Radio Control (RC) Flying FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions about Radio Control (RC) Flying.
This FAQ about Radio Control (R/C) Flying was compiled and written by Shamim Mohamed shamim@math.isu.edu with numerous contributions by others.
01 Should I start with powered flight, or with a glider?- Depends on your preferences. I prefer gliders; that's where I started. ...
- 02 Are there any organisations etc. I can join for information? (RC flying)
- Ask at your local hobby shop---there may be a club in your neighbourhood....
- 03 Since a trainer needs only 2 or 3 channels, should I get one ofthe cheap radio systems?
- Don't bother with the cheap 2 or 3 channel sets---get a 4-ch system....
- 04 What is a "1991" system? (RC flying)
- Strongly recommended! A 1991 system is so named because in 1991 ...
- 05 What about R/C rocket powered airplanes?
- Rocket power for R/C aircraft is strictly regulated by the AMA; however,...
- 06 Buying and Building (RC flying)
- >Should I start with plans and build my own plane from scratch, buy a ...
- 07 Learning to Fly (RC flying)
- The most important point, one which cannot be overstressed:...
- 08 Gliders (RC flying)
- A 2-channel (rudder+elevator) polyhedral [see below] glider is just ...
- 09 Are most gliders hand launched, or do they have a small engine to getthem up? (RC flying)
- Gliders are usually launched by a hi-start---a section of rubber ...
- 10 How do sailplanes stay up? (RC flying - gliders)
- Since a sailplane has no engine, it follows that it must always ...
- 11 Costs (RC flying - gliders)
- >What kind of cost am I looking at for a solid training glider ...
- 12 Where can I mail-order stuff from? (RC flying)
- Try Tower Hobbies (1 800 637 4989) and Sheldon's (1 800 228 3237) [...
- 13 Powered (gas) (RC flying)
- Even though wet power is called gas, it's not the same as ...
- 14 I didn't know that you could put an electric motor and batteries in an airplane. Isn't that kind of heavy? (RC flying - Electric Flight)
- Modern NiCd batteries are pretty amazing. You can charge them in ...
- 15 What are the advantages and disadvantages of electric flight compared to wet power? (RC flying)
- Electric power systems are heavier for a given power output. This ...
- 16 What is the best way to get started in electric flight? (RC flying)
- That depends on what you want to do and where you're starting from....
- 17 What are the elements of an electric power system? (RC flying)
- The power system includes a battery, a motor, a control, and wiring. ...
- 18 What do the various letters used to refer to NiCd cells mean?
- A: SC is the basic cell. SC cells will take fast charging and ...
- 19 What support equipment do I need? (RC flying - Electric Flight)
- You need a charger of some sort. If you are using six or seven cells, ...
- 20 How are motor sizes specified? (RC flying - Electric Flight)
- Motors are traditionally specified by a system which attempts to ...
- 21 What's a cobalt motor and why would I want one? (RC flying - Electric Flight)
- Rare-earth magnets, of which the most common type is samarium cobalt, ...
- 22 Where can I get this stuff? (RC flying - Electric Flight)
- Electric equipment is somewhat specialized, and most hobby shops aren't ...
- 23 How hard is flying heli models? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- Getting the hang of flying an R/C heli is a fairly challenging undertaking....
- 24 What are some good helicopters to consider? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- There are several good helicopters on the market. It's a bit like ...
- 25 Price to get going? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- The helicopter itself will cost from $250 to $400 for a good starter heli....
- 26 What are some good books? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- There are two excellent books. Paul Tradelius's book (available ...
- 27 What accessories should I get? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- There are a million accessories that you can buy. There are a relative ...
- 28 What about electrics? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- There are a couple of pretty good electric helis on the market. One ...
- 29 What is cyclic? Collective? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- On most R/C helis (and full-scale helis for that matter), the main ...
- 30 What is gyroscopic precession? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- This is a counter-intuitive aspect of helicopters, that even many ...
- 31 What do the servos control? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- There are usually five servos on an R/C heli. One controls throttle, ...
- 32 What is the use of gyros and how do they help? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- The gyro is positioned so that it senses yaw. It then feeds small ...
- 33 How about fixed-pitch versus collective helis? (RC flying - Helicopters)
- Helicopters with collective are now inexpensive and reliable. ...
- 34 Radios (RC flying - Helicopters)
- How many channels do you need to control a heli and why?...
- 35 Flying (RC flying - Helicopters)
- What's the deal on auto-rotation?...
- 36 Some Aerodynamics (RC flying)
- The aircraft can rotate around three axes: the fore-and-aft axis (or ...
- 37 The rec.models.rc ftp site
- Nur Iskander Taib
- 38 Other Information (RC flying)
- SOURCES:
My Books
