Control Line Scale - 2008/02

[[email protected]]
Control Line Scale Bill Boss
Also included in this column:
• Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
• Share what you know about
CL electric flight
• Future topic preview: a new
CL event
Alan Van Artsdalen points to his Fang 1/2Apowered
profile Goodyear racer. He won
the new event at the Lafayette Esquadrille
contest. All photos by Frank Beatty.
Above: Tim Pansic’s fine-looking Nemesis has a builtup
full fuselage. It placed second in the new Goodyear
event.
Left: Frank Beatty’s experimental Deerfly placed third.
The 1/2A engine is enclosed in the cowling, giving a
scale appearance.
AT TIMES CL Scale takes on a different
look. Frank Beatty of Granite City, Illinois,
has originated a new Scale-type event. He’s a
modeler who is well known for his dedication
and competition efforts in the CL Scale arena.
Frank has come up with rules for a new
1/2A Goodyear Speed event that the Lafayette
Esquadrille Control Line Club of the Saint
Louis, Missouri, area introduced at its Old
Time CL contest on October 21, 2007. For 11
years the club has had a 1/2A Thompson
Trophy Racer event at the contest.
The group decided to try something new,
and Frank took on the chore of assembling a
set of rules for what is now a Goodyear
midget racer event. The rules are as follows.
1) Any Cox .049 reed-valve engine with
standard (low-compression) glow head can be
used. A Cox 5 x 3 propeller, unmodified
except for balancing, must be used. The
contest committee will provide fuel.
2) The racer must be a model of a
Goodyear-type midget racer. A photo or
three-view of obscure types should be
available for proof.
3) The model’s minimum wingspan is 18
inches, and the minimum leadout length from
the model’s centerline is 12 inches.
4) The racer must look like the full-scale
aircraft and must include proper color-andmarkings.
Its fuselage may be profile, scale
built-up, or solid construction. Major
components (fuselage and wings) must be to
the same scale. Horizontal tail surfaces and
undercarriages are exempt from this
provision. No Scale judging or Scale points
will be awarded.
5) Landing gear is required since all
flights will be ROG (rise-off-ground).
6) Three attempts will be allowed to
make two official flights. The fastest of the
two official flights will be used for scoring.
7) The speed run will be timed for six
laps (1/4 mile), beginning one lap after the
pilot’s signal.
8) Whipping, leading, or towing is
prohibited.
9) The contest committee will provide the
control lines.
10) Only one model per entrant is
allowed.
11) Proxy fliers are allowed.
Frank Beatty’s new 1/2A Goodyear Speed event
February 2008 159
02sig5.QXD 12/20/07 1:30 PM Page 159160 MODEL AVIATION
The rules are set to accomplish several
things, one of which is not to have the event
ruined by technical whizzes with deep
pockets whose models can overpower
everyone else’s. Another goal is to include
some of the older pilots who have equilibrium
problems by allowing proxy fliers.
Rule 4 insists that all major components
be the same scale. However, it acknowledges
that the full-scale racers’ tail surfaces and
wheel locations may not be practical for our
models; therefore, they can be modified.
The contest committee’s providing the
control lines assures that all contestants will
be flying their models with the same line
lengths. The committee will also supply fuel,
therefore eliminating any advantage of one
fuel over another. This event will challenge
the modelers’ building and flying skills.
Frank has designed and built his own entry
for the event: the Mike Argander Special,
better known as the “Deerfly.” The model has
an 18-inch wingspan, weighs 8.3 ounces, and
is powered with a Cox .049 Venom.
The engine is mounted so that the cylinder
head lays on its side and is enclosed in the
model’s starboard cheek cowl. There is good
air intake for engine cooling and a small
opening to accommodate the glow-plug
connection. Enclosing the engine should help
provide better airflow over the model and
contribute to its flight speed.
Fuselage construction is sheet balsa, the
wing is covered with Polyspan, and tail
surfaces are made from plywood. All colorand-
markings are applied using Brodak
dopes.
Frank reports that on October 21, 2007,
the Esquadrille added the Goodyear event to
its annual Old Time CL contest. The weather
was uncooperative, with high winds, and the
turnout was down from previous years. Frank
had provided club members with roughly 10
Goodyear Racer three-views for the event, but
only four entries completed successful flights.
Alan Van Artsdalen’s profile Fang won
the event with a speed of 58.71 mph, and Tim
Pansic’s Nemesis, with a built-up fuselage,
placed second with 54.69 mph. Frank’s
Deerfly trailed in third place with a speed of
46.39 mph. He noted that the new airplanes
had some difficulty keeping level flight
because of the wind conditions, which kept
the speed down on all entries.
Although the event wasn’t as successful
as might have been expected, the Lafayette
Esquadrille has to be complimented for its
interest in holding a local event in which
Scale building and flying are promoted.
Perhaps next year there will be better
flight conditions and a larger turnout.
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation (formerly
known as Scale Model Research) has
released the 233-page, 22nd edition catalog
on CD. It lists more than 8,200 Foto-Paaks
and 39,000 three-view drawings, and it
includes Scale-related articles written by
some top competitors and authorities in the
Scale movement.
The Foto-Paaks contain full-color 31/2 x
5-inch photo prints that show details of
color, markings, instruments, landing gear,
etc. Photos can be ordered in the 4 x 6-
inch format upon request. Most of the
Foto-Paaks have three-view drawings
available that will enable the Scale
modeler to have complete documentation
for a project.
You can obtain the latest edition of
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation (CD
Catalog) for $5 postage-paid in the US,
Canada, and Mexico. Other countries pay
$8, which includes Air Post.
E-Mail Correction: In the October 2007
column I noted that Fran Gallawy was
asking for some help with CL electricpowered
flight. He said that he had enough
land to make his own flying circle but did
not want to use glow or gas engines
because of the noise they generate.
Fran would appreciate any help
someone might be able to provide. I would
like to be copied in on any information
provided for possible use in the column.
Fran’s correct E-mail address is
[email protected]. (The character before the
@ symbol is the number 1.)
In the next column I’ll be featuring a 1/2A
multiengine Profile CL Scale contest
sponsored by the Cholla Choppers Model
Airplane Club of Tucson, Arizona. This
new event is the brainchild of Mike
Keville, who is the founder of the Vintage
Stunt Championships, which is
approaching its 20th year.
The Inside Loop
Continued from page 6
Please send ideas, notice of upcoming
CL Scale events, contest reports, and
especially photos of CL Scale activity to
me at the E-mail address at the top of this
column. If you prefer regular mail, the
address is 77-06 269th St., New Hyde
Park NY 11040. Remember that 35mm
photos are okay, but digital photos must
be submitted on a disc.
Til next time, keep all your landings
good ones. MA
Sources:
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
(714) 979-8058
www.bobsairdoc.com
in the bare bones, but the level of detail
was impressive.
I was inspired and poked my nose
around the sticks and wire as much as I
could. The nice thing about Doug’s Ed
Andrews model was that it maintained the
giant greenhouse cockpit because it had a
prototypical steel-tube frame.
Doug was well on his way to a Scale
Masters-winning aircraft and had already
documented a lot of the building sequence.
His project reminded me of those hours
spent in my father’s workshop, just
hanging out watching him work on
something. Even though I was not doing
any of the work, it was as though I was
absorbing his talent.
“The Storch and Me” article is Doug’s
short account of the project, along with a
number of juicy photos. There’s a great
deal to tell about an undertaking such as
this, so we’ve shown off his work in the
magazine.
But for an even more detailed account,
more photos, and a video, click your way
to the MA Web site (www.modelair
craft.org/mag/index.htm) for this new
exclusive online feature. Let’s hope that
some of Doug’s talent in these pages spills
over into your modeling project. MA
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