Hobbies on the road

yeah..the Blade MX is god..been looking at one myself..

sounds like you have a coax heli...they are ok..just enough to wet your appetite...

some of the big electrics have a 3 foot rotor..definately not an indoor bird but ok for parking lots.

if you have a GOOD laptop in the truck with you like a dell xps or gigh end hp etc get a sim from your fav rc hobbystore with controller...that way if you crash its just a matter of hitting reset..once you can fly in the sim then mirror t on the actual heli..also works for rc..

Theres also an rc simulator for android phones you can download from the market..also free and has heli mode

Petey

 

it's a coax. Getting past the "wet your toe" stage too.

Just waiting to see how this new job pans out and have an 18 month priority to a plan to put first.

 

That's the best hobby I heard yet strip clubs.

 

naaa....

My "hobby" for the next 18 months is saving money for a truck/trailer and going independent.

 

Mn..I understand wanting to be independent..but have yu asked an independent abot the financial side of things?

Own authority: 11 thousand to 14 thousand dollars
your own insurance and you may have to carry a bond between 2 and 4 million dollars
Permits: this can vary greatly depending on what you haul
Insurance: easily 800 a month if not more..depends on how much load insurance you carry..most good contracts are out of reach unless this is also 2-4 million dollars worth
Tractor payment: can run anywhere from 700 to 2k a month depending on tractor
Trailer:600 to 1000 a month or more and this is all at 2005 prices that I can remember off the top of my head..

Then you have fuel..at current prices you are looking at 2600 a week or more
then you have maintnence: an oil change for a tractor is 150 bucks to 200....
then you have trailer B service..
A brake job on a tractor can easily cost 10k...brakes are not covered by warranty...Its a huge cash outlay to go independent..and it doesn't stop there

Broker fees, and so on..it adds up...

Now the flip side...buy the tractor..by all means..then lease on to a good company..Landstar, Panther, John Christner....

Here's the difference...You pay them for fleet coverage in insurance..they have tire accounts so tires won't hurt quite so bad..(a single steer can run 500 bucks) They take care of most of the permits and plates for your tractor so that isn't killing you every year..they'll set you up a maintnence escrow that is in your name..not theirs at whatever you want to put in it per mile and if you leave to go elsewhere its yours..they don't keep it..they help with tax prep every year AND its still your business..your truck..no brokerage fees and they have good contracts.

Now..if you are building towards a multi-truck setup under your authority thats a bit different..then it might be a good idea to go completely independent but only if you got a good inside scoop on some lucrative contracts to where you are only using a freight broker for back hauls...average per mile might be three bucks pulling reefer..less if dry..more if flatbed or oversize..a mile..sometimes better but that would be close to average.at 100,000 to 125,000 miles a year..minus all expenses and fighting for loads with the big outfits who can underbid you all the time...Its a ton of headache and very easy to get upside down on the financial side of things. No matter what you do once you are an owner op is you need to incorporate in your state..check out the expenses on that too.

Petey

 

Petey,

Check out my blogs...

Some of your numbers are WAAAAAaaay off.

 

LMAO ok..back to park fliers and heli's

Park flyers wingspans are also smaller..usualy just a bit under three foot so fitting them in the truck isn't hard and you don't have to carry fuel, and a flight box all over the place..the batteries are small and won't take up much room at all and they take about a half hour per battery pack to charge..they are LiPoly...radios will also run off of LiPoly or standard AA batteries..

Larger helis you can fold the blades and they will fit in less space than a park flyer with its wings attached...

Oh yeah..you can detach the wings LOL..one or two screws depending on model and it pops off..takes about three minutes to get it ready to fly..hook up two leads..put in screws..turn radio on and attach battery..ready to fly.

Cost of new prop if you break it..3-7 bucks..new wing..about 50..new fuse..bout 75..replacement servos..about 15..extra batteries are about 30 a pop..

The helis work the same way.but replacement parts can be a LOT more expensive..there is a lot of carbon fiber..cnc machined aluminum etc..blades are high too and you will have to replace them..quite often at first LOL...cost goes up exponentially with number of channels then there is the brains of an rc heli...the gyro..we won't even go there...

check out rcgroups.com. There are forums on every type of rc out there just about..including rc subs

Petey

 

Heck for 10,000.00 doing brake jobs on the weekends will be my hobby !!!!

 

No kidding. We are in the wrong racket.

I am hoping to really get into the photography this time around.