Focal Point
Miss Stick
Andrew Kovacs (80 Col. Christopher Greene Rd., Portsmouth RI 02871; E-mail: [email protected]) built this Miss Stick from a Hobby Lobby kit.
It is constructed from balsa, spans 55 inches, and is 35.5 inches in length. It is powered by an AXi brushless motor and covered with transparent Superkote. The radio is a Hitec three-channel Neon 3. Andrew wrote:
“I’ve been building models for more than 60 years and have flown everything from CL, FF, Rubber to RC. Now that I have more time on my hands and a new workshop, I’ve gotten back into model building.
“This model combines the ease of electric power with the performance of an old time FF model. She’s a fun flyer. I wish there were more balsa kits for electric FF; everything seems to be ARF. To me, building is half the fun.”
Slow Poke Sport
Lester Belger (103 La Suena Ct., Henderson NV 88012; E-mail: [email protected]) assembled this Slow Poke Sport 40 from a Great Planes kit.
“I call it my Disney Plane,” he wrote.
The Slow Poke spans 61.5 inches and has a total length of 49 inches. It is powered by an O.S. Max .61 engine and equipped with a JR XP662 radio. The color scheme is transparent blue with a pearl white underside, and it features red Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck characters. Lester wrote:
“I’m a member of the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. My 10-year-old brother, Ethan, thinks this airplane is cool. And it flies great. Landing is a trick because it floats forever.”
Cyrano II
Randy Wrisley (1601 Orchard Dr., Santa Ana CA 92707; E-mail: [email protected]) built this Cyrano II from plans by Barnaby Wainfan that were featured in the December 1986 MA.
“After 40 years in RC, I went back to my free flight roots,” wrote Randy. “It is very simple to build mainly due to the lack of parts.”
The model weighs 55 grams. Covering is Japanese tissue with one coat of nitrate dope. Power is one loop of 1/4-inch Tan II rubber.
“The Cyrano II is a real show stopper at the flying field due to its unique appearance,” wrote Randy. “Flight times are approaching two minutes as I gain experience with it.”
Custom WACO
Herman Grooters (7045 Michael Dr., Hudsonville MI 49426; E-mail: [email protected]) built this model from Don Srull’s custom plans that were featured in the May 1979 MA.
Herman installed an O.S. Max .15 LA engine, which is side-mounted and fits completely inside the cowl except for the muffler. An O.S. muffler adapter and silencer extension are coupled to bring the exhaust outside the cowl.
Herman wrote that he deviated from the plans in two ways. First, the landing gear is entirely outside the fuselage and strapped to the bottom for easy repair or replacement. Second, there are brackets in the wings to attach the struts to instead of wide retainers, as specified in the plans.
“For more than 25 years it was on my to-do list of airplanes I hoped to model some day,” wrote Herman. “Now that it is done, I consider it to be one of the most charming little model airplanes I have ever seen.”
Falcon
Frank Haslam (3731 S. 5450 W., West Valley City UT 84120) built this Falcon from Paul Plecan plans featured in the September 1940 Model Airplane News.
The model weighs 21 pounds, 12 ounces; spans 60 inches; and is powered by a Rocket .46, which, according to Frank, is the first engine he ever bought.
The Falcon is covered with silk and nitrate dope on the wings and tail, which is planked with balsa. The paint finish on the fuselage is Hobbypoxy.
North American B-25
Jim and Steve Snyder (800 Van Dyke Ln., Bel Air MD 21014; E-mail: [email protected]), a father-and-son flying team, built this North American B-25 Mitchell from Nick Ziroli plans.
It spans 101 inches, weighs 33 pounds, and is powered by two Fuji .32 engines. It has handmade cowlings, and the wheels have functional brakes. The custom-designed and -fabricated landing gear is fitted with a unique electronic sequencer for opening and closing the doors. The model’s functions are controlled by 15 servos.
The B-25 is finished in an original color scheme with Nelson water-based paint and decals that were made by editing pictures of the full-scale aircraft. The model has hand-painted scale pilots and gunners.
The project took four years to complete. According to Jim and Steve, the maiden flight was a scale-like thing of beauty, requiring only a small amount of down trim, and the retracts and doors worked perfectly.
Piper Arrow
Michael “Sam” Mulloy (216 Angler Ave. #25, Fort Walton Beach FL 32548; E-mail: [email protected]) built this Piper Arrow from a Top Flite Gold Edition kit.
The model is 61.5 inches long and spans 81 inches. Power is an O.S. FS 1.20 engine controlled by a Futaba 7C transmitter and a Futaba 138DP PCM receiver commanding all Futaba servos.
The Arrow has no elevators; instead it employs a flying stabilizer and fully operational flaps. Robart retracts with four-position control valves complete the accessory list. This aircraft will fly with a three-blade propeller, but it will fly better with APC 16 x 8 two-blade propellers.
Sam finished the Arrow to look like it was assigned to the Air Force unit that operates all the DV (distinguished visitor) airplanes, including Air Force One.
“They don’t have a Piper Arrow, but if they did it probably would look like this,” wrote Sam.
Comet Red Racer
Peter Moore (9040 SW 91st, Ocala FL 34481; E-mail: [email protected]) built this Comet Red Racer from plans published in the December 1983 R/C Modeler magazine.
Originally sold as a rubber-powered kit in the 1930s, John A. de Vries enlarged this model to have a wingspan of 46 inches and powered it with a .10 glow engine.
Peter built his Red Racer according to the plans but made changes to accommodate the battery, weight, and balance. His version now uses an Atlas 209/20 motor with a Jeti 30 ESC and a 2100 Thunder Power battery pack.
“Built as a three control because of the light wing structure, it is very stable and really nostalgic in the air,” wrote Peter.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
