The Inside Loop - 2011/04
Starting to scratch-build
I started scratch-building almost the way Walt Wilson describes in his article this month. I tied the ideas that I thought were best into an RC airplane. Walt shrunk his entire model, and he makes other suggestions.
Those of you who cook or bake (I like to bake) understand what it is to work with a recipe. We learn to do things well by starting with what tastes good. Building an aircraft from scratch is sort of the same thing, only with fewer calories and the nutrition is different.
The Mustang
I loved my Mark’s Models Mustang. While a student at Northern Arizona University, it was the only airplane I had for three years. It came from My Hobby Shop, just south of Flagstaff in Sedona; it hung there on consignment.
I bought the aircraft complete with an engine that was stamped with the number 25, but it hardly acted like it. I’m sure that high-altitude conditions were a factor, but flight was a struggle for the combination.
Dad to the rescue; he sent me an O.S. 40FP (how’s that for an educational contribution?) that perked up the Mustang, and I proceeded to tear up the soccer field on the outskirts of campus for the semesters that followed.
I walked (uphill both ways) to the field with the airplane in one hand and a carry-all field box in the other. My engine could be started by hand, but there were those cold mornings when the propeller got the better of me.
Oh how I look back on those days and smile. It’s the same smile that appears when I remember a minibike ride that included a surprise flip over the handlebars. Not condoning reckless behavior (safety columnist Dave Gee would smite me), I think that the smile comes from the triumph of survival and all the better times I’ve enjoyed since.
My first scratch-built model (FP)
My first scratch-built model is a better memory still. I don’t have it anymore; the third crash was its last. But I flew the crap out of that airplane, and the scratch projects since have been even better.
I actually won a few Novice RC Aerobatics contests with one of them. I called the airplane “FP,” just because it was built around my only engine at the time. Its length and wingspan were identical to those of the Mustang, because I knew that worked. The tail surfaces were my own “look,” and so were the wing and fuselage shape.
The construction was simple; it was a box frame and constant-chord wing, because I didn’t know how to build anything else. This is the recipe idea I mentioned earlier.
I built the model in Dad’s shop during Christmas break, to the point that the basic parts fit in a box—an Almost Ready-to-Cover of sorts. Back at the dorm, final assembly and covering took place. This is when my roommate learned to appreciate model building; both of us liked the smell of hot MonoKote.
The crazy thing is that I can’t remember the first flight of the FP. I’m sure that elation overwhelmed me, and I know that the aircraft didn’t crash till another day. What I remember better are the modifications I made to the design during its lifespan. Yes, we modelers do think of models as living things.
First was the nose, which lost its cowl cheeks (and other front-end parts), and a new sculpted version dressed it smartly. Later I wanted knife-edge performance, so the rudder and later a dorsal fin made it onto the model.
Floats and skis were adapted, and other FP engines that I acquired were tested in the model just for fun.
The final moment of the FP was glorious. It came during an exploration period of CG positions and snap maneuvers—a guaranteed fun time I still entertain to this day.
I probably had too much elevator throw, and later I learned that the airfoil choice for the FP could have been better. The model spun to the ground with its RC pilot 300 yards off, working feverishly to arrest the twirling descent.
Hey, crash stories are a dime a dozen, but the FP story is all mine, and I recommend that everyone experience one in kind for himself/herself. Not the crash—the thrill part.
So if a plan in any magazine strikes your fancy but you want to make it your own, go ahead and scratch build with the good ideas we offer you all the time. No, we don’t mind at all if you copy the plan, as long as it’s for yourself and the fun of it.
As with the nod given to my Mustang and Walt’s praising Sig for the Four-Star, don’t forget to give credit where it’s due.
Parting words
With that, I lead into something very hard to tell. So I’ll make it short. This is my last editorial for Model Aviation magazine.
Where I’m going is very much an advancement for me, and I’m looking forward to the challenges and the fun that lay ahead. The memories made working at the AMA I feel honored to take with me.
Also, there are so many people to thank. If I’ve done my job correctly, those people already know how much I appreciate them.
Go fly! MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
