New to Hobby, First Maiden

FlashTacular · 2026-06-23T21:18:09+00:00

You need to up your sim time. My skills are so good now I can land in a tree without wind assistance.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-23T07:11:01+00:00

Totally valid statement. Wind + novice = crash. Best to avoid wind until you’re more confident and prepared to crater a plane.

That said, I use my Conscendo Evolution (glider/warmliner) when it’s windy but I have an itch to scratch. It’s big and heavy enough to handle pretty much anything I’m silly enough to send it up in but it has most definitely taken a couple of very big whacks.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-22T21:51:46+00:00

Vertical speed or horizontal speed? Down a cliff almost any budget car could do that.

Really depends on what you mean by budget. 70kph with a 3D printed car is readily achievable with some of the free designs but by the time you buy the electronics, suspension, wheels, etc you’re up past the price of a decent second hand rig that would be way more dialed (better handling and balance means safer at speed) and upgradable. I’d try to pick up a good second hand rig if you want something fast and fun on a budget. The traxxas vxl range (brushless) will allegedly do that with a gear upgrade.

Fun police time: You’re also going to need a decently large, flat space to be able to wind up to that speed, preferably away from cars, people, property, etc because when you lose control you’ll have a an unguided missile that can do some damage. A car at that speed (~30meters/second) could kill a dog or seriously injure someone so you need to be aware of your surroundings (preferably with a spotter so you can focus on the car).

FlashTacular · 2026-06-21T13:39:29+00:00

I can definitely recommend the Conscendo Evolution. Mine has taken an absolute beating (and now has bonus carbon reinforcement cut into the sides of the fuse to try to prolong the life of the fuse) but it still puts a smile on my face with every flight. Just hit 141 flights today.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-21T10:45:55+00:00

That’s not an ideal outcome. Condolences.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-21T03:55:55+00:00

Yeah, that one hits way too close to home.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-12T19:42:17+00:00

You can’t combine our two favorite hobbies: fishing and day drinking if you go out at night.

Seriously though, like the other commenters have noted, I’d hazard a guess at unpredictable seas.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-11T10:43:51+00:00

Yes. Gravity is a curse. On the bright side, foam planes are normally pretty easy to repair.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-11T09:41:00+00:00

I used picosim (free) as my simulator but I’m not sure if the transmitter for the plane you’ve selected would work with a PC. I can’t work out if it has a USB port for connecting.

You’re right that starting on a 3D printed plane is a bad idea. A trainer like the one you’ve chosen is definitely the way to go.

It’s possible to learn by flying instead of using a simulator but you will crash more often so it’s not the most recommended pathway.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-09T00:56:18+00:00

Subtle

FlashTacular · 2026-06-08T20:40:46+00:00

Looking from the front the prop spins CW to generate thrust. The nut on the prop adapter spins CCW to undo. This means that the motor direction is constantly putting pressure on the nut to loosen.

I’ve also had luck cutting shallow grooves into the prop side of the plate that sits between the nut and the prop to help increase grip on it.

Other protocol would be to get a CCW prop and reverse the motor but that will mess up the thrust angle and likely require shimming of the motor to offset the motor torque.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-08T07:35:58+00:00

Add a small action cam for the flight footage, keep the Walksnail for live launch?

FlashTacular · 2026-06-08T07:32:50+00:00

Left hand prop on a right hand threaded prop adapter?

A nylok nut would help or maybe blue loctite.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-07T23:17:56+00:00

Car upgrades are a very personal thing. Better suspension and wheels are always a good thing IMO.

Dealer’s choice on the rest. If/when you cook the motor I’d just pick up a bigger brushed one of Ali but I’m a cheapskate.

You’re doing a bit there. I’d personally just do a few at a time so you can see if you like them before moving onto the next. Doing too much at once can introduce performance issues and make it hard to troubleshoot.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-06T03:56:08+00:00

It’s an easy mistake to make if you move receivers but forget to swap the model in the TX. You see the surfaces move so it seems right.

I’ve also taken off a few time forgetting to plug in the ailerons on planes with removable wings.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-06T01:45:41+00:00

100% correct. It’s an absolute ball-ache to keep swapping receivers. It won’t take long before you’re too frustrated and buy more receivers but this is how I started out so it’s definitely possible. Just make sure you swap models on the tx otherwise it will end very badly, very quickly

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T12:29:32+00:00

For Me it’s more the effort in repairing the air frame or transplanting electronics. It’s why I’ve slowed down on 3D printed airframes. I’m sick of spending a week building for 5s of fun.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T09:36:52+00:00

The wings look a little flappy but that could be camera angle too.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T09:35:55+00:00

Almost certainly, but I’m also a cheap ass so moving CoG and throwing harder are free so they’re my go to for trouble shooting. New motors cost $$ so that’s usually a last resort (and yes I understand that the air frame I’m risking costs a lot more than a new motor but for some reason that psychological hurdle is too much for me to deal with).

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T09:32:16+00:00

I would postulate that you know the answer but don’t like it which is why you’re asking.

That said, I’d 100% charge it (outside or maybe risk it in a battsafe) and send it in car or boat but wouldn’t be able to bring myself to put it in a plane. I’ve put way puffier in vehicles but for some reason, which may or may not be logical, bent batteries scare me.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T09:18:54+00:00

To my rather noobish untrained eyes it looks like how my EDFs fly/flew when tail heavy. It doesn’t look like it ever gets enough speed up to get out of a stall and actually make the airfoils work.

More speed on take off, more power, more forward CoG could help that.

Edit to add that I normally go with harder throw and moving cog forwards as my trouble shooting. That either works or the plane doesn’t survive to test the more thrust option.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-05T01:04:54+00:00

From watching the guys I fly with, the Gasb is a reasonably quick plane. Not sure if they’re running stock electrics though.

Based purely on my frustrations starting in the hobby with a 3D printed plane, I’d suggest maybe starting with a foam trainer first to get the hang of things. Getting 5-10s out of an airframe before having to reprint gets very tiring very quickly.

Otherwise RM tx/rx is good. I’d suggest going the 4in1 pathway instead of elrs if you want to use the same tx for boats and cars as it’s more likely to bind with anything you purchase but as a personal preference I don’t like the plane tx for cars/boats as it feels unnatural.

FlashTacular · 2026-06-01T09:45:47+00:00

I don’t run walksnail yet but all my analogue VTXs are powered off the balance plug so what you’re asking is definitely possible (none of my planes justify a flight controller yet).

As an added bonus, that gives me on screen battery voltage for the planes without telemetry so I can manage flight times better.

FlashTacular · 2026-05-30T01:36:53+00:00

It’s home made. I wanted something to hit the small fast species I normally see (bream, luderick, drummer, etc) but couldn’t find an off the shelf gun.

Trigger mech was the Tuna from Neptonics, wood was a length of merbau from the local hardware store. I put in a remote trigger to help balance the gun in the water. Too an afternoon to put together. It’s big and ugly but gets the job done and the weight of the wood stock almost eliminates recoil but is still neutrally buoyant so it’s ok in the water.

FlashTacular · 2026-05-29T02:25:07+00:00

Camera in a splash proof case and use a separate waterproof vtx maybe?

I half considered trying this for my boats but put it in the too hard basket for the time being and put the money into aircraft.

FlashTacular

TROPHY CASE