The Inside Loop - 2008/03
One of the thrills I get from flying model airplanes is that I can perform outrageous stunts and not have to endure the physical stress. Because I’m remotely controlling the model, my appetite for risk can become seemingly unlimited. That is when I get “cocky” and an accident happens. I should know better.
It would be nice to have a device that would tell me an incident was going to happen beforehand so that I could prepare, prevent it, or duck out of the way. AMA safety officers are handy for that task, and instead of griping about them under our breath, they should be offered a handshake.
Daring maneuvers and stunts are often popular at the flying field, and they’re a part of learning. It’s all in fun. The feeling of invincibility is common because we can flip and push our airplanes to the near breaking point without physical penalty. When a crash occurs, the price of pushing the envelope is finally paid, but it typically doesn’t involve personal physical injury.
This lazy attitude is something I’m not proud to admit having from time to time. That’s when accidents happen and the risk to people and property is far too great.
Every now and then I experience a near accident, and the life of my model flashes before my eyes. As the model is brought back into control, I am grateful, and I take the opportunity to shake the hand of the safety officer within myself.
Once I land, I’ll take the warning message a step further and go over the airplane thoroughly, checking every nut and screw. Not because I think the awakening incident was caused by a mechanical problem, but because it’s what I should be doing anyway: paying closer attention.
It’s also a way of saying “thank you” to the model for the joy it’s given me. It’s a sign of respect when we take care of our models, and it’s good practice for taking care of ourselves.
Paying better attention is just as important in the workshop as it is in the field. It seems as though every time I work on a model, it requires handling some kind of material that has a warning label reading “Handle with care.” For the most part, I’m so used to working with these materials that I had come to feel immune to danger, just as I had at times while flying.
We should always take precautions. I consider Bo Lovell’s article about shop air pollution to be my wake-up call to stop being so lazy about handling chemicals and breathing in particles and fumes that have the potential to seriously affect my health.
Like Bo, I’ll admit that I’ve sprayed paint in the house and stirred up enough epoxy that the fumes caused my family to evacuate the house and spend an afternoon at the movies. “What’s that smell?” is more common to hear in my house than “How was your day?” It’s embarrassing when you think about it, and it shouldn’t be that way.
The safety officer on Bo’s shoulder helped him build a simple indoor air‑cleaning system from common and inexpensive supplies. The result of his experiment created something similar to a central air‑conditioning system that also acts like an automatic vacuum, sucking up much of the light dust and chunks of foam on the floor right into its container.
Bo told me that after noticing his health return to normal, he also noticed that his shop seemed a lot cleaner. The first time he opened the shop air filter to see what it had collected, he was surprised at how much “junk” the system had gathered.
I’m building one of these systems for my shop. Besides the better air it will provide me to breathe, I’m hoping that the dust from woodworking will find its way into the filtration system rather than all over my models stored and hung on the ceiling. How much of an insult is it to put your airplanes away clean, only to find them dirty when they’re taken out to fly again?
Bo was lucky to have a friend who had large cardboard boxes left over from shipping. I’ll either tap a friend on the shoulder for that favor or perhaps make something else out of thin plywood and supplies from the hardware store.
I could get fancy with the project if I wanted, but the better idea would be to keep it simple. The sooner it is done, the sooner I will be breathing easier and making it out to the flying field.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
