I have been flying e-power planes for a year or so and I am securely hooked on RC flying! And now, (I’m sure most know what I'm about to say) I want to move over to nitro/gas powered planes and become a legitimate member of AMA and ACMA, if possible.

I have a few parts to start with including an older Futaba Sky Sport 6a radio that works fine with my e-flight equipment; A much older, but little used engine, a OS.45f (I haven’t tested it, but my uncle assured me it ran fine and those engines were very strong and are comparable to the current OS.46’s). Finally I have some standard sized Futaba servos.

I don’t have a plane, but after talking with a few folks and reading the forums I think I am going to buy an Avistar trainer on Wednesday—any suggestions there? What else will I need to make this thing fly, more specifically, what field equipment must I absolutely have?

Once the hardware part is up to speed I will need some training right? Where do I sign up? What do I bring with me? Should I go ahead and apply for my AMA card ahead of time? Can I go ahead and submit an application to the ACMA? Does anyone know the numbers for next weeks FL lotto??? If so, skip the other questions!

In all seriousness, tell me as if I were brand new, what do I need to do?

Thanks in Advance guys

Nick

Hi Nick, welcome to the forum and the move to nitro planes.

That equipment should work well for a trainer plane.

Fuel, fuel pump, electric engine starter/12v battery, glo plug lighter battery, and some basic tools like screwdrivers, pliers, and a real big hammer for fine tuneing engine. What you don't have right away, can be borrowed at field.

Yes, AMA membership will be required right away before any real training can take place. ACMA membership not required at first, as you will have some period of time as a guest/student flyer as long as you have proof of AMA membership.


ACMA's new member contact and chief flight instructor, Frits, will probably soon post here with further information and send you some e-mails with all data needed for getting started.

Hi Nick and welcome,

I am an assent to the instructors (Ground Crew) and will be more then glad to help you in any that I can, I am at the field on the weekends from about noon till dark.I hang out on the south end.

If you have been flying E power for a year getting into nitro will be a snap, you just need some diffrent field equipment, the things Alvin said will get you started,
we will show you what other things you will need to have, like a volt meater, a Field Charger, and a assortment of extra parts for your plane.

And like Alvin said it is a MUST to have your AMA card to fly even the first time at our field so get it right away :thumbup: You can do it on line at AMA thay will give you your number right away so you don't have to wait for it to come in the mail.

Thank you guys for the insight and help thus far. I see the urgency to get the AMA, so I am filling out the new member form online. The last section of the form asks for "membership sponsor information" (name and AMA number). Do I need this from someone? If so, any donors out there?

Nick

The "membership sponsor information" is not required information on the application.

What it does is if a current AMA member can get three new people to join AMA then he/she will get their membership free when next they renew.
If you know an AMA member and want to get them started toward a free renewal, put their data in as sponsor. If not, don't be concerned about it.

<< I want to move over to nitro/gas powered planes and become a legitimate member of AMA and ACMA, if possible. >>
Great! You are talking to the right people.

<< I have a Futaba Sky Sport 6a radio, an OS.45f and some standard sized Futaba servos. >>
That's a good start. You'll need a suitable receiver too, if you don't have one already. We fly on 72MHz, not on 27MHz like most park fliers use). Also a rechargeable flight battery pack. The AC chargers for them you probably have already too.

<< I think I am going to buy an Avistar trainer. >>
That would be my recommended choice! It's an excellent trainer, and the .45 engine is perfect for it.

<< What field equipment must I absolutely have? >>
For starters (must have): a manually cranked fuel pump; a glow plug wrench that also doubles as a spinner nut wrench; a glow plug driver (either powered by the 1.5 Volt connections on an optional power panel, or you can get a rechargeable NiCad battery operated one, recommended); a chicken stick to flip the prop (you can make one out of a 10 inch piece of broom stick - DO NOT use your fingers!); a flight box (you can buy a kit or build one yourself, or use a sturdy cardboard or tackle box to start with).
Bring 15% nitro fuel (pink contains castor oil, green has synthetic oil - your choice).

Some optional luxury items: a 12 Volt power panel (to be built into that field flight box; a 12 Volt "gel cell" battery (available at the hobby store), and a charger for it. This is to provide power to the panel. (Or you can use a 12 Volt motorcycle battery, and you need a charger for it); a 12 Volt fuel pump (that hand-cracking can be very tiring...), a 12 Volt engine starter (that prop flipping will get old soon...).

You will need assorted small tools, like a small Phillips and a small common screwdriver, and an adjustable wrench. Highly recommended are sets of metric and standard Allen wrench ball drivers, available at the hobby store. (Most engines are metric. Most hardware is US Standard). Small needle nose pliers, small diagonal cutters, etc...

You should also always have a couple of spare glow plugs (O.S. A3) and a couple of spare propellers handy. (The black plastic ones are fine. 10 X 6 or 10 X 7 sizes).

<< I will need some training right? Where do I sign up? What do I bring with me? >>
Yes, you do, probably. See me (or any other club instructor. We have four.) Bring all the stuff we just talked about and don't forget the wing or the transmitter...

<< Should I go ahead and apply for my AMA card ahead of time? Can I go ahead and submit an application to the ACMA? >>
To the first question - YES. You MUST have your AMA license to fly at our field. You can use Alvin Reed or Don Koval or me, Frits Jetten, as your sponsor.
To the second question: You can join our club after you decide if we are a good bunch of people, or not. We can give you flight training in the meantime. You can decide for up to three months before joining. Aren't we wonderful? :rolleyes:

<< Does anyone know the numbers for next week's FL lotto? >>
I don't, and if I did, I'm not sharing... <_<

So get your stuff together, Nick, and come see us soon. This Saturday will not be a good day for me to spend much time with you, as there will be a major fly-in going on at the field (the annual Armageddon competition Fun Fly). But do come meet us and watch! You WILL be entertained, I promise! :yes:
Any more questions? Feel free to email me anytime: fjetten@aol.com.

Ok, here is my newest dilemma in my quest for nitro flight. I went into my little box of goodies and noticed that not only do I have an OS 45f, a Skysport 6A transmitter, and 4 Futaba servos, but I also have a Futaba receiver, a switch harness, a gas tank, and some landing gear! Apparently all of the stuff is from a plane that had a maiden flight that didn’t last too long and the owner bailed out of the hobby all together.

What's the dilemma you ask?

The electronic components, while seemingly in perfect shape, have G style plugs and the receiver is AM! I don't have a receiver battery and I don't have a charger for the Skysport transmitter. :thumbdown:

It's sort of like having a Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwich without a mouth to eat it :hmm:


So what would a seasoned hobbyist do?

-Replace the receiver with a R127DF type Receiver/crystal combo and buy 6 G-to-J adaptors for the servos =ing about $100?

-Or buy an older AM transmitter and only 1 G-to-J adaptor (for a new receiver battery) =ing ??? maybe $50, but less reliable as FM???

:wacko:

There's a couple of good options right here on this forum. Josh has a couple of items for sale that would set you up real good. 1 is a telemaster with the engine, plane and radio (futaba fm) all for only $100. The second is a nice 7 channel futaba radio with receiver and all for $130. The first deal is extremely hard to beat!!! Here's the links to the stuff for sale

http://s7.invisionfree.com/MARCMAP_Forum/i...p?showtopic=966

I was just looking at the ad.. I'd give him a call but he may have sold a couple of the items...

Jon

Nick,
If your radio system was complete and working well, I would say give it a try for inital flights.
But it sounds like an outdated system even if looks like new and you are going to have to throw some money at it to get it operational.

I would suggest buying a new FM radio system or a good used one.
A new basic radio system suitable for learning and intermediate flying is not all that expensive. Make sure the transmitter has the plug for buddy box hookup as that is how out club flight instructors train. They have a controller box hooked to your trans and can easily take control of airplane if you get it in trouble. Club has all the various trainer box interface cables so you don't have to get one of those.

Well gentlemen, step one is done! \

I got my AMA registration finished, number in hand, card on the way by the end of the week.

Now about this Armageddon thing, is it unheard of or within parameters to compete with an electic? I have a couple of snappy flyers, one that I wouldnt mind sacrificing, that may be able to catch some ribbons. I just dont think they would take a hit all that well. On the other hand, I do think they would make for some nice targets for you guys to perform some mid-air destruction.

any thoughts?

Nick,
I think that you would be a first with an electric plane at Armageddon.
Go for it.

Not much chance of a midair in too many of the Armageddon events, if you plan on flying it in combat though (separate from the scored events, more of a half time show) that's another story. I think a quick electric could do very well in many of the points events however.

Well I made it out to the field to watch the events this Saturday and needless to say that was quite impressive! I didn't get a chance to meet any of you guys because everyone in the pits seemed to be a bit busy. One guy I did meet wasn't a club member, but none the less he was an avid newbie RC flyer--I think both he and I will be showing up there more often.

Anyway, I will try to come out again this weekend when there isn’t a big event going on and hopefully I can get acquainted with some of you. BTW, I did notice who Fritz was because of his pictures posted here and I just so happened to see his green plane surrender seconds after a hand launch... :thumbup:

glad you could make it out, it is always fun. come out anytime you like on the weekends someone is always there

Greetings NickB
I a begainer myself
i like nitro planes myself, and I'm just waiting for the cooler weather come
so I continue my pratacing flying right I'm just try out taxing my avistar
are getting a trainer or the advance planes???