Looking for an employee

[bob forest]

R/C Helicopter Product Manager


Company: Model Rectifier Corporation



Status: Full Time, Employee



Work Experience: R/C Heli flyer



Founded in 1947 Model Rectifier Corporation is an international manufacturer, distributor and marketer of train transformers, battery chargers, plastic model kits, slot cars, r/c helicopters, and flight simulators. We distribute some of the biggest names in the hobby industry such as Academy, Italeri, Ninco, and Hirobo. We pride ourselves on building lifetime relationships with our customers.



Job Summary: The person selected will perform field testing of r/c helis, advise hobby dealers in their purchases, assist in developing new product and consult with overseas manufacturers. Must be able to assist customers with helicopter questions. Candidate must be reliable, enjoy working with people, and possess a good work ethic and common sense.



Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, Paid Holidays, 401K, Merchandise Discounts



Contact: hr-dept@modelrectifier.com

[beto9]

You see? Nobody applies... the dark side is so thin in talent.... Just kidding!

But it is also an indication that the heli field is exploding... I am sure it has brought and it will bring an amazing amount of people to the hobby... just to see the number of different offerings in electric helis and the completness of some combos... 2.4 GHz radios!

[Elgreco]

You nailed it !!
The explosion of heli enthusiasts is because the recent advancement in technology allowed the creation of smaller affordable (kinda) electric helis.

Nowadays almost everyone thinks it's easy enough and goes out there and buys a small electric to play with.
The problem with that is they don't realize that it is the most difficult rc Hobby out there and it takes LOTS of practice and time to learn. And I am talking about the good helis and not the little toy ones like the air hogs or similar.

I just wished people would ask questions first before they commit to buying a heli rather than just going out getting one and then spending the next 2 months on the forums trying to figure out what to do.

Do not get me wrong, I have spent hours on the forums too, asking questions but for serious issues and not "how to fly" kind of questions.

And last but not least, the space requirements make a heli more attractive than an airplane since you can just do it in your back yard kinda.

Well, the power of the "Dark side" is growing and maybe in the future we'll see some Air combats between the two...HAHAHA. (I wish they produced cheaper helis for that, we are out of luck on that one)

[Safety First]

"The problem with that is they don't realize that it is the most difficult rc Hobby out there and it takes LOTS of practice and time to learn. And I am talking about the good helis and not the little toy ones like the air hogs or similar".

Lets remain humble here... It's not harder to fly an heli than airplane it is just different.


15 hours of supervised simulator a good setup and you will be hovering safely of course under an insructor supervision within an hour flying time.

No mystery in heli flying 3 rules setup, setup, mechanical maintenance...

[Elgreco]

Well, i really do not want to start anything here but IMO it is harder to fly a chopper. Flying is completely different I agree, but as long as you get the airplane airborne, is not too hard to make a turn. The issue with the Heli, IS to keep it airborne.

But please, I am only referring to regular, easy flying.

The Heli is a lot more difficult to handle. For starters, it's like having to balance a steel ball on a piece of marble. And if you take into effect the rudder input that is needed, (No matter the gyros, it just doesn't stay where you want it all the time.) it is a lot more complicated.

Dont want to take anything away from the airplane fun, don't get this wrong, but seriously, if you had to choose, which would you say is generally more difficult to fly, an airplane or a Heli ?
And let's assume beginner to intermediate level, not expert, because at that level it doesn't really matter.

At least in my case, I picked up airplane flying a lot faster than Heli. Landing was another issue, but I am talking about flying.

[beto9]

As I thought, the "dark side" is growing and getting bold... One of these days they are going to crowd the AGM, take a vote and expel plane flying from WIMAC....

Jokes besides, I think heli flying (not just hover) is much more difficult than plane flying...

Elgreco... when somebody wants to sell something they make it look easy... we have insisted to people who show up at the field that if they want to get into the hobby visit a flying field and talk to the people there before going to the hobby shop... otherwise they come back with an armload of stuff and pretty soon they get disappointed with the hobby...

All in all, in this hobby, the more the merrier...

[Elgreco]

Sorry, forgot to add something about the simulator issue.

Of course after hours of simulator someone should be able to learn anything. But while learning, one of the two has to be more difficult right ? Maybe not for some but for most.

That is just the point I was trying to make, and not specifically about the helis VS airplanes by no means, I was just adding to the previous post about the explosion of the helis out there and that people don't seem to take them as seriously as needed.

I don't consider myself better for choosing helis, I just like them better, that's all.

[Elgreco]

Just read your response and I totally agree with you about the marketing issue and the newcomers.

And don't worry, looking at these big birds take off and land is something mesmerizing. Nothing to worry about there...

Wouldn't mind getting an airplane down the road now that there is access to a field. Have to get more info from you guys once summer comes.

[Andrew Fernie]

From my experience over the past month, the helis are harder than airplanes, but if you already have the basic idea of flight from airplane experience, and you take it easy you can move over without too much grief - at least for a basic tail-in hover. My first two flights were basically getting it a couple of inches off the ground for a second or two then bailing out and putting it back down. By the third or fourth flight I was able to keep it flying for reasonably long periods of time, and now I can keep it flying for pretty much as long as I like as long as I am trying to keep it stable. The great thing is that I was able to do this in my garage (two car size, but one half filled with junk). My only accident so far was hitting a garbage bag. This resulted in tearing the covering on the blades and bending the main shaft. Both easily fixed, and at $6 for a package of two main shafts not a big deal. Blades were $12 for a set, but even the old ones are not too bad after recovering the tips and balancing.

I will not start working on different orientations until I can get outside - from what little I have tried so far I know that the garage is way too small.

One definite difference is the level of concentration required. I feel that I need to have my eyes on the heli all the time - no looking down to check the timer on the radio.

Andrew

[Andrew Fernie]

Good point about the simulator. I have been practicing on one and found that it is a definite help. When I practice on the sim I notice that flying the real heli gets better, and when I have spent a while on the real heli and then come back to the sim I notice that my control of the sim is better.

[stephane.savard]

Well, here's my own 2 cents. With no practice at all, I can fly a heli on my simulator. Oh yes, so long as I can keep it airborne and in fast forward flight, I have absolutely no problems actually turning it where I want.

Can I keep it in level flight? nope.
Can I keep it in a hover? if it just took off, yes, but not very long.
But can I make it turn where I want when flying forward high up? yes!

Kinda same for the airplane really. Once you get that forward flight going and enough airspeed, a plane is really easy to control. But then comes that nasty landing part, when the plane is close to stall, controls are less responsive, and its low to the ground, and needing to travel in a very specific direction.

I think both are like Andre said, very different, and both are equally difficult for beginners in the hobby :)


oh yes, nice can a worms :D

[PaulG-rc]

Here is my 2 cents :D
I also think its much harder to fly helis then airplane but if an anirplane flyer was very confortable using the rudder while flying but I mean really use the rudder then heli Foward flight will come easier.
I also have a sim and I get bored in 5 min but I still do that 5 min a week on the sim :D
I do agree with the marketing issue and I do wish that they would have more infos on safety issue like what to really watch for in heli flying since many newbies do buy them without giong to a club and meeting with heli flyers.
I had an incident myself testing a friends heli and this was an electronic problem but tought me a good lesson on how close is too close for safety.
We have a tendency to stand very close to the heli and beleive me when they decide to go they go:eek:

My rule I would say setup,disipline and prevention maintenance
at the end you see that its all common sense :D

I love heli flying now ,but still cant talk to someone while flying one like I would flying an airplane, I need 300% concentration :D

Here is my T-Rex 222 itching to fly foward :D

[Safety First]

Foward flight is the easiest part in flying helicopter it's like airplane.Once your up there nose down it fly itself.Transition from foward to hovering and landing is the tricky part.Why? One answer throttle management. Yes Paul your left hand is very important first for throttle than for tail rotor. A beginner alway have more trouble managing the throttle than the tail because the gyro is doing most of the job. Once he understand that thrust is needed to fly a rock it become much easier. (And that should have been explained by the instructor).Anticipation is another factor. Again the instructor should teach is new pilot the rocking chair principle. Input, counter input right after and so on... This way he will maintain level and avoid mishap. The most common problem in heli flying is a lack of anticipation and yes Andrew this is when concentration become important in my opinon concentation is trigered by anticipation. When you become aware that when you think of doing something it's already to late the problem is not concentration.

Everything is in HOVERING! Altitude ,Attitude, level,ground effect,coning effect,roll ,yaw,picth...

Get a simulator! Get an instructor! You wont have to learn all these thing by yourself and you will realize that finally it's as easy to fly an helicopter than an airplane.


PS:It could be more difficult for an airplane pilot to learn how to fly an heli than for a person that never touched transmitter.

Just an opinion.:D

Heli pilots are not better just different...:D

See you at the club.

This is fun!!!

[PaulG-rc]

I remember the first time I decided to push the cyclic foward and the heli took off like a bat out of hell ,thats when I knew that throttle management on a heli is more critical then on an airplane.
Once I learned to control throttle and cyclic in foward flight I was able to fly at a very pleasant speed and in a smaller area.
I was shaking so much on that first flight that I thought I was gone a fall down :D
I was very confortable flying my heli at the end of the season too bad I started so late in the season now I cant wait to get at it again. :D

[Safety First]

So do I!...

[Elgreco]

Know exactly how you feel....