2020 RC Airplane Hobby Year in Review

Everyone is doing a year in review, so I thought I would share my second year in the RC hobby.

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 It was a year of solo flying as my son lost interest in the hobby, and I continued by myself.  I had gotten into the hobby through my son, so I had to transition to RC flying, not being a father-son event.

 With my son leaving the hobby, I expanded and grew in the hobby by:

  •  I am programming my RC airplanes into my transmitter.  Aircraft setup is a critical skill that I needed to learn.

  •  I progressed and took up one of my son’s EDF’s for the first time.  Nerve-racking and tough.   The Hawk was my first EDP, and I enjoyed it.

  •  Creating a dedicated RC workbench.  I needed a dedicated space to maintain and work on my RC airplane collection. Here is a YouTube video of my dedicated workspace

  •  Repairing my planes.  My son enjoyed repairing our planes so, this year, I developed this skill.  I developed my repair skills from foam repair to landing gear, servos, and motor replacement.

  •  Painting and airbrushing my own planes.  Along with repairing, I also grew my painting and airbrushing skills.  For both aesthetics and safety (increasing my view of the plane’s orientation), I got good and enjoyed painting my airplanes. 

  •  Built a storage rack system for my planes.  Planes are expensive and can easily get damaged if they aren’t organized and put away.  My garage storage system keeps the planes safe.

  •  Started a YouTube channel and revamped my blog.  All about sharing as I grow and learn in the RC hobby.

 It was a different year at the field as well:

  •  COVID, coupled with my son leaving the hobby, really had me flying by myself a fair bit as our club couldn’t hold any Fly-in’s or club events.  I did have a small group of friends from the club that I would fly with and learn from, which was awesome.

  •  To be creative, we started racing cars at the field.  Too much wind is a great time for racing cars.  Care racing helped build camaraderie. 

  • The club has given back so much to me that I am giving back by being the treasurer for the club.  I can use my finance and accounting skills to give back and help grow the club. 

  How was your year?

Let me know in the comments below.

 I will be reflecting on how I want to grow in the RC airplane hobby in 2021.  I will share my thoughts as I set goals for 2021 and also bring you along on my journey in the hobby.

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