Already discouraged....

[rmorse10]

Hey Everyone!

My name is Robert. I am an Arizona native. I live in Glendale, and have been interested in finding a hobby that will take my mind off of work, and get me out of the house on the weekends. I really know nothing about all of the technical language that is used when talking about rc planes, but I have always loved watching them fly.

I bought my Super Cub today after attending a R/C Jet Rally here in Arizona. I have been bugging my wife to let me buy a plane for about a month now. Today was the day!

I was so excited to go out and fly my plane! After watching the DVD and several other YouTube videos, I was pretty confident that I could fly my plane. I went to a park close to my house, even though there is a field a few miles away where several people fly on the weekends. I was too embarrassed to go there, because I didn't want to look like a fool in front of the experts. Unfortunately, I wrecked my plane before i could even get it 20 feet in the air. :-( I need to do some repairs before I give it another try, but now I am reluctant to go out again.

Next time I go out I am going to find a more open space, and I am going to bring a friend that has clue.

[killioughtta]

Hi Robert, welcome to the forums! So sad to hear. For a moment there I thought I was reading something I would have written the day I, too, bought my Super Cub. lol. I put it together in a flash, watched the DVD and youtube videos. I was so stoked I couldn't help myself but go fly even though the winds were blowing mildly (I had the old SC with less power than these new ones).

I took off and flew for about 50 feet at 20 feet altitude for 15 seconds when the SC came straight down and broke the wing in half, along with other repairs that needed to be done.

That's when I found the SuperCubClub; when I searched Google for 'repairing hobbyzone super cub' lol Here's the story I posted on one of my very first threads:

supercubclub.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=intro&action=display&thread=2275

Now, all I can say is this, too, will pass. You will learn to fix your models and you'll love the hobby even more. I hate the technical jargon and all the electrics-talk and soldering and I JUST WANTED TO EFFING FLY! But I realized it wasn't that easy and, as hard as it seemed, it was worth it because I loved flying something I fixed and eventually built myself.

This hobby can be very rewarding once you start making things yourself and modifying your SC and making it unique.

My suggestion? Try a flight simulator to get your thumbs worked right, then find a big open space on a calm day, take off and climb high, fly in circles and straight-and-level, no fancy maneuvers. Landings will be difficult, if not impossible at first. Take-offs and landings on asphalt or concrete were much easier for me to nail, no matter what others told me.

Don'e get discouraged when you crash or you will hate the hobby. Make sure to take it as another learning opportunity. You have a long way to get to the point where a crash or damage is a 5-minute repair so be patient.

Have fun and keep active on the SCC forums to get the most out of your experiences. And remember, we love pictures here at the SCC!

If you have Facebook, 'Like' us at facebook.com/SuperCubClub

[pauliepilot]

Oh dear..i crashed mine yesterday nothink to do with pilot error tho :-)
You'll have her glued bk n flying in a day or two...don't get anoyed or discurraged crashing is part of the fun for now!!
Enjoy robert

[flydiver]

Nobody in their right mind would try to learn to fly a real plane without serious instruction.
I've taught licensed pilots and they think RC is harder.

No newbie gets an RC plane with the blazing idea that they are going to go out and crash it to bits in the first few seconds. Most do. Discouragement is normal.

Best solution - get help from an experienced flier. I did and am very glad of it. It'll save you a LOT of grief and a LOT of repairs. Plus you'll learn all the stuff you don't even know you need to learn yet. In a nutshell, flying will turn out to be easy. Learning the electrics, trouble shooting, and repair are harder and a necessary part of the sport.

Next best - Get a model simulator and use it a LOT. Only then take another stab at it.

Worst solution but the most common - get out there and keep crashing and repairing until you figure it out.

[toff]

Feb 13, 2011 17:39:34 GMT 1 flydiver said:

Worst solution but the most common - get out there and keep crashing and repairing until you figure it out.

I did it this way, back when all was balsa and nitro, and a crash meant total destruction. 20 odd years later, thanks to the cub, I'm now a flier!
You are lucky in that if you do go down this route, you have one of the most survivable and repairable trainers available, so take heart, we've all done it, and pulled through. Do keep trying, and you will succeed. ( PS: A hot glue gun and lots of epoxy are REALLY useful!)

[parrothead]

Welcome to SCC RMORSE.
You have hit the jackpot in regards to resources and support. If it has anything to do with a SC, you will find it here. Awesome technical expertise.
We have all been newbies.
You will read/find both approaches in learning to fly rc. All have clearly been successful in flight, some (yea, mine) rang up the register a few times more often than others during the learning curve. BUT, the common thread was that we all became addicted spending more time and essentially honing our skills along the way.
Like Toff, I too took a stab at rc about twenty years ago with balsa an laminate, disastrous results.
Times have changed and so has technology so don't sweat it. The SC is a VERY forgiven bird. Toothpicks, chopsticks, fishing line and leaders, paperclips, soda bottles, pop lolly sticks are just a few of the homegrown replacements used after a "not-so-good-day". And what the he!!, if you do have to buy a part, they are very affordable.
ACT is worthless at best. Unplug it.

welcome to the addiction.

[renard80]

Robert, I blame all the HobbyZone hype about any newbie being able to fly the SC straight out of the box. That and watching the clever buggers fly so easily on YouTube.

I can assure you that your experience is not unique. My first (unaided) flight lasted about 20 seconds before she nosedived into a car park and split into several pieces.

Kept trying, kept crashing disastrously, kept glueing together. Became more and more fed up with the whole thing - it was supposed to be FUN!!

Finally, met some experienced guys who kindly showed me what I was doing wrong. Yayyyyyy!!!

I am still pretty useless, but will be forever grateful for what they showed me.

So, as has been said above, don't lose heart (I did, many times), and try to find some experienced people to help you. I have found that they are most generous with their time and advice to newcomers.

Stay with it - and good luck!

[rmorse10]

Thanks for all of the encouragement! I managed to get my plane back in working order. I found a friend that has offered to help me out the next time I get a chance to fly. I also spent some time looking through the discussion boards, and am feeling better about my experience.

I'm looking forward to taking the plane out again.

Thanks everyone!

[leisureshoot]

Good luck with your future flights, and don't get discouraged. You will turn a corner, and probably very soon!

My first flight went pretty well; couple minor crashes with no damage, except the cowl cracked. The next several times flying were much worse. I replaced many parts of the plane 2 or 3 or more times. Since the parts were so inexpensive, I simply stocked up and kept rebuilding. But I was growing weary and ready to quit.

Then it happened. I found a bigger field to fly at, and all my problems disappeared. I was crashing because I was spending all my time steering the plane so as not to hit light poles and trees when I was at the smaller park. But I went to a school sports field and it was like a ray of sunlight through the storm clouds. Flying got fun. I learned to control the plane and got proficient with aircraft orientation.