made from rolled 1/32-inch sheet aluminum with a balsa nose and
bottom.
The Miss Los Angeles has a wingspan of 52 inches, is covered
with MonoKote, and is finished with vinyl for the lettering and
graphics. The ready-to-fly weight is 48 ounces, and Joe notes that
the model it is fully aerobatic.
The completely enclosed engine
certainly gives Miss Los Angeles a fine
scale appearance. It is a great example of
what can be done using imagination,
ingenuity, patience, and considerable work
to improve a model’s appearance.
Scale Competition Reminder: Don’t
forget about the 2007 USA FAI Scale
Championships that will be held at AMA’s
National Flying Site in Muncie, Indiana,
under the direction of the National Association of Scale
Aeromodelers (NASA) with support from AMA. The competition
will take place Thursday, September 20 through Sunday,
September 23.
This event will offer great monetary prizes, from $2,000 for first
place to $500 for fifth place in FAI F4B (CL Scale) and F4C (RC
Scale). In addition, it will determine who will be on the CL and RC
Scale teams that are to represent the US at the Scale World
Championships in Poland in 2008.
All you Scale modelers, don’t miss out on a great opportunity for
cash prizes and a place on the US Scale team.
The CL Junior Team Selection for the 2008 Scale World
Championships will take place at the AMA Nats August 3-5 in
Muncie. The three highest-placing AMA Junior or Senior
competitors who fall within the FAI age requirement will go to
Poland. According to FAI rules, “A competitor is considered to be a
Junior up to and including the year in which he attains the age of
18.”
The Junior F4B Team Selection Program is not currently funded
by AMA. The cost of any US Junior participating in Poland in 2008
will be his or her responsibility. Any AMA Junior or Senior who
meets the FAI age requirement and is interested in participating
should go to the NASA Web site at www.nasascale.org, where
information about FAI rules can be obtained.
I hope there will be some success with this Junior CL Team
Selection Program and that it will be a step toward the development
THE MISS LOS Angeles air racer is one of Joe Eiben’s (Towson
MD) old-time models brought up to date. This scratch-built
airplane won the TRW-sponsored air racers division at the 1987
National Model Plane Show held in Cleveland, Ohio.
According to Joe, the Thompson Ramo Wooldridge (TRW)
Corporation initially started as the Thompson Company. It
sponsored the full-scale Thompson Trophy Races during the 1930s.
At its pinnacle the National Model Plane Show had more than
700 model airplane entries competing for trophies in more than 40
categories. The static competition ran for decades in Cleveland
with the support of local newspapers and many aviation-based
events.
TRW had an automotive division in Cleveland. When asked to
participate in the show, it decided to present a trophy in the airracing
category to honor the company’s key role in early aviation.
Lawrence Brown built the Miss Los Angeles (one of several
Brown racers) for the 1934 Thompson Trophy Race. It featured a
bright-red finish and had a 300-horsepower Menasco engine,
which took it to a speed of 234.14 mph in the Shell Speed Dash
that year.
Miss Los Angeles finished second in the Thompson Trophy
Race in 1934. The airplane and the pilot were lost in 1939 when
Lee Williams stalled at the first pylon in the race.
Joe updated his model in 2006 with flaps coupled to low-speed
throttle and a unique way of mounting the McCoy .35 RC engine.
To fit the engine inside a cowl that measured just less than 11/2
inches wide, he machined off the existing
standard side mounting lugs.
He mounted the engine to a 1/4
plywood bulkhead using the four tapped
threads of the engine that are normally
used for mounting its backplate. Joe
removed the existing short enginebackplate
screws, added aluminum spacers
(as shown in one of the accompanying
photos), and completed engine mounting
with long screws passing through the
spacers and into the engine.
He snugged all the threads with Loctite. The aluminum spacers
also provided clearance for the fuel lines and clunk-tank fittings.
This mounting method allowed the engine to be completely
enclosed with a cowl that is only 11/2 inches wide and meets the
rules governing engine mounting in Profile models. The cowl is
156 MODEL AVIATION
A detailed look at Joe Eiben’s gorgeous Miss Los Angeles Thompson Trophy racer
[[email protected]]
Control Line Scale Bill Boss
Also included in this column:
• 2007 USA FAI Scale
Championships reminder
• Scale documentation sources
Joe Eiben’s (Towson MD) profile Miss Los Angeles features flap
and throttle control. The engine is concealed in the fuselage.
Joe modified the engine by removing the normal side mounting
lugs, and then mounted it using aluminum spacers as shown.
06sig5.QXD 4/23/07 10:03 AM Page 156
of a permanent Junior F4B Team Selection
Program between AMA and NASA. It
might be the spark needed to improve Junior
and Senior Scale competition in this
country.
New documentation for models is
something Scale builders are always
seeking. As a gift I was recently given two
books I believe can provide fine
information about many prototype
airplanes. They would be a good addition
to any modeler’s aircraft library. They have
a heading of “The Aviation Factfile” and
are Concept Aircraft and Aircraft of World
War II.
Concept Aircraft provides information
about many unusual and experimental
aircraft. Among the more than 100 featured
are the X-1 rocket research aircraft, the
American XB-70 supersonic bomber, and
the German Junkers Ju 287 bomber
prototype of a World War II jet that had
wings swept forward instead of backward.
Aircraft of World War II covers more
than 120 of the most important aircraft
flown by all countries engaged in aerial
combat during the war. It includes such
great fighters as the P-51 Mustang,
Supermarine Spitfire, Messerschmitt Bf
109, MiG fighters, and Ki-43 Hayabusa
“Oscar.” The book also contains many of
the great bombers of World War II.
Each book has more than 250 pages and
illustrations of 100 or more aircraft. All are
shown in two-page spreads that contain
several photos and feature boxes outlining
the development, technical specifications,
performance data, and variants.
The books are edited by Jim
Winchester. He is the author of many
aviation-oriented books including Fighters
of the 20th Century, Classic Airliners:
Lockheed Constellation, and Combat
Legends: A-4 Skyhawk.
The books are issued by Thunder Bay
Press. They can be found and acquired at
www.thunderbaybooks.com. When
exploring the Web site I found two more
Aviation Factfile books: Modern Military
Aircraft and Civil Aircraft. I intend to add
them to my library.Each book costs just less than $18, and
they make great additions to anyone’s
documentation. They might also provide
the Scale modeler with some ideas for that
next project.
Please send ideas, notice of upcoming CL
Scale events, contest reports, and especially
photos of CL Scale activity to me via E-mail
at the address at the top of this column or by
regular mail to 77-06 269th St., New Hyde
Park NY 11040. Remember that 35mm film
photos are okay to use, and digital photos
must be submitted on a CD.
Keep all your landings good. MA