10 M ODEL AVIATION
Model Aviation, 5161 E. Memorial Dr., Muncie IN 47302
Focal Point
Laser 200
This is Kip Rohde’s (1030 Northshore Dr., Pewaukee WI 53072)
33% Laser 200. It’s 1⁄3 scale.
The model is powered by a Quadra 100, has nine servos, and
weighs 26 pounds. It’s covered with MonoKote®, and the cowl is
painted with LustreKote™.
The Laser is equipped with a Bennett smoke system and
Snoopy parachute.
“It flies incredibly!” wrote Kip.
Kip is a member of MARKS Club of Milwaukee WI.
A Rare Model?
“Models of the Bell P-39 Airacobra—or even photos of them—
seem to be a rarity,” wrote Donald E. Love (1570 Paseo Grande
Apt. 2041, Bullhead City AZ 86442).
He built his nine-pound Airacobra from a Top Flite® kit. It has
an O.S. 60 FP for power, a Futaba SkySport 4 radio, MonoKote®
covering, and stock fixed gear.
Donald had some help from fellow club members; Jim
Brown did the tan covering on the fuselage and Barry Hollor
painted the canopy.
Donald noted that the P-39 flew well on its first test flight, and
displayed no obvious bad habits.
Has to be yellow?
Edward L. Martin (18 Rebel Dr., Asheville NC 28805) built this
Piper J-3 Cub from a Sig craftsman kit in the 1980s, and it “still
flies as good as it looks,” he wrote.
The plans were drawn by Mike Stott and Mike Gretz. The scale
of the model is two inches = one inch. It’s accurate in each detail,
down to the propeller.
The O.S. Max .35 provides realistic flight performance for the
72-inch-wingspan airplane.
“I strongly disagree with Carman Spadafora Sr. [in June 2000
“Focal Point”]; Cubs must be yellow,” wrote Edward. “If it’s not
yellow, it’s not a Cub.”
New Ruler at Dawn
Glenn Elliott (12434 Huntingwick, Houston TX 77024; E-mail:
[email protected]) sent this photo of his New Ruler.
Sonny Somante built the airplane from a photo in a magazine—
with no plans.
The model has a 94-inch wingspan, an O.S. 48 four-stroke
engine, and a Futaba radio. It features functioning wire struts,
custom wire gear, and a steerable tail wheel.
Sonny and Glenn fly at Scobee Field in Houston TX, “where
there is an active group of ‘Old-Timers’ who meet on Tuesdays and
Thursdays,” wrote Glenn.
April 2001 11
Gee Bee Profile
This is the second Great Planes Gee Bee Profile Robert
Haveners (559 Chestnut St., Lynnfield MA 01940) has built. He
won the first Gee Bee in a raffle for a $5 ticket, and it taught him
about aerobatics and slow flight.
He did this one in the “other” Gee Bee color scheme with
UltraCote®, and “overpowered it with a sweet-running Enya
50CX.” It’s a remarkably fast, slow, stable, and aerobatic
platform, according to Robert!
“To maximize flying success, I put myself in the cockpit,”
he wrote. “A simple trick for anyone with a digital camera and
a profile airplane.”
Super Skybolt
This is the last phase in the evolution of Rich Cope’s (570 S.
Guenther Ave., New Braunfels TX 78130) Great Planes Super Skybolt.
Powered by a YS 1.20 engine and controlled by a Futaba fourchannel
FM radio since June 1994, flying weight is 101⁄2 pounds and
wing loading is 26 ounces/square feet.
The white original was covered with Coverite™ 21st Century®
Fabric with aluminum and metallic red paint. The maiden voyage
was June 6, 1994.
In May 1997, “after a post-tumbling maneuver flameout at roughly
75 feet altitude at the downwind end of the field, the model suffered
minor damage during landing in a plowed field,” wrote Rich.
After sitting for 21⁄2 years, he repaired the model and covered
it in a MonoKote™ Metallic Plum, Metallic Red, Metallic Gold,
Chrome, and Metallic Teal color scheme, with LustreKote™
paint. The model is shown in February 2000.
“This well-traveled Skybolt is really super!” wrote Rich.
Kawasaki Ki-61-I Hein
Jim Rowe’s (8207 W. Broadway, Forest Lake MN 55025; Email:
[email protected]) Ki-61 was built from Modeler Plans
#203, drawn by Jack Albrecht.
The model has a 68-inch wingspan, weighs 6.4 pounds, has
an O.S. .61 SF engine, and a Futaba six-channel FM radio.
Jim’s Hein was modified to scale from a plastic model of the
Hasagawa Ki-61-I 1⁄64-scale version of the Japanese Army
244th Fighter Group.
“Parts were transferred from the plans via seamstress transfer
paper directly to wood,” wrote Jim. According to him, the method
works great, it saves time, and is accurate!
The vinyl graphics were scanned from plastic model decals—
“another easy method for scalers,” wrote Jim.
Jack Stafford Ercoupe
I’m a modeler, not a photographer, so these pictures didn’t really
show all of the rivets on this Jack Stafford Ercoupe,” wrote Barney
J. McIlvaine (4014 Buckeye Creek Rd., Kingwood TX 77339).
The model has an O.S. 40 SF engine, aftermarket fiberglass
cowl, Robart forked nose gear, carbon-fiber spar, BB servos, and a
Bisson muffler.
“It flies like a Cadillac,” wrote Barney. According to him, the
model is way too fast, but it flies very smoothly and wags its tail
only in gusty conditions.
12 M ODEL AVIATION
Model Aviation, 5161 E. Memorial Dr., Muncie IN 47302
Focal Point
Duster
Thomas W. Haake (174 Holly Hill Rd., Richboro PA
18954) sent this photo of a Duster, taken at the Delaware
Valley RC Club field.
The airplane was featured as a construction article in the
March 1999 Model Aviation, and is plan 871.
Bill Pompilli (Warminster PA) built the model, and he is proud
of it. The Duster has more than 50 flights on it, and it reads 89
decibels using AMA noise-testing procedures.
Engine is an O.S. 46 FX, radio control is by Futaba, and the
model is covered with MonoKote®.
Grumman Skyrocket—Second Version
Bill Van Pelt took this photo of Larry Cressman’s (28
Cottrell Rd., Matawan NJ 07747) Grumman Skyrocket coming
in for a landing.
The model was scratch-built from Bob Banka’s Aircraft
Documentation. It has a Ryobi 31cc engine, an 88-inch wingspan,
and weighs 26 pounds.
Richthofen’s Revenge
This is James Fuller’s (1902 A St. SE #B212, Auburn WA
98002) Hog Bipe, complete with Williams Bros. wheels and
six scale guns.
The airplane was powered by an ASP .61 at the time this photo
was taken; the engine has since been replaced with an O.S. 91 fourstroke.
The model is covered with True Red MonoKote®.
James is a member of the Marymoor RC club in Redmond,
Washington.
Giles 202
Thomas Martin’s (2424 198th Pl. SE, Bothell WA 98012; Email:
[email protected]) red, white, and blue streak is the
Lanier kit of the 17.5% Giles 202.
The model is powered by an O.S. .46 FX engine. Covering
is MonoKote® and paint is matching LustreKote®. The pilot’s
nickname is “Tork Roll,” and he was handpainted by Thomas’s
wife Deanna.
April 2001 13
Proud of your latest building/flying effort? Share it with MA’s
readers! Send us a glossy color print (no digital photos under
300 dpi or photocopies, please), with appropriate description
(no handwritten submissions, please), and we’ll run the best
submissions as space permits.
Please include your full address (including E-mail, if
available) so that interested parties may contact you directly.
Send to: Model Aviation, 5161 E. Memorial Dr., Muncie IN 47302;
Attn: Focal Point.
Because of this section’s popularity, it may be several
months before your model is featured.
Ultra Sport 60
This is Ellsworth F. Crowell Jr.’s (424 Oxford Way, Belmont
CA 94002) Ultra Sport 60.
It’s covered with UltraCote®, powered by an O.S. .60 twostroke
engine, and guided around the sky by a Futaba Super 7
radio. The model features Spring Air retracts, a Mac pipe, and
PowerMaster fuel to keep it all flying
It flies great, according to Ellsworth.
Pietenpol
Richard Mooers (901 Queen Annes Ct., Hagerstown MD 21740)
scratch-built his 64-inch-wingspan model.
The Pietenpol has a Futaba radio and was powered by an
O.S. .25 engine; it wasn’t enough power, but it did fly the
model reasonably well.
“I enjoy your magazine; it’s the best,” wrote Richard.
The Laker
Bill Cooper’s (1402 Chase Ave., Creighton NE 68729; E-mail:
[email protected]) model was built from a Balsa USA kit.
It’s powered by a Thunder Tiger Pro 46, has a Futaba radio,
weighs 61/2 pounds, is 59 inches in length, and has a 70-inch
wingspan and 813 square inches of wing area.
Bill’s wife Jennifer helped him cover the model with
MonoKote®, and it has custom vinyl graphics (including the flying
fish on the “tail wing”) by BodyWorks autobody in Creighton NE.
“This model has not been flown yet, because I don’t have enough
guts,” wrote Bill. “I just started into the hobby one year ago. My
family/friends call me ‘chicken’; I call it ‘smart.’”
Bill is a member of the Norfalcons in Norfolk, Nebraska.
Ford Flivver
Harry Botkowsky’s (2770 W. 5th St., Apt. 19E, Brooklyn
NY 11224) scratch-built Ford Flivver is shown here in the
framed-up stage.
The model has an 823⁄8-inch wingspan, an 18-inch wing chord,
and 1,400 square inches of wing area. It has a Ryobi 31cc (a
converted weed-whacker engine).
Plans are from RCP Aeroplans.
