I HAVE A short
intro this month,
because space is at a
premium and I have
a lot of stuff to tell
you. Trade shows are
finished and flying
season has officially
begun!
If you’ve read my
columns for long,
you might know that
I’m a big fan of my Castle Creations ESCs. Contrary to rumors,
columnists don’t get free stuff from all suppliers. So we try to spend our
money wisely, and I tend to write about items I’ve bought and really like.
I love the programmability of Castle Creations ESCs, and the Castle
Link USB device has served me well. But what happens when I’m at
the field and want to change a setting? I have to go through the dreaded
process of programming using the transmitter—something I hate
regardless of ESC brand.
The people at Castle Creations must have been listening to the
whining, because they have come up with a new programming card
that does all of that without the computer and is a USB link if you want
to use the computer software. It’s the Field Link Portable Programmer.
Wow! I am impressed with this card! I can easily plug it into an
airplane at the field and quickly see what all the settings are and change
them if needed. This is the one thing that has been missing from the
company’s line of products, and it stepped up in a big way.
For approximately $30, you can’t go wrong with the Field Link. I
highly recommend it if you’re using Castle Creations ESCs.
Cannibalization 101: A couple columns ago I showed my ParkZone
Sukhoi and how the radio inside could be removed, when the airplane
is trashed, and transferred to something else. This brought in a fair
amount of e-mail and some photos of your projects.
It seems like many of you are cannibalizing these little model gems
and using the radios in your own designs. Some of you have built a
model for the first time! That’s what I’m talking about, and that’s what
will give you the thrill of seeing your own creation fly!
Check out the photo of Greg Allen’s little Extra. He sent me several
photos and a great deal of information. Following are his words in an
edited length.
“The pictures of the micro Patty Wagstaff (alongside my Great
Planes 25%) was first inspired when I had mostly destroyed my
ParkZone Cessna. I loved that plane, but was fairly excited to not feel
guilty about ripping the guts out to put them in something of my own
design.
“The plane was built mostly with 1/16 inch balsa and was tissue
covered and doped. It sported the same weight of the Cessna, had a
13.5 inch wingspan and aileron and elevator control.
“It was a little gutless with the stock power system and so I
purchased a 7mm motor with a 4:1 gearbox and Deidel prop from BSD
micro. With the new power system I was able to easily do repeated
loops, rudimentary rolling circles and other aileron/elevator
maneuvers.”
Greg also passed along the following helpful information, in case
you run into a programming problem with your DX6i radio when
changing motors. It’s a great tip!
“The problem that arose was when I was programming back to
Also included in this column:
• Cannibals are good
• Roadkill isn’t just for dinner
• I love a TattleTale!
• Kit bashing is alive
Castle Creations steps up again!
June 2010 99
Electrics Greg Gimlick | [email protected]
This is the new Field Link Portable Programmer from Castle Creations.
Xtreme Power Systems offers the new TattleTale voltage monitor that
plugs directly into a receiver and weighs only 1.75 grams.
Greg Allen built this cool little Extra using the
guts from his ParkZone Cessna. It’s dwarfed
by his larger 1/4-scale version.
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:57 AM Page 99
100 MODEL AVIATION
brushed motor operation after some mediocre
results with some brushless motor systems. I
went to reprogram the darn thing and it
wouldn’t take.
“After many failed attempts, I just about
gave up and then decided to just start trying
stick positions. After about an hour and a few
choice words, I found the stick positions that I
had to use to get my DX6I to program it back
to brushed mode. It was to put the throttle
rudder stick in the upper right corner and let
the aileron/elevator stick stay neutral.
“I hope this helps others who may have
run into similar issues.”
Roadkill? You Bet! Okay, even retired
helicopter pilots don’t eat roadkill, but I do
love the DJ Aerotech Roadkill Series of
profile indoor flyers. Don Stackhouse and Joe
Hahn are experts in design and execution
when it comes to models.
Don e-mailed me the following.
“I thought I’d mention some experiments
Joe Hahn has been working on recently. He
cannibalized the ultra-tiny radio gear, battery
and motor from a Parkzone Sukhoi and
installed them in one of our Roadkill Series
A6M2 Zeros.
“The result weighed about an ounce, ready
to fly, roughly a third of the all-up flying
weight with conventional equipment. It flies
great, no surprise there! He’s now
experimenting with a similar setup in one of
our Corsairs, and I’m going to try it soon with
one of our Jennies.”
I’ll be eager to see the newly reconfigured
airplanes fly. I’ve never seen one of Joe’s or
Don’s projects that didn’t end up flying great
by the time the experiments were finalized.
Everyone Needs a TattleTale: Forget what
you were told as a kid; being a tattletale isn’t
bad, if you’re reporting on the new voltage
monitoring device from Xtreme Power
Systems (XPS). This is a great little product,
and it answers any questions you have about
receiver power in your setup.
With the influx of digital servos, spread
spectrum radios, and a host of other currentdraining
devices that we’re putting in our
aircraft, I’m hearing more pilots talk about
“losing it” in flight. Blame is placed on new
receivers, regardless of brand, and being “hit,”
although that excuse is weak with 2.4 GHz.
Talking to the various manufacturers has
revealed to me that 99% of “radio problems”
can be traced back to unreliable or undersized
receiver battery packs or BEC units. Some
receivers, such as the ones from XPS, have
LEDs to indicate whether the power dropped
below minimums during a flight, but others
don’t have this capability.
XPS has come up with the TattleTale unit
that will monitor voltage levels on any radio
system. You simply plug it into an empty slot
on the receiver or use a Y cord if they’re all full.
The device is fully programmable and can
even double as a flight timer, giving a bright
white LED indication when the time has been
reached. What a great idea, for night-flyers
especially.
Weighing less than a gram and being so
tiny makes the TattleTale perfect for any
model. I bought one and quickly got a couple
more to keep track of things in my airplanes
and helicopters. You can’t buy more peace of
mind for $20.
Helicopter Hobbies has had a change in
ownership. I’ve shown photos of my QJ-8 and
QJ-10 from Quick of Japan. I’ve also written
about Harold Little’s excellent service from
Helicopter Hobbies.
Harold is staying on as a technical advisor,
but he sold the business to Jude Charles-Pierre,
who is completely revising the Web site and
making some changes that Harold is very big on.
By the time you read this, the new site
should be up and running. There will be a new
shopping cart, new products, and more
inventory in stock, along with the usual great
tech support and service.
Lance Novak of Savannah, Georgia, sent me a
photo of his newly finished Su-27 that he kitbashed
from an Art-Tech Su-27 ARF. Originally
painted in Russian Knights air show colors,
Lance repainted it to match Soviet Air Force
colors.
He also added lots of scale details to trick it
out. He installed a machine gun and laser aiming
pod, painted engine nacelles, a nd added
aluminum scale-size intakes, a working strobe
light, and high-intensity orange LEDs at each
engine that light while running and provide a
glow inside the engine exhausts!
Another cool addition is a bungee hook
that falls off after launch. Rather than using a
hook, Lance inserts a rod into a brass
receptacle in the bottom of the airplane. When
the Su-27 leaves the catapult and begins to
climb, the rod falls off, leaving a nice, clean
fuselage bottom. Cool idea.
Rich Uravitch has had some articles
published in Model Airplane News lately that
show how to dress up an ARF with details, and
Lance Novak tricked out a
stock Su-27 ARF. It has LED
displays that make the engine
exhausts glow.
This Roadkill Series A6M2 Zero
from DJ Aerotech belongs to
Joe Hahn. He outfitted it with
his radio and motor setup
from the ParkZone Sukhoi.
Quick of Japan helicopters—the QJ-8 and slightly larger QJ-10—from Helicopter Hobbies are
great all-anodized-aluminum machines. The author has one of each!
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:58 AM Page 100
they are excellent. ARFs are a way of life
now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t fix them
up and trick them out to make them unique.
Great work, guys!
LCAA 11th Annual Electric Fly: The
Loudoun County Aeromodelers (LCAA) is
hosting its electric fly-in in Leesburg,
Virginia, on Saturday July 24, 2010. The
location is the LCAA Flying Field in Banshee
Reeks Park.
Registration and flying starts at 9 a.m. and
goes till 5 p.m. An AMA membership card is
required for registration, which is $5 and
includes lunch for the pilots. Food and a raffle
will be available.
Vendors are welcomed to bring tables.
Participants, bring your park flyers, slow
flyers, sport flyers, helicopters, and electricducted-
fan aircraft.
Visit the LCAA Web site for information
about the event. You can contact Brian Allen
or Ron Anderson for additional details.
Final Approach: That’s it for space and I
still have more to write. It helps when you
send in your thoughts and photos! I’ll be
back next time. MA
Sources:
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
ParkZone
(800) 338-4639
www.parkzone.com
BSD Micro
(417) 358-9521
www.bsdmicrorc.com
DJ Aerotech
(937) 773-6772
www.djaerotech.com
Xtreme Power Systems
2440 N. Kiowa Blvd.
Lake Havasu City AZ 86403
www.xtremepowersystems.net
Helicopter Hobbies
(704) 624-6473
www.helicopterhobbies.com
June 2010 101
LCAA
www.lcaa.org
Brian Allen
[email protected]
Ron Anderson
[email protected]
Greg Gimlick’s blog:
www.gimlick.com/maelectricsblog
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/06
Page Numbers: 99,100,101
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/06
Page Numbers: 99,100,101
I HAVE A short
intro this month,
because space is at a
premium and I have
a lot of stuff to tell
you. Trade shows are
finished and flying
season has officially
begun!
If you’ve read my
columns for long,
you might know that
I’m a big fan of my Castle Creations ESCs. Contrary to rumors,
columnists don’t get free stuff from all suppliers. So we try to spend our
money wisely, and I tend to write about items I’ve bought and really like.
I love the programmability of Castle Creations ESCs, and the Castle
Link USB device has served me well. But what happens when I’m at
the field and want to change a setting? I have to go through the dreaded
process of programming using the transmitter—something I hate
regardless of ESC brand.
The people at Castle Creations must have been listening to the
whining, because they have come up with a new programming card
that does all of that without the computer and is a USB link if you want
to use the computer software. It’s the Field Link Portable Programmer.
Wow! I am impressed with this card! I can easily plug it into an
airplane at the field and quickly see what all the settings are and change
them if needed. This is the one thing that has been missing from the
company’s line of products, and it stepped up in a big way.
For approximately $30, you can’t go wrong with the Field Link. I
highly recommend it if you’re using Castle Creations ESCs.
Cannibalization 101: A couple columns ago I showed my ParkZone
Sukhoi and how the radio inside could be removed, when the airplane
is trashed, and transferred to something else. This brought in a fair
amount of e-mail and some photos of your projects.
It seems like many of you are cannibalizing these little model gems
and using the radios in your own designs. Some of you have built a
model for the first time! That’s what I’m talking about, and that’s what
will give you the thrill of seeing your own creation fly!
Check out the photo of Greg Allen’s little Extra. He sent me several
photos and a great deal of information. Following are his words in an
edited length.
“The pictures of the micro Patty Wagstaff (alongside my Great
Planes 25%) was first inspired when I had mostly destroyed my
ParkZone Cessna. I loved that plane, but was fairly excited to not feel
guilty about ripping the guts out to put them in something of my own
design.
“The plane was built mostly with 1/16 inch balsa and was tissue
covered and doped. It sported the same weight of the Cessna, had a
13.5 inch wingspan and aileron and elevator control.
“It was a little gutless with the stock power system and so I
purchased a 7mm motor with a 4:1 gearbox and Deidel prop from BSD
micro. With the new power system I was able to easily do repeated
loops, rudimentary rolling circles and other aileron/elevator
maneuvers.”
Greg also passed along the following helpful information, in case
you run into a programming problem with your DX6i radio when
changing motors. It’s a great tip!
“The problem that arose was when I was programming back to
Also included in this column:
• Cannibals are good
• Roadkill isn’t just for dinner
• I love a TattleTale!
• Kit bashing is alive
Castle Creations steps up again!
June 2010 99
Electrics Greg Gimlick | [email protected]
This is the new Field Link Portable Programmer from Castle Creations.
Xtreme Power Systems offers the new TattleTale voltage monitor that
plugs directly into a receiver and weighs only 1.75 grams.
Greg Allen built this cool little Extra using the
guts from his ParkZone Cessna. It’s dwarfed
by his larger 1/4-scale version.
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:57 AM Page 99
100 MODEL AVIATION
brushed motor operation after some mediocre
results with some brushless motor systems. I
went to reprogram the darn thing and it
wouldn’t take.
“After many failed attempts, I just about
gave up and then decided to just start trying
stick positions. After about an hour and a few
choice words, I found the stick positions that I
had to use to get my DX6I to program it back
to brushed mode. It was to put the throttle
rudder stick in the upper right corner and let
the aileron/elevator stick stay neutral.
“I hope this helps others who may have
run into similar issues.”
Roadkill? You Bet! Okay, even retired
helicopter pilots don’t eat roadkill, but I do
love the DJ Aerotech Roadkill Series of
profile indoor flyers. Don Stackhouse and Joe
Hahn are experts in design and execution
when it comes to models.
Don e-mailed me the following.
“I thought I’d mention some experiments
Joe Hahn has been working on recently. He
cannibalized the ultra-tiny radio gear, battery
and motor from a Parkzone Sukhoi and
installed them in one of our Roadkill Series
A6M2 Zeros.
“The result weighed about an ounce, ready
to fly, roughly a third of the all-up flying
weight with conventional equipment. It flies
great, no surprise there! He’s now
experimenting with a similar setup in one of
our Corsairs, and I’m going to try it soon with
one of our Jennies.”
I’ll be eager to see the newly reconfigured
airplanes fly. I’ve never seen one of Joe’s or
Don’s projects that didn’t end up flying great
by the time the experiments were finalized.
Everyone Needs a TattleTale: Forget what
you were told as a kid; being a tattletale isn’t
bad, if you’re reporting on the new voltage
monitoring device from Xtreme Power
Systems (XPS). This is a great little product,
and it answers any questions you have about
receiver power in your setup.
With the influx of digital servos, spread
spectrum radios, and a host of other currentdraining
devices that we’re putting in our
aircraft, I’m hearing more pilots talk about
“losing it” in flight. Blame is placed on new
receivers, regardless of brand, and being “hit,”
although that excuse is weak with 2.4 GHz.
Talking to the various manufacturers has
revealed to me that 99% of “radio problems”
can be traced back to unreliable or undersized
receiver battery packs or BEC units. Some
receivers, such as the ones from XPS, have
LEDs to indicate whether the power dropped
below minimums during a flight, but others
don’t have this capability.
XPS has come up with the TattleTale unit
that will monitor voltage levels on any radio
system. You simply plug it into an empty slot
on the receiver or use a Y cord if they’re all full.
The device is fully programmable and can
even double as a flight timer, giving a bright
white LED indication when the time has been
reached. What a great idea, for night-flyers
especially.
Weighing less than a gram and being so
tiny makes the TattleTale perfect for any
model. I bought one and quickly got a couple
more to keep track of things in my airplanes
and helicopters. You can’t buy more peace of
mind for $20.
Helicopter Hobbies has had a change in
ownership. I’ve shown photos of my QJ-8 and
QJ-10 from Quick of Japan. I’ve also written
about Harold Little’s excellent service from
Helicopter Hobbies.
Harold is staying on as a technical advisor,
but he sold the business to Jude Charles-Pierre,
who is completely revising the Web site and
making some changes that Harold is very big on.
By the time you read this, the new site
should be up and running. There will be a new
shopping cart, new products, and more
inventory in stock, along with the usual great
tech support and service.
Lance Novak of Savannah, Georgia, sent me a
photo of his newly finished Su-27 that he kitbashed
from an Art-Tech Su-27 ARF. Originally
painted in Russian Knights air show colors,
Lance repainted it to match Soviet Air Force
colors.
He also added lots of scale details to trick it
out. He installed a machine gun and laser aiming
pod, painted engine nacelles, a nd added
aluminum scale-size intakes, a working strobe
light, and high-intensity orange LEDs at each
engine that light while running and provide a
glow inside the engine exhausts!
Another cool addition is a bungee hook
that falls off after launch. Rather than using a
hook, Lance inserts a rod into a brass
receptacle in the bottom of the airplane. When
the Su-27 leaves the catapult and begins to
climb, the rod falls off, leaving a nice, clean
fuselage bottom. Cool idea.
Rich Uravitch has had some articles
published in Model Airplane News lately that
show how to dress up an ARF with details, and
Lance Novak tricked out a
stock Su-27 ARF. It has LED
displays that make the engine
exhausts glow.
This Roadkill Series A6M2 Zero
from DJ Aerotech belongs to
Joe Hahn. He outfitted it with
his radio and motor setup
from the ParkZone Sukhoi.
Quick of Japan helicopters—the QJ-8 and slightly larger QJ-10—from Helicopter Hobbies are
great all-anodized-aluminum machines. The author has one of each!
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:58 AM Page 100
they are excellent. ARFs are a way of life
now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t fix them
up and trick them out to make them unique.
Great work, guys!
LCAA 11th Annual Electric Fly: The
Loudoun County Aeromodelers (LCAA) is
hosting its electric fly-in in Leesburg,
Virginia, on Saturday July 24, 2010. The
location is the LCAA Flying Field in Banshee
Reeks Park.
Registration and flying starts at 9 a.m. and
goes till 5 p.m. An AMA membership card is
required for registration, which is $5 and
includes lunch for the pilots. Food and a raffle
will be available.
Vendors are welcomed to bring tables.
Participants, bring your park flyers, slow
flyers, sport flyers, helicopters, and electricducted-
fan aircraft.
Visit the LCAA Web site for information
about the event. You can contact Brian Allen
or Ron Anderson for additional details.
Final Approach: That’s it for space and I
still have more to write. It helps when you
send in your thoughts and photos! I’ll be
back next time. MA
Sources:
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
ParkZone
(800) 338-4639
www.parkzone.com
BSD Micro
(417) 358-9521
www.bsdmicrorc.com
DJ Aerotech
(937) 773-6772
www.djaerotech.com
Xtreme Power Systems
2440 N. Kiowa Blvd.
Lake Havasu City AZ 86403
www.xtremepowersystems.net
Helicopter Hobbies
(704) 624-6473
www.helicopterhobbies.com
June 2010 101
LCAA
www.lcaa.org
Brian Allen
[email protected]
Ron Anderson
[email protected]
Greg Gimlick’s blog:
www.gimlick.com/maelectricsblog
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/06
Page Numbers: 99,100,101
I HAVE A short
intro this month,
because space is at a
premium and I have
a lot of stuff to tell
you. Trade shows are
finished and flying
season has officially
begun!
If you’ve read my
columns for long,
you might know that
I’m a big fan of my Castle Creations ESCs. Contrary to rumors,
columnists don’t get free stuff from all suppliers. So we try to spend our
money wisely, and I tend to write about items I’ve bought and really like.
I love the programmability of Castle Creations ESCs, and the Castle
Link USB device has served me well. But what happens when I’m at
the field and want to change a setting? I have to go through the dreaded
process of programming using the transmitter—something I hate
regardless of ESC brand.
The people at Castle Creations must have been listening to the
whining, because they have come up with a new programming card
that does all of that without the computer and is a USB link if you want
to use the computer software. It’s the Field Link Portable Programmer.
Wow! I am impressed with this card! I can easily plug it into an
airplane at the field and quickly see what all the settings are and change
them if needed. This is the one thing that has been missing from the
company’s line of products, and it stepped up in a big way.
For approximately $30, you can’t go wrong with the Field Link. I
highly recommend it if you’re using Castle Creations ESCs.
Cannibalization 101: A couple columns ago I showed my ParkZone
Sukhoi and how the radio inside could be removed, when the airplane
is trashed, and transferred to something else. This brought in a fair
amount of e-mail and some photos of your projects.
It seems like many of you are cannibalizing these little model gems
and using the radios in your own designs. Some of you have built a
model for the first time! That’s what I’m talking about, and that’s what
will give you the thrill of seeing your own creation fly!
Check out the photo of Greg Allen’s little Extra. He sent me several
photos and a great deal of information. Following are his words in an
edited length.
“The pictures of the micro Patty Wagstaff (alongside my Great
Planes 25%) was first inspired when I had mostly destroyed my
ParkZone Cessna. I loved that plane, but was fairly excited to not feel
guilty about ripping the guts out to put them in something of my own
design.
“The plane was built mostly with 1/16 inch balsa and was tissue
covered and doped. It sported the same weight of the Cessna, had a
13.5 inch wingspan and aileron and elevator control.
“It was a little gutless with the stock power system and so I
purchased a 7mm motor with a 4:1 gearbox and Deidel prop from BSD
micro. With the new power system I was able to easily do repeated
loops, rudimentary rolling circles and other aileron/elevator
maneuvers.”
Greg also passed along the following helpful information, in case
you run into a programming problem with your DX6i radio when
changing motors. It’s a great tip!
“The problem that arose was when I was programming back to
Also included in this column:
• Cannibals are good
• Roadkill isn’t just for dinner
• I love a TattleTale!
• Kit bashing is alive
Castle Creations steps up again!
June 2010 99
Electrics Greg Gimlick | [email protected]
This is the new Field Link Portable Programmer from Castle Creations.
Xtreme Power Systems offers the new TattleTale voltage monitor that
plugs directly into a receiver and weighs only 1.75 grams.
Greg Allen built this cool little Extra using the
guts from his ParkZone Cessna. It’s dwarfed
by his larger 1/4-scale version.
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:57 AM Page 99
100 MODEL AVIATION
brushed motor operation after some mediocre
results with some brushless motor systems. I
went to reprogram the darn thing and it
wouldn’t take.
“After many failed attempts, I just about
gave up and then decided to just start trying
stick positions. After about an hour and a few
choice words, I found the stick positions that I
had to use to get my DX6I to program it back
to brushed mode. It was to put the throttle
rudder stick in the upper right corner and let
the aileron/elevator stick stay neutral.
“I hope this helps others who may have
run into similar issues.”
Roadkill? You Bet! Okay, even retired
helicopter pilots don’t eat roadkill, but I do
love the DJ Aerotech Roadkill Series of
profile indoor flyers. Don Stackhouse and Joe
Hahn are experts in design and execution
when it comes to models.
Don e-mailed me the following.
“I thought I’d mention some experiments
Joe Hahn has been working on recently. He
cannibalized the ultra-tiny radio gear, battery
and motor from a Parkzone Sukhoi and
installed them in one of our Roadkill Series
A6M2 Zeros.
“The result weighed about an ounce, ready
to fly, roughly a third of the all-up flying
weight with conventional equipment. It flies
great, no surprise there! He’s now
experimenting with a similar setup in one of
our Corsairs, and I’m going to try it soon with
one of our Jennies.”
I’ll be eager to see the newly reconfigured
airplanes fly. I’ve never seen one of Joe’s or
Don’s projects that didn’t end up flying great
by the time the experiments were finalized.
Everyone Needs a TattleTale: Forget what
you were told as a kid; being a tattletale isn’t
bad, if you’re reporting on the new voltage
monitoring device from Xtreme Power
Systems (XPS). This is a great little product,
and it answers any questions you have about
receiver power in your setup.
With the influx of digital servos, spread
spectrum radios, and a host of other currentdraining
devices that we’re putting in our
aircraft, I’m hearing more pilots talk about
“losing it” in flight. Blame is placed on new
receivers, regardless of brand, and being “hit,”
although that excuse is weak with 2.4 GHz.
Talking to the various manufacturers has
revealed to me that 99% of “radio problems”
can be traced back to unreliable or undersized
receiver battery packs or BEC units. Some
receivers, such as the ones from XPS, have
LEDs to indicate whether the power dropped
below minimums during a flight, but others
don’t have this capability.
XPS has come up with the TattleTale unit
that will monitor voltage levels on any radio
system. You simply plug it into an empty slot
on the receiver or use a Y cord if they’re all full.
The device is fully programmable and can
even double as a flight timer, giving a bright
white LED indication when the time has been
reached. What a great idea, for night-flyers
especially.
Weighing less than a gram and being so
tiny makes the TattleTale perfect for any
model. I bought one and quickly got a couple
more to keep track of things in my airplanes
and helicopters. You can’t buy more peace of
mind for $20.
Helicopter Hobbies has had a change in
ownership. I’ve shown photos of my QJ-8 and
QJ-10 from Quick of Japan. I’ve also written
about Harold Little’s excellent service from
Helicopter Hobbies.
Harold is staying on as a technical advisor,
but he sold the business to Jude Charles-Pierre,
who is completely revising the Web site and
making some changes that Harold is very big on.
By the time you read this, the new site
should be up and running. There will be a new
shopping cart, new products, and more
inventory in stock, along with the usual great
tech support and service.
Lance Novak of Savannah, Georgia, sent me a
photo of his newly finished Su-27 that he kitbashed
from an Art-Tech Su-27 ARF. Originally
painted in Russian Knights air show colors,
Lance repainted it to match Soviet Air Force
colors.
He also added lots of scale details to trick it
out. He installed a machine gun and laser aiming
pod, painted engine nacelles, a nd added
aluminum scale-size intakes, a working strobe
light, and high-intensity orange LEDs at each
engine that light while running and provide a
glow inside the engine exhausts!
Another cool addition is a bungee hook
that falls off after launch. Rather than using a
hook, Lance inserts a rod into a brass
receptacle in the bottom of the airplane. When
the Su-27 leaves the catapult and begins to
climb, the rod falls off, leaving a nice, clean
fuselage bottom. Cool idea.
Rich Uravitch has had some articles
published in Model Airplane News lately that
show how to dress up an ARF with details, and
Lance Novak tricked out a
stock Su-27 ARF. It has LED
displays that make the engine
exhausts glow.
This Roadkill Series A6M2 Zero
from DJ Aerotech belongs to
Joe Hahn. He outfitted it with
his radio and motor setup
from the ParkZone Sukhoi.
Quick of Japan helicopters—the QJ-8 and slightly larger QJ-10—from Helicopter Hobbies are
great all-anodized-aluminum machines. The author has one of each!
06sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 4/22/10 10:58 AM Page 100
they are excellent. ARFs are a way of life
now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t fix them
up and trick them out to make them unique.
Great work, guys!
LCAA 11th Annual Electric Fly: The
Loudoun County Aeromodelers (LCAA) is
hosting its electric fly-in in Leesburg,
Virginia, on Saturday July 24, 2010. The
location is the LCAA Flying Field in Banshee
Reeks Park.
Registration and flying starts at 9 a.m. and
goes till 5 p.m. An AMA membership card is
required for registration, which is $5 and
includes lunch for the pilots. Food and a raffle
will be available.
Vendors are welcomed to bring tables.
Participants, bring your park flyers, slow
flyers, sport flyers, helicopters, and electricducted-
fan aircraft.
Visit the LCAA Web site for information
about the event. You can contact Brian Allen
or Ron Anderson for additional details.
Final Approach: That’s it for space and I
still have more to write. It helps when you
send in your thoughts and photos! I’ll be
back next time. MA
Sources:
Castle Creations
(913) 390-6939
www.castlecreations.com
ParkZone
(800) 338-4639
www.parkzone.com
BSD Micro
(417) 358-9521
www.bsdmicrorc.com
DJ Aerotech
(937) 773-6772
www.djaerotech.com
Xtreme Power Systems
2440 N. Kiowa Blvd.
Lake Havasu City AZ 86403
www.xtremepowersystems.net
Helicopter Hobbies
(704) 624-6473
www.helicopterhobbies.com
June 2010 101
LCAA
www.lcaa.org
Brian Allen
[email protected]
Ron Anderson
[email protected]
Greg Gimlick’s blog:
www.gimlick.com/maelectricsblog
