130 MODEL AVIATION
(Editor’s note: Joining the staff of
Model Aviation is Dennis O. Norman,
whose articles have been published in
modeling magazines for decades. Known
for his challenging rubber-powered Scale
subjects and fine craftsmanship, Dennis has
been building model airplanes for 55 years.
His first Model Aviation article, about a
rubber-powered Tigercat, was published in
the April 1980 issue, and he has had five
more articles published in MA to date,
including one about a 1⁄2-inch-scale (1:24)
rubber-powered Avro Lancaster Mk. I.
You can find “Our Stuff,” Dennis’s
latest article, on page 83 of the August 2003
issue. From it, you learn that Dennis is a
dedicated modeler who is concerned about
the preservation of model-airplane
memorabilia. For this first column, he
decided to tell us about his background.)
IT WAS JUST after the end of World War
II. I was 4 years old and my father had
been in the Navy since I was 2. I had no
memory of him when he came home, so I
saw him as a lanky, 6-foot-tall stranger
who towered over me. Looking for a way
to connect with me, he sat down one day
and drew a plan for a small rubber-powered
model airplane similar to one he had built
in the mid-1930s.
As had millions of other children’s
fathers in the early 1930s, mine had built
model airplanes as a pastime. I would not
say that he was an avid modeler; his
lifelong hobbies were roller-skating and
photography. He was trained as a
draftsman and worked as a structural steel
engineer.
My father built only a few models for
me and did so rapidly. Typically he would
start a model on a Saturday, and we would
be flying it by Sunday evening. Such was
the case with that first model he built for
me. This was long before the advent of
cyanoacrylate glue. The model-airplane
glue my father used came in 1-ounce
cylindrical glass bottles. He would dip a
piece of 1⁄16 balsa strip stock in the bottle to
get what he needed.
His covering material of choice was
yellow Japanese tissue, which he would
water-shrink after covering a model. I do
not recall him doping the tissue once it had
been stretched. He used rough wooden
propeller blanks, which he carved and
sanded to shape. I cannot recall him ever
using dope on the propellers. For
propulsion he used brown rubber—
typically six strands of 1⁄8 inch for an 18-
inch-span model.
Dennis O. Norman, 11216 Lake Ave., Cleveland OH 44102
FREE FLIGHT SCALE
One of Dennis’s projects for young modelers was making these
sling-shot gliders of the Blue Angels F-4J Phantoms.
The P-47 Thunderbolt has long been a favorite modeling subject.
Dennis built this Peanut Scale version in 1976.
Dennis’s 1⁄2-inch-scale Caproni bomber rests at the AMA
museum in Muncie. It was flown at the 1976 Nationals.
Dennis’s first published model was a rubber-powered de Havilland
Mosquito featured in December 1986 Model Airplane News.
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 130
I vividly recall my first experience
flying a model airplane. It was that first
model my father built for me when I was 4.
We lived across from a high school that
had a huge athletic practice field. My
father wound the rubber motor by hand.
After several hundred turns of the
propeller, he held the model over his head
and released it. It soared away in a series
of ever-widening circles. Soon it became a
small dot in the sky where a gentle breeze
carried it to the far end of the field, and it
struck a chain-link fence as it was gliding
to land.
My father and I were elated by the
model’s long, stable flight, and we ran to
retrieve it. He easily outdistanced me since
he was nearly twice my height, but we
continued running and shouted joyfully as
we went. From that moment my “father”
became my “dad.” For me, a lifelong
passion for Free Flight had been sparked.
I was 6 when I began building model
airplanes for myself. A local drugstore
carried a few kits. I was attracted to the
solid model kits offered by Strombecker;
they were largely precarved from pine,
and, with a modest amount of work, made
into what impressed me as some
convincing replicas of the aircraft seen in
the late 1940s and early 1950s.
These were not Free Flight Scale
models, but they were model airplanes and
they inspired me to build more. That
exciting first flight with my dad was my
Dennis is notorious for dressing the part when flying his Scale models. He is shown
launching his all-sheet Yak-1 fighter in the early 1970s.
Dennis made this preliminary sketch of Cole Palen for a painting
he did. It is on display at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.
Dennis loves to build models, and he enjoys drawing and
painting pictures of them. He sketched this 40 years ago.
big inspiration. Before that, I had enjoyed
watching full-scale airplanes. Biplanes flew
over my house and wrote things such as
“Coca-Cola” in the sky. The words were
formed like soft, controlled clouds in the
summer sky, and then they drifted into
amorphous shapes as the airplanes that
made them flew away. Later it occurred to
me that the most exciting model airplanes I
could make would be those like full-scale
aircraft.
Monogram’s Speedee-Bilt series
fascinated me. Although the models were
not really suited for Free Flight, they were
marvelous combinations of preformed,
precarved wooden models with early
injection-molded plastic accessories which
added to their realism.
Best of all, each kit came with a
profusely illustrated set of building
instructions, which meticulously guided me
through each step of construction. For a
youngster who was just learning how to
read, those instructions were like gold.
They showed me the logical progression of
steps leading to a finished model.
In roughly 1950 my dad picked up a
couple of Cleveland kits from a local
hobby shop that was going out of business.
They were of the Grumman Avenger and
the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and they were part
of the famed 3⁄4-inch SF Series. To me,
January 2004 131
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 131
132 MODEL AVIATION
they were large, complex, and expensive.
Their plans were detailed and intricate. I
think they sold for $10 each at the time, but
dad bought them for half price.
I was delighted with the kits, and at the
age of 8 I attempted to build the 3⁄4-inch
Grumman Avenger. I managed to make the
basic airframe, which I covered with red
tissue paper and painted with dark-blue
dope. I could not figure out how to make
the cockpit canopy and I do not remember
having a propeller or rubber motor, but I
did get in a few short glides before
crashing my creation beyond repair.
However, I was not discouraged. I was
inspired to build more models. I realized
that my first effort had been beyond my
abilities. I learned that I could build the
simpler kits that Comet and Guillow’s
offered, and I persisted.
In 1951, when I was 9, I was inspired
by a Control Line model of a Spitfire that
was printed in a magazine. The model had
such graceful lines, and it inspired me to
draw my own plans for a 36-inch-span
rubber-powered version.
I didn’t make enough formers for the
fuselage, and it had more curves than a
hula dancer. The wings and tail were okay,
but I had no clue how to fashion a spinner,
propeller, canopy, etc. I painted my
Spitfire with light-blue house paint. It was
comical, but my mom and dad proudly
showed it to friends and neighbors.
One of our neighbors built model
airplanes for his son, and I spent many
enjoyable hours visiting their basement
and working on modeling projects. There
were also a few children at school who
showed an interest in building model
airplanes, but most were soon distracted
by other things. My brother, who is 61⁄2
years my junior, also became a modeler.
He is an award-winning IPMS figure
painter who is still very active today.
I built models of ships, tanks, soldiers,
etc. as a child and made models from
paper, wood, plastic, and other materials.
Later I dabbled in Control Line and Radio
Control, but Free Flight Scale has always
been my thing.
I have definitely benefited from
studying other modelers’ work. For
instance, an article I read about the use of
waxed male molds to build wooden
rowboats inspired the techniques I used to
build my Lancaster. I do not build plastic
models, but I have a large collection of
them for use as three-dimensional
references when I design Free Flight Scale
subjects. Also, the plastic models usually
have interesting decal sheets that can be
enlarged for application to my models.
I have been called a “master modeler.”
To my knowledge, there are no formal
parameters for using that term in the US. I
am told that model building has been
considered a learned discipline in Europe.
The term “master modeler,” as I
understand it, is an honorary title bestowed
on one by others who understand and
appreciate his or her efforts and
achievements.
I was first called a “master modeler” in
the 1970s when I won a contest in Model
Builder magazine. The prize was a handy
modeling vise that I still use. It is an honor
to be regarded as a “master,” but I do not
dwell on it. I’m still learning from others
all the time, and I believe that it is
important for all of us to share our ideas.
This is what keeps Free Flight Scale a
vibrant part of model aviation.
It is important to me that this column’s
readers inform me not only of their
accomplishments but of their attempts to
achieve new goals. Only by sharing can we
Aluminum
Wheel Chocks
Aluminum
Snow Skis
MAIDEN Model Products
Visit Us Online at:
www.MAIDENUSAMMP.com
Send Check or Money order to:
MAIDEN Model Products, 3780 Northern Ave., Wayzata, MN 55391
Ph: 612-730-7151 • E-mail: [email protected]
Std. Skis, 4-12# Planes, $33 Pair
Std. Skis, 4-12# Planes, $47.50 Trike Set of 3
Lg. Skis, 10-18# Planes, $47.50 Pair
Wheel Chocks, 1”-5” Tires, $30 Pair
Please include $5 for S&H
develop the healthy and useful dialogue
needed to sustain our inspiration and assure
the continued health and growth of our
hobby.
I am publishing a series of monographs
featuring full-color, predecorated
Japanese-tissue covering. I described my
method for doing this in my article “Color
Copier Techniques” in the June 2002
Model Aviation. Subjects are available in
13-inch spans (Peanut Scale) and 171⁄4-inch
spans. These are being well received at
shows, where they are available for $20
each (for Peanut) and $30 each (for the
larger size). I am also marketing them by
mail for $22.50 (for Peanut) and $34 (for
the larger size). In addition, I am assisting
modelers and their families in the sale of
their collections.
As for this column, I plan to continue to
expand the dialogue between Free Flight
Scale modelers everywhere. New modelers
are coming into Free Flight Scale, and it is
important to make them aware of the
classic techniques of building and flying
Scale models.
It is also important that we introduce
children to model-airplane building and
encourage them to become a part of our
hobby, so I will try to give exposure to
those who help youngsters learn about
modeling. I will also try to make others
aware of new products and techniques that
further our progress.
AMA is the premier US model-aviation
organization, and a high percentage of US
modelers belong to it. However, there are
US modelers who build Free Flight Scale
models and do not belong to AMA. There
are also foreign modelers who are doing
spectacular things in Free Flight Scale. I
want to make Model Aviation readers aware
of the talented individuals—domestic and
foreign—who enrich our hobby today. MA
ALS IS REAL
HOPE IS REAL
MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY ASSOCIATION
www.als.mdausa.org
(800) 572-1717
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 132
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 130,131,132
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 130,131,132
130 MODEL AVIATION
(Editor’s note: Joining the staff of
Model Aviation is Dennis O. Norman,
whose articles have been published in
modeling magazines for decades. Known
for his challenging rubber-powered Scale
subjects and fine craftsmanship, Dennis has
been building model airplanes for 55 years.
His first Model Aviation article, about a
rubber-powered Tigercat, was published in
the April 1980 issue, and he has had five
more articles published in MA to date,
including one about a 1⁄2-inch-scale (1:24)
rubber-powered Avro Lancaster Mk. I.
You can find “Our Stuff,” Dennis’s
latest article, on page 83 of the August 2003
issue. From it, you learn that Dennis is a
dedicated modeler who is concerned about
the preservation of model-airplane
memorabilia. For this first column, he
decided to tell us about his background.)
IT WAS JUST after the end of World War
II. I was 4 years old and my father had
been in the Navy since I was 2. I had no
memory of him when he came home, so I
saw him as a lanky, 6-foot-tall stranger
who towered over me. Looking for a way
to connect with me, he sat down one day
and drew a plan for a small rubber-powered
model airplane similar to one he had built
in the mid-1930s.
As had millions of other children’s
fathers in the early 1930s, mine had built
model airplanes as a pastime. I would not
say that he was an avid modeler; his
lifelong hobbies were roller-skating and
photography. He was trained as a
draftsman and worked as a structural steel
engineer.
My father built only a few models for
me and did so rapidly. Typically he would
start a model on a Saturday, and we would
be flying it by Sunday evening. Such was
the case with that first model he built for
me. This was long before the advent of
cyanoacrylate glue. The model-airplane
glue my father used came in 1-ounce
cylindrical glass bottles. He would dip a
piece of 1⁄16 balsa strip stock in the bottle to
get what he needed.
His covering material of choice was
yellow Japanese tissue, which he would
water-shrink after covering a model. I do
not recall him doping the tissue once it had
been stretched. He used rough wooden
propeller blanks, which he carved and
sanded to shape. I cannot recall him ever
using dope on the propellers. For
propulsion he used brown rubber—
typically six strands of 1⁄8 inch for an 18-
inch-span model.
Dennis O. Norman, 11216 Lake Ave., Cleveland OH 44102
FREE FLIGHT SCALE
One of Dennis’s projects for young modelers was making these
sling-shot gliders of the Blue Angels F-4J Phantoms.
The P-47 Thunderbolt has long been a favorite modeling subject.
Dennis built this Peanut Scale version in 1976.
Dennis’s 1⁄2-inch-scale Caproni bomber rests at the AMA
museum in Muncie. It was flown at the 1976 Nationals.
Dennis’s first published model was a rubber-powered de Havilland
Mosquito featured in December 1986 Model Airplane News.
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 130
I vividly recall my first experience
flying a model airplane. It was that first
model my father built for me when I was 4.
We lived across from a high school that
had a huge athletic practice field. My
father wound the rubber motor by hand.
After several hundred turns of the
propeller, he held the model over his head
and released it. It soared away in a series
of ever-widening circles. Soon it became a
small dot in the sky where a gentle breeze
carried it to the far end of the field, and it
struck a chain-link fence as it was gliding
to land.
My father and I were elated by the
model’s long, stable flight, and we ran to
retrieve it. He easily outdistanced me since
he was nearly twice my height, but we
continued running and shouted joyfully as
we went. From that moment my “father”
became my “dad.” For me, a lifelong
passion for Free Flight had been sparked.
I was 6 when I began building model
airplanes for myself. A local drugstore
carried a few kits. I was attracted to the
solid model kits offered by Strombecker;
they were largely precarved from pine,
and, with a modest amount of work, made
into what impressed me as some
convincing replicas of the aircraft seen in
the late 1940s and early 1950s.
These were not Free Flight Scale
models, but they were model airplanes and
they inspired me to build more. That
exciting first flight with my dad was my
Dennis is notorious for dressing the part when flying his Scale models. He is shown
launching his all-sheet Yak-1 fighter in the early 1970s.
Dennis made this preliminary sketch of Cole Palen for a painting
he did. It is on display at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.
Dennis loves to build models, and he enjoys drawing and
painting pictures of them. He sketched this 40 years ago.
big inspiration. Before that, I had enjoyed
watching full-scale airplanes. Biplanes flew
over my house and wrote things such as
“Coca-Cola” in the sky. The words were
formed like soft, controlled clouds in the
summer sky, and then they drifted into
amorphous shapes as the airplanes that
made them flew away. Later it occurred to
me that the most exciting model airplanes I
could make would be those like full-scale
aircraft.
Monogram’s Speedee-Bilt series
fascinated me. Although the models were
not really suited for Free Flight, they were
marvelous combinations of preformed,
precarved wooden models with early
injection-molded plastic accessories which
added to their realism.
Best of all, each kit came with a
profusely illustrated set of building
instructions, which meticulously guided me
through each step of construction. For a
youngster who was just learning how to
read, those instructions were like gold.
They showed me the logical progression of
steps leading to a finished model.
In roughly 1950 my dad picked up a
couple of Cleveland kits from a local
hobby shop that was going out of business.
They were of the Grumman Avenger and
the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and they were part
of the famed 3⁄4-inch SF Series. To me,
January 2004 131
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 131
132 MODEL AVIATION
they were large, complex, and expensive.
Their plans were detailed and intricate. I
think they sold for $10 each at the time, but
dad bought them for half price.
I was delighted with the kits, and at the
age of 8 I attempted to build the 3⁄4-inch
Grumman Avenger. I managed to make the
basic airframe, which I covered with red
tissue paper and painted with dark-blue
dope. I could not figure out how to make
the cockpit canopy and I do not remember
having a propeller or rubber motor, but I
did get in a few short glides before
crashing my creation beyond repair.
However, I was not discouraged. I was
inspired to build more models. I realized
that my first effort had been beyond my
abilities. I learned that I could build the
simpler kits that Comet and Guillow’s
offered, and I persisted.
In 1951, when I was 9, I was inspired
by a Control Line model of a Spitfire that
was printed in a magazine. The model had
such graceful lines, and it inspired me to
draw my own plans for a 36-inch-span
rubber-powered version.
I didn’t make enough formers for the
fuselage, and it had more curves than a
hula dancer. The wings and tail were okay,
but I had no clue how to fashion a spinner,
propeller, canopy, etc. I painted my
Spitfire with light-blue house paint. It was
comical, but my mom and dad proudly
showed it to friends and neighbors.
One of our neighbors built model
airplanes for his son, and I spent many
enjoyable hours visiting their basement
and working on modeling projects. There
were also a few children at school who
showed an interest in building model
airplanes, but most were soon distracted
by other things. My brother, who is 61⁄2
years my junior, also became a modeler.
He is an award-winning IPMS figure
painter who is still very active today.
I built models of ships, tanks, soldiers,
etc. as a child and made models from
paper, wood, plastic, and other materials.
Later I dabbled in Control Line and Radio
Control, but Free Flight Scale has always
been my thing.
I have definitely benefited from
studying other modelers’ work. For
instance, an article I read about the use of
waxed male molds to build wooden
rowboats inspired the techniques I used to
build my Lancaster. I do not build plastic
models, but I have a large collection of
them for use as three-dimensional
references when I design Free Flight Scale
subjects. Also, the plastic models usually
have interesting decal sheets that can be
enlarged for application to my models.
I have been called a “master modeler.”
To my knowledge, there are no formal
parameters for using that term in the US. I
am told that model building has been
considered a learned discipline in Europe.
The term “master modeler,” as I
understand it, is an honorary title bestowed
on one by others who understand and
appreciate his or her efforts and
achievements.
I was first called a “master modeler” in
the 1970s when I won a contest in Model
Builder magazine. The prize was a handy
modeling vise that I still use. It is an honor
to be regarded as a “master,” but I do not
dwell on it. I’m still learning from others
all the time, and I believe that it is
important for all of us to share our ideas.
This is what keeps Free Flight Scale a
vibrant part of model aviation.
It is important to me that this column’s
readers inform me not only of their
accomplishments but of their attempts to
achieve new goals. Only by sharing can we
Aluminum
Wheel Chocks
Aluminum
Snow Skis
MAIDEN Model Products
Visit Us Online at:
www.MAIDENUSAMMP.com
Send Check or Money order to:
MAIDEN Model Products, 3780 Northern Ave., Wayzata, MN 55391
Ph: 612-730-7151 • E-mail: [email protected]
Std. Skis, 4-12# Planes, $33 Pair
Std. Skis, 4-12# Planes, $47.50 Trike Set of 3
Lg. Skis, 10-18# Planes, $47.50 Pair
Wheel Chocks, 1”-5” Tires, $30 Pair
Please include $5 for S&H
develop the healthy and useful dialogue
needed to sustain our inspiration and assure
the continued health and growth of our
hobby.
I am publishing a series of monographs
featuring full-color, predecorated
Japanese-tissue covering. I described my
method for doing this in my article “Color
Copier Techniques” in the June 2002
Model Aviation. Subjects are available in
13-inch spans (Peanut Scale) and 171⁄4-inch
spans. These are being well received at
shows, where they are available for $20
each (for Peanut) and $30 each (for the
larger size). I am also marketing them by
mail for $22.50 (for Peanut) and $34 (for
the larger size). In addition, I am assisting
modelers and their families in the sale of
their collections.
As for this column, I plan to continue to
expand the dialogue between Free Flight
Scale modelers everywhere. New modelers
are coming into Free Flight Scale, and it is
important to make them aware of the
classic techniques of building and flying
Scale models.
It is also important that we introduce
children to model-airplane building and
encourage them to become a part of our
hobby, so I will try to give exposure to
those who help youngsters learn about
modeling. I will also try to make others
aware of new products and techniques that
further our progress.
AMA is the premier US model-aviation
organization, and a high percentage of US
modelers belong to it. However, there are
US modelers who build Free Flight Scale
models and do not belong to AMA. There
are also foreign modelers who are doing
spectacular things in Free Flight Scale. I
want to make Model Aviation readers aware
of the talented individuals—domestic and
foreign—who enrich our hobby today. MA
ALS IS REAL
HOPE IS REAL
MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY ASSOCIATION
www.als.mdausa.org
(800) 572-1717
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 132
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 130,131,132
130 MODEL AVIATION
(Editor’s note: Joining the staff of
Model Aviation is Dennis O. Norman,
whose articles have been published in
modeling magazines for decades. Known
for his challenging rubber-powered Scale
subjects and fine craftsmanship, Dennis has
been building model airplanes for 55 years.
His first Model Aviation article, about a
rubber-powered Tigercat, was published in
the April 1980 issue, and he has had five
more articles published in MA to date,
including one about a 1⁄2-inch-scale (1:24)
rubber-powered Avro Lancaster Mk. I.
You can find “Our Stuff,” Dennis’s
latest article, on page 83 of the August 2003
issue. From it, you learn that Dennis is a
dedicated modeler who is concerned about
the preservation of model-airplane
memorabilia. For this first column, he
decided to tell us about his background.)
IT WAS JUST after the end of World War
II. I was 4 years old and my father had
been in the Navy since I was 2. I had no
memory of him when he came home, so I
saw him as a lanky, 6-foot-tall stranger
who towered over me. Looking for a way
to connect with me, he sat down one day
and drew a plan for a small rubber-powered
model airplane similar to one he had built
in the mid-1930s.
As had millions of other children’s
fathers in the early 1930s, mine had built
model airplanes as a pastime. I would not
say that he was an avid modeler; his
lifelong hobbies were roller-skating and
photography. He was trained as a
draftsman and worked as a structural steel
engineer.
My father built only a few models for
me and did so rapidly. Typically he would
start a model on a Saturday, and we would
be flying it by Sunday evening. Such was
the case with that first model he built for
me. This was long before the advent of
cyanoacrylate glue. The model-airplane
glue my father used came in 1-ounce
cylindrical glass bottles. He would dip a
piece of 1⁄16 balsa strip stock in the bottle to
get what he needed.
His covering material of choice was
yellow Japanese tissue, which he would
water-shrink after covering a model. I do
not recall him doping the tissue once it had
been stretched. He used rough wooden
propeller blanks, which he carved and
sanded to shape. I cannot recall him ever
using dope on the propellers. For
propulsion he used brown rubber—
typically six strands of 1⁄8 inch for an 18-
inch-span model.
Dennis O. Norman, 11216 Lake Ave., Cleveland OH 44102
FREE FLIGHT SCALE
One of Dennis’s projects for young modelers was making these
sling-shot gliders of the Blue Angels F-4J Phantoms.
The P-47 Thunderbolt has long been a favorite modeling subject.
Dennis built this Peanut Scale version in 1976.
Dennis’s 1⁄2-inch-scale Caproni bomber rests at the AMA
museum in Muncie. It was flown at the 1976 Nationals.
Dennis’s first published model was a rubber-powered de Havilland
Mosquito featured in December 1986 Model Airplane News.
01sig5.QXD 10/27/03 8:43 am Page 130
I vividly recall my first experience
flying a model airplane. It was that first
model my father built for me when I was 4.
We lived across from a high school that
had a huge athletic practice field. My
father wound the rubber motor by hand.
After several hundred turns of the
propeller, he held the model over his head
and released it. It soared away in a series
of ever-widening circles. Soon it became a
small dot in the sky where a gentle breeze
carried it to the far end of the field, and it
struck a chain-link fence as it was gliding
to land.
My father and I were elated by the
model’s long, stable flight, and we ran to
retrieve it. He easily outdistanced me since
he was nearly twice my height, but we
continued running and shouted joyfully as
we went. From that moment my “father”
became my “dad.” For me, a lifelong
passion for Free Flight had been sparked.
I was 6 when I began building model
airplanes for myself. A local drugstore
carried a few kits. I was attracted to the
solid model kits offered by Strombecker;
they were largely precarved from pine,
and, with a modest amount of work, made
into what impressed me as some
convincing replicas of the aircraft seen in
the late 1940s and early 1950s.
These were not Free Flight Scale
models, but they were model airplanes and
they inspired me to build more. That
exciting first flight with my dad was my
Dennis is notorious for dressing the part when flying his Scale models. He is shown
launching his all-sheet Yak-1 fighter in the early 1970s.
Dennis made this preliminary sketch of Cole Palen for a painting
he did. It is on display at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.
Dennis loves to build models, and he enjoys drawing and
painting pictures of them. He sketched this 40 years ago.
big inspiration. Before that, I had enjoyed
watching full-scale airplanes. Biplanes flew
over my house and wrote things such as
“Coca-Cola” in the sky. The words were
formed like soft, controlled clouds in the
summer sky, and then they drifted into
amorphous shapes as the airplanes that
made them flew away. Later it occurred to
me that the most exciting model airplanes I
could make would be those like full-scale
aircraft.
Monogram’s Speedee-Bilt series
fascinated me. Although the models were
not really suited for Free Flight, they were
marvelous combinations of preformed,
precarved wooden models with early
injection-molded plastic accessories which
added to their realism.
Best of all, each kit came with a
profusely illustrated set of building
instructions, which meticulously guided me
through each step of construction. For a
youngster who was just learning how to
read, those instructions were like gold.
They showed me the logical progression of
steps leading to a finished model.
In roughly 1950 my dad picked up a
couple of Cleveland kits from a local
hobby shop that was going out of business.
They were of the Grumman Avenger and
the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and they were part
of the famed 3⁄4-inch SF Series. To me,
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132 MODEL AVIATION
they were large, complex, and expensive.
Their plans were detailed and intricate. I
think they sold for $10 each at the time, but
dad bought them for half price.
I was delighted with the kits, and at the
age of 8 I attempted to build the 3⁄4-inch
Grumman Avenger. I managed to make the
basic airframe, which I covered with red
tissue paper and painted with dark-blue
dope. I could not figure out how to make
the cockpit canopy and I do not remember
having a propeller or rubber motor, but I
did get in a few short glides before
crashing my creation beyond repair.
However, I was not discouraged. I was
inspired to build more models. I realized
that my first effort had been beyond my
abilities. I learned that I could build the
simpler kits that Comet and Guillow’s
offered, and I persisted.
In 1951, when I was 9, I was inspired
by a Control Line model of a Spitfire that
was printed in a magazine. The model had
such graceful lines, and it inspired me to
draw my own plans for a 36-inch-span
rubber-powered version.
I didn’t make enough formers for the
fuselage, and it had more curves than a
hula dancer. The wings and tail were okay,
but I had no clue how to fashion a spinner,
propeller, canopy, etc. I painted my
Spitfire with light-blue house paint. It was
comical, but my mom and dad proudly
showed it to friends and neighbors.
One of our neighbors built model
airplanes for his son, and I spent many
enjoyable hours visiting their basement
and working on modeling projects. There
were also a few children at school who
showed an interest in building model
airplanes, but most were soon distracted
by other things. My brother, who is 61⁄2
years my junior, also became a modeler.
He is an award-winning IPMS figure
painter who is still very active today.
I built models of ships, tanks, soldiers,
etc. as a child and made models from
paper, wood, plastic, and other materials.
Later I dabbled in Control Line and Radio
Control, but Free Flight Scale has always
been my thing.
I have definitely benefited from
studying other modelers’ work. For
instance, an article I read about the use of
waxed male molds to build wooden
rowboats inspired the techniques I used to
build my Lancaster. I do not build plastic
models, but I have a large collection of
them for use as three-dimensional
references when I design Free Flight Scale
subjects. Also, the plastic models usually
have interesting decal sheets that can be
enlarged for application to my models.
I have been called a “master modeler.”
To my knowledge, there are no formal
parameters for using that term in the US. I
am told that model building has been
considered a learned discipline in Europe.
The term “master modeler,” as I
understand it, is an honorary title bestowed
on one by others who understand and
appreciate his or her efforts and
achievements.
I was first called a “master modeler” in
the 1970s when I won a contest in Model
Builder magazine. The prize was a handy
modeling vise that I still use. It is an honor
to be regarded as a “master,” but I do not
dwell on it. I’m still learning from others
all the time, and I believe that it is
important for all of us to share our ideas.
This is what keeps Free Flight Scale a
vibrant part of model aviation.
It is important to me that this column’s
readers inform me not only of their
accomplishments but of their attempts to
achieve new goals. Only by sharing can we
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develop the healthy and useful dialogue
needed to sustain our inspiration and assure
the continued health and growth of our
hobby.
I am publishing a series of monographs
featuring full-color, predecorated
Japanese-tissue covering. I described my
method for doing this in my article “Color
Copier Techniques” in the June 2002
Model Aviation. Subjects are available in
13-inch spans (Peanut Scale) and 171⁄4-inch
spans. These are being well received at
shows, where they are available for $20
each (for Peanut) and $30 each (for the
larger size). I am also marketing them by
mail for $22.50 (for Peanut) and $34 (for
the larger size). In addition, I am assisting
modelers and their families in the sale of
their collections.
As for this column, I plan to continue to
expand the dialogue between Free Flight
Scale modelers everywhere. New modelers
are coming into Free Flight Scale, and it is
important to make them aware of the
classic techniques of building and flying
Scale models.
It is also important that we introduce
children to model-airplane building and
encourage them to become a part of our
hobby, so I will try to give exposure to
those who help youngsters learn about
modeling. I will also try to make others
aware of new products and techniques that
further our progress.
AMA is the premier US model-aviation
organization, and a high percentage of US
modelers belong to it. However, there are
US modelers who build Free Flight Scale
models and do not belong to AMA. There
are also foreign modelers who are doing
spectacular things in Free Flight Scale. I
want to make Model Aviation readers aware
of the talented individuals—domestic and
foreign—who enrich our hobby today. MA
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MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY ASSOCIATION
www.als.mdausa.org
(800) 572-1717
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