first flight....

[BigT]

I agree with Ian, there are no shortcuts in this hobby. If you dont want to join a club then why not go along to one of the model flight schools and pay for lessons?

Words of advice, in no particular order:
Dont be tempted to fly LOS in circles around yourself.  Always fly in front of yourself so you dont get handed.
When the model is coming towards you put the aileron control stick under the wing thats dropping.
Dont fly so far away that you lose orientation.
The rudder is your second best friend, the throttle is your first.
Learn how to take care of Lipo batteries so you preserve their service length and dont burn your house down.
Always fly at least 2 accidents high.

[elmattbo]

There's some good learn to fly vids on the flitetest website.


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[Toenee]

Hi coyote, I take on board what you say, but I would like to comment on what you have said and please don't take this the wrong way.
The reason I lost my plane was not that it was too far away it was only 150-250 m it just came landed on a downward slope which was out of view.  With regards to the auto pilot, this was to assist me in the direction of flight (the home position) and was instrumental in me retrieving the aircraft using the gps coordinates. It was never meant as a autopilot to control the plane.
The problem which brought the plane down was down to the prop nut unscrewing, I find it strange the adaptor having a right hand thread, combined with the direction of the motor makes the air resistance on the propeller unscrew the nut.

As I have said I would love to go on a training course and have lessons to fly LOS but as far as I am aware it's not possible and to ask someone to give up their time to help me I don't think it's fair.
I really do listen to all the advice given and really appreciate all the help.
I don't want to fall out with you, I am just trying my best to get into a hobby which I think in time would be very enjoyable, even though very technical and challenging.

[CurryKitten]

On the flip side - I never had a single lesson, getting into FPV from finding it on Youtube.... I did for a long time bring my stuff back in a bin bag after every flight though.  So you can do it, just take it nice and slow - and use that spotter, they are really useful.

Sims work well - although I can do amazing stuff in a sim I can't do in real life... it will give you some muscle memory in terms of being able to control a plane flying towards you without having to overthink it

[Coyote]

Dont worry Tony, not falling out with you, just desperately trying to point you in the right direction.

[FPVSteve]

There are numerous people in this hobby who will tell you not to do this, not to do that, Tony.

Mostly it comes from experience, crashes and expense - so while it might sound harsh I think it's mostly due to frustration because people really want you to do well. You might be an exception but most people who start flying FPV just crash then disappear because they're disheartened - which is a shame.

In a Bixler, you have the IDEAL plane for learning to fly LoS mate - the VERY best thing you can do is to forget about FPV for an hour, run some batteries through it just flying in front of yourself in figure 8s until it is second nature. Then you have your safety net if things go sour :) Get the thing trimmed out so that you can simply fly hands off at 1/2 throttle and then it's ready for AutoPilot tweaking time - they work so much better when the plane is set up properly.

Patience is a virtue, I hope you stick around :)

[elmattbo]

It is possible to get into this hobby using the forums alone which is fairly unique. I've never actually met anyone else who flies FPV, after nearly 2 years of it!

I did a similar thing to you except I mainly flew line of sight at first because I didn't have any goggles and just couldn't get along with a monitor. It was useful practice though and I set up a cyclops storm at that time - also on a bix3. It's still my main FPV plane, I really like it!

The best bit of advise is to keep it simple though, it's easier to pin down your mistakes that way!


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[Billy_boy_2010]

Absolutely learn to fly LOS. I'm much better at fpv that  I am los- but I can still fly Los safely.

[BigT]

There are numerous people in this hobby who will tell you not to do this, not to do that, Tony.

Mostly it comes from experience, crashes and expense - so while it might sound harsh I think it's mostly due to frustration because people really want you to do well. You might be an exception but most people who start flying FPV just crash then disappear because they're disheartened - which is a shame.

In a Bixler, you have the IDEAL plane for learning to fly LoS mate - the VERY best thing you can do is to forget about FPV for an hour, run some batteries through it just flying in front of yourself in figure 8s until it is second nature. Then you have your safety net if things go sour :) Get the thing trimmed out so that you can simply fly hands off at 1/2 throttle and then it's ready for AutoPilot tweaking time - they work so much better when the plane is set up properly.

Patience is a virtue, I hope you stick around :)

Nice to hear you speaking common sense for a change 👊😊😁😇

[FPVSteve]

Nice to hear you speaking common sense for a change 👊😊😁😇

Well I thought it was time to give the other hole a rest  :P