98 MODEL AVIATION
about opposite wingtip weights, canted line
guides, offset thrust, or the effects of
dihedral.
“We then built a Midwest ‘Snorky’ (CL).
A few years back, my second electric RC
was a self designed crutch fuselage with a
box pylon for the wing based on that old
Snorky.”
The Comet 35 Edwin mentions was sold
by the familiar Comet Models but built for
the company by Earl Vivell pre-World War
II. After the war Vivell sold the power plant
with his name on it. Since it was one of the
first new engines available postwar (1945?),
I bought one by mail order.
I always suspected it was a Comet left
over from the prewar period. Nonetheless,
mine ran well. It was used in a Buccaneer C
Special FF and provided many hours of fun
tinkering and even flying.
THIS MONTH’S COLUMN will not
follow a theme, as has been the custom. I
thought you might enjoy some quick peeks
at unrelated subjects instead.
Actually, all the subjects are related since
they involve modelers having fun with their
hobby. They begin with a letter from Edwin
Moore of New Hampshire. He wrote:
“Regarding your April Flying for Fun;
this was read with great interest because my
father built a ‘Tethered Trainer’ about that
time (1944). It was framed of basswood or
poplar but I can’t remember the covering
(Silkspan?). He had gotten a prewar Comet
35 motor which we never got running. Either
he or I bought a Bullet .275 which ran well.
“He had me release the Tethered Trainer
on a baseball diamond and it promptly
slacked the lines and crashed at his feet.
Unfortunately, neither of us knew anything
Flying for Fun D.B. Mathews | [email protected]
A modeler’s early experiences
Also included in this column:
• The dividing line between
large models and full scale
• Readers write in
• Earl Hoffman: 94 years old!
• Twin pushers
• Thoughts about Aeronca’s
Champ
• Mystery airplane revealed
Lovely flight shot of Acme Models’ prototype of the 60-inchwingspan
7AC Champ kit. Solenberger photo.
Nick Kelez’s Aeronca Champ in a static pose. It’s a realistic
electric-powered model. Ed Solenberger photo.
The Cri-Cri—a petite French homebuilt ultralight—is hardly a
“one-of” project; more than 150 are currently flying.
Another look at June’s mystery model: a 1933 Hammond
Sportster, originally built by Ryan. It’s an odd airplane.
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:32 PM Page 98
Edwin had a negative childhood experience
with a model airplane, yet he persisted until he
was successful and then continued with the
hobby for more than 60 years. This raises the
question of what personality trait motivated him
so much? Countless youngsters have tried the
hobby, failed to fly their first models
successfully, and never returned.
Those of us who have persisted in modeling
in spite of the inevitable early disappointments
are different from the average person. I hold
that to be a virtue, but some would disagree. I
have pride in that difference, don’t you?
The Dividing Line: Have you noticed that
some model airplanes are reaching huge sizes
and that certain tiny man-carrying full-scale
designs are actually smaller than models? This
brings up the intriguing question of where
model airplanes end and Remotely Piloted
Vehicles (RPV) begin.
(Editor’s note: AMA has a model weight
limit of 55 pounds. Aircraft that exceed that
weight may be flown with a special waiver. See
the AMA Safety Code for a complete
explanation of this rule.)
Let’s compare a huge C-17 Globemaster
model built and flown in England and the tiny manned full-scale
Cri-Cri built in France. Both are powered with turbines, and their
empty weights are close.
The 1/9-scale Globemaster III was built in Great Britain for a 15-
part series on the Home and Leisure television network. The model is
powered by four JetCat P-120 turbines producing 108 pounds of
thrust.
The Globemaster weighs 250 pounds fueled, spans 20 feet, and
the top of the fin is 74 inches high. When I first saw the C-17 I
thought, this is a model airplane?
Michel Colomban designed the Cri-Cri in 1971, calling it his
daughter’s nickname in French: cricket. It is an all-metal homebuilt.
At one time Zenair Ltd. in Canada produced kits for it, but no longer.
The Cri-Cri will accommodate a wide range of engines including
those from large model airplanes, lawn mowers, motorcycles, and the
turbines. The AMT Olympus turbines from the Netherlands produce
a total of 80 pounds of thrust.
The Cri-Cri’s wing spans 4.9 meters (15.97 feet) and its empty
weight is 63 kilograms (139 pounds). The aircraft is capable of a
maximum speed, depending on power, of 250 kilometers per hour. It
will maintain altitude on one engine.
More than 150 Cri-Cris are currently flying in several countries.
October 2007 99
Midwest CL trainer kit featured simple crutch fuselage, precarved solid-balsa wing, and
box for ignition system and tank. Shown in June 1947 Model Airplane News.
Earl Hoffman (Santa Rosa CA) launches his rubber-powered twin
pusher. He is 94 years old.
This aircraft can be registered in the “Sportsman” category in the
US.
Young at Heart: I have included a photo of Earl Hoffman of
California launching his rubber-powered twin pusher. What is
astonishing is that Earl is 94 years of age.
When you start thinking you’re too old to be building and
flying, think about Earl. And I’ll bet he is not the oldest active
flier around, either.
Twin pushers have been around since at least the early 1900s.
The first published construction articles for flying models had
that layout.
Some SAM (Society of Antique Modelers) contests include an
event for twin pushers. They fly rather well, sometimes better
than newer designs, and they will thermal although they look odd
doing it.
Many of these old designs used hardwood—not balsa—
because balsa didn’t come onto the scene as a construction
material until much later. The hand-carved twin propellers were
contrarotating. The rubber was wound accordingly. These models
were covered with tissue and sealed with either banana oil or
nitrate dope.
Champ: During a tour of Alaska several years ago I couldn’t help
but notice the huge number of float-equipped aircraft bobbing on
seemingly every lake or river. The reason is obvious: Alaska has
very few roads, runways, or highways but many suitable places for
floatplanes.
In the more remote regions of Alaska’s interior, the only contact
with the outside world is by floatplane, helicopter, or, in a few
instances, primitive landing strips. Bush pilots have been delivering
everything (even groceries) since the 1920s.
There are no roads into the state capitol of Juneau. Fortunately
it is on the Pacific Ocean, but you can’t drive to and from it.
The variety of float-equipped aircraft I saw during my touring
was interesting. There were de Havilland twin-turboprop Otters,
Beavers, a ton of Cessna 170-182s, quite a few Aeronca Champs,
Piper Super Cubs and clones, but absolutely no Piper Cubs.
The Cub has enough power to get off the water but is too
underpowered to attain safe altitudes in the mountainous terrain. So
why were there Champs?
I was told that it was relatively simple to change the Champ’s
original 65-horsepower engine to an 85-horsepower or larger engine
with few visible exterior modifications. Increasing a Cub’s
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:36 PM Page 99
horsepower alters its appearance, and why
duplicate a Super Cub without flaps?
The Champ finishes second in the
modeling world to the ubiquitous J-3 Cub.
Back in the days of the RC kit, there were a
few, sometime inaccurate, renditions, but
there are few, if any, mid- to large-size
Champ ARFs.
Perhaps the unusual but scale
construction of the Aeronca 7AC’s fuselage
aft of the wing TE has something to do with
this. From the early Aeronca C Collegian to
the Tandem, all Aeronca fuselages were built
with an A frame from the back of the wing to
the tail. They are not a box, but a triangle.
The aft shape is built up over the triangle
with formers and stringers. For modeling
purposes this presents a problem in mounting
the aft portion of a removable wing.
In full scale the upper portion of the
cabin tapers rearward approximately
midchord of the wing. The few Champ
designs I recall that actually looked right at
the rear wing/fuselage joint used two-piece
plug-in wings and a built-in nonremovable
center-section.
I suspect that Aeronca stayed with the Aframe
fuselage for the economy of using
one-third less tubing, one-third fewer welds,
and perhaps the availability of suitable
fixtures already in the plant. The three-sided
fuselage would have been stronger as well.
The T, also known as the Defender, had
the first box-framed fuselage for Aeronca.
Subsequent developments returned to the Aframe
system, including the much later
Citabria and Decathlon.
The Champ in the photos is a prototype
for a future kit by Acme Aircraft (103
Lancewood Ct., Los Gatos CA 95032; Tel.:
[408] 482-5385). Nick Kelez is the builder,
and construction is close to true scale.
Covering is Hobby Lobby Polycover. The
model uses two 18-amp Li-Poly cells
running an AXI 22-20 motor with an 11 x 7
APC electric propeller and a Jeti 18-amp
speed control.
The landing gear is a fully articulated
sprung unit. The Champ spans 60 inches and
weighs 37 ounces.
If the model had a pilot in the cockpit,
wouldn’t the flight shot from Ed Solenberg
be almost impossible to differentiate from a
photo of a full-scale aircraft?
That Mystery Airplane: Remember that
odd bipe I featured in the June column? That
was a fun one. Glancing at the vertical fin
one thinks Fairchild, the landing gear looks a
bit like a Stearman, and the four ailerons
completely throw one off.
The mystery airplane is a 1933 Hammond
Sportster. (The same Hammond as in
Stearman-Hammond.) Remarkably, this
aircraft is still in flying condition. It is
powered with a 100-horsepower Kinner K-5
engine, spans 30 feet, and is 23 feet long.
The Sportster was modified from a Ryan
Speedster and then modified again by the
students at Parks Air College in Saint Louis,
Missouri. Then the Hammond brothers
acquired the rights and completed their
modifications just in time for them to drop
production plans.
As far as I can determine, only the
Sportster was ever built. Now that is rare,
particularly to still be flying.
How many of you readers were able to
find this aircraft? I found it when I was
looking through Internet sites for the
Stearman-Hammond and had never even
heard of it.
I’ve covered quite a variety of subjects this
month. Let’s hope you found something of
interest or enlightenment. In one form or
another I’ve showcased people flying for fun.
Sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?
Edition: Model Aviation - 2007/10
Page Numbers: 98,99,100
Edition: Model Aviation - 2007/10
Page Numbers: 98,99,100
98 MODEL AVIATION
about opposite wingtip weights, canted line
guides, offset thrust, or the effects of
dihedral.
“We then built a Midwest ‘Snorky’ (CL).
A few years back, my second electric RC
was a self designed crutch fuselage with a
box pylon for the wing based on that old
Snorky.”
The Comet 35 Edwin mentions was sold
by the familiar Comet Models but built for
the company by Earl Vivell pre-World War
II. After the war Vivell sold the power plant
with his name on it. Since it was one of the
first new engines available postwar (1945?),
I bought one by mail order.
I always suspected it was a Comet left
over from the prewar period. Nonetheless,
mine ran well. It was used in a Buccaneer C
Special FF and provided many hours of fun
tinkering and even flying.
THIS MONTH’S COLUMN will not
follow a theme, as has been the custom. I
thought you might enjoy some quick peeks
at unrelated subjects instead.
Actually, all the subjects are related since
they involve modelers having fun with their
hobby. They begin with a letter from Edwin
Moore of New Hampshire. He wrote:
“Regarding your April Flying for Fun;
this was read with great interest because my
father built a ‘Tethered Trainer’ about that
time (1944). It was framed of basswood or
poplar but I can’t remember the covering
(Silkspan?). He had gotten a prewar Comet
35 motor which we never got running. Either
he or I bought a Bullet .275 which ran well.
“He had me release the Tethered Trainer
on a baseball diamond and it promptly
slacked the lines and crashed at his feet.
Unfortunately, neither of us knew anything
Flying for Fun D.B. Mathews | [email protected]
A modeler’s early experiences
Also included in this column:
• The dividing line between
large models and full scale
• Readers write in
• Earl Hoffman: 94 years old!
• Twin pushers
• Thoughts about Aeronca’s
Champ
• Mystery airplane revealed
Lovely flight shot of Acme Models’ prototype of the 60-inchwingspan
7AC Champ kit. Solenberger photo.
Nick Kelez’s Aeronca Champ in a static pose. It’s a realistic
electric-powered model. Ed Solenberger photo.
The Cri-Cri—a petite French homebuilt ultralight—is hardly a
“one-of” project; more than 150 are currently flying.
Another look at June’s mystery model: a 1933 Hammond
Sportster, originally built by Ryan. It’s an odd airplane.
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:32 PM Page 98
Edwin had a negative childhood experience
with a model airplane, yet he persisted until he
was successful and then continued with the
hobby for more than 60 years. This raises the
question of what personality trait motivated him
so much? Countless youngsters have tried the
hobby, failed to fly their first models
successfully, and never returned.
Those of us who have persisted in modeling
in spite of the inevitable early disappointments
are different from the average person. I hold
that to be a virtue, but some would disagree. I
have pride in that difference, don’t you?
The Dividing Line: Have you noticed that
some model airplanes are reaching huge sizes
and that certain tiny man-carrying full-scale
designs are actually smaller than models? This
brings up the intriguing question of where
model airplanes end and Remotely Piloted
Vehicles (RPV) begin.
(Editor’s note: AMA has a model weight
limit of 55 pounds. Aircraft that exceed that
weight may be flown with a special waiver. See
the AMA Safety Code for a complete
explanation of this rule.)
Let’s compare a huge C-17 Globemaster
model built and flown in England and the tiny manned full-scale
Cri-Cri built in France. Both are powered with turbines, and their
empty weights are close.
The 1/9-scale Globemaster III was built in Great Britain for a 15-
part series on the Home and Leisure television network. The model is
powered by four JetCat P-120 turbines producing 108 pounds of
thrust.
The Globemaster weighs 250 pounds fueled, spans 20 feet, and
the top of the fin is 74 inches high. When I first saw the C-17 I
thought, this is a model airplane?
Michel Colomban designed the Cri-Cri in 1971, calling it his
daughter’s nickname in French: cricket. It is an all-metal homebuilt.
At one time Zenair Ltd. in Canada produced kits for it, but no longer.
The Cri-Cri will accommodate a wide range of engines including
those from large model airplanes, lawn mowers, motorcycles, and the
turbines. The AMT Olympus turbines from the Netherlands produce
a total of 80 pounds of thrust.
The Cri-Cri’s wing spans 4.9 meters (15.97 feet) and its empty
weight is 63 kilograms (139 pounds). The aircraft is capable of a
maximum speed, depending on power, of 250 kilometers per hour. It
will maintain altitude on one engine.
More than 150 Cri-Cris are currently flying in several countries.
October 2007 99
Midwest CL trainer kit featured simple crutch fuselage, precarved solid-balsa wing, and
box for ignition system and tank. Shown in June 1947 Model Airplane News.
Earl Hoffman (Santa Rosa CA) launches his rubber-powered twin
pusher. He is 94 years old.
This aircraft can be registered in the “Sportsman” category in the
US.
Young at Heart: I have included a photo of Earl Hoffman of
California launching his rubber-powered twin pusher. What is
astonishing is that Earl is 94 years of age.
When you start thinking you’re too old to be building and
flying, think about Earl. And I’ll bet he is not the oldest active
flier around, either.
Twin pushers have been around since at least the early 1900s.
The first published construction articles for flying models had
that layout.
Some SAM (Society of Antique Modelers) contests include an
event for twin pushers. They fly rather well, sometimes better
than newer designs, and they will thermal although they look odd
doing it.
Many of these old designs used hardwood—not balsa—
because balsa didn’t come onto the scene as a construction
material until much later. The hand-carved twin propellers were
contrarotating. The rubber was wound accordingly. These models
were covered with tissue and sealed with either banana oil or
nitrate dope.
Champ: During a tour of Alaska several years ago I couldn’t help
but notice the huge number of float-equipped aircraft bobbing on
seemingly every lake or river. The reason is obvious: Alaska has
very few roads, runways, or highways but many suitable places for
floatplanes.
In the more remote regions of Alaska’s interior, the only contact
with the outside world is by floatplane, helicopter, or, in a few
instances, primitive landing strips. Bush pilots have been delivering
everything (even groceries) since the 1920s.
There are no roads into the state capitol of Juneau. Fortunately
it is on the Pacific Ocean, but you can’t drive to and from it.
The variety of float-equipped aircraft I saw during my touring
was interesting. There were de Havilland twin-turboprop Otters,
Beavers, a ton of Cessna 170-182s, quite a few Aeronca Champs,
Piper Super Cubs and clones, but absolutely no Piper Cubs.
The Cub has enough power to get off the water but is too
underpowered to attain safe altitudes in the mountainous terrain. So
why were there Champs?
I was told that it was relatively simple to change the Champ’s
original 65-horsepower engine to an 85-horsepower or larger engine
with few visible exterior modifications. Increasing a Cub’s
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:36 PM Page 99
horsepower alters its appearance, and why
duplicate a Super Cub without flaps?
The Champ finishes second in the
modeling world to the ubiquitous J-3 Cub.
Back in the days of the RC kit, there were a
few, sometime inaccurate, renditions, but
there are few, if any, mid- to large-size
Champ ARFs.
Perhaps the unusual but scale
construction of the Aeronca 7AC’s fuselage
aft of the wing TE has something to do with
this. From the early Aeronca C Collegian to
the Tandem, all Aeronca fuselages were built
with an A frame from the back of the wing to
the tail. They are not a box, but a triangle.
The aft shape is built up over the triangle
with formers and stringers. For modeling
purposes this presents a problem in mounting
the aft portion of a removable wing.
In full scale the upper portion of the
cabin tapers rearward approximately
midchord of the wing. The few Champ
designs I recall that actually looked right at
the rear wing/fuselage joint used two-piece
plug-in wings and a built-in nonremovable
center-section.
I suspect that Aeronca stayed with the Aframe
fuselage for the economy of using
one-third less tubing, one-third fewer welds,
and perhaps the availability of suitable
fixtures already in the plant. The three-sided
fuselage would have been stronger as well.
The T, also known as the Defender, had
the first box-framed fuselage for Aeronca.
Subsequent developments returned to the Aframe
system, including the much later
Citabria and Decathlon.
The Champ in the photos is a prototype
for a future kit by Acme Aircraft (103
Lancewood Ct., Los Gatos CA 95032; Tel.:
[408] 482-5385). Nick Kelez is the builder,
and construction is close to true scale.
Covering is Hobby Lobby Polycover. The
model uses two 18-amp Li-Poly cells
running an AXI 22-20 motor with an 11 x 7
APC electric propeller and a Jeti 18-amp
speed control.
The landing gear is a fully articulated
sprung unit. The Champ spans 60 inches and
weighs 37 ounces.
If the model had a pilot in the cockpit,
wouldn’t the flight shot from Ed Solenberg
be almost impossible to differentiate from a
photo of a full-scale aircraft?
That Mystery Airplane: Remember that
odd bipe I featured in the June column? That
was a fun one. Glancing at the vertical fin
one thinks Fairchild, the landing gear looks a
bit like a Stearman, and the four ailerons
completely throw one off.
The mystery airplane is a 1933 Hammond
Sportster. (The same Hammond as in
Stearman-Hammond.) Remarkably, this
aircraft is still in flying condition. It is
powered with a 100-horsepower Kinner K-5
engine, spans 30 feet, and is 23 feet long.
The Sportster was modified from a Ryan
Speedster and then modified again by the
students at Parks Air College in Saint Louis,
Missouri. Then the Hammond brothers
acquired the rights and completed their
modifications just in time for them to drop
production plans.
As far as I can determine, only the
Sportster was ever built. Now that is rare,
particularly to still be flying.
How many of you readers were able to
find this aircraft? I found it when I was
looking through Internet sites for the
Stearman-Hammond and had never even
heard of it.
I’ve covered quite a variety of subjects this
month. Let’s hope you found something of
interest or enlightenment. In one form or
another I’ve showcased people flying for fun.
Sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?
Edition: Model Aviation - 2007/10
Page Numbers: 98,99,100
98 MODEL AVIATION
about opposite wingtip weights, canted line
guides, offset thrust, or the effects of
dihedral.
“We then built a Midwest ‘Snorky’ (CL).
A few years back, my second electric RC
was a self designed crutch fuselage with a
box pylon for the wing based on that old
Snorky.”
The Comet 35 Edwin mentions was sold
by the familiar Comet Models but built for
the company by Earl Vivell pre-World War
II. After the war Vivell sold the power plant
with his name on it. Since it was one of the
first new engines available postwar (1945?),
I bought one by mail order.
I always suspected it was a Comet left
over from the prewar period. Nonetheless,
mine ran well. It was used in a Buccaneer C
Special FF and provided many hours of fun
tinkering and even flying.
THIS MONTH’S COLUMN will not
follow a theme, as has been the custom. I
thought you might enjoy some quick peeks
at unrelated subjects instead.
Actually, all the subjects are related since
they involve modelers having fun with their
hobby. They begin with a letter from Edwin
Moore of New Hampshire. He wrote:
“Regarding your April Flying for Fun;
this was read with great interest because my
father built a ‘Tethered Trainer’ about that
time (1944). It was framed of basswood or
poplar but I can’t remember the covering
(Silkspan?). He had gotten a prewar Comet
35 motor which we never got running. Either
he or I bought a Bullet .275 which ran well.
“He had me release the Tethered Trainer
on a baseball diamond and it promptly
slacked the lines and crashed at his feet.
Unfortunately, neither of us knew anything
Flying for Fun D.B. Mathews | [email protected]
A modeler’s early experiences
Also included in this column:
• The dividing line between
large models and full scale
• Readers write in
• Earl Hoffman: 94 years old!
• Twin pushers
• Thoughts about Aeronca’s
Champ
• Mystery airplane revealed
Lovely flight shot of Acme Models’ prototype of the 60-inchwingspan
7AC Champ kit. Solenberger photo.
Nick Kelez’s Aeronca Champ in a static pose. It’s a realistic
electric-powered model. Ed Solenberger photo.
The Cri-Cri—a petite French homebuilt ultralight—is hardly a
“one-of” project; more than 150 are currently flying.
Another look at June’s mystery model: a 1933 Hammond
Sportster, originally built by Ryan. It’s an odd airplane.
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:32 PM Page 98
Edwin had a negative childhood experience
with a model airplane, yet he persisted until he
was successful and then continued with the
hobby for more than 60 years. This raises the
question of what personality trait motivated him
so much? Countless youngsters have tried the
hobby, failed to fly their first models
successfully, and never returned.
Those of us who have persisted in modeling
in spite of the inevitable early disappointments
are different from the average person. I hold
that to be a virtue, but some would disagree. I
have pride in that difference, don’t you?
The Dividing Line: Have you noticed that
some model airplanes are reaching huge sizes
and that certain tiny man-carrying full-scale
designs are actually smaller than models? This
brings up the intriguing question of where
model airplanes end and Remotely Piloted
Vehicles (RPV) begin.
(Editor’s note: AMA has a model weight
limit of 55 pounds. Aircraft that exceed that
weight may be flown with a special waiver. See
the AMA Safety Code for a complete
explanation of this rule.)
Let’s compare a huge C-17 Globemaster
model built and flown in England and the tiny manned full-scale
Cri-Cri built in France. Both are powered with turbines, and their
empty weights are close.
The 1/9-scale Globemaster III was built in Great Britain for a 15-
part series on the Home and Leisure television network. The model is
powered by four JetCat P-120 turbines producing 108 pounds of
thrust.
The Globemaster weighs 250 pounds fueled, spans 20 feet, and
the top of the fin is 74 inches high. When I first saw the C-17 I
thought, this is a model airplane?
Michel Colomban designed the Cri-Cri in 1971, calling it his
daughter’s nickname in French: cricket. It is an all-metal homebuilt.
At one time Zenair Ltd. in Canada produced kits for it, but no longer.
The Cri-Cri will accommodate a wide range of engines including
those from large model airplanes, lawn mowers, motorcycles, and the
turbines. The AMT Olympus turbines from the Netherlands produce
a total of 80 pounds of thrust.
The Cri-Cri’s wing spans 4.9 meters (15.97 feet) and its empty
weight is 63 kilograms (139 pounds). The aircraft is capable of a
maximum speed, depending on power, of 250 kilometers per hour. It
will maintain altitude on one engine.
More than 150 Cri-Cris are currently flying in several countries.
October 2007 99
Midwest CL trainer kit featured simple crutch fuselage, precarved solid-balsa wing, and
box for ignition system and tank. Shown in June 1947 Model Airplane News.
Earl Hoffman (Santa Rosa CA) launches his rubber-powered twin
pusher. He is 94 years old.
This aircraft can be registered in the “Sportsman” category in the
US.
Young at Heart: I have included a photo of Earl Hoffman of
California launching his rubber-powered twin pusher. What is
astonishing is that Earl is 94 years of age.
When you start thinking you’re too old to be building and
flying, think about Earl. And I’ll bet he is not the oldest active
flier around, either.
Twin pushers have been around since at least the early 1900s.
The first published construction articles for flying models had
that layout.
Some SAM (Society of Antique Modelers) contests include an
event for twin pushers. They fly rather well, sometimes better
than newer designs, and they will thermal although they look odd
doing it.
Many of these old designs used hardwood—not balsa—
because balsa didn’t come onto the scene as a construction
material until much later. The hand-carved twin propellers were
contrarotating. The rubber was wound accordingly. These models
were covered with tissue and sealed with either banana oil or
nitrate dope.
Champ: During a tour of Alaska several years ago I couldn’t help
but notice the huge number of float-equipped aircraft bobbing on
seemingly every lake or river. The reason is obvious: Alaska has
very few roads, runways, or highways but many suitable places for
floatplanes.
In the more remote regions of Alaska’s interior, the only contact
with the outside world is by floatplane, helicopter, or, in a few
instances, primitive landing strips. Bush pilots have been delivering
everything (even groceries) since the 1920s.
There are no roads into the state capitol of Juneau. Fortunately
it is on the Pacific Ocean, but you can’t drive to and from it.
The variety of float-equipped aircraft I saw during my touring
was interesting. There were de Havilland twin-turboprop Otters,
Beavers, a ton of Cessna 170-182s, quite a few Aeronca Champs,
Piper Super Cubs and clones, but absolutely no Piper Cubs.
The Cub has enough power to get off the water but is too
underpowered to attain safe altitudes in the mountainous terrain. So
why were there Champs?
I was told that it was relatively simple to change the Champ’s
original 65-horsepower engine to an 85-horsepower or larger engine
with few visible exterior modifications. Increasing a Cub’s
10sig4.QXD 8/22/07 12:36 PM Page 99
horsepower alters its appearance, and why
duplicate a Super Cub without flaps?
The Champ finishes second in the
modeling world to the ubiquitous J-3 Cub.
Back in the days of the RC kit, there were a
few, sometime inaccurate, renditions, but
there are few, if any, mid- to large-size
Champ ARFs.
Perhaps the unusual but scale
construction of the Aeronca 7AC’s fuselage
aft of the wing TE has something to do with
this. From the early Aeronca C Collegian to
the Tandem, all Aeronca fuselages were built
with an A frame from the back of the wing to
the tail. They are not a box, but a triangle.
The aft shape is built up over the triangle
with formers and stringers. For modeling
purposes this presents a problem in mounting
the aft portion of a removable wing.
In full scale the upper portion of the
cabin tapers rearward approximately
midchord of the wing. The few Champ
designs I recall that actually looked right at
the rear wing/fuselage joint used two-piece
plug-in wings and a built-in nonremovable
center-section.
I suspect that Aeronca stayed with the Aframe
fuselage for the economy of using
one-third less tubing, one-third fewer welds,
and perhaps the availability of suitable
fixtures already in the plant. The three-sided
fuselage would have been stronger as well.
The T, also known as the Defender, had
the first box-framed fuselage for Aeronca.
Subsequent developments returned to the Aframe
system, including the much later
Citabria and Decathlon.
The Champ in the photos is a prototype
for a future kit by Acme Aircraft (103
Lancewood Ct., Los Gatos CA 95032; Tel.:
[408] 482-5385). Nick Kelez is the builder,
and construction is close to true scale.
Covering is Hobby Lobby Polycover. The
model uses two 18-amp Li-Poly cells
running an AXI 22-20 motor with an 11 x 7
APC electric propeller and a Jeti 18-amp
speed control.
The landing gear is a fully articulated
sprung unit. The Champ spans 60 inches and
weighs 37 ounces.
If the model had a pilot in the cockpit,
wouldn’t the flight shot from Ed Solenberg
be almost impossible to differentiate from a
photo of a full-scale aircraft?
That Mystery Airplane: Remember that
odd bipe I featured in the June column? That
was a fun one. Glancing at the vertical fin
one thinks Fairchild, the landing gear looks a
bit like a Stearman, and the four ailerons
completely throw one off.
The mystery airplane is a 1933 Hammond
Sportster. (The same Hammond as in
Stearman-Hammond.) Remarkably, this
aircraft is still in flying condition. It is
powered with a 100-horsepower Kinner K-5
engine, spans 30 feet, and is 23 feet long.
The Sportster was modified from a Ryan
Speedster and then modified again by the
students at Parks Air College in Saint Louis,
Missouri. Then the Hammond brothers
acquired the rights and completed their
modifications just in time for them to drop
production plans.
As far as I can determine, only the
Sportster was ever built. Now that is rare,
particularly to still be flying.
How many of you readers were able to
find this aircraft? I found it when I was
looking through Internet sites for the
Stearman-Hammond and had never even
heard of it.
I’ve covered quite a variety of subjects this
month. Let’s hope you found something of
interest or enlightenment. In one form or
another I’ve showcased people flying for fun.
Sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?