Control Line Combat
Rich Lopez [[email protected]]
Practicing with top-line equipment pays dividends
Most pilots who are interested in FAI Combat are working every spare moment in preparation for the United States F2D Combat Team Trials in Lubbock, Texas. The contest will have taken place by the time you read this, and the 2008 team will have been determined.
The effort required to be successful at the Team Trials is enormous and cannot happen without lots of practice with good equipment against proficient sparring partners. Some of us, on the West Coast, practice all year without stopping. Most of that practice happens with lesser equipment, which means rebuilt models and second-string engines. Although that gives you considerable “stick time,” it does not give you the precise timing needed to fly top-of-the-line equipment effectively.
During the entire month of August Chuck Rudner, Pete Athans, and I practiced with contest-worthy equipment. Helping us with our training were Don Jensen and Russ Graves, both of whom add different styles to the mix.
Other pilots joined us from time to time:
- Martyn Cowley
- Charlie Johnson
- Don Repp
- Greg Hill
- Darrin Albert
They were always ready to chase streamers and proved to be worthy adversaries.
Events and contests
There was no Bladder Grabber contest in 2007, but it is scheduled to return in 2008. In its place were several other major contests.
Bill Maywald revived the Riverside, California, Combat Challenge in late July. The turnout was sparse, with only 12 entries, but those who attended seemed to have a great time at what has to be one of the nicest sites in the country. The facility has so much green grass that each pilot could have his or her own practice circle. Restrooms are permanent, and there is a nice shaded pavilion in addition to numerous trees. Bill talked family members into grilling burgers (the good sirloin ones) and hot dogs free of charge to all who were present. Darrin Albert continued his hot streak and came out on top. Bill Maywald was second, and Mike “Mr. Concrete Recycler” Rule finished third. Mike provided his company’s T-shirts free of charge to all contestants. This was a mellow contest that needs more participants.
The same weekend the Bladder Grabber was supposed to have happened, Jeff Rein organized the Top Dog Contest in Snohomish, Washington. It consisted of 80 mph Combat on Saturday followed by AMA Fast Combat on Sunday. If you have never been to Harvey Field in Snohomish, it is worth the trip just to see all the activity at this small airfield. All day long skydivers jump out of airplanes with their vibrantly colored parachutes dotting the skies. Modern and vintage small aircraft take off and land every few minutes. Sometimes in the early morning hot-air balloonists gather to set up their gear for a day’s adventure aloft. The town of Snohomish is picturesque, with quaint streets filled with antique shops. I no longer take my wife to the Bladder Grabber after she purged my wallet buying antiques.
The contest organizers tried a different placing system at Top Dog that featured a combined win/loss record for the two days. Mel Lyne of Canada bested the field again this year to take Top Dog honors. This allowed him to eat steak while the rest of the contestants were fed hot dogs. Mike Rule finished second, and Ken Burdick and Jeff Rein tied for third. Ron “Hang Loose” Enos flew over from Hawaii in time to judge and have fun.
There was also a three-country series in Europe called the "Dreiländerpokal," which included an event in Sebnitz, Germany. The organizers compiled the wins and losses to determine the overall winners. It looks as though reigning World Champion Igor Trifonov of Russia is for real — he won the first two events, which was enough to give him the overall series win. Rudolf Königshofer of Austria was second by virtue of a win in Sebnitz and a third-place finish in Denmark. Boris Janiulis of Latvia finished third overall, with a second place in Sebnitz and a third in Karlskoga.
You can find complete results on Goran Olson's website, along with many links that provide access to a huge number of photographs. I have already started saving my pennies so that next year I can convert them to euros and spend a month in Europe flying Combat.
The European Championships were held in Serbia in July. Igor Demetiev of Moldova is the new champion. Dmitry Vedernikov of Russia was second, and the 2005 European Champion, Mike “Whacker” Whillance, finished third. The Junior champion was Oleksandr Pokorskiy of Ukraine.
This competition is limited to European countries. Non-European citizens are permitted to serve as mechanics for the F2D event; I participated in the 2003 contest as a mechanic for Swedish team member Håkan Östman. Igor Demetiev builds and sells models, and Chuck Rudner has purchased sets of aircraft from him. Igor’s model quality is outstanding, and I would be willing to bet that his prices will go up now that he is the European Champion.
Engine flooding and restart tips
Flooded engines can give you fits and, worse, cause engines to bite your fingers while you are trying to flip them over. You still see modelers blowing into the exhaust ports in an effort to clear the flood. Depending on the severity of the flood, that may or may not work. It will not work if there is a bunch of fuel in the crankcase.
I have found a reliable method for remedying flooded engines:
- Put the piston at bottom dead center.
- Rotate the engine so the fuel flows up the ports and into the cylinder.
- Rotate the engine so the fuel rolls out of the exhaust port.
- Repeat the procedure two or three times if necessary to get all the fuel out.
This technique works well with side-exhaust, no-muffler engines such as the Nelson .36. F2D powerplants with mufflers are another story; they require you to blow air through the 8-mm muffler opening with enough force to expel the fuel from the 4-mm venturi.
I do not recommend putting your lips around the muffler and blowing. The solution can be as simple as obtaining a piece of clear hose and blowing through it. You can also find a variety of clear or reinforced tubing at The Home Depot or Lowe’s. Some plumbing fittings have tapered ends that fit nicely into the 8-mm muffler opening. I like 5/8-inch tubing, which allows for a fair amount of air volume.
All this air blowing will do you no good if the crankshaft port is not open to the venturi opening. You should be able to hear air passing through the venturi as you rotate the propeller to the correct position, and you should see fuel spraying out the venturi if you did it correctly.
If you cleared the engine too well, it still may not want to start because the top end will be too dry and will need a drop or two of prime. This is one of those things you acquire a feel for, much like knowing how much prime to use.
On occasion engines will vapor-lock and refuse to start. That means the engine has trapped “spent” air in the muffler and crankcase that does not have enough oxygen to mix with the fuel to support combustion. Blowing air through the engine will usually fix this problem.
Some engines like to hot-restart, while others will cause your flipping-hand arm muscles to lactate so much there is no flip left in them. Some pilots keep bottles of water in their pit boxes to pour over engines to cool them.
Team support and looking ahead
The 2008 US CL World Championships team will need plenty of monetary support beyond that provided by the AMA. Keep an eye out for souvenir T-shirts and hats once the logo is decided. We hope to have a great showing in Landres, France, next year.
Landres is near where many Americans flew combat in World War I as part of the Escadrille Americaine and the Escadrille Lafayette. Go rent or buy a copy of the movie Flyboys.
Sources
- Goran Olson's website: www.go-cl.se/cl.html
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
