Tag: Beginner’s

First Flight: A Beginner’s Guide to RC Airplanes: How to Buy the Right Plane and Teach Yourself to Fly!

Foamboards

It’s a lot easier to fly RC planes now than it used to be. There’s been a revolution, thanks to the miniaturization and lower cost of tiny electronics and rechargeable batteries. These days you can buy a ready-to-fly plane, charge the battery, and be in the air within an hour. And that’s part of the problem. Now it’s so easy to get into the air, you can get there long before you’re ready.

No matter how smart they are, thousands of people every year jump into the RC plane hobby, and many repeat the same mistakes. The most common mistakes are:

Buying the wrong plane. Lots of folks get into the RC plane hobby by buying a Porsche when they should have bought a Chevy. You’ve got to buy a plane that matches your skill level – one that can fly slowly until you’ve learned to control the plane. You need a durable plane that can withstand several hard landings without cracking into pieces. Luckily, many of the inexpensive planes I’ll recommend in this book are also the most durable.

Wasting money on the wrong accessories, and not getting the right accessories. New hobbyists face a bewildering array of parts and accessories. For example, do you need extra batteries? What kind of batteries? Do you need a battery charger? Which one? What kind of transmitter do you need? Can you use your existing transmitter with your future planes?

Being impatient. In my first three months in the RC plane hobby, I lost and crashed more than a dozen planes, simply because I wasn’t properly prepared and didn’t exercise patience—like trying to fly during bad weather. I will show you how to prepare yourself for the best chance at success.

Having no plan for takeoffs, flying, and landing before you leave home. We’ll go over the basics of piloting a model plane, and how to do it safely while having fun. Don’t wait until you have a plane in the air before you start learning. Start now. I’ll give simple instructions on how to take off, fly and land while keeping your risks of accident and injury as low as possible.

Through trial and error, I’ve discovered which planes are the best for novice RC pilots. There are dozens of choices, but relatively few have earned a place in this book. I’ve purchased and flown all of the planes mentioned here (along with other planes that didn’t make it into this book). My recommendations are based solely on how the planes perform, the quality of the materials, and the manufacturer’s customer support.

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First Flight: A Beginner’s Guide to RC Airplanes: How to Buy the Right Plane and Teach Yourself to Fly!

Foamboards

It’s a lot easier to fly RC planes now than it used to be. There’s been a revolution, thanks to the miniaturization and lower cost of tiny electronics and rechargeable batteries. These days you can buy a ready-to-fly plane, charge the battery, and be in the air within an hour. And that’s part of the problem. Now it’s so easy to get into the air, you can get there long before you’re ready.

No matter how smart they are, thousands of people every year jump into the RC plane hobby, and many repeat the same mistakes. The most common mistakes are:

Buying the wrong plane. Lots of folks get into the RC plane hobby by buying a Porsche when they should have bought a Chevy. You’ve got to buy a plane that matches your skill level – one that can fly slowly until you’ve learned to control the plane. You need a durable plane that can withstand several hard landings without cracking into pieces. Luckily, many of the inexpensive planes I’ll recommend in this book are also the most durable.

Wasting money on the wrong accessories, and not getting the right accessories. New hobbyists face a bewildering array of parts and accessories. For example, do you need extra batteries? What kind of batteries? Do you need a battery charger? Which one? What kind of transmitter do you need? Can you use your existing transmitter with your future planes?

Being impatient. In my first three months in the RC plane hobby, I lost and crashed more than a dozen planes, simply because I wasn’t properly prepared and didn’t exercise patience—like trying to fly during bad weather. I will show you how to prepare yourself for the best chance at success.

Having no plan for takeoffs, flying, and landing before you leave home. We’ll go over the basics of piloting a model plane, and how to do it safely while having fun. Don’t wait until you have a plane in the air before you start learning. Start now. I’ll give simple instructions on how to take off, fly and land while keeping your risks of accident and injury as low as possible.

Through trial and error, I’ve discovered which planes are the best for novice RC pilots. There are dozens of choices, but relatively few have earned a place in this book. I’ve purchased and flown all of the planes mentioned here (along with other planes that didn’t make it into this book). My recommendations are based solely on how the planes perform, the quality of the materials, and the manufacturer’s customer support.

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RC-The Beginners Guide To Remote Control Air Planes

Foamboards

There is a big selection of RC planes for the beginner to choose from these days which is great for the newcomer to the world of RC Planes, but the choice can be a bit overwhelming to begin with. There are many different brand names and types of RC planes to choose from like,
Parkzone, Esport, Horizon hobby, HobbyKing, Eflite, and the list goes on. It’s a matter of finding something that you like, not something that you’re local RC shop or your best friend is telling you you should buy. By all means listen to what they are telling you, they are more likely telling you the truth. Do some research join some RC blogs like?

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The Wonderful World of Model Trains: A Beginner’s Guide to Building Your Own Model Railways and Creating Stunning Sceneries & Layouts

Foamboards

There’s a nostalgia associated with model trains and railroading — even if it’s unspoken. Railroads take us back to an earlier era. A more basic time. When spending a week or more on a train was seen as a luxury — an event in itself — not at as merely a mode of transportation.

You’ve probably already scouted some model railroad shows. You’ve no doubt recognized the camaraderie and the passion these folks have. And yes, you’re interested in becoming a part of that.

“The Wonderful World of Model Trains” will help you do just that! It’s a comprehensive guide to model railroading written for someone who is new to this hobby, starting with some basic “train knowledge” & terminologies, and continuing on to the more detailed aspects of the hobby.

And yes, this hobby can indeed get quite detailed. And that tends to be intimidating to some people. The beauty of this hobby is that you can get involved at just the level you care too. You’ll discover that every model railroader is in it for the love of the trains and the history. The vast majority of us are not out to make a fast buck from our interests.

Here’s some of the things you’ll learn in “The Wonderful World of Model Trains”:

    – How to create stunning terrain in your scenery with these 3 simple techniques…

    – Different scales, gauges, standards in the world of model railroading and what they all mean…

    – 2 simple keys (that are right in front of your eyes) to build your own benchwork…

    – WARNING: 3 things you should never do when it comes to wiring…

    – A pennies on the dollar approach to finding model train parts…

    – How to avoid derailing problems…

    – 3 proven steps to running multiple trains on one track…

    – 6 time tested and proven strategies for laying out train tracks…

    – When to add onto your set with locomotives and rolling stock…

    – 7 everyday but often overlooked tips and tricks for building the best layouts for your scenery…

    – How to do general maintenance on your model trains and tracks…

    – And much more…

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RC Aeroplanes – A Beginners Guide (The Modelers World Series)

Foamboards

This book contains a wealth of information on building and flying your first radio controlled model aeroplane.

If you wish to be the builder, maintenance engineer and pilot all rolled into one, look no further as this book is the essential guide. Valuable information in the book includes finding a radio set to control it and fitting a suitable motor to power it, whether an internal combustion engine or an electric motor. The author, Malcolm Messiter, passes on his knowledge in an informative, friendly way, dipping into his own modelling past to put across the fun that can be had from participating in this all-consuming pastime.

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Model Railroads & Trains for Beginners

Foamboards

No other mode of transportation has ever captured the imagination in quite the same way as trains. Maybe, it’s because they were the first form of mechanized transportation. Whatever the reason, they have been source of fascination and been at the center of war, intrigue and romance since they were invented in the early 1800’s in England. From there, railroads and trains spread to North America and then every continent on Earth (except Antarctica!). And in the process they’ve conquered every kind of terrain: rolling plains, lush grasslands, cathedral forests, dense jungles, jagged coastlines, soaring peaks, plunging canyons and the hearts of railroad fans who’ve wanted to capture just a bit of that majesty and beauty for themselves in their own homes.

It was then that the hobby of model railroading itself was born—well almost. In the beginning (no, not that beginning) there was Lionel—the toy train that started it all for a lot of folks. There was a time that when kids asked for a train for Christmas, a Lionel was what they got because it was virtually the only one available. Oh, there were others: American Flyer or Marklin over in Germany, but Lionel dominated the marketplace.

The trains and cars were of sturdy steel and easy for children to handle. The train track was durable and easy to assemble and to power up. Plus, there were plenty of really cool accessories with plenty of colored lights for everything—signal lights, lights on the controls, you name it. My dad had one of these sets and I looked forward with a combination of excitement and reverence to Christmas when the perfectly-preserved ancient boxes with their 1940s Lionel logos were opened one by one to reveal their ancient treasures inside. There were cars that dumped coal into coal elevators that scooped the coal one little lump at a time and carried it up to the storage area where it waited to be dumped with the press of a button into another waiting car that was hauled away as soon as it was full.
This captivated the kids, but the adults noticed the tracks did not look anything like real train tracks. For one thing, there were three rails—not two like a real train and there were not railroad ties—the wooden cross members holding the rails together. There were just three unrealistically large metal ones instead of several more evenly-spaced and smaller ones. Nobody would ever mistake a skillfully taken trackside photo for the real thing. Also, the size of the Lionel trains were just too big to keep the set up all the time for most people’s houses with wives, kids, and all the other stuff that comes with that.
Then along came a new kind of train that was half the size of Lionel, but with twice the realism. The tracks had just two rails and railroad ties that looked exactly like real deal. It was called HO, or “half-O,” which meant it was half the size of the O-Scale Lionel. We will go into more detail about scale in the first chapter. This is when “playing with trains” really became model railroading. HO trains were actually invented in 1935 in the United Kingdom, but they really gained their popularity in the 1950s in America. From there model railroading has branched out all across the world in dozens of sizes and accessories.

Model railroading is the greatest hobby because it’s so many hobbies in one and teaches you so many things: how to work with your hands, manual dexterity, the elements of design, carpentry, precisely realistic model making, principles of electric wiring, how to create realistic scenery, artistic principles by learning how to paint detailed scenery, how systems work, learn interesting bits of history, how to come up with solutions to different challenges, and, yes, even some computer programming if you choose.

This book takes you on the journey from first selecting a model train and it’s scale through to designing and building a railroad through to soldering and the electronics required.

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SketchUp 7.1 for Architectural Visualization: Beginner’s Guide

Foamboards

Written with a fast-paced but friendly and engaging approach, this Packt Beginner’s Guide is designed to be placed alongside the computer as your guide and mentor. Step-by-step tutorials are bolstered by explanations of the reasoning behind what you are doing. You will quickly pick up the necessary skills, tips, and tricks for creating successful SketchUp visualizations with practical examples that help you to learn by experiment and play. This book is suitable for all levels of Sketchup users, from amateurs right through to architectural technicians, professional architects, and designers who want to take their 3D designs to the next level of presentation. SketchUp for Architectural Visualization is also particularly suitable as a companion to any architectural design or multimedia course, and is accessible to anyone who has learned the basics of SketchUp.

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