Hobbies And Interests
Dihedral or Polyhedral
These terms refer to the angles in which wing sections are joined. Most trainers and sport planes have a dihedral (single angle). Many gliders have multiple sections that join at different angles, known as polyhedral wings.
Center of Gravity
Center of gravity refers to the balance point of the plane. All kits and Almost Ready to Fly (ARF) planes will have this point marked in the instructions. Always balance your plane to the point specified or your plane will not fly well.
Leading and Trailing Edges
These refer to the front and back edges of wings and tail feathers. The leading edge is what penetrates the wind, and the trailing edge is what usually has the movable control surface.
Tip Stall
When a plane turns at low speed, the inside wing tip might slow to a point that is below the stall speed. When this happens, the plane will fall into a dive. Increasing airspeed is the only way to recover from this dive.
Frequency
All RC systems use radio waves to transmit and receive commands. If two transmitters are using the same frequency, they will interfere with each other when powered on. Some systems use the 2.4 Ghz frequency range and are able to select a clear band automatically when powered up.