Alternate toys to fight boredom

LePhillou said:

Drones are expensive. If you go FPV drone its more time consuming and you learn some skills but its a lot of research, learning, and soldering but its a deep rabbit hole... If you live outside of the no fly area you can have some fun after you get the basic license.

If you're okay with sports and dont live too far from the water theres stand up paddleboarding or kayaking

I started cycling a few years ago so it helps kill time and keeps the extra pounds somewhat in check

Classsic reading can be something to take back up

Archery can be another one thats not too costly (doing blank bale if youve got space...)

Click to expand...

Standup paddleboarding also teaches you about how to dry out a board that took on water and vacuum bagging and fibreglass repair. If you get a nice board, don't let anyone else touch it. They are all idiots. No, lightly hitting the rocks isn't ok. No, it's not "no big deal" that you dropped something on it and crushed it. No, your precious spawn can't play with it just because he wants to, he treats things worse than you do. Grrr. Also, no proper vacuum pump or bubbler here right now so you get to figure out how to rig a venturi vacuum generator designed to fill a coolant system to a board.

GreyGhost said:

I thought you were selling the excavator years ago?

Is that an accurate scale model of Australia II or is the sail plan a bit larger to make it work better at RC size?

I know some people that did the RC sail boat thing. I don't know if it's for me. I would rather be on the water than sitting looking at it. If I did it, it would probably be a scale of a foiling boat so I could get it working well before building one for me to sit in.

Click to expand...

I keep finding projects to justify keeping it longer lol but I really should sell it to somebody that needs to move a mountain to build a house or something. I just bought about 400$ worth of new oil for it :| and I need about 6 more tubes of grease, then mount the nice new seat in it.

Yes to scale of the Australia II it's very fast in a moderate wind

+1 for DJI Spark, handy piece of kit when traveling.

Evoex said:

+1 for DJI Spark, handy piece of kit when traveling.

Click to expand...

You guys are making me want to buy one also...I've gone back and forth on these, but need to make sure my son stays the hell away from it. It'll never last long in his hands.

This would be cool, 2.4 meter class:

Trials said:

This would be cool, 2.4 meter class:

Click to expand...

interesting haircuts possible when the wind changes

I also thought of a drone. But I feel like the novelty of it would wear off pretty quick.

One thing to keep in mind.
There is no such thing as a cheap hobby.

oioioi said:

...
There is no such thing as a cheap hobby.

Click to expand...

lol go fly a kite, I've built some really nice kites cheap.

Trials said:

lol go fly a kite, I've built some really nice kites cheap.

Click to expand...

I'll have to build it first. lol

If you continued flying your kite(s) I'm sure you would have spent more money on it than initially expected.

Building the stuff is at least half the fun!

Maybe even more than half.
It gives you a whole different perspective and appreciation for the activity. Sort of like working on our bikes.

We all do it (well most), and once a repair/build is done, a different sense of appreciation or achievement is felt.
I recently did my forks which at first I thought I would not be able to do. Almost had someone do it for me.
Read some manuals and viewed some videos. Seemed intimidating at first but than it was way easier than I thought.
I was happy that I learned a new thing and saved money in the process.

Onto vale check next. But that might be in the fall/winter.

No boredom here tomorrow ? couple of top riders coming out to play.

Whats wrong with your motorcycle?? Go riding, while it's nice out....

jc100 said:

honestly....I’m having a blast (literally) with this..

Canadian retailer of Estes/Aerotech/Quest/Rocketarium/LOC Precision/Public Missiles/Aeropack/PerfectFlite/Jolly Logic rockets, rocket engines/motors, launch supplies and electronics

Canadian model rocket store. Rockets, engines/motors, electronics, build and launch supplies. Canadian Rocket Store. Estes/Quest/Aerotech/PerfectFlite/Jolly Logic/Rocketarium/Madcow/Public Missiles/LOC Precision/Aeropack model rocket engines/motors, rockets, launch equipment and electronics.

www.allrockets.ca

Click to expand...

Yup, low powered rockets is a great hobby for adults as well as kids. Cheap, you can be flying for less than $100.

oioioi said:

There is no such thing as a cheap hobby.

Click to expand...

See above. ^^^

Some of my toys:





Slot car racing is still popular, good winter hobby.







Collecting diecast is fun but has become too expensive.

That is awesome.
I particularly like the track. '
I have a friend with a similar model car collection.
He once told me, it was valued at $35,000. That may have changed since his ****** ex-wife put her hands on them.
Some are as rare as 1 of 12 production models, and 1 of 2 in Canada.

If you think you're ever going to be interested in getting into RC Helis or planes, a RC car or a drone is a good entry to the hobby.

Why?

One of the biggest issues people have when starting out is control reversal when coming towards yourself. Almost every single student I ever instructed with model planes has a moment of "oh ****" when they fly towards themselves for the first time. Some think there's something wrong because they're pressing the stick right and the plane is going left. It takes some time to teach your brain that things are not actually reversed, just the aircraft is.

Why a RC car? I had a lot of students who just couldn't get used to the effect go buy a cheap RC car and practice figure 8's. With an RC car when your brain gets overloaded you just let go of the controls and reset, all good. On a plane you can't do that. Once they got their brain over the hump by practicing driving towards themselves (it becomes second nature fairly quickly), I'd get them to come back to the planes and it all clicked.

Why a drone? Similar - all modern (non toy) drones will hover on their own if you let go of the controls now. So, if your brain goes pear shaped when flying in a non nose-out orientation or you lose perspective...you just let go of all the controls, it instantly hovers, and you regroup. You can practice flying figure-8's all day long with much lower risk of crashing.

A true (non toy) RC heli on the other hand will NOT typically hover hands off very well. An exceptionally well setup heli may however hands off for a few seconds, but that's it - it'll drill in shortly thereafter. They take constant attention to the sticks. And the absolute hardest thing to learn is what's referred to as "nose in" flying, where the nose is facing you - it can overload your brain in short order and is one of the hardest things to master with an RC heli, aside from 3D acro flying. The time I've spent with my drone has made me a vastly more confident heli pilot due to the fact I've been able to practice nose-in endlessly on the drone (vs the heli) without fear of crashing, and it translates about 90% in the from drone to heli.

Where the heck does one fly such a rocket @Jayell ??? Hat track looks awesome btw

@PrivatePilot any resources you recommend for someone wanting to start with RC cars and heli? My son is 3 so too young but I’d love to at least try to spark these interests in him.

I’m looking at some ride on jeeps for him to get cracking on. 12V as a start.

mimico_polak said:

Where the heck does one fly such a rocket @Jayell ??? Hat track looks awesome btw

@PrivatePilot any resources you recommend for someone wanting to start with RC cars and heli? My son is 3 so too young but I’d love to at least try to spark these interests in him.

I’m looking at some ride on jeeps for him to get cracking on. 12V as a start.

Click to expand...

I had a nitro RC truck. Bought it maybe 20 years ago. HPI Savage .21. It was a blast. Eventually crashed it into a tree, about 10 years go. It needed a new frame for it but never ended up getting one. Original frame bent during the tree crash. I think I paid around $600-$800 for it originally. It was an RTR kit.
I thought about getting the parts for it now and maybe an upgraded engine. When I calculated the cost of it, I might as well get a new truck.

Start with a electric/battery car first for him. Low maintenance and no fiddling around with an engine.
Even some better ones from a regular toy retailer would do to catch his interest. Costco sometime has some nice ones.

Once you get to the Hobby store version, they tend to be a little pricier and not really designed for a 3 year old.

Ride on jeeps are also fun. (I had a ride on trike when I was a kid) This was back in Poland in late 80's or early 90's. Imagine me riding that with all the kids from the neighborhood running behind wanting a try at it. (the trike was sent to me from USA)

My kids have a 2 person John Deer Jeep. When I put it away for the winter, I noticed the chewed through the back wheels, as they are plastic. The motor spins so fast when you press the gas that they spin out almost every time.
I did not take it down this summer as my son now has a 24V dirt bike and my daughter is too big for it. Along with their bikes and other toys, the space in the garage gets very tight.
If you end up getting one, consider a 2 person one so both kids can enjoy it. Also make sure it is 2 speed, 6V and 12V.
6V is to make mom happy and 12V is to make the kids happy.
(we once went around the block with a 6V mini copper, and I could walk faster)

mimico_polak said:

Where the heck does one fly such a rocket @Jayell ??? Hat track looks awesome btw

@PrivatePilot any resources you recommend for someone wanting to start with RC cars and heli? My son is 3 so too young but I’d love to at least try to spark these interests in him.

I’m looking at some ride on jeeps for him to get cracking on. 12V as a start.

Click to expand...

low power rockets like that aren’t restricted....you just have to look up and watch for low flying aircraft as multistage rockets (still legal) reach up to 2500 feet or more.

High power rockets are a different kettle of fish...you have to call NavCanada to schedule a launch.

You can get a kit from Amazon for about $50 that has a launch pad, controller and a couple of rockets. You need wadding (to pack above the engine and in front of the recovery chute) and engines. Wadding is about $15 for 75 sheets and engines can be had in a bulk pack 24 for about $80. The rockets themselves are not too expensive. I just bought three different types for around $20 each and they are all perfectly reusable if you can retrieve them! Theres some fun ones too...I have one that releases a parachutist at apogee, another that returns on helicopter blades and one thats still legal but around 38” tall.

I ride mountain bikes in all weather, and with the whole family.
Trek Fuel ex7 my old faithful
Niner Jet 9 RDO is for going fast In the woods
like the R1 of the forest
Norco Sasquatch (Fat bike) winter biking. It’s the Jeep.
Trek Fuel ex 9.8 Project one It’s going to be my sport touring mountain bike.
The answer to do I need another mountain bike is always yes.