Well, took my kids to school and come home to find 2 planes (Green Giant and the Confederate Twin) stolen off my front porch!!!!!  didn't take the car battery, didn't take the battery recharger, didn't take any of the essentials for flying the planes, just the planes and the engines.  Even left my 2 coolers sitting there.

This tells me it was probably d@mn kids in the neighborhood, but I'll never see them again.  Only got to fly the Twin a couple times and lost almost $150 in engines between the 2 planes.

I'm at fault for leaving them out, but I just HATE a d@mn theif.  Just let me catch the little b@st@rd that did it.

Oh, it gets better.  I typed up a memo and put them on all the neighborhood mailboxes.  Half way through, I found the remnants of "The Green Giant",  Burned to Cinders!  Norvel Big Mig .049 beaten to a pulp with a hammer I guess.  Also found remnants of a BB gun near them.  Looks like the local punks had a late night party.  No sign of my twin and its two BRAND NEW .061 Wasps, maybe I'll get it back (doubtful), I feel certain its sitting in some kids room.


I'm not that pissed about the Norvel, had issues with it anyway, and not too mad about the Green Giant, it was on its way to falling off the proverbial beanstalk, but the Twin just PISSES ME OFF!!!!

I cant believe it!  I got the Confederate Twin BACK!  I typed up a letter saying what had been stolen and put it on all the mailboxes in the neighborhood.  Round 5:30 I got a call from a fellow up the street said he found it in his 10 yr olds room.

Drove up there , booms were broken, but the engines were fine.  Asked the little man where got it and he said he an a buddy took it.  I asked why, and he said he saw me flying it and thought it looked cool.  His buddy was the one who broke this one and torched my other one and beat up the engine when they could not figure out how to start them. 

I thought his father was going to kill him, but I said how bout this.  If you'd like to learn how to fly these, I'll be happy to teach you but he's going to have to help me rebuild the Confederate first. He really took to that.  Father wanted to call the cops, but I figure that would just send the kid down the wrong path.  I'm out a plane and an engine, but I never got that Norvel running right anyway.

They live a couple houses down so the boy came back to my house and he, my 7 yr old, and I started working on the repairs.  The father just came by and got him.  I showed him how to remove the monocote and we started cutting the broken parts out.

I did my good deed for the day, hopefully this young man will remember this.  He's supposed to come by every day after school until the plane is finished as his punishment.

Yeah, I know who the kid and who his dad are.  They don't live in our neighborhood and frankly, I wouldn't confront the guy.  He's a little edgy.  But Michael (the kid who I'm working with) seems to understand what he did was wrong and that Beau (the other one) is not someone he should be hanging around.

Well, he's into football, tv, and video games so what the heck, maybe he'll turn out okay.  Stripping Monocote and tracing pieces for cutting is not the fun part of building in my opinion.

I believe that "what goes around, comes around", so you are doing a service for young people.  Hey, kids aren't all bad, no matter what we hear.  And, it is a good move to steer clear of major confrotations.  You just end up with your name in the paper.  Maybe this kid will help someone else down the road, or at least not end up as a bad statistic.  Good work. 

Even the most honest person can be led into crime if the bait is right. While in an ideal world we should be able to leave anything we want where ever we want--In reality it is best not to.
I'm sure someone will give me flack for this next statement but it must be said----Leaving model planes on the front porch is an invitation to get them stolen. To a large extent you are just as much to blame for the theft as the kids.

Locks on doors and gates and fences are there more to keep the honest - honest, than to keep a crook from getting in.

I'm happy that it turned out well. Too bad about the edgy second father. It's a shame that the fear of an escalating bad situation let's so many people off the hook.

This summer I left a plane in the backyard but out of sight from the street or sidewalk. I went inside to get my camera and when I came out there was a kid climbing over the fence. Funny thing was the gate was 3 feet away. I explained to the kid that I had a fence around the yard because I didn't want him in it. I told him that next time he'd do best to come knock on the door and ask permission.

We're beyond the age when we can leave the doors unlocked---

There is a serious lack of empathy in todays world........

  A Peeping Tom will kick your butt if you look at his sister.
  A burglar goes bonkers if you break into his car.
  A rapist will fight to the death for his mother's honor.

It's a shame that right and wrong are so often determined by the situation.

You handled your situation very well John. I hope that the kid and you turn this episode into a great control line story.

Just found this story and was wondering??? Is there a rest of the story??? How did it turn out by now with the two kids. By the way I think you did a very nice thing to help that youngster.