H’mm that suddenly looks a bit serious

Today I’ve been breaking things. Planes, wings and promises mainly. Avid readers of hedgehog (and I’m setting a pretty low bar here – being able to manage your own cutlery passes for Mensa for inbound hedgies) will remember in this post I crowed over near future ownership of something similar but different.

There is complexity here, but essentially boredom, beer, eBay, the attention span of a special needs moth and an inability to say no has led to an MTB like dive into relative stupidity. So while this pre-loved trainer is replete with engine, flight box, starter, gas and something scary involving fuel pumps, I’ve made a creative leap into buying another one that’s almost exactly the same.

Madness is merely method lacking explanation and my justification was a) I don’t like backing out of deals even if I seem to have done lots of them b) this fiendish looking craft is missing a radio system and c) realistically they are nothing more than expensive consumerables with me at the controls.

c) is important as this morning I launched the little electric* into a gusty sky, having courageously re-trimmed** it the night before, and the next five minutes were nothing more than a growing conviction the bugger was overrun with alien mind control. 8/8ths cloud didn’t help much and the only time I really worked out where it was, was when I was digging it out of a frozen field.

And while replacement parts are cheap for this little soil basher, the same cannot be said for the big mutha now in my ownership. The previous owner terrified me with tales of extreme balsa action, and the 200 step instruction for starting the engine. In true hedgehog fashion, I nodded sagely and went in search of a stiff drink.

During which Carol decided to relocate the wings from their clearly unsafe position behind a cabinet, bedded down on two inches of foam and wrapped in a blanket*** while failing to understand that there isn’t much difference between six foot of wing and six foot and a bit of door aperture. There is no way I’m skilled enough to effect any kind of repair, so I gaffer taped it up and hoped for the best.

This has served me well with MTB’s and it’s important to play to your strengths I feel. Which is why I’m considering a radical approach of installing no radio at all, and just launching the plane at full chat into a big sky. I’ll feel none of that terrible responsibility to bring it back in one piece and it’ll probably be less damaged than if I were at the controls.

And best of all, I can crack open a beer as it disappears over a far horizon. I tell you, that and the knob gags are going to ingratiate me to the new club in no time at all.

* I believe RC has even more euphemistic potential than MTB. Except everyone except me appears to be 900 years old and universally sponsored by the denture industry. Knob gags have so far failed to amuse. I’ll keep trying.

** I’m not explaining this. It’s dull, hence my approach being to wait until I was partially pissed before hitting the spanners.

*** Let’s just not go there eh? Although I will say that House Harmony is not at an all time high this evening.

7 thoughts on “H’mm that suddenly looks a bit serious

  1. Andy B

    Holy S**T, now seeing that it reminds me of when I dabbled with this stuff, get some help from the crusties before you hurt someone badly! please….
    PS Hand launch of the big one is just not going to work, and as a beginner the take off can be a little tricky……

  2. Alex

    No worries. I am going to get a proper (retired, ex RAF pilot) to help me out. When I say help me out, I mean fly it, trim it, help me fix it when I crash etc. And it’ll be on a proper flying field not lobbed into the crops by our house.

    Currently I’m trying to get my head round servos and stuff. It’s been along time and I’m clearly even more stupid than 20 years ago!

  3. Andy B

    Good to know, It’s just I was having visions of a plane in flames crashed into the roof of your house! (you had some Sim software didn’t you? Get some more practice in)

  4. Alex

    The Sim is ace, I can now fly the whole circuit inverted and perform a half roll to land at about 2 feet off the ground. I feel it may be lacking some realism 😉

    Dave, there are some very odd bearded people who fly FULL SIZE radio control planes. What is the point of that? It’s like low alcohol lager. Anyway I can’t buy anything bigger until the outside workshop is built. Currently that has been prioritised BEHIND the heating. What kind of madness is that!

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