The Inside Loop - 2011/04

6 MODEL AVIATION
“Go fly!”
Editor Michael Ramsey
[email protected]
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.
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, 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 highaltitude
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 oth er. 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 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.
The Inside Loop
Published by The Academy of Model Aeronautics
Rob Kurek
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President
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Account Executive Yolanda Jones
Administrative Assistant Lisa Johnson
Assistant Editor Jay Smith
Communications Specialist Ashley Rauen
Director of Design/Production Carla Kunz
Editor Michael Ramsey
Graphic Designer Sarah Shaw
Managing Editor Shelia Ames Webb
Multimedia Editor Chad Budreau
Production Associate Jennifer Orebaugh
Senior Editor Elizabeth Helms
Stan Alexander
Bob Angel
Bill Boss
Paul Bradley
Sal Calvagna
Lee Estingoy
Mark Fadely
Dave Garwood
Dave Gee
Greg Gimlick
John Glezellis
Jim T. Graham
Donald Grissom
Jim Hiller
Louis Joyner
John Kagan
Rich Lopez
Joe Malinchak
Dennis Norman
Dean Pappas
Richard L. Perry
Mike Riggs
Aaron “AJ” Seaholm
Red Scholefield
Gene Smith
Joe Wagner
Editor Emeritus Bob Hunt
Technical Editor Bob Aberle
I
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.
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
Interim Executive Director Joyce Hager
CFO/Treasurer Doug Holland
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