Kyle Hilson, Author at Swell RC

Illustration: Model Aircraft Covering Materials – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

Model Aircraft Covering Materials: Films, Fabric, Tissue and Foam Finishes

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › Covering Materials RC Airplanes The covering on a built-up model aircraft closes the open balsa frame, takes the air loads and adds a lot of the stiffness. Most modellers today use iron-on heat-shrink film because it is quick and needs no paint; heat-shrink fabric is tougher and suits

Illustration: Best RC Jet Boats – SwellRC RC Boats guide

Best RC Jet Boats: How to Choose a Jet Drive Boat

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 6, 2026
Posted in RC Boats

Home › Guides › RC Boats › Best RC Jet Boats RC Boats RC jet boats use a water-jet drive (an impeller in a duct with a steerable nozzle) instead of an exposed propeller, so they can run in shallow water, over weeds and near the shore with less risk of damage. A popular ready-to-run

Illustration: LEAMBE RC Plane – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

LEAMBE RC Plane: P-51 and P-40 Mini Warbirds for Beginners

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › LEAMBE RC Plane RC Airplanes LEAMBE sells small ready-to-fly foam RC planes, mostly mini warbirds styled as the P-51 Mustang and P-40 Warhawk. They have 4-channel control on 2.4 GHz, an Xpilot gyro stabilisation system with three modes, a coreless motor, one-key aerobatics and a wingspan of roughly

Illustration: RC gliders and sailplanes – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

RC Gliders and Sailplanes: Types, First Glider and How to Soar

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 2, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › RC gliders and sailplanes RC Airplanes RC gliders and sailplanes fly without (or with only a little) engine power, staying up on rising air. The main types are electric motor gliders (climb with a motor, then glide), thermal soarers, slope soarers that ride the wind up a hill,

Illustration: Balsa EDF Jet Kits – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

Balsa EDF Jet Kits: Building Wooden Ducted-Fan Jets

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 6, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › Balsa EDF Jet Kits RC Airplanes Balsa EDF jet kits let builders make lightweight, rigid ducted-fan jets from wood instead of buying foam models. They range from laser-cut kits and plans for 50–70 mm fans to balsa ARFs from makers like Black Horse for larger fans. Wooden jets

Illustration: Great Planes Models – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

Great Planes Models: The Classic US Kit and ARF Brand Explained

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 6, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › Great Planes Models RC Airplanes Great Planes was one of the best-known American RC airplane brands, part of the Hobbico group, producing kits and ARFs that many pilots learned on: trainers, the Super Sportster and Ultra Sport sport planes, scale models and later electric foam planes. After Hobbico’s

Illustration: Cheap RC Drift Cars – SwellRC RC Cars guide

Cheap RC Drift Cars: What to Buy and How to Drift on a Budget

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Cars

Home › Guides › RC Cars › Cheap RC Drift Cars RC Cars Good cheap RC drift cars do exist. At the low end, toy 1/43 and 1/24 drift cars cost very little but often lack proportional controls. A step up, mini drifters like Turbo Racing’s 1/76 cars (around $75) have a gyro and fully

Illustration: 737 RC Plane – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

737 RC Plane: Boeing 737 Models, Sizes and Flying an RC Airliner

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › 737 RC Plane RC Airplanes Several RC Boeing 737s are on the market. Small foam 1:30 scale models with about 1.3 m wingspan and twin 50 mm EDFs come in 737-700, 737-900 and MAX variants; Freewing’s AL37, styled on the 737 MAX, has a 1.83 m span and

Illustration: Pylon Racer RC Plane – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

Pylon Racer RC Plane: Racing Classes, Planes and How to Start

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › Pylon Racer RC Plane RC Airplanes Pylon racing is RC air racing: several small, fast planes take off together and race laps around a course marked by pylons, usually three, with judges calling any “cuts” inside a pylon, which cost the lap. In the US, the main classes

Illustration: EPP Plane – SwellRC RC Airplanes guide

EPP Plane: Why EPP Foam Planes Are So Tough and How to Choose One

By -Kyle Hilson
Posted on October 25, 2025October 4, 2026
Posted in RC Airplanes

Home › Guides › RC Airplanes › EPP Plane RC Airplanes An EPP plane is made from expanded polypropylene foam, which bends and springs back where other foams crack. That makes EPP planes almost indestructible in normal crashes, ideal for learning, combat flying, indoor 3D and FPV wings that land in fields. The trade-offs are