Thread: BMFA News ...

Originally Posted by chugga-bug

[...]Even the heli articles are hardly woth reading because lets face it, we read all we need to know on here and the other forums!

Exactly.

And why would I spend time and effort writing a magazine article that's possibly not going to get read ?

[I mean, it's bad enough knocking up (what I reckon is) a gem of a few lines on T-Rex 450 Pro servo mounting on here, and getting absolutely no reaction... 8( ]

Overall, I suspect that we don't really do magazines, and magazine don't really do us. The Internet works better.

Almost the only reason to be in the BMFA magazine is so the non-heli flyers remember we exist.

I like the mag as I've said before and enjoy reading it. If you look in the whats going on there are always comps of different disciplines in different areas of the UK. All we have is a sporadic smattering of comps for 3D (I've ignored the F3C stuff as this is always covered as someone submits write ups). They are never advertised in the BMFA mag or website, I'm assuming because no one asks them to list it.

Yes, there are flyins most weekends but again never listed in the mag, probably because no one asks them to. I think we should stop bitching about a small corner of the RC hobby world and limited coverage in a mag that trys to cover all disciplines at least a small bit. Conspiracy, pah!! Even if there was does it really bother you so much, it don't me! I look forward to the weekend when I go up the field to have a craic with me mates, a fly, the odd cup of tea, normally a meeting with terra firma and go home looking forward to next weekend. Chill guys over an often well written mag

Many of us "older" pilots started off on control-line - radio control was out of reach of most of us in the early 60's, and if you wanted to control a model, your only option was control-line. Most control-line aerobatics are done only a few feet off the deck (for obvious reasons!) - something that has only recently come back into fashion with 3D! As a result, many of us still have a passing familiarity with C/L models, and enjoy reading about them. Indeed, I still have a couple of combat wings and a small aerobatic job in my shed!

Similarly, when we did finally progress on to R/C, it was strictly fixed wing - there were no helis back then. Again, I enjoy maintaining a passing familiarity, and have started doing a lot more fixed-wing flying over the last year or so:



So yes, I find quite a lot of interest in the BMFA mag - even the non-heli stuff! And clearly, I'm not alone!

And remember: To know where you're going, you need to know where you came from!

Originally Posted by pchristy

And remember: To know where you're going, you need to know where you came from!

Now theres a statement and a half

what a discussion .. jeeees ...

well ok I understood no one actually writes something and various parts must be covered but there is a limit on pages anyway ...


I actually like the editorials of the digital available magazines and have some subscriptions ... so I have that covered ...

taking it back to my initial question then - where is the non paper copy - knowing how you put a thing like that together, its not really rocket science to print the pages to .PDF and post it on a website for people who still want to be able to read it but opt out from receiving a paper copy ... if I only have a quick read through it, some funds could be saved here I think ... though it might have an impact on the printing pricing due to less copies to be printed ...

I think there is an obligation to send out a paper copy, whether there is an electronic version or not. As the official publication of the BMFA, it is where all the formal notices for Team Trials and Team Managers are published. You may recall that the F3N Team trials had to be re-run last year because they weren't advertised in the BMFA News in time. Since these are international contests, international rules apply, and the BMFA is obliged to follow them.

By posting out paper copies, the BMFA can demonstrate that it has fulfilled its obligations to notify all eligible contestants. If they only publish electronically, how can the show that it reached all pilots entitled to attend Trials?

To avoid any possible protests, it pretty much has to send out paper copies, whether it wants to or not!

Hope that explains things!

Will also be required by the advertisers, an essential part of fundraising.

Originally Posted by Rotorhead

I just find it hard to believe, RC heli flying is big part of the hobby these days

I disagree.

There are many people on this forum around the country who fly RC helis at heli-only flying clubs, and there is a consensus amongst them that all RC flying is heli-centric and anyone who flies planes of any description is a **** stained old gimmer.

This is wholly unfair and completely untrue.

The fact is this - plane flyers probably out-number heli flyers by 3:1 nationwide at my best estimate. Plane flyers fly all sorts of different disciplines including 3D, scale, vintage, free flight, control line etc etc, in just the same way that heli flyers have FAI, 3D, scale, electric, free-flight (sometimes) etc!

Helis are much more expensive to own and run than planes for sure, and they are simply beyond the disposable income of many flyers. But that doesn't make plane flyers incompetent, inferior or of a lower class. That 'us & them' attitude simply sucks and I hate it. There's no need for it.

For those of you like me who fly at a mixed flying club will see many more planes at the field today than helis for sure, and when I go flying later today I will certainly be taking a decent plane and a 90 size heli for my afternoon's enjoyment, and who are you (generally speaking of course) to question what I spend my cash on, what I choose to fly or to criticise just because it's a plane.

The BMFA do a sterling job and the magazine represents its membership very well. Please stop this self-proficicised ideal that the whole RC flying world revolves around helicopters. It doesn't. Open your eyes.

As has been said many times already in this thread - if you want to read it, then submit it.

Sorry, rant over.

How can you disagree with that, even 1/5, 1/4 or 1/3 is a big minority.

The BMFA do a sterling job and the magazine represents its membership very well. Please stop this self-proficicised ideal that the whole RC flying world revolves around helicopters. It doesn't. Open your eyes.

As has been said many times already in this thread - if you want to read it, then submit it.

I have not been saying the whole of RC flying revolves around helicopters, I was trying to find out if there was a editorial reason why the heli section is always only two pages to cover all disciplnes in a magazine of (at last issue) 62 pages.

Please can someone tell me if I am speaking marsian or something as quite a few people here don't seem to be understanding a few of the things I've been asking or have been reading into them more than there is....

Its about content.

Planks - there's different disciplines and each gets a page or two
Helis - there's different disciplines and the whole lot gets two pages.

This is essentially because no-one writes consistently(other than Jason) about their favourite Discipline.

The mag is limited on the number of pages BUT if I were in charge the smart move(should there be much more Heli content available) would be to increase the advertising cost thus reducing the adverts and making space for more pages. The increase in cost could be justified by a potentially greater circulation (by that I mean actively read by more people)

So its simple and do-able just need some content.

Now I've had a think and I reckon I can probably put together a regular column with some input from the members on here. So I'm gonna make some phone calls and see where we get.

Thanks for the Pm's. Will be speaking to Jason and Manny on Monday