Buying/importing RC planes online (non-EU)?

pigor

Hi,

I'm thinking of buying an RC glider online and shipped from China. Anyone here with any experience getting RC planes and accessories through the customs? Taxes, duties, fees? I'm looking at some stuff on Hobbyking's site, total kit (plane, Tx/Rx, battery, charger) under 170 US$ (ex shipping) as a starter powered glider.

Thanks!

Igor

Irish Steve

Igor,

Depending on the value of the shipment, you may end up paying VAT and duty on import from China, but the end price may well still be a lot less than you will get the equivalent from a local hobby shop. The only thing to watch out for is that if you have a mishap, and break something, it will take a while for the spares to arrive.

I got some radio and other related hardware recently from Hobbyking, took about 14 days to arrive, in good condition, and there was VAT and Duty, (and a significant extra An Post charge for "processing") added on import.

If the item is in stock in the DE (german) warehouse of Hobbyking, that changes the picture, as it's already in the EU, there's no import duty, but not all items are held in Germany.

pigor

Thanks Steve. I'd normally buy smaller stuff of eBay regularly and it would pass fine with no charges, usually small value under 20-30 euros, also small in size. I was wondering what to expect for larger parcels like an rc plane. Will let know how it went then. Thanks again.

Kashkai

Hi

I've bought hundreds of euros worth of planes, parts and accessories from Hobbyking and never been caught once for import duty. Of course I've probably tempted fate now:rolleyes::D.

I think if you order in the run up to xmas (when a lot of online shopping is done and revenue assign more people to sorting offices to catch high priced goods), then you are more likely to be caught for taxes. What are you planning on buying btw? I recently bought a Kinetic powered glider to add to my fleet of 10 planes and it is a blast to fly. Very fast with the motor running or it can glide serenely around the sky with the motor off. I get around 15 minutes flight time out of a tiny 800mah battery. Its very aerobatic as well and always puts a smile on my face. Its around €38 plug and fly or €24 as an almost ready to fly if you have the servos etc lying around. Its soon become my favourite plane to fly as I reach for it first and leave higher priced and higher specced planes behind in my hangar.

pigor

Thanks! I'll chance it then as usual and hope for the best and that most of the staff in the revenue office went skiing :-)

I'm a complete beginner with planes so was looking at AXN Clouds/Floater. Somewhat bigger than Kinetic you're talking about but for the same flying type - gliding as much as possible and probably will be dragged into doing more aerobatics stuff as I get a grip on controlling the plane.

Was also looking at MiniMoa off the Nitroplanes site, a bit more serious kit though but on a good offer just needed TX/RX and battery. Since this is my first plane I need to get a nice TX/Rx. There's a nice Turnigy 9x on Hobbyking I'm planning to get. The prices in Europe for any TX are amazing and while I understand the high end stuff costs money there's no really options for someone just getting into it less seriously. :-) So, import then :-)

Btw, I was checking the MACI site and it seems to even think about flying anything bigger than a foot I need to register and get insurance with them and get into a club. Is that right? Joining a club is not a problem at all since it'd be good to see what other people fly.

Thanks!

Kashkai

Igor,

If this is your first rc plane, there might be another route for you. I'd recommend the Parkzone Radian Glider which comes "ready to fly" for £170 http://www.rcpitstop.co.uk/parkzone-radian-rtf-pkz4700-2587-p.asp, or much cheaper as a "plug and play" for £85 http://www.rcpitstop.co.uk/parkzone-radian-pnp-pkz4775-2591-p.asp. The latter one needs a transmitter, a receiver, a battery and charger. These can be bought relatively cheaply and for less than the all in one "ready to fly" package. I know someone who could supply you with a Spektrum DX5e transmitter, a receiver, a battery and a charger for a reasonable price to get you airborne if you go this route :D.

The Radian was my first plane and she is a beaut to fly. Very forgiving (but like all planes, pilot error can crash her), very relaxing to fly and with her 2 metre wingspan, she can stay aloft for a long time (my own record is 59 minutes on one battery). As you'd be buying her in the UK, you wouldn't have to worry about import duty as goods bought in the EU are exempt.

If you still want to go the Hobbyking route, have a look at the Bixler glider model. Its a great, well built trainer with a 1.4 metre wingspan. Its named after one of the hosts of the rc plane show "Flite Test". Have a look at their show online and if you do a search, they have a review of the Bixler.

I fly alone as I can't find a club that suits me. Finding a place to fly safely is the hard part which is why joining a club that has its own flying field is preferable. I've lost count of the number of times I think I'm all alone, flying one of my planes in the middle of a large field at 7am in the morning when someone would pop up and object:rolleyes:.

One final piece of advice, get someone to show you how to fly, no matter what plane you get. It is not as easy as it looks. Even before you get the plane in the air, you have to make sure she's set up right and that all control surfaces are working properly and in the right direction. You have to learn how to do a range check so you don't lose control of your model. You should learn how to launch a plane, how to recover from stalls, how to bank safely without going into a spin and how to land in one piece. Don't let me put you off. This is a great hobby and the satisfaction of flying a plane and landing her safely is brilliant. It would be a shame if you spent a lot of money on a plane and crashed it in seconds. I'm not being superior or a know it all. I got a flying lesson before I went solo and believe me when I say that it opened my eyes and I was glad there was someone experienced there to take over when the plane went into a dive. I'd be happy to show you the ropes and I'm sure there are a lot of guys on here who would also offer to give you some pointers.

Whatever you do, once you learn to fly rc planes, you'll soon get addicted to flying and you'll notice a large hole in your bank account:D

Bruthal

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

she can stay aloft for a long time (my own record is 59 minutes on one battery).

Its funny that, i too got to 59 minutes on the radian, and 57 on the cularis.

Kashkai

And that was just using a 1300mah battery. Imagine what flight time I could have gotten with a larger battery;):D

I still think I'd have gotten more flight time that day but my kids were bored and wanted to go home. I don't bring them with me anymore:D

Bruthal

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

And that was just using a 1300mah battery. Imagine what flight time I could have gotten with a larger battery;):D

I still think I'd have gotten more flight time that day but my kids were bored and wanted to go home. I don't bring them with me anymore:D

The bigger battery might not make as much difference as we would expect. It was a 2200 i was using. It doesnt float as much with the 2200, i think it flies a bit nicer with the extra weight though.

I got 1 hour 10 minutes with the fpv radian, which has extra weight, but finding thermals is easier, you can see the altitude on screen increase, and then circle to stay in the thermal. And can cover far larger areas.

No flying at the moment though, out of action for a while.

civdef

I'd have to agree with the Hobbyking Bixler - got going with one of those, fairly inexpensive and has held up well to plenty of bumps getting started.
I bought the RTF Mode 2 version which came with battery, transmitter etc (though I've upgraded both of those since - the ones that came with the kit were grand to get going).

I didn't get caught for customs that time, total cost incl shipping was around €140. Other smaller orders have been held up, it seems fairly random.

The other thing I got before hand which helped greatly was a usb RC simulator transmitter for around 20 quid on ebay, along with 2 free RC simulators

http://n.ethz.ch/~mmoeller/fms/index_e.html

and

http://rcdeskpilot.com/

Which allowed me to get familiar with controls and orientation prior to attempting to fly the model. You can download models similar to the bixler, radian etc etc for both of these. Again, they're cheap and cheerful, you can spend more money on fancier versions, but these got me going.

Bruthal

The bixler is a copy of the multiplex easystar.

civdef

Yep, just with ailerons as standard and a good bit cheaper.

Another similar option I'm seeing getting a lot of praise is the AXN floater, also on hobbyking, it can be got for around 70 quid including shipping from the hobbyking german warehouse, the batteries etc could also be got from there or somewhere like giantcod.co.uk. All avoiding the dreaded customs as coming from EU.

This chap has tonnes of videos about the AXN, including a detailed guide on putting it together and loads of it being flown in all sorts of conditions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EfomKG7w18&feature=relmfu

Bruthal

I recommended the bixler myself when the radian was not available. Never flown one though.