The Inside Loop - 2008/01

The Inside Loop continued on page 194
ll I’ve ever wanted to do is build
model airplanes. As a kid I seemed
pretty good with my hands, so I
built a lot of plastic model kits. They hung
from my ceiling in ridiculous groupings of
ragtag squadrons, and were never the same
scale. Ever see a Cessna 172 lead a diamond
formation with an F-16, Dauntless, Nieuport
11, and Starship Enterprise? It was my world
and I could do whatever I wanted.
I didn’t particularly fancy one model over
another. Jets, bipes, a peculiar orange-andwhite
Zero, they all had a place in my
imagination because flying through the air was
the coolest thing in the world. Rarely did I put
finished pilots in the cockpit, as I would
imagine myself sitting in there. Re-enacting
that evening’s episode of “Baa Baa Black
Sheep,” thinking I had the same grit and gristle
of those heroes, was inspirational.
Hanging out in my father’s workshop, I
would pour over his aviation books repeatedly.
When I took my hard-earned grass-mowing
money down to the hobby shop, I’d often find
the models from those books and copy them as
if I were building a full-scale aircraft of my
very own.
My father once asked, “Why don’t you
build something that flies?” Having only his
early modeling experience to reflect on
(mostly scratch-built, boxy sport models and
gliders), my response to him was, “I want
models that look real.” And under my breath I
think there was a comment about how plastic
models don’t crash. (Besides plastic models, I
also had a talent for being a smart-you-knowwhat.)
I never built a model that actually flew
until I was about 18, when the time had come
to better appreciate the fantasy of flight. I
rebuilt that boxy Jack’s Custom Models
Primer trainer from splinters three times. I
learned to appreciate being the pilot and the
mechanic. Making something from nothing
also became as much a part of the hobby as
imagining myself behind the MonoKote
replicated windshield of that trainer.
Dad and I shared many things while
building and flying model airplanes together.
As a matter of fact, if it weren’t for model
airplanes I doubt that we’d have as strong a
bond as we do today. Each of us inspires the
other to try new things, and the variety of
aircraft we’ve built reminds me of those ragtag
fleets that once clouded my room.
When it came time for college, the grownup
in me said it was time to put modeling
away for a while and hit the books. Well, in art
school we used layout paper and canvas.
Ironically I’d long for care packages from
home; they included back issues of model
magazines.
One day while running off to class, an
object caught my peripheral vision. Through
the dorm-room door left ajar was an
unmistakable, not to mention very ugly, object.
The smell of castor oil captured me as I pushed
Editor Michael Ramsey
A
the door open and saw, poised on a Robart
foam caddy, a Balsa USA Stick 40. It
resembled the color orange, and layers of
tanned epoxy filleted its multifractured
fuselage.
Dave Banderola was rightfully proud of
that Stick 40 and we became friends quickly,
which is often not the case when a freshman
meets an upperclassman. Apparently he was
taken with my model-airplane speak, and we
shared that adhesive-enhanced Stick 40 for
the remainder of that semester.
It seemed that I couldn’t, nor did I want
to, get away from modeling. Somehow,
someway, I always found a way to fit
modeling into whatever direction life went. I
would get written up at work for using the
STAT machine to make wing-rib templates.
Later on my boss understood that my study of
Adobe Illustrator’s capabilities for lofting
fuselage formers would increase my talents as
a graphic designer.
My interest in modeling continued on my
own time as well, and I challenged myself
now and again either with a restoration
project donated by a sympathetic club
member or having a go at scratch building. I
rarely built the same model twice, and my
interests matured to include not just more
advanced aircraft and helicopters, but also
different construction techniques and
materials.
For no other particular reason than sheer
luck, the opportunity came where my
professional world of graphic design and the
world of aeromodeling combined into a
career as an employee with an international
modeling magazine. Being hired to work as a
janitor for Carstens Publications, and Flying
Models magazine, would have been a dream
come true. Lucky for me they were looking
for an associate editor instead.
This was my opportunity to give
The Inside Loop
Continued from page 6
AMA Academy of Model
Aeronautics
ARF Almost Ready to Fly
BEC Battery Eliminator Circuit
CAD computer-aided design
cc cubic centimeter
CD contest director or
compact disc
CG center of gravity
CL Control Line
cm centimeter
cu. in. cubic inch
DT dethermalizer
EPP (foam) expanded polypropylene
ESC Electronic Speed Control
FAI Fédération Aéronautique
Internationale
FCC Federal Communications
Commission
FF Free Flight
GHz gigahertz
Kv rpm/volt
kV killivolt (1,000 volts)
LCD Liquid Crystal Display
LE leading edge
LED light-emitting diode
Li-Poly Lithium Polymer
mA milliamperes
MA Model Aviation
mAh milliampere-hours
MHz megahertz
mm millimeter
Nats AMA Nationals
Ni-Cd Nickel Cadmium
NiMH Nickel Metal Hydride
RC Radio Control
rpm revolutions per minute
RTF Ready to Fly
SASE self-addressed, stamped
envelope
SIG Special Interest Group
TE trailing edge
Model Aviation’s Frequently Used
Abbreviations /Acronyms
something back to a hobby that supported and
enhanced my work, family, and friendships.
This was my chance to start making a
difference, not to mention adding a line in fat,
black letters to my résumé that read “plays
with model airplanes.”
For nine years I applied my graphic
abilities to the magazine and was mentored by
my editor, Frank Fanelli, who helped polish
my communication and writing skills. When
the opportunity came to work for the
Academy of Model Aeronautics as the
associate editor for Model Aviation, saying so
long to my Carstens family was like
swallowing a horse pill that’s still stuck in my
throat.
At the time you are reading this, Muncie,
Indiana, will have been my home for two and-
a-half years. Now that I’ve been
promoted to editor, once again I’ve been
allowed to continue the growth of my
professional world with a subject that is very
much a part of who I am. Having been an
AMA member for over 20 years, it is my
privilege to work for such a fine organization.
I hope that what you’ve allowed me to
share with you has given you some sort of
insight into the devotion I have to this
magazine and the AMA. I look forward to
broadening my activity in aeromodeling and
contributing back to the members in a healthy
and productive manner. If that means I have
to continue building model airplanes, well so
be it. Welcome to my world!
The Inside Loop
Published by The Academy of Model Aeronautics
Rob Kurek
Director of Publications
Editorial offices: (765) 287-1256, extension
224 (8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays); Fax: (765)
281-7907
Contributing Editors
Dave Brown
President
Doug Holland
Executive Vice President
Staff
(765) 287-1256 | www.modelaircraft.org
Fax: (765) 289-4248
Advertising Representative
Mark Lanterman, Airborne Media, 7414
Burton Dr., Liberty Township OH 45044
(513) 755-7494 | Fax: (513) 755-7495
Executive Director Jim Cherry
Model Aviation is an official publication of The Academy
of Model Aeronautics, Inc., an associate member of the
National Aeronautic Association (NAA). NAA is the official
U.S. representative of the Fédération Aéronautique
Internationale (FAI), the world governing body for sport
aviation, and represents the U.S. at FAI meetings. NAA
delegated to the AMA supervision of FAI-related
aeromodeling activities such as record attempts,
competition sanctions, and selection of U.S. teams for
World Championships. (ISSN 0744-5059, USPS 087-930
Publications Agreement No. 40688541) is owned
exclusively by The Academy of Model Aeronautics, Inc., a
nonprofit organization, and published monthly at 5161
East Memorial Drive, Muncie IN 47302. Periodical rate
postage paid at Muncie IN and at additional mailing
offices. Canadian return address: Station A, PO Box 54,
Windsor ON N9A 615
Account Executive Angela Martin
Administrative Assistant Yolanda Jones
Director of Design/Production Carla Kunz
Editor Michael Ramsey
Executive Editor Elizabeth Helms
Graphic Designer Sarah Shaw
Managing Editor Shelia Ames Webb
Production Associate Jennifer Orebaugh
Stan Alexander
Bob Angel
Darwin Barrie
Bill Boss
Paul Bradley
Sal Calvagna
Mark Fadely
Dave Garwood
Dave Gee
Greg Gimlick
John Glezellis
Jim T. Graham
Eric Henderson
Jim Hiller
Louis Joyner
John Kagan
Rich Lopez
Dave Mark
D.B. Mathews
Dennis Norman
Dean Pappas
Richard L. Perry
Greg Rose
Red Scholefield
Gene Smith
Joe Wagner
Editor Emeritus Bob Hunt
Technical Editor Bob Aberle
... I always found a way to
fit modeling into whatever
direction life went.
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