Mike Isermann's Fleet - 20127

Mike Isermann built a beautiful
Grumman Martlet Mk. II,
the British version of the F4F
Wildcat. It was built using Mike Midkiff
plans with a few modifications. The
model’s wingspan is 25 inches and it
weighs 53 grams. It was built for the
Grumman category of the Western
Regional Flying Aces Club (FAC) Mk. III
contest.
Squadron, which flew over Egypt’s
Western Desert and along the coastline
of North Africa during World War II.
The squadron was tasked with the duty
of convoy and bomber escort, with an
occasional ground-attack sortie.
Mike’s Peanut Scale Boeing 306B
is a scaled-down version of the Pres
Bruning plans. It won the Walt Mooney
Peanut Scale award at the 2010 FAC
Nats. The Boeing is an amazing model.
I watched it fly for more than a minute
at the Pensacola Gathering of the
Turkeys meet two years ago. It weighs
9.8 grams and uses one loop of 1/8-inch
rubber 18 inches long.
The flight pattern can be squirrelly
during the initial power burst, but settles
into a circular cruise after the power
bleeds down. Mike also has a 26-inch
version of the Boeing that performs well.
Mike is selling a 241/2-inch wingspan
short kit of the Brewster F2A3 Buffalo.
This is the long-nose version, which
should be a great flier. The kit is lasercut
from contest balsa. Contact Mike
for price and availability.
Erika Escalante’s Embryo
Erika Escalante built a nice-flying
Embryo with the help of her father,
Mike. I spoke with Mike about working
with Erica to build such a model. He
said they began with a known design,
the Nit by Don Srull, and simplified it
so it could be built by an inexperienced
modeler.
The fuselage sides were made parallel,
front to back. Mike created templates
that his daughter could cut around to
make the sheet wood fuselage sides and
tails. Erika chose some bright, metallic,
purple tissue for the wing.
Mike didn’t weigh the model, but
recalled that they used 4- to 6-pound
wood for the fuselage and tail. Erica only
had to cover the wing because the rest
of the model was sheet wood finished
with Design Master spray paints.
Erika did most of the construction
by herself—applying all the glue and
cutting out all the pieces. Mike made
the templates and assisted when needed.
The airplane was completed in four days.
The Embryo was lost on the photo
flight, so Erika had the entire FF
experience—from creation of the model,
to a long thermal flight beyond the far
trees. With that one max, Erika placed
10th in Embryo at the Grumman event.
Mike placed 16th.
Mike sent Stew Meyers step-by-step
building instructions and Stew put that
information and the Nit plans in the
July 2011 issue of Max Fax, the DC
Maxecuters Model Airplane Club’s
newsletter. See the Maxecuters website
for Max Fax subscriptions and back issue
information.
Cloud Tramp Mass Launch
There is still time to get your Cloud
Tramp ready for this year’s Charles
Hampson Grant Memorial International
Mass Launch of Cloud Tramps, held the
fi rst Saturday in August. The four happy
fl iers pictured with their Cloud Tramps
at Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada,
are Tom Wilson, his wife Joan, and his
grandsons, Vincent and Pierce.
Tom fl ew a regular Cloud Tramp,
while his wife and grandsons fl ew Peanut
Scale Cloud Tramps. The venue was a
school sports fi eld. The conditions were
perfect for Cloud Tramp fl ying—with
sunshine, a gentle breeze, and minimal
drift. All had fun!
If you would like to participate in
this year’s event, visit the Cloud Tramp
website for information on downloading
plans, construction tips, and postal
competition details.
Bob Sowder’s Lucky Lindy
Bob Sowder will be ready for this
year’s Nats with his new 510-squareinch
A Nostalgia Lucky Lindy, which
uses an O.S. Max .19. It weighs 19
ounces. Bob used Jim O’Reilly plans
and Polyspan covering. This new model
will replace his Nats fl y-away Lindy,
which experienced a timer malfunction.
The Lucky Lindy 510 has been my
favorite aircraft for several years, but that
was not the case when it was introduced
in late 2004. The aircraft had diffi culty
making a right turn after reaching an
altitude of approximately 50 feet, then
fl attening out into a shallow descending,
straight path—sometimes into the
dirt. I tried adding left thrust, adjusting
the launch, and holding my tongue
“just right”—none of which solved the
problem. It would make a couple of
beautiful fl ights then go haywire.
The Lindy took a dirt nap at a late-
Mike Isermann’s winning Boeing
306B Peanut next to the WESTFAC
Walt Mooney Memorial Trophy, built
by Keith Sterner. Isermann photo.
season contest several years ago and
suffered moderate wing damage. As I
brought the remains back to my car,
Bob Hanford Sr. commented that a bad
power pattern signaled that the model
was tail-heavy. I was ready to accept any
helpful advice.
The left wing in front of the main spar
received extensive damage. I covered
the repaired portion of the wing with a
patch of the UltraCote covering, rather
than recovering the entire panel.
The plans called for a CG at 65% of
the chord if using a .15 engine, or 70%
if using a .19. I was using a .19, so I had
balanced the model at 70% of the wing
chord.
After the crash, I adjusted the CG
by removing a chunk of lead from the
rear of the fuselage, recalling how many
times my father had advised me to “get
the lead out.” I took that as a sign I was
headed in the right direction. Removing
the lead moved the CG to 65%. That
fixed the model, right? No.
The first test flight was a near disaster.
I messed with a few trimming tricks,
but the model was unpredictable. I
Bob Sowder reports
that his new Lucky
Lindy has been test
flown and is ready for
this year’s contests.
Photo by Larry
Davidson.
Can you see the joy in Erika Escalante’s
face as she launches her Embryo?
Bonnie Simpers photo.
recently began using Polyspan to cover
my Nostalgia models. It’s slightly laborintensive
because you have to dope the
covering, but it provides extra rigidity.
I stripped the UltraCote from the
Lucky Lindy wing and recovered it
with Polyspan. The improvement was
immediate. The model grooved easily
and consistently flew well. Moving the
CG forward allowed me to add some
decalage, which gave the model a little
spiral in the climb—adding safety and
consistency.
I believe the UltraCote patches were
not as rigid as a new covering would
have been. I like Polyspan and now
routinely use it.
I flew my then-seven-year-old Lucky
Lindy at Pensacola, Florida, last fall. It
DTed after a first-flight max and landed
in the grass. As I approached the model,
I noticed it looked peculiar. The engine
was on the ground, attached to the
model by the fuel pinchoff wire. Despite
the fiberglass wrapped around the nose,
fuel and flying had taken a toll on the
fuselage throughout the years.
Extensive fuselage repair and
replacement of the pylon made the
model as good as new. I now make it a
habit to check the integrity of the engine
mount before flying my models.
The Lucky Lindy is competitive in the
Nostalgia events. There are two plans
available for the model; only the early
version is Nostalgia-legal.
Both Klarich and Bob Holman sell
short kits of the Lucky Lindy Nostalgialegal
version, in a variety of sizes. Larry
Davidson sells Polyspan and a variety of
other handy model supplies.
FF Championships
Make room on your calendar for the
42nd US Free Flight Championships at
Lost Hills, California, September 21-
23, 2012. There will be a full plate of
FAI and AMA events and cash awards.
Contact Ted Firster, whose information
is listed in “Sources.”
Endless Lift Website
While you are surfing the Internet,
check out the Endless Lift website.
There are several sport models there, as
well as some building and flying tips.
Correction
Photos of the Sniffer in the March
column were by David Barfield.