Hey believe me, I've gone over this with a fine tooth comb, maybe 3 times today checking everything!

Everything to engine mounts, through servo screws, hinges, tank straps, hoses zip ties, CG, wheels, spats and so on

I'll do it all again tomorrow at the field along with all my usual pre-flight and range checks etc.

This is the outskirts of London and there are not that many clubs in range. The one club I have my eye on has a 2 year waiting list where they fly the big stuff and also Jets!

Hey, I taught myself everything so I'll just have to teach myself this, not ideal but I do it like this because I have to.

Parker will know where I'm coming from, his analogy about mad people asking mad people if he's mad is right on

Alex -- I went from flying a .25 sized ultra stick to a 3d hobby shop 85in Katana and then a QQ 102in earlier this year. I've now also got a H9 DA 85 sukoi and an Airwild 40% sukhoi project going. I pretty much skipped two sizes of planes on the way.

So my trips to the field normally go like this:
- foamy 3d super z for a flight for basic orientation warm up for aging eyes and nerves... I do a lot of travel and normally have jet lag on Saturday mornings, so I need the warm up and the coffee.
- if that goes well then I put the ultra stick up for a few laps, inverted, touch and go, get a feel for wind, etc. ultra stick is still a great wind plane
- then I fly the bigger stuff.

The only real issue I face is that the big stuff is always a lot further away than I think, however, I agree with the logic that the bigger it is, the easier it is to fly.

The other observation is that the forces on the bigger stuff are a lot greater, so you need to do more bench checking before you fly. A snap roll on an ultra stick won't do much harm, but you could rip the wings off of something big. I've cracked formers and snapped pull pull cables more than once, so you need to be a little more on your toes about these sorts of things.

I'd also recommend that you think actively about dead stick landings and maybe even practice this a little so that the first time your xxxx thousand dollar project loses power you can deal with it with a calm head.

The advice about going to a field which has some people flying giant scale is good advice.

Good luck with your project.
dan

If you think it's time i say " god hates a coward" be safe and let it rip dude. We all want to know how you do. Good luck.

I'm still on the first page of this thread and I'll say no reason at all not to make the jump. Provided you won't quit if ya plant the big one. Really anything above six foot shows the "bigger flys better" . And from there it gets better at least to 33% which is the largest I've owned. And I assume it just gets better from there also.

I went from trainer to 33% by the beginning of my second season and back then 25% was considered giant scale. With a six footer and a seven footer (my first gasser) and a few .40/.60 size planes in between. But I just kept moving quickly. Always flying one step ahead of my rational ability. Made it FUN.

But what this really means is bigger flys easier. Just a money thing when ya plant it. Get ready, it will happen eventually. No matter if you are the best pilot on the planet. You will lose a plane every now and then.

No other reason I can think of than the $$$ when the gravity God demands a sacrifice. Good luck!!

I'm hoping to get a 100cc plane of my own on the table this Winter.

This hobby is nuts...so just being in it alone makes us crazy...I went from trainer to 35% in 3 months...and 40% by the end of my first year of flying. I attempted to do this hobby when I was a young teenager and never could get the hang of it. Fastforward thirty years later and it is my obsession...So..yes..we are crazy..but in a good way.

Crazy in a good crazy kinda way. No matter what it drives my wife in bad crazy way.

i started as a 12 year old with a avistar 40 with no instructor, tore it up alittle bit, fixed it and kept on flying then after one winter i just kind of quit until about 2 years ago i flew the avistar again then bought a .60 sized edge 540, crashed it after a few months due to a lock out, then went to 30%. my third plane was the extreme flight yak with a DA 50, its kind of cool to hear alot of people took this route as well, i thought i was a loner, i always got lectured about flying without an instructor and going up in size too fast but im glad i did, i probably only have had about 1 solid year of flying under my belt and im already huckin' it all over

CRAZY?????? No...... nobody here is CRAZY!!!!!! sick, twisted, deranged, obsessed...maybe! but definitely not CRAZY! LOL

Heh, well I maidened today. Did want to yesterday but I had a few issues with the throttle linkage and vibration so it was a no go.

Today was different

I'm amazed how uneventful it actually was. I did noting heavy, just a few loops, snaps and basically just felt her out over 3 flights.

She lands on our small filed like a superstar. She is so sweet

Might be able to get a vid up but it's pretty boring I guess but it's mine for posterity


Anyway, PARKER, HAVE YOU FLOWN YET MATEY?? !!!!

This IS your thread you know

I really appreciate everyone's comments/votes in this forum. I think it's awesome that despite our differences and backgrounds we can all come together through this hobby. I have been trying to finish the build of my 35% but was missing some parts due to damage from shipping. I will have the rest of it in a few days then I'll finally be able to finish my build! I will definently take this time to support Hanger 9/Horizon Hobby in their customer support, mostly from Mike McConville.

Assuming the weather cooperates, I'm going to try and go fly it soon! Wish me luck!

Originally Posted by smokin

dantley here is a good guy to hang around!!! i think he gets tired of stuff quick and then sells it off at a very fair #! not tired of that python yet are ya???

happy flying dantley!

matt

LOL! Matt I love my Python. I bring it out from time to time when I need a break from the NASCAR laps with the jets. It makes me grin every time I fly it.

When are you going to break down and get one?

my 7 year old son went from a four star 60 to a 35% Extra 260 with out any issues at all .. It really doesn't matter what everyone else thinks as long as YOU are comfortable with your decision .

If you do it right, ur gonna save a ton of money.

sim time...sim time!

I voted not crazy but follow some guidelines until you are very familiar with the 35%er

always have the experienced giant scale pilot as your spotter/safety net

always respect the prop point it away from people at all cost even when taxing back from a landing. A friend lost the last knuckle on 3 finger to this one. Also when working on or starting the engine the plane must be restrained by people or proper strapping tied to something solid and unmovable ( a screw driver in the ground wont cut it).

fly it higher than the videos

if you suspect in any small way that something isnt right or the same as it was dont fly shut it down and find the issue.

all these and more people will come up with as well as all the field rules. the 35% planes fly better than there smaller counterparts but every incident is more dollar to repair per occurrence.


Even when you do every thing right a crash can happen so be supra careful and try to have a backup plane so if one goes down you dont lose a lot of flight time rebuilding or worse fly a plane when something isnt completely copacetic.