Control Line Scale — Bill Boss
Joe Sroczyk's decked-out Twin Comanche—from a kit
The great-looking Piper Twin Comanche shown in this month's column is the fine work of Joe Sroczyk of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It has a wingspan of 72 inches, a length of 48 inches, and it weighs 15 pounds. Joe constructed the Comanche from a Jack Stafford kit, and it is powered with two SuperTigre .51 engines.
The model is controlled with a specially made seven-channel electronic system. Elevator control is via a two-line bellcrank system. Other operating features are a retractable landing-gear system, landing flaps, landing lights, a rotating beacon, throttle control, and engine cutoff, all operated via the electronic system.
The Comanche has a fully detailed cockpit, instrument panel, and cabin doors that open and close. The color scheme and markings were taken from a Twin Comanche that James B. Aaron of Oxnard, California, owned at one time.
Joe used Perfect Paints on the model; the colors are Insignia Blue, Gloss White, and Light Gray. He reports that the Comanche is a great performer in the air as well as during takeoff, landing, and ground handling for taxiing.
In a previous column I wrote about dropping the Precision Scale class and what a difference it might make in how a good scale model gets started. The Comanche is a finely detailed and competitive model that can be turned out using a kit as a starting point. Would this model look any different and be better detailed if it were built from scratch?
I hope many more of you CL Scale modelers out there are doing the same thing as Joe Sroczyk: building from kits. If you are, I would like to hear about your projects. Who knows? Maybe we can put some fun and enjoyment back into CL Scale modeling.
New Event: 1/2A Multi-Engine Profile Scale
In the February 2008 column I explored a new 1/2A engine event that Frank Beatty of Granite City, Illinois, created. This month I am following that theme, but with a twist.
Mike Keville of Tucson, Arizona, who is known for his involvement in the Vintage Stunt movement, originated another 1/2A, or small-engine-type, event that promotes CL Scale: 1/2A Multi-Engine Profile Scale. This class was included in a contest the Cholla Choppers Model Airplane Club of Tucson ran Saturday and Sunday, October 13–14, 2007. Static judging and practice flying took place Saturday, and Sunday was set aside for a pilots' meeting and flight judging.
- Allowable aircraft are profile multi-engine models of heavier-than-air piston or turboprop aircraft only.
- The maximum fuselage and nacelle width is 1 inch. Cowlings are limited to no more than 1.5 inches wide. Small models may use less thickness and/or width.
- Glow or diesel engines—not to exceed .061 cu. in. displacement—are permitted. Neither throttles nor mufflers are required.
- Proof of scale is required in the form of three-views and photographs and/or other proof of color and markings. Documentation should be presented in an organized booklet or notebook format.
- Minimum line diameters:
- For a total displacement of less than 0.25 cu. in.: .012" stranded or .010" solid (two- or three-line systems).
- For a total displacement of more than 0.25 cu. in.: .015" stranded or .012" solid (two- or three-line systems).
- There are no line-length restrictions other than a maximum length of 70 feet because of the site’s asphalt "doughnut rings."
To qualify, models must fly a minimum of 10 full laps with all engines running. No qualifying flight equals no points. No bonus points are given for ground or in-flight options.
Flight order is assigned via a random drawing upon completion of static judging. Pilots have a strict time limit of three minutes per engine to get the model airborne, but they have an unlimited number of attempts to make an official flight. The unrestricted number of flight attempts is meant to put some fun into the event and give all contestants the opportunity to make a qualifying flight.
This multi-engine event differs considerably from the 1/2A Goodyear Midget Racer event I featured in the last column. The 1/2A Profile Scale event features model judging that is similar to Sport Scale, in that models are judged for accuracy of outline, color and markings, workmanship, etc.
Models are examined and awarded points as follows:
- Accuracy of outlines/shapes: 0–20
- Color and markings: 0–20
- Workmanship: 0–20
- Qualifying flights: 0 or 20 ("Do or die")
- Charisma: 0–20
Although maneuvers and other in-flight options may be considered, they will not necessarily provide an advantage compared to other scoring items. This event is intended to be simple and to encourage modelers to build small multi-engine scale ships. I hope other clubs will consider holding it. If you try it at your site, let me know how it turns out.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
