Waterloo, Iowa checking in...

[jcmo]

I'll say I'm a newbie so nobody else has to say it later LOL Maybe not-so-newbie.

As a teenager, I started out with my first R/C flight experience rebuilding an old nitro fuel airplane my dad had in our basement while I was growing up. I never saw him do anything with it, so I asked him if I could. He said it never flew very well, but if I could get it up in the air I could help myself. I tore it down and rebuilt it on a lighter frame, and then flew it until I snapped the wing in half - which was a blast! I gained valuable experience, and tasted a little success on my first attempt at building a plane almost from scratch.

Now that I've grown up, I like helicopters better. Airplanes just seem too simple, and harder to have any fun with indoors. I've been flying small helis for a couple years now. I'm a big fan of some of the models in the Eflite/Blade line, with my largest being the Blade CP Pro 2. I've had some fun with it, currently rebuilding it for the experience... Also, I crashed it a few times. A lot. It really was a trooper, it deserves the down time, and maybe a medal for what it was put through. Basically I'm just rebuilding it because I already have all the parts, and also to find out if I want to get into the larger scale helis. It's a handful as I'm sure many of you know.

My son (8 yrs old) also enjoys learning on the mCX2, and he'll slowly step up to the others strewn about the house, the mSR, 120SR, and mCPx. He enjoys crashing for fun in the simulator. I'll wait till he works through that phase before I turn him loose on anything with real head-speed hahaha.

I've been watching these threads for a long time, taking valuable information from your discussions, usually years after you've finished thinking about them... Thank you all who contribute here. You've created a supportive community with some extremely knowledgeable people that have made it possible for newbies like me to explore and have fun. I'm sorry I lurked for so long, and I hope I can contribute something to this place too.

[Grimmy]

Welcome to HF! Another person from Iowa! I am in the W'loo area, I work there anyways, live south about 20 miles. Good to see some other freakers in the area!! Did you make it to the Dome in February for their fly in? I was there, but didn't fly. Good way to kill an afternoon and was fun to watch as well.

[jcmo]

No, I didn't make it to the Dome, I guess I didn't hear about it until after it was over. It would be really fun to see if not fly. Can't imagine trying to compete with all that moving air with the small scale models I fly hahaha... I'd just be chicken dancing on the turf or drifting in the air currents I'm sure...

My transmitter had not seen batteries for almost a year when I got my helis out this month and started an inventory of the parts I needed to get them back in the air again. Looks like I've got some serious bench time ahead of me. Of course the mCX2 is still good, hard to break that one in my experience. I need to trawl the mSR thread for some tail hold problems I am having with that one. My mCPx flies but needs a new frame, it hangs so heavy with CA and toothpicks reinforcing the frame I can't invert it anymore... It was good like that for basic CP training, but now I want more. The 120SR is just big enough to hurt itself on a crash, and it needs some TLC and a new cowl.

I have a friend who lives near me who has just joined here also. He is learning loads about his Nano CP. We get together and fly once in a while, and I know of a few other propellerheads in town... Maybe we should try and get a flyday going between us sometime :

[Grimmy]

Hell yea, I'd be down with that. I work day shift, so afternoons would work for me, and weekends, if I know in advance, so I don't volunteer for weekend OT. Do you have/know a place to fly? I am 20 miles south of town, out in the country, and I just stand on the gravel road and fly over a field, for the time being.

It'd be good to fly with others that are new to the hobby. Most of what I have learned, has been picked up right here on HF. Been getting bored of the sim lately, but till this weather straightens out, can't do a whole lot about it.

[twysted]

You don't by chance work at deeres do you hehe. I've been getting drenched in OT! But I would be down to fly as well.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[Grimmy]

Yes I do. I am fortunate enough I can select my own overtime, between 16 of us. I can usually get the days I want and have enough time to not get forced in on days I don't want.

[twysted]

That's too cool.. I'm at the downtown site in machining.. unfortunately 3rd shift and mandatory Saturdays. that's what pays for this new flying habit lol. Jcmo been passing his knowledge onto me. Keep wanting to upgrade.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[Grimmy]

Well if you get into some of the bigger helis, you will need that Saturday. I jumped into the 450 class before I got a simulator and well I'll tell you I had a boat load of spare parts for my Blade 450 3D. It's a steep learning curve, that's for sure, but the payout is great too.

[jcmo]

Yeah, Saturday's a great bench day or fly-day - so excited I get to go pick up all my repair parts this weekend!

I have a couple spots I like to fly, there's of course, always a small field near home that comes to mind, but safety often dictates against that with the possibility of random people or pets wandering out onto the field when you've got your eyes on the sky. There's a place off Airline Highway north, near the Cedar Falls community garden - you can drive back probably a hundred yards off the road and there's a pretty big field bounded on two sides by good dense trees to block wind... The Mitchell Sand Pits recreation area has a couple open grassy areas, also bounded by trees.... Good for hover and basic maneuvering practice, but not a lot of room to get a full gallop going on a 450 there. There's also a pretty big park/field near the Byron Ave Hy-Vee in Waterloo. My church has an indoor, high-ceiling, basketball court-sized area that can be used for mini/micro scale flying, as well as a small field/parking lot area outside - but that's in the midst of a neighborhood, so gotta be careful not to put your heli on someone's roof or interfere with traffic heheh... I've also scouted a location I haven't tried yet, but in looking it over, there is never anyone there, it's park-land, and relatively protected from wind on all sides almost. The field is connected to the "back yard" of Central Intermediate school's Football field - you get access to the park by driving on greenhill to the access road. There's a small set of playground equipment near the parking lot, then a sort of bottleneck opening up into a completely open field bigger than a football field, bounded by backyard fences all around.

I hope I gave enough info that you know the areas I'm talking about - we should definitely get together sometime!

[jcmo]

After I typed that last response, I found a video I uploaded to YouTube of a short flight at the Byron Hy-Vee field - you can get a general idea how big the area is by watching the background in the video.

Uncle Brad flying Blade 400 (1 min 37 sec)

The reason for the quick landing is that the Gyro was just starting to display first symptoms of failure. He says that's been replaced now

[Grimmy]

Unfortunately I don't know W'loo that well. I just work here, and know where some stores are at, off San Marnan and a few other places. I've been to the sand pits once with my atv after work, and well too busy for me (on an atv). A friend of mine flys near Washburn, but that's a private airport, he's got a plane there. I just googled Byrons Hy Vee, that's not far away at all, but can't quite tell where your vid was taken at. That'd be plenty big enough for a micro heli to throw around and such. Is that field behind Hy Vee?

I know way up in New Hampton, at their air port they have a field next to the air port for RC vehicles. It's a ways up there, 45 minutes, but I have family just west of there.

We definitely should meet up some time, fly, crash, laugh, learn, rinse, repeat, ect.

[jcmo]

The following are Lat/Long coordinates
The Byron Field= 42.480548, -92.351396 - plug into Google Maps

In that video, we parked our cars at the end of the stubby "tail" of byron that dead-ends at the edge of the grassy area (visible in sat view)

Airline Highway= 42.543042, -92.419438

Miriam's Park (Greenhill/Central School)= 42.49687, -92.40165

Now I don't think there are any local regulations against flying wherever a person doesn't present a public hazard, and I've never been approached and told not to when flying at these locations. That's the limit of my knowledge, but I've got a call in to the local police to see how they answer that

I also must apologize, I guess that Byron location is no longer a Hy-Vee, which made it a little harder to locate the field when I went to look for it on the map too!

[Grimmy]

Ahhh, close. Thank goodness for Google maps! Let me know what you hear from the local police and such. I am actually down by Traer, and well we have a grass airport, but I don't know if they'd mind, as it doesn't get used much, unless it's crop dusting season. I can do some asking around as well.

[jcmo]

Grimmy, and other Iowa locals: I have still not received any reply from local police concerning regulations about RC flight. I would assume if they were worried about it or had a strong opinion, they would have made quick contact with some definite information. I guess I'm'a just keep doing what I'm doing until someone tells me otherwise. I'm certainly not looking at paying lots of local and national club dues to drive over an hour to the local R/C flight club's field...

Twysted and I are gonna do some yard flying tonight in Evansdale, maybe do some maintenance on my micros, cleaning servos, etc. If I ever do hear from law enforcement, I'll check back in here or with you personally, Grimmy

[Grimmy]

Thanks for the heads up. If you hear anything, shoot me a PM and let em know.

It's to be nice this weekend, but some talk of rain I did get my 500 out last week though for a couple test hovers, and well there was some wind that was throwing it around pretty good. It's got my thinking about changing to flybarless, as I had my mcpx bl out, and I was surprised how well it handled the wind. That and I'm thinking of a gen for field charging.

Spring fever is definitely kicking in, as I am getting anxious to get outdoors.

[branflake]

Only run in with fuzz i had down in iowa city was a curious ICPD who watched for a while and then drove off when i was done. Given where i was, i think a nosey homebody saw someone having fun and called them in. He/they clearly did not care and were entertained if anything. Claiming ignorance goes a long way in the real world

Fly on!

[jcmo]

Thanks for the welcome, Bran - I've been reading up on so many threads I haven't come back here to share the love!