rc airplanes Archives - Model Airplane News

Rocky flies again!

Bet you can’t watch this video without laughing out loud! Hilarity ensues when an unsuspecting squirrel gets into the cockpit of an RC plane! Thanks to YouTube’s Hobbywars for producing and posting this nicely done piece, complete with terrific “in-air” footage of Rocky in flight.

Planes Worth Modeling — Pietenpol Air Camper

Quoted from the Pietenpol Hangar display, EAA Museum/Pioneer Airport. Oshkosh, WI: “Bernard H. Pietenpol pursued his dreams of flight from the ’20s through his passing in 1984. His dreams were of planes powered by auto engines that nearly everyone could afford to build and operate. He first flew Gnome, then Ford Model-T powered planes without […]

Pro Tips for First Flight Success

Learning to fly is always easier and more fun with the aid of an experienced instructor. He will help you avoid those first few beginner mistakes and will help your airplane live a lot longer. The Sportsman S+ RTF with SAFE Technology from Hobby Zone is one of the new generation trainer/sport fliers that […]

Super-Scale Beechcraft Staggerwing

There are few 1/4-scale models of the Beechcraft Staggerwing, and the most popular RC design is the one from Nick Ziroli. It’s outline is very close to scale and it produces a great looking scale airplane. When it comes to making them look real, you need to use some scale parts and techniques. Here are […]

Easy Scratch-built Skis (fly off the snow!)

Now that many flying fields parts of the country are covered in snow, it’s the perfect time to add skis to your favorite flier! This classic how-to from our good friend Roy Vaillancourt provides a great project that will not only use up some of those leftover pieces of wood in your workshop and but also let […]

Resin Casting Scale Parts

Once you get to a certain level of scale modeling, you’ll start making parts that need to be produced in multiples and, most likely, are not commercially available. This is easily dealt with by making a master part and then reproducing it with a mold and resin casting liquid. Resin casting is considered an advanced technique, […]

RC Airplanes -Scale Wingtip Skids — The Triplane gets some Axe Handles

Over the course of several months, I have detailed the building process of my Balsa USA 1/3-scale Fokker Triplane. A great detail point for the Cole Palen Triplane is that the lower wingtip skids are made from ordinary axe handles. Even thought I have flown the Balsa USA triplane most of its first flying season, I […]

Fly better with dual rates, expo & mixing

Utilizing your radio’s built-in programming will let you fly better with more control of your model. This article is intended for new and intermediate fliers and higghlights three important features you need to understand, dual rates, exponential, and mixing. LET’S GET STARTED First of all, when holding your radio during your flight, it’s a good […]

Warbird Wing Sheeting

When it comes to sheeting the wings, you want to do it right with any airplane, but for giant scale warbirds, you really need to do it correctly. I like to start once the retracts are setup and the plywood support ribs and the mount rails have been epoxied into place. We used the landing […]

Update! Bret Becker’s XB-70 Valkyrie

Our good friend and RC Scale competitor Bret Becker has won a slew of awards with his amazing electric powered XB-70 Valkyrie. Now a regular at Top Gun, Bret has constantly taken what the static judges have told him and he uses it to improve his strategic bomber’s static score. Back in 2018 he earned […]

Video How To: Fabric Covering RC Planes

We’ve received several emails asking about covering scale models. While I was building my the 1/4-scale Sopwith Camel project, I wrote this post that goes into detail about what’s required. Your response was impressive and many of you asked about Scale Stits fabric and Poly Tak adhesive, from F&M Enterprises. So, I brought the video […]

Pick your power: electric, gas or glow!

There’s an old saying that suggests, “If in doubt, add power!” And we have to admit, there are some Model Airplane News editors who do believe there’s just no substitute for horsepower. But when it comes to selecting which kind of power system to use, many RC modelers can use a little help. Model Airplane […]