how much to spent on first RC Plane

Placebo

just got a sudden interest in these. Im wondering how much would be an average price, i was checking ebay and shipping is fairly expensive, anywhere else i can pick up these.

odonnell

Well, ive only just started out too, and i kitted myself out with a starter kit from Greene hobby and models - http://www.greenhobbymodel.com/ for around 430 euro. That comes with the starter plane of your choice - i opted for the boomerang, and you get everything you need there and then. You get the model almost ready to fly, which means the wings and fuselage are constructed but you need to piece them all together. You get your engine, prop, radio transmitter and receiver, c/w servos etc etc. (see my plane in the thread at the top of this board)

Placebo

well i was hoping something around the price range of 100, not getting into it as a serious hobby, more of a FAD, but parents were going to america so was hoping they could get it there, any idea where in USA or any american websites?

P.s: think electric would be good for beginner

thanks

coolwings

Placebo wrote:

well i was hoping something around the price range of 100,...

You will find a "plane in a box with everything included" for that kind of price.
But you should be aware that you are getting a toy plane, and not a model plane. In any sort of wind .. it will fly backwards, and crash very easily. Most last for one day.

For myself - I would consider E 100 is too much to throw in the bin when it has a minor bash. Nothing inside it will be reuseable in other models. In other words .. . a very, very expensive "toy".

A model RC plane has adequate power, for continuous flight on half throttle, and a reserve power for climbing vertically, flies faster, with more precise control over it, making it less likely to crash, and is repairable.

A real recent example, the last model plane I wrote off, has made well over 200 flights averaging 15 minutes each, lasted approx five years. It received many bashes over that time, and each time was repairable, and repaired, to fly again. This would have been a "long life".
The cost of such a model (E125 for the airframe, maybe E450 the outfit)when measured per flight, is tiny, compared with those easily broken plastic toys. About 50 cents a flight?
The "innards" which are all fine, are compatible with most models, and have already been installed into a new airframe, and live on.

It is of course, your decision.

workaccount

coolwings wrote: »

You will find a "plane in a box with everything included" for that kind of price.
But you should be aware that you are getting a toy plane, and not a model plane. In any sort of wind .. it will fly backwards, and crash very easily. Most last for one day.

For myself - I would consider E 100 is too much to throw in the bin when it has a minor bash. Nothing inside it will be reuseable in other models. In other words .. . a very, very expensive "toy".

A model RC plane has adequate power, for continuous flight on half throttle, and a reserve power for climbing vertically, flies faster, with more precise control over it, making it less likely to crash, and is repairable.

A real recent example, the last model plane I wrote off, has made well over 200 flights averaging 15 minutes each, lasted approx five years. It received many bashes over that time, and each time was repairable, and repaired, to fly again. This would have been a "long life".
The cost of such a model (E125 for the airframe, maybe E450 the outfit)when measured per flight, is tiny, compared with those easily broken plastic toys. About 50 cents a flight?
The "innards" which are all fine, are compatible with most models, and have already been installed into a new airframe, and live on.

It is of course, your decision.

Dragging up a very old thread here but I have supercub electric? Are these a toy?

loopingfred

Well, that depend ! :rolleyes:
Who is the manufacturer ? Size ?

workaccount

loopingfred wrote: »

Well, that depend ! :rolleyes:
Who is the manufacturer ? Size ?

It's a hobbyzone super cub. http://www.hobbyzone.com/rc_planes_hobbyzone_super_cub.htm

loopingfred

Ok, I see..
I'll put that between toy and models
But close enough to models to be interresting !

Hobby zone are doing some interresting things for some times now...

DennisZ

workaccount wrote: »

It's a hobbyzone super cub.

27MHz ? IMHO, it will not be welcomed by clubs.

workaccount

DennisZ wrote: »

27MHz ? IMHO, it will not be welcomed by clubs.

Hi DennisZ,
I'm new to the hobby. Can you elaborate?

DennisZ

workaccount wrote: »

I'm new to the hobby. Can you elaborate?

Shortly speaking - you have to use 35MHz (or 2.4GHz) equipment to fly models in Ireland (http://www.maci.ie/Public_html/htm/safety.htm).

Many toys sold here are using same frequency - 27MHz ... your plane can be kicked off from the sky by a toddler playing his toy-car/walki-talki/etc nearby.

ps :I'm only second year in this hobby - started with Parkzone FW190 (27MHz)...lying on shelf now....

Donal94

I looked around a good bit in Ireland and they were talking €350 plus for a starter kit, I wasn't willing to spend that much so I've just bought a similar kit from an english shop for less than €200, the kit comprises of a trainer plane, an engine and the all the radio gear, here's the link to it and to a cheaper one from the same site.

http://www.sussex-model-centre.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=19521


http://www.sussex-model-centre.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=19519

DennisZ

Donal94 wrote: »

so I've just bought a similar kit from an english shop for less than €200, the kit comprises of a trainer plane, an engine and the all the radio gear,

These include very basic radios - 4ch, no channel mixes ... range is not great also

loopingfred

Yep, I agree.. A 4ch GWS radio is far from being the best thing to buy ! You will have to buy another one almost straight away !
That's where you find the 100 quids difference over here...
Buy a proper radio from the start !

Donal94

Yeah I was aware that the radio stuff isn't great but they were looking for over €100 here just for the plane, I bought it with a freind so we were going to upgrade no matter what if we enjoy it, I think its a great deal as a first forray into the hobby. Just as a matter of interest have either of you flown with this radio? I read reviews recommending it and saying that its range was as good if not better than a more expensive futaba set.

workaccount

What kind of money should you be spending to get a decent radio?

loopingfred

yep, tested the radio (was pink...:D)
Tested on a small plane, so you don't really fly far from you, so the range was not a real issue...
Cheap plastic, well, really really basic radio (like my first radio in the end of the 80s !)! Sticks are cheap too and the precision was not great, but enough for a trainer.
A bit more money on it, and you have model memory, programs and so on... Make your life much easier !

loopingfred

workaccount wrote: »

What kind of money should you be spending to get a decent radio?

Well, you can get a good decent for 120-150 euros (thinking of the futaba 4exa, Graupner MC/MX 12, Multiplex cockpit, hitec laser... All first price range, but all good radios !)
But in my experience, the best things to do if you know you really are interrested, is to invest in a big radio from the start.. I don't count the number of radios, upgrades and so on I had before I finally invest in a really good one ! I now have the same one for the past 12 years or so... Worth the price I paid at the time !

Donal94

Thanks loopingfred, you wouldn't know if this radio will be compatible with any other brands for buddy training would you? And if not how would I go about learnig to fly in a club? Thanks for your reply and sorry for going off topic

loopingfred

No worries !
Well, on top of my head, no, but the best resource for buddy box setup, tweaks and so on for years is here :

http://users.belgacom.net/TX2TX/index.htm

Buddy box is often an option with Graupner, Futaba... Not with Multiplex for example.
The best thing to do, if you go learn in a club, is before bying anything, to go, have a look, and see what they have or have not for you to learn.
Some clubs have there own plane/radio and buddy box, some not and so on...

No buddy box to learn ? Well, you fly much higher ! But understanding the flight mechanisms on the ground is almost, maybe even more important than flying the thing, with a buddy box or not...
First lesson...


And after 2 hours and a good of understanding of the flying :

coolwings

Donal94 wrote: »

.... if this radio will be compatible with any other brands for buddy training would you?

It will be compatible with another GWS radio. But I would not consider that is a good reason to buy another radio of such cheap make. Consider it a restriction that the low purchase price imposed on the gear in this case.

Donal94 wrote: »

....I read reviews recommending it and saying that its range was as good if not better than a more expensive set ...

So much for the reviews! You get what you pay for. As Fred said we usually use a top radio. They last a long time and save planes. It is very rare to hear of someone crashing and breaking their radio!

Considering that you already have it - you can simply pass the radio you've got over by hand, to the instructor, while learning, and then use your budget to buy another better radio as soon as you can, (instead of plane no 2 the purchase of which can be postponed a bit).

Donal94 wrote: »

.... how would I go about learning to fly in a club? ....

You first need to let us know where in Ireland you are based. There are lots of clubs all over ....
Maybe try here www.maci.ie for a start.

workaccount

loopingfred wrote: »

Well, you can get a good decent for 120-150 euros (thinking of the futaba 4exa, Graupner MC/MX 12, Multiplex cockpit, hitec laser... All first price range, but all good radios !)
But in my experience, the best things to do if you know you really are interrested, is to invest in a big radio from the start.. I don't count the number of radios, upgrades and so on I had before I finally invest in a really good one ! I now have the same one for the past 12 years or so... Worth the price I paid at the time !

So your basically talking about a top end futaba.

If my mate got a supercub could i modify it to operate on a different frequency at low cost so we could both fly together?

coolwings

Those were Graupner JR radios in the photos LoopingFred posted. They have the flat european style case where the user can move the switches into whatever location he likes. I use a Graupner-JR MC-22 10-12channel synthesized frequency selection. Fred has a Graupner-JR MC20 10 channel xtal frequency selection. Both are absolutely great radios. The ease of programming them leaves the rest way behind. They talk to all makes of receiver which is useful.

DennisZ wrote: »

These include very basic radios - 4ch, no channel mixes ... range is not great also

As it happens at a time in the past I had access to equipment for testing the signal power radiated from the antenna of radios. I tested many radios over a period.
DennisZ is absolutely correct in what he says.
The cheap €100 radios were half the power of the standard 4 - 6 channel radios sold by Irish shops.
And they were less than 1/3rd of the power of the GRAUPNER-JR MC radios that I and LoopingFred use with our models.

A good MC JR radio will cost more but interference (when it happens) only affects to people around you, never to you, and your own planes fly straight.

So over time we gravitate to better radio gear, and after crashing becomes more infrequent we then gravitate to bigger, or faster, nicer planes too.


Workaccount: Changing the crystal (xtal) is all that's necessary to change channel so you can fly together. eg one on 35.110FM and the other on 35.120FM.
So long as the plane has a separate receiver (with a removeable xtal) inside the xtal can be changed to your planes can fly together. Good RC flying gear is all separate and modular ... fixable and replaceable one part at a time. When the plane dies we take the parts out for installation in a new airframe.
But some very cheap planes don't have a separate receiver unit. They have a circuit board that does it all, and these cannot be altered, or fixed when they break. So they can't be re-used in later models, and we avoid such stuff.
I don't know which type you have from the description but you will know immediately you take a look inside.

loopingfred

No, no need for a top end radio ! And not necessarely Futaba (I use Graupner for years personaly..)

You mean 1 plane, 2 radios ?
Well, not going to be easy to do ! As each radio have its own "channel" system... (sorry, don't know the English word for that..)But basically, there is big probability for you to have to change the receiver each time one of you want to fly the piper as the "channel exit" on the receiver will certainly not be the same... (ie, in Graupner, in mode 1, ch1 is the throttle, in Multiplex, this is the ailerons...)
If you are talking flying the plane on a buddy box, that doesn't matter, as one of the radio is the master, and the other one is slave (no radio emission...)

workaccount

coolwings wrote: »

Workaccount: Changing the crystal (xtal) is all that's necessary to change channel so you can fly together. eg one on 35.110FM and the other on 35.120FM.
So long as the plane has a separate receiver (with a removeable xtal) inside the xtal can be changed to your planes can fly together. Good RC flying gear is all separate and modular ... fixable and replaceable one part at a time. When the plane dies we take the parts out for installation in a new airframe.
But some very cheap planes don't have a separate receiver unit. They have a circuit board that does it all, and these cannot be altered, or fixed when they break. So they can't be re-used in later models, and we avoid such stuff.
I don't know which type you have from the description but you will know immediately you take a look inside.

I wonder if most crystals are standard. ie. If I got one in Maplin would it work? I'm surprised that such a small frequency jump would be enough.

loopingfred wrote: »

No, no need for a top end radio ! And not necessarely Futaba (I use Graupner for years personaly..)

You mean 1 plane, 2 radios ?
Well, not going to be easy to do ! As each radio have its own "channel" system... (sorry, don't know the English word for that..)But basically, there is big probability for you to have to change the receiver each time one of you want to fly the piper as the "channel exit" on the receiver will certainly not be the same... (ie, in Graupner, in mode 1, ch1 is the throttle, in Multiplex, this is the ailerons...)
If you are talking flying the plane on a buddy box, that doesn't matter, as one of the radio is the master, and the other one is slave (no radio emission...)

Nope. Two planes. Some graupners are 8-900 euro :eek:

coolwings

workaccount wrote: »

.... If I got one in Maplin would it work? I'm surprised that such a small frequency jump would be enough.

I can't speak for Maplins.
I buy my hobby stuff only from hobby suppliers. ( In my case it's www.greenhobbymodel.com There is also www.islandmodels.ie who do good stuff too.)

Regarding the frequency separation I assure you it is more than enough!
Although over the years I have seen crud transmitters and faulty xtals splatter over the channel either side, and also on a channel 10 channels away! The users of such gear get found out very soon by fellow fliers at their local club. It is not tolerated for long by the other fliers.
This caused some clubs where some members had radios that did this, to have a practise where every second channel only was used. eg ch 85, then 87, then 89 and so on. Totally unnecessary. Usually a faulty xtal needed to be replaced to fix it.

workaccount wrote: »

.... Nope. Two planes. Some graupners are 8-900 euro :eek:

Mercedes doesn't come cheap, eh? Maybe a ten function radio is a bit extreme to learn on! (You could be fiddling with all the buttons while a distant "thud" is heard! )
A medium-high JR MX-16S 8 ch computer is under €350.
I myself would prefer the new Graupner-JR MC-19S in the mid €500s, (which is good value for 10 functions and synthesised).
I suggest not going below 4 or preferably 6 functions to get going.
If it is a computer radio it will save the optimised settings for each plane in a separate model file and that is most important.
For "lite" options but still with the stuff that matters inside: maybe a JR MX-12, or Hitec Optic 6? They are in the €200-300 area and reliable with decent software inside.

loopingfred

Yeah, I buy all my stuff here : http://www.islandmodels.ie ... I go there all the time !

As I said, you don't need to spend 8 or 900 euros in a radio ! Check out the short list of radios a few posts before.
One law for the Xtail change... Use the Xtail from the manufacturer of the material ! (ie Graupner Xtail in a graupner receiver/radio).
If you get stuck, the most compatible xtail will be the Hitec ones...
I don't think the Maplin ones will work ! a xtail is not only a channel, but just the one part of the chain to recognise a signal. We used to ask a company to make our own xtails, but just saying "I want a xtail ch 65" is less than enough information !
You have for example, single conversion, dual conversion, SSS, SSM and so on...And the internal xtail frequency...

Anyway, all problems solved with synthese receivers !

Donal94

I've decided that I'm going to join longwood aeromodellres, as I live in Kilcock. Where in Ireland would I get the cheapest viable radio system? I appreciate the advice already given

loopingfred

Well, you have the 2 links on the previous posts

loopingfred

Yep, and ou have your answer 2 or 3 posts up !

superflyguy321

Yes thank you guys I looked at those sites one was very comprehensive and decently priced so before I go wild with my purchasing I will just do a little more browsing. Happy flying, when the wind fecks off.

ian_m

I too am looking at buying a model and I've been looking for a while. Sussex Model Shop appear to do some good deals. I hear alot of different info regarding radios. It can be confusing. Surely it would be better to buy a cheaper radio to start off? People talk about starting with cheap planes but not cheap radios.

Donal94

I bought one of the cheap deals from the sussex model shop and I'm happy with it so far, I'd imagine I will have to buy new radio gear at some point as the people suggested here but only it it works out as a hobby. I'd rather spend €200 now, wait and see how it goes and spend another €200 in a few months if it works out than €400 now and never use it. Thats my opinion, but i'm a total novice.

syl77

I'd rather spend €200 now, wait and see how it goes and spend another €200 in a few months if it works out than €400 now and never use it. Thats my opinion

I am not sure if that would be a fair remark, a lot of people try the hobby and end up buying "cheap" RC equipment which translates to a poor experience with the hobby, hence they go no further with it.
However it can be an expensive hobby so new comers should try finding a happy medium by getting advice from existing flyers...

If you do have a few extra euros to spend, I would put it into a good radio which will stay with you until you are ready to upgrade. Compare this to any equipment in the air which could break on impact with the ground.

I hear alot of different info regarding radios. It can be confusing. Surely

If you having any questions, feel free to ask...

Donal94

Yeah, you experienced people are really strong about the radios. Well the deal I bought cost less than half the price of a similar deal over here, even if I bought a better radio set now it would still cost less than they were asking in the shops in Ireland. You can hardly argue with that can you?

loopingfred

Well, we can always argue with that !

What are the prices of the deals you've got in IE and UK to compare ? including shipping of course... :rolleyes:

Let's compare !

Donal94

I paid €205 including shipping for a seagull arising star, an sc .46 engine and a gws 6 channel radio. What do you think, cheap?

You love a good debate on this thread don't you!

ian_m

Sussex model centre is offering Arising Star complete with SC46 glow engine including muffler and a GWS 4CH radio outfit with servos, nicads and charger. £134.99

Propeller, glow plug, starting equipment and adhesives are not included in the package and will have to be purchased separately.

Hows that for a start?

loopingfred

Always in for a good debate ! :D

Well, as Ian said, you have to add all the other stuff around, that add to the price at the end no ?
Any problem with the plane or one of its gear (faulty servo etc etc), you send that back to the UK or call them for advice ?

Anyway, you certainly have a club near you that is going to show you all that, so, not a big problem.
And all that without talking about the radio

By the way, 5 mins on the Internet, I have found cheaper, with a better radio ! (Ok, not in Ireland !)

ian_m

loopingfred wrote: »

By the way, 5 mins on the Internet, I have found cheaper, with a better radio ! (Ok, not in Ireland !)

Care to pass on the info?

loopingfred

Arf, that will not be fair really ! :rolleyes:
And at the end, the problem is the same ! What about the warranty and support you can get ?
Forgot, but you also can have second hand things too ! You can find some really good deals in the BMFA classified !

Donal94

The trainer deals I've looked at over here don't include starting equipment either so that will add to the already very high prices. The issues regarding warranty etc is just scare mongering! You don't happen to work for/own a model shop do you Fred...... you seem fairly keen on buying Irish!

loopingfred

Yep, I have one (well, a share...) That don't stop me to have a free opinion, not necessarely "business" related, mostly because at the end, I don't really care (free will and it's not my money I spend) and will not stop me flying/building

But that don't mean I push people buying all the stuff in Ireland (me first !) as this is by far the most expensive country in Europe with the UK... (and I still don't understand why people in this country are looking to buy in the UK, when, if you look elsewhere in the Euro Zone, you find way cheaper !)

If I talk about the warranty, it's more for the new comer, to have a backup without the hassle, but believe me, and the guys who know me can certainly confirm that, once you know what you are doing, I'm the first one to tell them to buy elsewhere !

Now, about the Uk deal, I still don't see the point to spend money (200euros or even more) in something that will need more investment in the future (like the radio) and that's the same if you buy the stuff here or anywhere else, hense the classified in the BFMA website, where you can certainly found what you are looking for at good price...

loopingfred

Forgot to mention, I'm not even Irish !
Just in case, to remove the patriot thing out of the discussion !

Donal94

Good clean fun Fred, good clean fun!
Thanks for the suggestion of the BMFA website it seems good.

loopingfred

Talking about the Euro Zone, you can also have a look at aeromodelisme.be, and in France, aeronews.free.fr (annonce).
Use google translator (works fine) or ask me if there is something you don't understand (free of charge + Irish VAT of course ! )

Most speaks English, and you can find some amazing deals sometimes !

coolwings

Newbies to aeromodelling are always overconfident, but it's not that easy.

They assume 1 the engine will start (Truth over half go back to the (local) shop to get it started for them) most of the rest get help from a club.

Newbies assume it is easy to learn to fly .. well if you got a decent plane it about as difficult as learning to ride a bike. But remember - we all fell off the bike when we tried it first didn't we? So how to keep it in one piece for the first hour while we figure it out?
A WAREHOUSE SHOP 2000 MILES AWAY WON'T HELP MUCH - THATS FOR SURE. So again it turns up either A at a club or B the local shop with the usual old pathetic story beginning " My girlfriend bought me this present and I can't get it to ......." like they haven't heard it a million times already.

Consider the guys who instruct beginners for free at the club. They have been doing this for more than a wet week! Out walks the latest skinflint with a shiny marginal plane that might just limp around the sky if an expert is doing his absolute best on the radio. On a breezy day it may even go backwards! THEY KNOW FULL WELL THEIR EFFORTS AND TIME ARE GOING TO BE WASTED HELPING THIS NEW LOSER . Instructors know within 60 seconds of meeting a newbie if he has a self destructive attitude to reliable equipment. Instructors have met failures dozens of times already, helped them and watched them give it up 3-6 weeks later, turning it all into a waste of their time and efforts. So in these cases politely give him a flight to show how helpful they are. Then with a clear conscience they walk back to fly their own model which is the reason they came out in the first place.

But THE SAME INSTRUCTORS have a very very different level of committment to someone they perceive as "realistic". Pre-losers never get to see how helpful these generous instructor-modellers can be passing on years of help with no pain or breakage, just a few well time helpful comments. Tight beginners give the game away when they expect(for one example) that all planes should cost the same as the cheapest planes, seing as they're all planes! Does a Skoda cost the same as a BMW? Which will you enjoy driving more?

In extreme cases the instructors may refuse to allow a model to fly due to perceived danger from it. And yes that actually happens from time to time.

Flying is high definition reality at enormous speed, like trapeze with no safety net. Look around a flying club. All practical realistic folks. But the demands of flying screens out a certain personality before long, and many who came have already gone for good. You see only "survivors" who had what it takes .... gravity and breakage has already removed the wishful dreamers from the membership! Listen to the good natured cracks about who failed "The Darwin Test".

Now I work at a hobby shop myself. (but the guys on this forum would of course challenge me if I said something wrong or incorrect)
Or maybe the fact that I fly, have more experience, made more models than the average modeller, spent more of my time in modelling, and have taught well over 300 people to fly personally counts for something, so possibly I have gotten some idea of "what a flier needs to make it in flying".

The question "What is the cheapest plane?" is a very different question from the wiser "What plane flies the best?" or the even brighter still "What plane is most suited to my present level of ability, so I learn more tricks but don't crash?" Experienced modellers know the right questions, but not all beginners want to listen.

Give yourself a decent chance. You are supposed to be helping yourself!. If you won't get decent nice stuff, how will you enjoy using it?
Remember it's supposed to be enjoyable.

Donal94

Good post Coolwings. (I drive a skoda and I bleepin love it!)

coolwings

Donal94 wrote: »

....I drive a skoda and I bleepin love it! ....

Cheers !

r011ingthunder

coolwings wrote: »

...THEY KNOW FULL WELL THEIR EFFORTS AND TIME ARE GOING TO BE WASTED HELPING THIS NEW LOSER ....

Ah coolwings, I think you might have had a bee in your bonnet when you wrote that post. Ordinarily (in my experience) you are a far more forgiving type!
First of all, yes, newbies are over confident, but that's because people like you make it look so easy to fly. Also, people in general expect things to be easy these days, it's a result of the "Mod-Con" era we live in.
Secondly, it is quite usual for someone to want to dip their toe into the water first before jumping in, and this means that newbies will look for the absolute cheapest options available in order to get a feel for the hobby first - sometimes even opting for the dreaded "toy plane" type from a Toy Store Chain. That's natural, and happens very frequently when the right advice has not been sought or given. I'm not that long at this game myself, and when I started out I know that's what I was initially looking for, until I sought advice. The fact that people go to the trouble of looking up this forum for advice is a small sign that they are going to take it seriously.
Thirdly, why not make it a sticky of some sort on the top of the forum and call it "Buying your first plane" or something similar, and highlight the following points:
1. Buy a decent mid-range radio - Reason: It doesn't fly, therefore it has a greater chance of surviving a mishap, and if the hobby falls through, it can then be sold on for €'s to another learner. Also it is more reliable, and has a greater range.
2. Don't buy a toy shop plane - Reason: If it crashes, spares are next to impossible to obtain, and if you want to progress to a better plane, NONE of the internals are inter-changeable, and therefore will cost more. Also, they are not as robust as "proper" planes and cannot be flown in anything more than a very light breeze.
3. Don't buy a B29 Superfortress with your scratch card winnings - Reason: You won't be able to fly it, end of story.
4. Buy local if you want support from your shop, and spares off-the-shelf, and banter about planes when you drop in, and funny stories to entertain you, and an all-round enjoyable experience while buying. Buy foreign if you want cheap, sterile shopping with little or no after sales service.
5. Don't mix and match crystals where possible - Reason: Some crystals like talking to each, others haven't spoken in years, and no amount of cajoling will get them to communicate.
6. If possible don't make your first flight a solo effort - Reason: You will probably crash, and in the process put yourself off the whole hobby. At least try to get someone who can fly to take the plane into the air so you can learn to fly it "safely". Taking off can be just as difficult as landing.
7. Don't buy from the US (and anywhere else that uses the 75 MHz frequency) - Reason: You will get (and cause) all sorts of interference here in Ireland, and it is illegal to fly on that frequency in this country.
8. If you need advice, ask coolwings (or loopingfred or any of the other "veterans") on this site, they are (normally) forgiving of newbies questions, and are a veritable mine of helpful information.

I'm sure there is a huge amount of other "First time buyer beware" type advice that others could add, and a sticky would then be the best place for this in my opinion.

r011in

coolwings

I feel strongly about it probably because I love the hobby and consequently I hate to see a newbie put themselves in a position where they have alomost no chance of success.

But newcomers really don't have a clue how absolutely useless the internet advise on planes coming from the US continent is to a model flier living in Ireland.

Take a look at this:

Wind map of ireland today - a land Area (Total): 70,280 SQ KM


Wind map of the US today - an land area (Total): 9,826,630 SQ KM

The landmass is 140 times bigger and nowhere in the US (today) is it remotely like the wind we have here. Search the whole of the US, a huge area, and in the windiest area they have slightly over half the wind we have in Ireland!
This also applies to the European countries, and to a smaller degree also to the UK.
I reckon, from a flying perspective, the UK is to the Irish east coast, as the Irish East coast is to the Irish north or west coast.

I always said that in Ireland we have planes that do better here, and they are not the ones that are popular in other places. It is just that most people, especially newcomers to model flight, have no idea how true this is, and how much difference it makes to equipment choices.
This lends importance to who you ask for advise, or where you do your research online. As they say - opinions vary! But your model will have to cope with whatever is up there over your (Irish) flying field and so do you.