OLD-TIMERS
Mike Keville 31 Franklin Pkwy., Brunswick ME 04011 E-mail: [email protected]
WELCOME BACK, Old-Time (OT) modelers. I wrote this installment on New Year’s Eve, thus it may be a bit dated by the time it reaches your mailbox. Because of the lead time, and the fact that this column is bimonthly, we are often “scooped” by other publications. Although some items I present here could hardly be called “news,” I’ll do my best to keep it interesting and informative. (See Bob Hunt’s February column [on page 7] on that subject.)
SAM Champs 2004
This year’s Society of Antique Modelers (SAM) Championships will be held at the AMA site in Muncie, Indiana, September 13–17. A full schedule of Nostalgia FF events is slated. Jim Coffin will be the contest manager, Ray Combs will direct FF, and Mark Patrolia will handle the RC events. Contest headquarters will be the Signature Inn hotel near Ball State University in Muncie.
SAM contact / staffing change
There has been a staffing change at SAM: the formerly combined positions of secretary and treasurer are now separate. Secretary Charlie Reich is currently handling membership duties; therefore, please disregard what I wrote two columns ago about sending applications and renewals to Gene Wallock in Oklahoma. SAM’s new contact is:
- Charlie Reich
310 Wisteria Rd., Saint Augustine FL 32086 Tel.: (904) 797-4688 E-mail: [email protected]
Jimmie Allen postal contest
The Saint Louis Thermaleers FF club won the 2003 Jimmie Allen postal contest. Secretary Hal Schwan noted that the club has entered every year since 1996, constantly improving their scores until they “finally made it to the top.” According to Hal, these postal meets are “great fun for all, whether now flying FF, CL, or RC. All you need to enter is three fliers and hold your contest on any date between June 1 and September 30, 2004. [Each club may enter as many three-person teams as it wants. See the following entry information.] The Jimmie Allen designs are, for the most part, easy to build and trim out, and are great sport fliers when not flown in contests.”
Hal also wrote:
“This is the second time that St. Louis has wrested the trophy from the clutches of the San Diego clubs. Two years ago, SAM NX-211 of St. Louis took top honors. The photo shows our winning team, the top three of our 10 fliers. They are (L–R) Mike Shaw, Conrad Ruppert, and Hal Schwan. All three flew the Jimmie Allen Sky Raider.
“As a reward for our win, the Thermaleers have had their name engraved on a beautiful perpetual trophy and we have the honor of running the contest in 2004. Complete rules, entry form, and a list of sources for Jimmie Allen kits and plans are available from Hal Schwan, 105 Shady Valley Dr., Chesterfield MO 63017.”
A “weird” old Orwick engine
Jim Bassett (Toledo WA) sent photos of what he calls “a weird old Orwick.” He saw the unusual-looking engine on an Internet auction site and was fortunate to acquire it. Jim wrote that the engine was discovered among a deceased relative’s effects; the previous owner’s father, Mr. Van Horsen, had worked in Southern California at the time and may have known Henry Orwick.
The engine was dirty and stuck after sitting for 60-plus years in a box. It took weeks of soaking before Jim could free it up, disassemble, clean, and polish the tarnished parts. During reassembly he was puzzled by the function of the lever-operated device below the FRV (front rotary valve) needle valve. It was obviously an on-off valve for the front intake—and why would the engine have two intakes and needle valves?
A series of fine articles by Bill Tift in the Engine Collector's Journal gave Jim a clue. Mr. Tift personally knew Henry Orwick and mentioned several times how Henry liked to experiment. We know the Orwick engines ended up being FRV-induced, although they started out as sideports. If a bright engine builder wanted to select the best method of induction, it seems he would build one of each for comparative purposes.
Jim’s hypothesis: since Henry's early engines were custom built, what better way to get accurate comparative data on sideport vs. FRV induction than to have one or more engines which could be operated via both methods? That is the purpose for which Jim believes this engine was intended. Although the on-off valve could be used to adjust the intake mixture a la Hurleman, there is still the upstream needle valve—so the dual-induction comparative theory fits the configuration. This is only speculation, but it does explain the engine’s layout.
Does anyone have knowledge or corroboration of this? If so, please let us know.
Suppliers, kits, and collectors
I have a couple of suppliers to tell you about.
- Bob Harris runs a small business that offers many early RC designs as laser-cut kits. As he put it, “Our models do not come in ARF; only in the old-fashioned way—you have to build them”—a notion many of us find particularly refreshing these days. Bob is a member of the Vintage R/C Society (VR/CS). He started his business when the price of original kits skyrocketed on auction sites (examples: Junior Falcon kits going for $250+, an Esquire for $305, a Veco White Cloud for $400+). Bob uses contemporary radio systems in his demo products. If your interest is in early RC designs, check his website or contact him:
- Web: www.earlyrcomodels.com
- E-mail: [email protected]
- If you are into collecting kits, contact Robert Stricker. His 24-page catalog of old kits, engine parts, and accessories contained many memories: Comet, Hawk, Cavacraft, Enterprise—even a few Strombeckers and Clevelands—as well as a lengthy list of miscellaneous engine parts for McCoy, K&B, OK Cub, and others. Contact:
- Robert Stricker
924 Jaipur Ave., Naperville IL 60540 Tel.: (630) 961-0327 Fax: (630) 961-7526
Robert is a member of KAPA (Kits and Plans Antiquitous), an organization devoted to collecting and trading. If you enjoy collecting, contact KAPA's Morrie Leventhal:
- Morrie Leventhal
1788 Niobe Ave., Anaheim CA 92708
Comet memories
Frequent contributor Bill Schmidt (Wichita KS) sent a photo of the rubber-powered Ercoupe he built from a 50¢ Comet kit. Actually, 50¢ was the kit's original price; today there would probably be some sticker shock. In a note accompanying the photo, Bill wrote:
"I worship at the shrine of Comet, as its products were what I cut my teeth on as a boy. My published and kitted designs actually mimic the Comet field of drawing style because of this early, romantic style.
"I continue to build Comet models from time to time, as they have the ability to take me away to a much simpler time and place, which serves to insulate me from the hurried complexity of the world today."
Amen to that last statement. It seems to reflect how most OT devotees feel about an era that was not only a far better time in general, but a far better time for modeling. If you agree, please share your thoughts. Good-quality photos (hard copies—not e-mailed) are especially welcome. If you would like a reply, please enclose an SASE.
Until next time, remember: it's Ambroid and balsa.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
