Tooter (oz10459)

About this Plan

Tooter. Radio control triner. Wing area 600 sq in, for .09 - .10 power.

Quote: "The Ideal Club Trainer. Tooter, by Jim Bigley.

Learning to fly R/C can be a painful and expensive proposition! The 'try and crash' method often leads to frustration and self-doubt about one's sanity for ever getting into the hobby in the first place. The Tooter is a trainer that will almost guarantee success. It has unique features that have been missing from nearly all so-called 'trainers.' It is a slow-flying, easy to control, and relatively inexpensive model.

How many times have you seen a new R/C pilot make a final approach, get a little crossed up, then do a wing-over into the ground? I've witnessed this phenomenon many times, and have agonized for the beginners each time. Of all the smash-ups I've either had a hand in or witnessed, the main cause was pilot disorientation during approach and landing. In other words: I lost it.

As an R/Cer who has gone through these anxious moments and is now teaching others to fly R/C, I felt there must be an easier way. The way I've found to make the learning transition easier for beginners is to learn with the proper airplane, which brings us to the design presented here.

Nearly all of the advertised 'ideal trainers' are .40 to .60 powered. In my opinion they fly too fast for landing approaches, especially for someone who has not yet developed the required hand-to-eye coordination. One day at the flying field the answer to the dilemma dawned on me when some of our new members began flying sailplanes. With their .40-powered trainers these beginners were lucky to hit the runway; with a sailplane these same beginners could land predictably and safely.

Softness of controls and slow landing speed are the answers to the problem. Mistakes most often made by new R/Cers on landings are over control and/or pushing the sticks the wrong way. So slow down the plane, give the new pilot time to think, and learning to land comes much more easily.

This trainer is a composite of all of the ideas acumulated over the years that accomplish the above goals for a better trainer. I've tried to incorporate the best of both the glider and the powered worlds... "

Tooter, MAN, September 1985.

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Supplementary file notes

Article pages, thanks to RFJ.

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