Radio controlled planes should not be mistaken as toys; they are much more than that. RC planes are the aircraft models controlled by radio signals. Controls are usually sent via hand held transmitters available with joystick and airplanes have receptors for catching signals and operating accordingly. Receptors operate through servomechanism, automatic device enabling movements of the control surfaces according to the movement of joystick present on transmitter.
These RC planes differ from the RC helicopters in the aerodynamics and construction. Helicopters make use of rotary wing systems but the plane is constructed fixed wing systems. RC enthusiasts generally start with the planes and then move on the jet planes and helicopters, as it is ascending order for difficult level. RC planes are the best options for the new RC enthusiasts.
Many adults and youngsters are among fervent followers of the unique hobby. Conventionally hobbyists considered assembling as well flying the planes as entire experience but due to the availability of ready made airplanes and convenient to assemble kits, one can save time in assembling aircrafts from the scratch. You can find two types of RC planes online- for beginners and experts. Beginners can start on with the park trainers and flyers whereas more learned pilots that can pick electric powered, glow plug engines, and the sailplane aircrafts. Autogyros, jets, helicopters, and 3D aircrafts can be picked by expert flyers.
But whatever Radio controlled plane you choose, joystick plays an important role in flying process. With more number of the controllers, more functions you would have for control. Planes with the three channels including elevator, rudder, and throttle are great for starters. By practicing simulation prior to operating actual Radio controlled would be a great idea and would let you be acquainted with idea of entire experience. People that have mastered skills at three channel operations can move on and try four channel RC planes with elevator, throttle, ailerons, and rudder.
After mastering the electric Radio controlled aeroplanes, graduate to nitro versions. Nitro versions are bit expensive as compared to electric models but are dead faster and demand skills that can be acquired through the flight simulators and practice with electric planes. But make sure that they are allowed in your area as due to their loudness, they are not allowed at some places.
The best part about the RC aeroplanes is that they are ready to fly and you do not need to put in much time and efforts for using them. Easy to fix and accessible parts add to the delight of the RC fans too. As mentioned above, enthusiast of every level can find RC plane for himself/herself. Flying the RC plane can be loads of fun if you are patient enough and if you learn to work on the transmitter with airplane before diving in great world of flight. The experience would be satisfying if you do things in right manner. You can buy RC airplanes and helicopters online now. Just look for a good company and keep the hassles of quality and price at bay.
Radio Controlled Planes- Experience Thrill of Flying
How do I sell my Coin Collection?
So, you feel it is time to sell your coin long-time collection, or you have inherited a collection and you know nothing about coins and you want to sell them. As with the sale of anything, you want to make sure you get a fair price. Sounds simple enough, right? In the area of numismatics, when it comes time to sell, offers for your collection can vary greatly. The following tips will help guide you to getting a fair and reasonable offer. I will talk more on the term “reasonable- a little bit later. Coin Dealers, like any other profession, number in the thousands. From part-time single person businesses to huge companies that buy and sell millions of dollars of coins annually. And like other professions and industries, we have a few crooks. By following the general tips in this article, you should be in a better position to realize your collections value. So here we go!
First and foremost, you need to know what you have. Why? If you do not know what you have, how do you know you are getting fair value? If you have thousands and thousands of wheat cents, I am not saying you need to inventory them all. In fact, it may not be worth your time. The chances of finding a key coin are slim at best. But you should know how many pennies you have. How? Simply weigh them. Wheat pennies come to about 148 pennies per pound. The same rule can apply to other common coins such as pre 1965 Roosevelt Dimes and Washington quarters as you may just a bullion price on these. For the rest of your collection, you may want to count the number of each piece. Make sure you have a complete list of your collection.
OK, time to contact a dealer? No, not yet. How do you know you are getting an honest one? Before contacting a dealer, you need to do some homework. Does the dealer belong to any organizations and clubs such as ANA or BBB? How long has s/he been in business? What is their reputation? Check out a couple of dealers before you make that call. Also, just because they advertise in a major coin collecting publication, does not make them honest. I know of one dealer who advertises in a major publication and sells cleaned coins as BU/Unc originals. Most novice collectors would not know the difference.
Now that you have done some research, it is time to contact the dealer. This can be done in many ways. You can give them a call or if you are the shy type, just send them an email. In your email, identify yourself and that you have a collection for sale. Include in the email the inventory you completed. This may come as a shock to many, but some dealers will NOT want your collection. Many dealers specialize in certain types or series, or just may have too many coins in their inventory. If your collection is an average collection of common coins, you may be disappointed to learn that many, if not all of the big dealers simply do not want to bother with you. It is too time consuming to sort the common collections and the margins are too small. Do not fret, all is not lost. Many smaller dealers will welcome the chance to obtain your collection. Many of these dealers work in mail-order only and may have only email or a PO Box as contact information. While they may appear shady, these folks generally are quite reputable. As before, contact the dealer and ask if they are interested. If they are not, just move on to the next dealer. If they are, ask them for their “buy price- list. Many dealers will publish a list of what they are willing to pay for certain coins.
After some hard work, you have a couple offers on the table. The offers are not anywhere near what you expected. Remember what I said above about a “reasonable- offer? Here is the painful truth. Coin Dealers are in business to make money. Sure, many of us chose this profession because we love it, but like everybody else, we still have mortgages, car payments, and college for kids, etc. Many people will look in the latest Coin Prices magazine to come up with an idea of what there collection is worth. Magazines such as Coin Prices are really a list of prices of what you can expect to pay a dealer for a specific coin, not what you can expect to get paid. Markups can range from 20-50% or more for smaller denomination coins such as wheat cents. As I mentioned earlier, some dealers just may not want what you have. Also, many, if not all dealers, reserve the right to revise the offer on inspection of the collection. If you think all your Morgan Dollars are BU, but they are really AU, this would make a huge difference in price. Grading is highly subjective. Also, for larger, more diverse collections, a dealer may spend a considerable amount of time reviewing the collection to ensure a fair price.
So, what to do? Take the best offer and run? Maybe, maybe not. If this is an inheritance, and you have no emotional attachment, you can just sell and never look back. If this is your collection of 50 years, well this may be painful. You can continue to contact different dealers and wait for a better offer. If you feel your collection is really worth more, you can always consign it for auction. With some of the fees the major auction firms charge, it may not be worth it. You can also try your hand at eBay but unless you have a strong feedback profile, many buyers will not bid on your items. You can also locate eBay members who will auction off your collection for you for a percentage of the take. Sometimes this works out well and sometimes not.
For now, let’s assume you have a reasonable offer and you decide to sell. By the way, this should be a written offer sent via the mail or sent via email. Many times, the buyer may be located in another city/state. No buyer will send you a check until they have seen the collection. If the collection is large enough (many, many thousands of dollars), some buyers will come to you. If not, your very viable option is to send the collection to the buyer via mail. Yes, that is right, via the mail. Wait you say, that sounds risky. It can be, but if you take precautions, you will have no problems. First, package the collection up very well. Make sure there are NO LOOSE coins jingling around. The sound of jingling coins is music to a thief’s ear. So be sure to wrap them up well and tight. When sending via the mail, the USPS is fairly safe. Usually, you will want to use USPS Priority Mail. Contact your local post office as you can usually get free boxes. Generally, you will want to use the Flat Rate options as you can ship up to 70 pounds for under $10.00 (not including insurance), but ask your local postal clerk for options. For your protection, you MUST insure your package and pay for delivery conformation. Include in your package an itemized list. Most dealers will appreciate this as they will audit the shipment to the list. If all is well, you can expect a check in the mail in no time.
In summary, here are the tips
1. Know what you have, prepare a comprehensive inventory
2. Research some dealers before you contact one.
3. Talk to dealers before sending coins to gage interest
4. Send your coins. Package them well and insure them
5. Review the offer
6. Collect the cash!
As always, happy collecting!
My Comic Book Store
I had my own comic book store by the age of 7 years. Those were the days before television and the many other distractions that surround us today. My comic book store consisted of over 200 comics, which I read and reread and then when I had enough of re-reads I would get on my bicycle and visit friends to do a comic swap. These were exciting times for we loved our few comic book heroes and when the next edition was at the news store we would often be their waiting to buy them as they arrived.
There was of course Superman and his amazing powers and he had Xray vision which made him seem almost mystical and add to that his ability to fly and lift trains and intercept even aircraft in flight had me locked in as a believer and follower However I felt he lost a bit of class when Lois Lane arrived on the scene.
Superman was the start of the hero era of comics for me and then came Captain Marvel and he was great but then Captain Marvel Junior got into the act and his hero status was reduced in my seven-year-old eyes. Best of all though was the Phantom, ‘the ghost who walks’,with his faithful wolf dog Devil who was his buddy in battles. But then I felt let down when the Phantom’s girlfriend appeared. Why would a powerful hero like the Phantom need a girlfriend I asked myself?
There were so many of these wonderful adventure comic magazines in those days and in that year of my childhood 1948 they cost about sixpence (five cents). Today I believe a phantom comic, in good condition, can be sold for over $6000! If only I had known my 200 comic books which cost less than $20 would now fetch about $600000. I could have retired a lot earlier than I did.
The comics in those days became a secondary school reader for me, I had no great interest in books but the graphic art with the words attached in the circle above the character captured my imagination like no book could do and in fact I believe my reading skills were mainly developed and honed through comics – I later became a Teacher and I could spell anything without a miss. Of course I did read some required books but only on instruction never by choice.
Other comics in my comic book store were Mandrake and the Disney comics of the day and I loved them too. Mandrake the magician with his faithful sidekick Lothar could do anything with a wave of his hand however he fell from grace a little with because he too had a girl friend called Nardia. However even if my heroes failed somewhat by having a girl in their team I got used to it and kept buying them and reading them and trading with friends and eventually changed my mind completely about girls when I reached the age of 14.
I miss that simple era where the comics were not filled with extreme violence and graphic sex. They were simply great adventures with a powerful hero fighting evil and winning. I loved that about my comic book store and maybe today’s children are missing something with the iPods and tele and sensational special effect movies which capture their interest where everything is imagined for them. With the comics you had to imagine the voice and create the action in your mind from the graphics.
But this is an old guy talking and some might think it’s an old grump talking but I loved my childhood and my comic book store and now, in my latter years, that era of the comic book holds such wonderful memories of a simple and safer world protected by the great comic book heroes.
Leonard Greenhall 2009 copyright
Getting Started with Radio Controlled Boats
Radio controlled models appeal to the kid in all of us, though serious hobbyists will make a distinction between hobby quality models and the toys of their youth. If you live near a lake or river, then radio controlled boats provide a fun way to hit the water. You can race them competitively or just sail them for recreation. Be careful to avoid bodies of water that have weeds in them, as these can get stuck in your rudder or propeller and slow down your radio-controlled boat. RC boats are a best-selling branch of the RC toy development. They are produced in a wide variety of shapes varying from small and steady cruisers to lightning fact racers and their popularity goes along to soar up. The conception of a toy boat is not precisely new. After all, toy boats have been around as long as teddy bears The captivation with RC boats is not only their lightness on the water, but also their complex gathering process. Sure, people take plume in the trophies and ribbons gained in water races and tournaments, but most of the RC boat operators are equally proud of the workmanship of their marine admirations. It is this sense of pride that has assisted pushes the toy market into making a large number of RC boat model kits that come across the skill sets of different groups of people. Generally, RC boats come in three varying models: builder’s kits, ARR boat kits, and RTR boat kits. Gas, Electric or Nitro? Broadly speaking, radio controlled boats fall into three types. Electric boats are the cheapest, but also the slowest, and get slower as the battery power depletes. Gas powered boats run on regular auto gas, and can reach speeds of up to 45 mph. They are the most expensive type of remote controlled boat, but can run for up to 45 minutes on a single tank of gas. Somewhere in between are nitro boats, which run on a blend of alcohol and oil especially designed for sport vehicles. The boats themselves are usually cheaper than gas boats, but the fuel is more expensive, so they could prove to be a false economy. Another disadvantage is that they are very noisy, and banned in some areas for that reason. However, they have the advantage of being easy to operate and running on full power throughout the lifetime of a tank of fuel. What Do I Need To Run a Remote Controlled Boat? Most remote controlled boats come as a complete kit, with batteries, fuel and a battery charger, though batteries and fuel will need to be purchased separately once the initial supply runs out. Some nitro boats also require a starter kit. This is usually supplied with the boat, but not always. If you are buying your first radio controlled boat you are better off looking for one that comes ready to run straight out of the box
Joining a Coin Club
People engage in social activities for many reasons; most common is sharing in the same interest and passion as other people. It is in places like these that information about a certain subject is shared and new ideas and trends are revealed that keep its members up to date with current events that happen in that club.
A coin collection club is the same. Since the number of people who have been doing coin collecting has increased over the years, the vast network involves numerous clubs in several states. In these clubs amateurs and professionals can share, trade and bid for new items to add to their existing collections.
There is never a wrong time to join a club. The challenging part is looking for one. You can start by asking the local coin dealer for help.
Some coin clubs can even be found on the internet and they will require that a membership fee be paid. Coin clubs often can also be found in the newspaper especially when events are advertised that invite the public to come and visit the exhibit.
If a person is still having a hard time finding a coin club then inquire at the local library or the Chamber of Commerce as they may be able help provide information.
One benefit of being a member is that it is easier to find someone who will buy coins at a good price. Or perhaps other members may want to part with some of their coins in exchange (called bartering) for other coins. Most local coin stores only have a limited selection that is available for trading.
Another benefit of becoming a member is obtain articles which feature a certain coin collection or discover better ways of caring for a collection. The club also informs its members about upcoming events so the individual can plan ahead to be able to attend the events.
Coin clubs are formed so that everyone who loves coins can have fun. This means that it is not only for those who have a collection at home; it is open to novices, experienced collectors who have done it for years, as well as coin experts They build a network that enable collectors to assist others. To become a member of a club just find a suitable one and join the fun!
How to Shake the Winter Blues with Coin Collecting
Why do some folks dislike the winter time with such a hatred? Is it the snow, the cold, the slippery sidewalks, or is it something else they truly hate, and that is getting the winter blues because they always think there’s nothing to do. I have always loved the winter time, from when I was a kid to my present age, I don’t care much for the cost of the rising heat bill each year, but as far as the beauty of the winter scenery, I think it’s wonderful, truly a gift from God.
When you find yourself with nothing to do during them cold winter months, why not take up a great hobby like coin collecting, it’s not only fun, it’s also a great way to shake the winter blues. Now, since you are new or a beginner to coin collecting, and this is going to be done as a hobby to help shake the winter blues, I will be talking about the basics and how to enjoy coin collecting for very little money. The first thing to do, is to think about what types of coins you want to start collecting.
One of the nicest and cheapest ways to start collecting coins is by buying a coin folder, the ones that have pre-cut holes for the coins, you simply place the appropriate coin into it’s respected slot or position in the album. You should start with a type of coin that is easy to find, and not super expensive to buy when it comes to the scarcer ones. I started by collecting Lincoln pennies, they were first minted or made in 1909 and are still made today, next I started collecting Jefferson Nickels.
The best thing about collecting pennies or nickels, or dimes is that, you can start filling in them empty spots in your folders, today at no cost. The easiest method to start collecting your coins is to search through your jars of change at home, and by checking the change in your pockets at the end of the day. The next way to acquire some more coins for your folders is to buy rolls from banks, then replace the coins you removed, with the change in your jars, turn these rolls in for more coins at another bank, and keep repeating the process.
After awhile you will be getting down to where you will not be able to find the coins you need to complete your folders with, in your change or from banks, because of their age and rarity. You may then want to join an online coin club, there are many reputable ones that offer coins on an approval service. They will send you certain coins once a month, and you simply select the ones you want to buy and keep, and the ones you don’t want you just mail back to the company. What makes these monthly approval services great is, you can select the types of coins you wish to receive monthly, and the price you are willing to spend.
I still find wheat pennies and silver war nickels, and many pre 1960 nickels, and sometimes a silver coin in pocket change. A few years back, I was at a local store and got some change back, I noticed two of the quarters I received looked kind of white in color, examining them closely after I got back home, I discovered they were both pre 1964 silver Washington quarters. I figured somebody must of needed money to buy some cigarettes or milk or something, and must of used some of their old coins, I was just lucky enough to had been there at the right time and place to get them in my change.
After collecting coins for fun over the years, I now have almost every Lincoln cent that was made from 1909 to present, and I have every Jefferson nickel from the first one that was made in 1938 to present, and I have a nice sized wooden chest full of miscellaneous U.S. coins, including silver dollars, mercury dimes, buffalo nickels, Large Cents and many more unique and rare coins. I figure the coins will make a nice gift someday, something to leave to my daughter or as a gift for my Grandchildren. The next time, you find yourself with nothing to do in the winter, starting looking through your change, and enjoy the wonderful hobby of coin collecting, it’s a great way to help shake the winter blues.
There is a website that describes numerous activities and other methods to help eliminate the Winter Blues, this website is called: Winter Activities – and it may be found at this url: http://www.winter-activities.com
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Become a Kid Once Again with a Radio Controlled Helicopter
Flying a plane or a helicopter in real time may be a distant dream but flying a radio controlled helicopter is not really such a far-fetched thought after all. And to get your hands on it, all you need to do is just get in touch with either a traditional retail merchant or an online shop specialising in stocking a myriad range of such radio controlled helicopter and associated accessories. What’s more available in a gas, electric, and mini, micro and toy variants it is up to the buyer as to how high he wants his passion to fly.
How to select the model?
Depending on your skill and budget you can easily go ahead and make a choice between two channelled, three channelled, four channelled or a six channelled RC helicopter. But while considering the specifications, it is truly worth mentioning out; that two and three channelled radio controlled helicopters are more suitable for kids who want to play in their living room or backyard as compared to others.
Whereas, a four channelled one is more suitable for those who want to take their hobby to the next level or want to consider the whole experience of flying a RC helicopter way beyond something of a past time. Coming on to the six channelled radio controlled helicopter, as a flying apparatus it is meant only for the advanced user who has gained a proficiency in all the three versions before and is really considering taking his vocation of flying to the next level altogether.
However, please again be mindful that a six channelled radio controlled helicopter is way too difficult to control as compared to the other ones. Even though, it can perform a range of aerial stunts and manoeuvres, as a flying apparatus the RC helicopter in reality can be enjoyed only by those who have got a prior experience in flying it before.
Start Your Child On A Coin Collecting Hobby
Wondering what to give your child on his next birthday? Give him a gatefold spread that can accommodate up to 50 coins. He may not appreciate the coins, but telling him stories about the coin and how it was made can spark his interest. For each birthday give him the coins minted that year. His collection will grow and so will his interest and by that time, he will be an accomplished numismatist.
History Lessons and Saving Money
The ideal age to start a child on a coin collecting hobby is at six years old. Imagine the number of coins he can amass when he reaches adulthood! But there’s more than just introducing him to coin collecting. You can use this exercise to teach him how to save his pennies in a coin bank plus pique his interest in the country’s history when you start with local coins.
Since you may not have those very old and valuable coins dating back to the 1800s, get a book on coin collecting and show him the pictures of the coins. Add a story or two depicting the era that’ll make any child sit up and listen. Stories add value to the coin collecting hobby and expect your child to be an expert in historical epochs.
If someone gives your child a bag of coins, take out each coin and sort them. Teach your child how to do the sorting. As you go along, tell him a little history on each coin. Probably the bag of coins will yield recent mints so it won’t be hard for you to tell the coin’s story.
If you have saved all the coins circulating in the year of your child’s birth, that would be the best introduction to a lifelong of coin collecting for your child. Help him along with the collection. Learn the tricks yourself so you can teach your child how to collect, clean, and store the coins.
Starting the Hobby
For starters, get magazines on coin collecting, a pair of white gloves, magnifying glasses, and coin albums or folders. Start scouting for coins and learn all about the discontinued coins like the 1965 quarters, dimes, and half-dollars. Subscribe to coin collecting magazines and check out the websites on coin collecting. You’ll be amazed at the wealth of information you can collect and pass on to your child.
Using a magnifying glass to see the fine lines and the details of a coin is an exciting experience for a child. Make sure you are ready to give the information your child may need. Or if you don’t know the answer, you can make it your project to find out online.
Because this is just a starting point for you and your child, don’t buy expensive coins and if you find some dirty old coins, don’t attempt to clean it. Find out its composition and the appropriate way to clean it. You can get help from several websites specializing in coin collection.
Tips for Coin Hunting
This is not referring to a treasure hunt. You can do your hunting online. However, coin collecting is an expensive hobby if you want the rarer and more prized coins. In the meantime, make do with what is available and always get your hands on new mints. Tell your friends you’re helping your child start a coin collecting hobby but be prepared for the avalanche of coins that will start pouring in.
In the future, when he coin collecting bug bites you real hard, you’ll be running after a metal detector to clean out your yard and your grandfather’s house. The hobby meant for your child will be yours too.
It’s Easy to buy Comic Books Online
Back in the good old days, if a kid had a quarter in his pocket he would jump on his skateboard or Schwinn Stingray bicycle and head as fast as he could to the five-and-dime and pick up the newest copy of Spiderman or my favorite, Journey into Mystery featuring the Mighty Thor. These great Marvel Silver Age comics are now worth thousands of dollars and it all started with some kid and his quarter. Now if you want to buy comic books you need to either find an actual comic book store, which are becoming more and more rare every passing month, or you can buy comic books online.
When you buy comic books online you definitely will save some time but you lose the ability to actually hold the comic book in your hands like when you go to the actual store. Personally I like to be able to saunter into a comic book store and walk around, check out the expensive mags on the wall displays, and delve deeply into their back issue files.
About fifteen years ago I started going to comic book stores with my son and we would buy his favorite titles, usually Superman, and while he was looking at the newer titles I would search in the back issue files and find rare gems. After a couple of years of doing this I ended up with quite the collection of Silver Age Marvel comics. I bought a lot of Thor comics, but others also, including lots of X-men and Fantastic Four. Some of these comics were not in very good condition, but I bought them anyway with the reasoning that they were not making these anymore and someday they would be worth something just for being rare. I now have a pretty nice collection that is worth quite a bit of moolah.
If you want to buy comic books online there are several good websites you can go on. Ebay has an extensive ongoing rotation of great comics for sale, including many that have received the CGC (comic guarantee company) certification and are enclosed in hard plastic. You can search through their extensive database and find rare comics and graphic novels as well as newer titles. You can bid on any comics you find there and sometimes you can pick up some pretty good bargains or rare gems. Most of the time though you end up paying more than you intended or someone else beats you in the final auction bidding.
One of the best places to buy comic books online is at www.midtowncomics.com. Here you will find all of the best titles available from Silver Age to today’s mangas. Another great site is www.atomicavenue.com and you can search their extensive database. You can also sell comics as well as buy comic books online there.
With the massive worldwide popularity of comic book and movie superheroes such as Spiderman, Iron Man, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, and of course, the X-men, comic book prices will continue to rise, especially older, harder to find titles.
Beaded Lanyards: Quasi Jewelry
The typical lanyard is a length of basic rope, wire, or cloth that is designed to secure a small object. They are often purchased in large quantities and are fairly inexpensive. Many employees wear lanyards around their neck to secure identification badges while on the job.
Beaded lanyards can be as basic as an inexpensive metallic, beaded chain. They can be ordered through most typical lanyard suppliers and feature a variety of hardware attachments to secure small objects. These lanyards are often in several different lengths and an array of colors.
Other beaded lanyards are quite unique and are referred to by some as jewelry. They are designed by skilled artisans and can be extremely expensive depending upon the type of materials used. The cost of a beaded lanyard depends on the type of beads and wire used in its design. Beaded lanyard patterns may consist of colorful patterns of seed beads, glass beads, crystals, or even gemstones.
The most popular beaded lanyards are used to secure eyeglasses or sunglasses around the neck. They attach to the temples of the glasses, allowing them to hang around the neck when not in use. These exquisite neck lanyards are often referred to as eyeglass necklaces or eyeglass holders. They are a fashionable way to keep track of an item that can be easily misplaced or damaged. Beaded lanyards allow the wearer the freedom to easily put on and remove glasses frequently throughout the day.
Many bead artisans also offer jewelry pieces to coordinate with beaded lanyards. The beaded lanyard patterns are often duplicated in a bracelet, anklet, or pair of earrings.
One drawback of the beaded lanyard is that they are often fragile. They may look elegant but also may not have the durability of a nylon or cotton lanyard when worn frequently.