Flying in the Rain
Minsiu gets his yellow Slow Stick ready for a wet flight.
This morning, I pulled up to Baylands just as the rain got serious.
The gathering clouds blotted out the sun and started spitting as I exited Highway 101 at Lawrence Expressway.
Driving the half mile to the park, I advanced the windshield wiper setting from intermittent to a slow steady pace.
When I arrived, Dave North was sitting in his black Honda Civic del Sol, waiting for the showers to clear.
He joined me in the front seat of my Prius and we watched as water splatted amoeba patterns on the windshield.
Amazingly, someone was flying a Stryker on the Great Meadow, ignoring the rain.
His taped-up E-Flite Apprentice sheds water like a duck.
As we looked, he ended his flight and returned to the picnic tables, where he had stashed his other planes, an E-Flite Apprentice and a yellow Slow Stick.
He began setting up his Slow Stick. My phone rang. (When I say “rang” I mean ringtoned: the guitar intro to Z.Z. Top’s “Fool for your Stockings.”) It was Mike Nadler, wondering if I was going to fly.
By now the rain had stopped. “Sure,” I said. “Dave and I are sitting in my car, and it’s not raining.” Mike said he’d join us in about 15 minutes.
I got out of the car, walked over and introduced myself.
The flyer was Minsiu, a recent Baylands arrival. His planes were very wet. “Don’t you worry about water getting into your electronics?” I asked. He showed me how he’d weatherproofed his speed controls, receivers and servos.
A scrap of pink foam shelters the electronics on Minsu’s Stryker.
“What about your transmitter?” I was looking at his Spektrum DX6i. It was very very wet. Almost like he’d gone swimming with it. He smiled, saying it worked OK.
The truth is, I was more in awe of Minsiu’s weather resistance than the durability of his gear.
I’ll fly in wind. I’ll fly in light fog. I’ll fly in cold weather, though I’ll complain in a tiresome manner. But rain? It gets in my eyes. It runs down my neck. Ick.
After I snapped some pictures of my new all-weather hero, I pulled on my boots, grabbed my IFO and enjoyed a 10-minute rain free flight.
But it was a volatile day. As I walked up to the picnic tables, sprinkles started building back into showers.
Minsiu had left. He wouldn’t see my cowardice.
When Mike suggested that we adjourn to a warm place for coffee, that’s what we did.
Tags: Airplanes, Baylands, Flying, Slow Stick, Weather.
mmmmm! warm place for coffee… with a place to fly close – what could be better?
g
I have flown my profile Sukhoi with floats off of salt water. Before doing so, I treated the receiver, ESC, servos, LiPo’s, deans connectors, etc. with a penetrant called Corrosion-X (red aerosol spray can). Though I’ve never dunked the airplane, occasionally while taxing about, the propeller will contact the water surface and drench the entire airframe. I just towel dry at the end of the flying session.
It does warn to avoid LCDs and membrane switches – - I would not treat my transmitter with this stuff.
Corrosion-X is carried by True Value hardware stores, though you may have to ask them to special order it. I do not know how this product compares to Brian Chan’s anti lust spray….
Hi Pete,
Great story! Not only can I image you sitting back and watching rain perform a chemistry on your the windshield, I can almost see Nadler putting his rubber boots on the way out of his house after that phone call. Is there a waiting list to get on the PeteJ Baylands Weather Hotline? j/k of course.
Mike
When Mike and Pete headed off for coffee, I stayed pat with a blithe “I think this will stop in about five minutes.” And it did, of course.
For about a minute.
Then it started again. Enough of that.
That’s a helluva testimony for the Spektrum radio there – it is really soaked and still works!