WHAT ELSE CAN HELP YOU ENTER THE HOBBY OF MODEL AVIATION?
AMA/MODEL AVIATION FEATURE ARTICLES FOR BEGINNERS
An excellent series titled ”From The Ground Up” has appeared in the pages of Model Aviation over the past couple of years. As of March 2006 it is up to 23 separate chapters covering the details that would most interest RC model aircraft beginners. You can access reprints of this series from the AMA website by clicking here.
MODEL AIRCRAFT HOBBY MAGAZINES
Besides our own Model Aviation there are several other magazines certainly worth your attention:
R/C HOBBY MODEL FORUMS and NETS
These are Internet forums where model builders ask questions and other more experienced modelers answer. It is kind of like an exchange of data and information. These forums and nets function all the time.
ATTENDING REGIONAL and NATIONAL HOBBY TRADE SHOWS
Attending local, regional and national hobby trade shows will help you understand everything new to our hobby. It can keep you up to date on all the latest aircraft, building techniques and accessory equipment. Suggested shows are:
MANUFACTURER WEBSITE INFO
Many RC manufacturers and distributors offer helpful Web site information for RC beginners. For a comprehensive list of manufacturers, check out Model Aviation’s list of advertisers.
MANUFACTURER/DISTRIBUTOR WEBSITES
There isn’t enough space here to list the hundreds of RC hobby suppliers and distributors. But one of the easiest ways to locate the product then the source is to use one of the primary search engines on the Internet such as:
THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO AS YOU PROGRESS IN THE HOBBY
After you learn to solo an RC model aircraft, work up to four-channel control, and can comfortably takeoff and land the airplane, you can set your sights beyond the basic trainer-type designs and start thinking of intermediate and advanced trainers. These aircraft will introduce you to various maneuvers, such as loops, rolls, spins, and the like. Experienced modelers eventually get into aerobatic-type flying while others get into endurance flying, helicopters, racing events, and various-size scale model aircraft. There is even a very interesting faction in our hobby that flies RC model aircraft indoors. This is especially helpful when your local winter weather prohibits normal outdoor flying.
Also as you progress, you may want to go beyond RTF and ARF aircraft, which essentially are built for you. A next step might be constructing your own airplane from any number of available kits. Many of the newer kits on the market employ laser-cut parts, resulting in more precision and easier assembly. Beyond that you might want to consider building an airplane from plans using raw materials and cutting out your own parts.
Another possibility is building and flying aircraft that do not use radio control. These types of airplanes include Control Line (CL) models (on wires), Free Flight (FF) models, towline gliders, and rubber-powered models.
To learn more about these types of models, as well as the diversity of this great hobby, we suggest you check out the AMA’s Special Interest Groups (SIGs). A complete list with links can be found at the AMA Web site by clicking here.
To continue, click here.
