’ll find his shocking answers in the video below:

Be sure to check out more rc videos from Paul on YouTube.

When I finished my first remote-controlled airplane (which I had dubbed “Jenny”, named for the college girlfriend I wound up marrying many years later), I was so excited to get out and fly the thing that I never bothered actually learning how to fly it. It was a (supposedly) simple to fly, high wing trainer airplane that I built from a kit over the course of about a month in my college dorm room. With a sloppy green-on-white finish along with the custom strobe and nav lights purchased from radio shack (and the 9-volt battery that powered them), I was off to the local R/C airport.

The first lesson I learned was that an old toothbrush is a much, much better tool for [...] Continue Reading…

Trying to find an rc airplane manufacturing news blog in Spanish? If so, chances are you could find it at at ThirtyThousandFeet.com.  I caught up with Max Flight, the Creator of ThirtyThousandFeet.com and co-host of the Airplane Geeks Podcast for a conversation about airplanes, the history of the internet, and how he’s viewed and categorized 15,000 aviation websites over the last 13 years.

RecreationAviation: What’s your background in aviation?

Max Flight: I’ve been in the aircraft engine business for over 30 years and I’ve been lucky enough to have flown all over the world. I love airlines and airports and traveling to other countries.  There’s so much to see and do out there in the world.

ThirtyThousandFeet.com is one of the best resources for discovering new RC and general aviation sites online. We use it all the [...] Continue Reading…

Across the internet and around the world rc airplane enthusiasts are taking their models to the sky and their video clips to popular sites like MetaCafe and YouTube. After all, it’s a great way to share everything from custom airplane modifications to intrepid flight techniques. Below, we take a look at the top-five flight videos I found online (ranked here in no particular order).

In this video aptly titled On The Edge, Israeli pilot Dor Friedman exhibits some of the most technical flight skills I’ve ever seen with an rc. Check out 1:30 where he makes his aircraft appear weightless against the clear-blue sky. It’s easy to see why this video has received over 1.5 million page views on YouTube..

Ever wonder what it’s like to [...] Continue Reading…

When a lot of amateur remote controlled aircraft builders get into a project, they don’t want to stop until the airplane is complete. The excitement of transforming a kit of balsa wood into a flying machine motivates us into working all hours of the night (if our wives would let us). It becomes somewhat annoying when the point in a project comes where there’s nothing left to do except let the glue dry.

Many first time builders have damaged a work-in-progress by attempting to work on a piece that hasn’t completely cured; nothing is as frustrating as re-doing a masterfully crafted wing because it began to reshape itself while you were doing a touch-up with sandpaper or trying to attach it to a spar.

A thought [...] Continue Reading…