Making Benjamin Fly: Getting in to RC airplanes and helicopters, cheap

Making Benjamin Fly
Get your geek on in the sky
For about $100

What’s better
Less work to get in the air
Less work to get back in the air
CHEAP

Buy This: Air Hogs Havoc

Key innovation: LiPo
Pros
Cons
Light
Inexpensive
High power density
Occasionally explodes

Digression: Why helisare hard

Key Innovation: Decent simulators

Buy This: Honeybee King II

Innovation: Solid state gyro

2.4GHz controllers

Slow Stick

Buy This: Slow stick fiddly bits
Servo: 3 @ $2.99
Battery: 2 @ $7.13
ESC: 1 @ $9.99
Charger: 1 @ $4.49
Motor: 1 @ $6.95
Prop: 3 @ $2.24
Plane: 1 @ $18.90
Controller: 1 @ $29.99
Grand Total: $96.08

Digression: Chinese love of RC

Some Other planes for <$100
Great Planes XPD-8$29.99
ParkzoneEtomic Vapor$99.99
ScratchbuiltHydrofoam$15.00

Some Other planes for >$100
Raketenwurm$799.95 (fuselage only)
DIY FPV~$900
DIY UAV~$700

GDS: Symptoms and Prevention

Summary: Why You Should Do This
Cheap
Excuse to solder
Involves a great deal of electronics
Infinite opportunities for creativity
Explosions are relatively unlikely

Thank You
Follow me on Twitter: @danshapiro
Hold Sunday, September 13 on your calendar
Prepare one (1) Benjamin for duty