Final vote for the rules proposals in September - 2012/07

The 2013 rules cycle is proceeding
through the voting process. By
the time you read this, the initial
voting results will have been posted, and
the process of selecting proposals to go
to the  nal ballot will be well along.
I’ll not comment on what rules are
still under consideration, because I’m
writing this
before the initial
voting has been
completed. The
rules-change
proposals, crossproposals,
and
voting results are
posted on the
AMA website. You’ll
 nd all you need there
to participate in the
process.
You have until the end of
August to provide input to your
Contest Board representatives for
consideration before the  nal vote in
September. If the rules we  y under are
important to you, contact your board
representative to voice your opinion.
.15 Carrier
Eric Conley’s .15 Carrier model was
mentioned in the last column, and I
promised an update. I had a chance
to see the model  y at the Southwest
Regionals in
Tucson, Arizona,
last January, and
snapped the
accompanying
photograph.
It is a goodlooking
model
with much
effort devoted to
reducing weight.
The carbon-rod
fuselage is a major
help in the weight
department,
allowing a
32-ounce readyto-
 y weight. That
seems heavier
than some .15
models, but with
254 square inches
of wing area, the
weight seems
quite good.
The low wing
loading allowed
for excellent low
speed—6.7 mph
(41/2 minutes)—at Tucson. Weight and
area are not far removed from those of
John Vlna’s foam Sea re, mentioned in
the last column, but Eric’s model has a
larger battery pack. Larger is de nitely a
characteristic of some of the newer .15
models.
For power, Eric uses an AXI 2820/8
motor turning an APC electric 9 x 6P
propeller. The battery is a Thunder
Power 3300 3S, and motor speed control
is by a JETI 70 Opto Plus.
Another new .15 model is  ying
this year out of Gary Hull’s hangar in
Lakewood, Ohio. Gary’s model is an
F-Faux Phantom Too, which is patterned
after a Stunt model by Bill Suraez that
was published as a three-view in the
June 1971 American Aircraft Modeler.
It’s a great-looking model, as you can
see from the photo, and not a surprise
coming from Gary.
The F-Faux has a wing area of 160
square inches and weighs in at slightly
more than 21 ounces, making it a more
traditional size for the event.
Electric Carrier
Electric Carrier is increasing in
popularity with new models showing
up this season. I’ll occasionally include
details of various electric-powered
models to let you see what is being used,
as well as to illustrate the variety of
options available to someone venturing
into electric-powered Carrier  ying.
There are proposals to include electric
options in the Navy Carrier events
starting in 2013, and they are already
unofficial events of the Navy Carrier
Society.
At the Southwest Regionals, there
were two new models for Class I and
Class II Electric events. Pete Mazur
brought his new Class I Bearcat, which
was developed from an ARF RC model.
There is a boom in ARF RC, with
many offerings of military aircraft
suitable for our events and sized
reasonably to allow them to be flown as
Class I or II models with electric power.
Most are designed for electric power
from the beginning and take advantage
of the steady, no-vibration power sources
to allow the models to be quite light.
Pete’s Bearcat has a Scorpion SII
3020-1110 Kv motor turning an APC
9 x 6P electric propeller, which allowed
it to fly a 25-second (72 mph) high
speed. Power came from a Thunder
Power 2100 4S battery and a Castle
Phoenix ICE Lite 100 ESC.
An interesting phenomenon
eliminated Pete’s model from
competition at the Regionals. The ARF
kits are designed to be light, but they
aren’t necessarily designed to take the
loads imposed by arrested landings in
Navy Carrier.
With Pete’s battery and motor
applying inertial forces to the firewall
during the landing, the firewall mount’s
structural strength was exceeded,
causing the nose to continue forward
after the fuselage came to a stop. It’s a
good idea to ensure that loads are well
distributed along the fuselage skin and
other load-bearing members.
Pete took a slightly different approach
to the motor speed control problem,
using a Clancy speed controller
mounted in a homemade handle and
driving the ESC in the aircraft directly
through the lines. This allowed him to
save a couple of ounces on the aircraft
by using a lighter two-line bellcrank
and eliminating the potentiometer and
Clancy controller as part of the airborne
package.
Such a system also allows the use of
controllers without a battery elimination
circuit, which is often necessary with
higher-voltage controllers.
Eric Conley’s new MO-1 electric
Class II model is performing well.
Its 95.5 mph high speed and low
speed of 7.6 mph (4 minutes) make
it probably the best electric-powered
Class II presently in existence. Power is a
Scorpion 3226-1400 Kv motor turning a
Zinger 9 x 7P propeller. The battery is a
5000 mAh 4S 30C unit going through a
150-amp controller.
Eric is doing well with all of his
electrics. His .15 model (mentioned
earlier) has placed consistently at the top
of the .15 contests in which it has flown.
His e-Profile Bf 109 manages slightly less
than 90 mph and his Class II MO-1 flies
at 95-plus mph.
That, coupled with Eric’s low-speed
flying skills, has him pushing toward the
scores of the AMA classes. However, top
speeds are still far from matching the
best of the internal combustion engines.
Fly Navy
Fly Navy is a book by Brian Johnson
that outlines the development of naval
aviation from its beginning through the
1970s. It concentrates on British and
United States histories, but there is a
fairly complete discussion of the other
countries that developed carrier aviation
before World War II, most notably Japan.
It has many interesting photographs,
including what looks like a Grumman
TBF Avenger landing over the bow of
USS Yorktown as it steams backward!
There is also a shot of the open bow
of the Royal Navy’s HMS Courageous,
showing where aircraft could be
launched directly off the hangar deck.
Ron Duly was kind enough to send
me a copy of the book. It’s a great read,
and although it was originally published
in 1981, one can find new or used copies
on such websites as Amazon.com.