FOCAL POINT
Super Ringmaster
Abram Van Dover (112 Tillerson Dr., Newport News, VA 23602; email: [email protected]) shares his Classic Stunt Sterling Super Ringmaster. The model is powered by a Fox .35 turning a Top Flite 10 x 6 propeller. Abram wrote: "Although I can't fly U-Control any longer (two replacement knees), I display this airplane at my high school model building classes. I hope it inspires the students as much as I enjoyed flying it over the years."
Geobat
Glenn Baker (5606 Cancun Dr., North Richland Hills, TX 76180; email: [email protected]) scratch-built this Geobat. The Geobat's construction is 6 mm Depron foam. It weighs 1 pound 5 ounces with a 36-inch diameter fuselage. Glenn uses an E-flite Six-Series 2000Kv motor, an E-flite 30-amp ESC, and two Hitec HS-81 servos.
Glenn wrote: "My Geobat was designed simply by looking at photos of the aircraft posted on the Internet. A day or two prior to the model's maiden flight, someone working on the real Geobat contacted me to suggest two last-minute alterations to my build. It turned out they were spot on. The aircraft flew perfectly on its maiden flight with almost no trimming needed. A Geobat's flights are smooth. The model is responsive without being skittish. In the air, it always draws attention."
Fairchild 24
Gordon Dey (6805 Devonshire Cir., Pensacola, FL 32506) wrote: "I built this Fairchild 24 from MA plans. I made a few modifications while building the wing, which is now a single structure vs. left and right plug-ins with wood spars. It is equipped with split flaps and has a span of 71 inches. Also, the main landing gear shocks were built using parts from a gas RC dune buggy.
"The cowl and wheel pants are built-up fiberglass over foam cores. The model is covered with yellow MonoKote and yellow and black Rust-Oleum paint. The model weighs in at 11 pounds 2 ounces. Power is a Thunder Tiger .91FS. Control is by a Futaba six-channel.
"I have wanted to build a model of a Fairchild for some time and could find no kits available. I went through the whole MA plans listing and finally found the plans for the model."
Bathtub Replica
James Hudspeth ([email protected]) bought this 1924 Dormoy Bathtub Replica from a woman whose father passed away in 2004. James wrote: "The plane has been in the attic ever since. Her father did a museum-quality build. The engine is an O.S. FT-120 Gemini twin cylinder. There is also a hard-bound book with the name Mike Kimbrel that was copyrighted in 1979.
"Drawings are serial number 405. This is an 8-foot wingspan plane."
Ach du Lieber
Robert Haas (101 Rosemont, Belton, TX 76513) designed this 30-year-old model he named Ach du Lieber.
The model spans 62 inches with a 47-inch length and a weight of approximately 7.5 pounds. Robert currently flies it with a K&B .40 engine, but he has had five different engines in this model throughout the years, including a Fox, an Enya, and one from Tower Hobbies.
Robert wrote: "It is a sport/trainer type with a flat-bottom wing and lifting tail. [The design] is based on an original design from 1966."
J-3 Cub
Neil Kaufman (165 Nobscot Rd., Sudbury, MA 01776; email: [email protected]) shares one of his winter projects, Pat Tritle's J-3 Cub from MA plans, August 2010. Neil wrote: "I've built many models over the years, but this is one of the most satisfying projects that I ever enjoyed. Congratulations to Pat Tritle and Model Aviation for a great design.
"I built it by the book except for adding 1 1/16 inches to the fuselage frame plus a firewall to support an outrunner 370 motor, which gives the Cub plenty of zip."
Delta Vortex
Keith Lindsay (3873 Union Church Rd., Fort Valley, GA 31030; email: [email protected]) modified a Delta Vortex model from a Bruce Tharpe Engineering kit.
Keith wrote: "The model is normally powered by a single glow engine. I added a 22-inch forward fuselage section and installed a PST 600R turbine to the top of the airframe. Because of the increased weight on the airframe and projected increased speed, a second spar was added to the wing. In addition, Lite Ply was added to the turbine mount area for extra strength. VTOL wingtips were added to increase the cool factor.
"The wing was fully sheeted with 1/8-inch balsa sheet. Two 22-ounce fuel tanks were installed in the wing, one on each side of the fuselage. A metal landing gear was used to absorb the increased weight. A canard airfoil was added to the fuselage to supplement pitch control. Other than the mentioned changes, the airframe was built per instructions."
Perris Special
Stuart Richmond (2079 E. 37th Ave., Apache Junction, AZ 85119) built this Perris Special from plans and wood sent to him by the late Sal Taibi.
Stuart's model spans 50 inches and weighs 32 ounces including rudder, elevator, and throttle servos. The engine is an AP .09 from Hobby People. The 2-ounce fuel tank allows for flights of roughly 20 minutes.
The photo was taken by Dave Walker at the Arizona Model Aviators field in Mesa, Arizona.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
