RC planes/helicopters

[didub]

Hey everybody,

I'm looking to buy a remote control plane or helicopter in the near future. Unfortunately, I have no idea at all of what's important or not when I'm making buying decisions. I haven't ever really done this before, but it looks pretty amazing.

I'd love any advice, thanks!

[Ravens_cry]

Well, RC helicopters are hard to control, from what little I know of them, so maybe start with something less potentially frustrating.
Something I want to try is the Air Hogs Ornithropter (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEZrk4V2uC0).

[wxdruid]

We bought this Remote Controlled Helicopter (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/8499000606/ref=oss_product) and it works pretty well. It's small, but catlover has good control over it and it flies pretty well.

[Lemonus]

I don't know a lot about them, but be carful what you buy, some can be near impossible to control and dangerous. (I got one stuck in my hair once :smallbiggrin: )

[Moofaa]

Check your area to see if there are any clubs. I'm planning on making my entry into rc flying in the near future. I'd ask around your local hobby shop.

My uncle got into it a few years ago. This past weekend we went to a swap meet and he picked up a never-used trainer for 100$ without a transmitter/reciever (that same model with those parts goes for 300$ new). He already has a half-dozen spare transmitters/recievers, once he gets the plane trimmed I will probably buy it from him.

If you get into the larger fuel-engine planes like I am, you'll definately want to find a club. Membership usually includes insurance coverage against you hitting a person/house/vehicle. Also those planes are pretty dangerous, a 5 pound block of metal traveling 80mph could be lethal if it clocks someone upside the head.

[Snow Leopard]

If you already have the proper controller this one (http://ardrone.parrot.com/parrot-ar-drone/it/) is amazing, even if it is a bit expensive.

[drakir_nosslin]

I'd buy a helicopter before a plane, as I find helicopters more fun to fly. I recommend starting out small, but make sure that you get something with at least 3 channels, otherwise It'll be almost impossible to control.

Also, it's very likely that you'll smash your first one, so don't buy one that's too expensive right away. Go for something cheap, learn the basic controls and then go for something more advanced.