RADIO CONTROL GIANTS 2003/04

96 MODEL AVIATION
WHEN YOU BRING your Radio Control
(RC) Giant to the field for its inaugural test
flight, take a moment to reflect on how
many others made it possible for you to
accomplish this. I don’t mean that some of
your friends came over, and a few beers
later they helped you finish your model.
My point is that hundreds of people from
various businesses in the hobby industry
make it possible for our projects to come to
fruition. Although you, the builder of an RC
Giant, are ultimately responsible for the
successful outcome of your model airplane,
many in the industry share credit in the
success of the finished product. To illustrate
further, I will use my good friend Ed
Hirschfeld’s de Havilland D.H.94 Moth
Minor built from Jerry Bates Plans and
The Aeroplane Works cut kit.
Sal Calvagna, 1335 Broadway Ave., Holbrook NY 11741; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL GIANTS
Jerry Bates Plans’ three-view of the de Havilland D.H.94 Moth Minor. Jerry has redrawn
the plans four times to increase the scale fidelity.
The Moth Minor on approach. Jerry claims
it is one of the best Scale models he has
had the pleasure of flying.
The majestic Moth Minor on landing. The
inspiration came from some 1950s British
photos of the de Havilland aircraft.
Ed Hirschfeld of Selden, New York, and his Zenoah G-38-powered, 1⁄4-scale Moth Minor
built from Jerry Bates Plans and The Aeroplane Works cut kit.
The Moth Minor was conceived as a
fully aerobatic but forgiving basic trainer
aircraft, to be more economical than de
Havilland’s other Moth successors. In 1938,
production began of alternative-trainer or
coupe-tourer versions, flyable from either
cockpit. The design featured wheel brakes,
an air brake, and folding wings for storage.
In all, 115 Moth Minors were produced,
and 42 of those were built in Australia after
the production line and unassembled
airframes were shipped to de Havilland’s
Bankstown, Sydney, plant.
Many Moth Minors were pressed into
04sig3.QXD 1.23.03 2:49 pm Page 96
April 2003 97
military service in England, and 12 returned
to civilian service after World War II. The
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) ordered
50 Moth Minors, but only 42 were
delivered. After the war, many RAAF Moth
Minors continued to fly in aero clubs and for
private owners. There were three included in
the Australian civil register in 2002.
Jerry Bates wrote that the inspiration for
the Moth Minor model came from a British
friend of his who had shown him some
photos of the aircraft taken in the 1950s. The
photos were of a Moth Minor at a grass field
somewhere in England and were evocative
of private aviation at its best.
Jerry began searching for anything he
could find about the D.H.94. He was able to
have another friend take photos of a
Commemorative Air Force (CAF) D.H.94.
Jerry created an accurate three-view on his
computer, then he designed the 1⁄4-scale
plans. In the last four years he has
completely redrawn the plans four times to
increase the scale fidelity to make a better
model. Jerry says that the 1⁄4-scale Moth
Minor is one of the most well-behaved,
mild-mannered Scale models he has ever
had the pleasure of flying.
Jerry has spent hundreds of hours to
bring modelers an accurate 1⁄4-scale
rendition of this little-known aircraft. For all
his labor, Jerry charges $35 for his plans and
instruction manual. Some may balk at
The Aeroplane Works de Havilland D.H.94 cut kit shown as
delivered. The company guarantees its cut wood.
Bernie Sanders of Melville, New York, and his 1⁄3-scale Balsa USA
Moraine-Saulnier AI that spans 108 inches.
04sig4.QXD 1.24.03 10:10 am Page 97
paying $35-$50 just for a set of plans. It
may seem like a lot for two or three sheets
of paper, but take the time to think about
how much work goes into drawing a set of
plans. Hundreds of hours are devoted to
developing three-views and sitting in front
of a computer screen, drawing and
redrawing plans to get them perfect or
nearly perfect. The cost is really quite
reasonable.
People such as Jerry Bates design model
plans because they enjoy doing it. They are
all modelers first and work hard for what
they can make. Jerry is one of those
dedicated individuals who strives to deliver
the best possible model plans that start us
on our way to a successful model airplane.
Selling model-airplane plans is not the
easiest or most lucrative way to make a
living. A friend once asked me, “Do you
know how to make a million dollars in our
hobby?” His answer was to “start with two
million and know when to get out.”
Ed ordered the de Havilland D.H.94 cut
kit from The Aeroplane Works in
Martinsville, New Jersey. The kit is hand
cut and comes with all the wood necessary
to build the aircraft. Included in the kit are
cardboard tubes for aileron extensions and a
tail-wheel assembly.
All of the parts are superbly cut and
come with a guarantee from the Gill family
that if there is any piece of wood with
which the customer is not satisfied, contact
The Aeroplane Works and they will replace
it free of charge, no questions asked. They
even go as far as to say that if a customer
makes a mistake with any part, he or she
can contact The Aeroplane Works and have
the part replaced free of charge.
The D.H.94 cut kit is $375. Some may
see this as a high price for a wood kit, but if
you have the opportunity to see one of the
kits firsthand, you will likely change your
mind.
The kit contains $50-$75 worth of raw
wood. There is aircraft-grade plywood, light
plywood, spruce, balsa sheeting of various
thicknesses, etc., and all the parts have been
hand cut and labeled. Just cutting the parts
alone takes many hours. If you were to
divide the amount left after deducting the
cost of the wood by the number of hours it
took to make this kit, you would see that the
hourly rate is unimpressive.
This is more a labor of love than a way
to make a living; however, buying a kit
from any kit cutter is a great timesaving
way to get started with your project.
The model spans 109 inches, is 72
inches long, and weighs roughly 20 pounds.
Ed uses a Zenoah G-38 to power the
D.H.94, and he has a Futaba radio with
Hitec servos. The Moth Minor is covered
with Solartex and uses Robart hinges, Du-
Bro wheels, and a Sullivan fuel tank.
The Flash cyanoacrylate (CyA) glue Ed
used was purchased from Balsa Products.
The fixed landing gear was purchased from
Century Jet Models, and the aluminum
wing joiner was bought from Sig
Manufacturing Co. The pilot figures are
from Williams Bros., and Zinger made the
propeller. Ed used a heavy-duty switch
harness from Maxx Products International
(MPI).
These are some of the hobby-industry
manufacturers and distributors that have
played a part in successfully completing
Ed’s model. I am sure there are others
because I did not discuss the hardware or
paint.
If you look further at Ed’s Moth Minor,
you might be surprised to learn that it is an
international production. The balsa used in
his model is from Central America. The
transmitter, receiver, and engine are made
in Japan, and the servos are manufactured in
the Philippines. The covering material is
made in Great Britain, and the batteries
come from Mexico. Of course, many parts
were made in the United States.
You may see things from a slightly
different perspective the next time you take
your RC Giant out to the field for its first
flight. Think about all who played a role in
making your model a success. It may or
may not take a village to raise a child, but it
sure takes the hobby industry to complete
your model successfully, especially if you
build and fly RC Giants.
Following is a list of some of the
manufacturers that helped complete Ed’s de
Havilland Moth Minor:
• Jerry Bates Plans:
www.scaleaero.com/jerrybates.htm
• The Aeroplane Works—cut kits:
www.theaeroplaneworks.com/
• Horizon Hobbies—Zenoah G-38:
www.horizonhobby.com/
• Futaba: www.futaba-rc.com/
• Balsa USA—Solartex covering:
www.balsausa.com/
• Balsa Products—Flash CyA:
www.balsapr.com/
• Century Jet Models—fixed landing gear:
www.centuryjet.com/
• Sullivan—fuel tank:
www.sullivanproducts.com/
• Du-Bro—wheels:
www.dubro.com/rc_home.shtml
• Williams Bros.—pilot bust:
www.williamsbrosinc.com/rc.html
• Hitec—servos: www.hitecrcd.com/
• Robart—hinges: www.robart.com/
• Sig Manufacturing Co.—wing joiners:
www.sigmfg.com/
• MPI: www.maxxprod.com/
Bernie Sanders of Melville, New York,
built a great-looking 1⁄3-scale Moraine-
Saulnier AI from a Balsa USA kit. The AI
spans 108 inches and is powered by a
Zenoah G-45 gas engine.
Bernie covered the model with Solartex
and used water-based paint to finish it. He
uses an Airtronics four-channel radio and
says the model flies well. His friend Avey
Shaw of Huntington, New York, helped
him paint the model.
That’s it for this month. As always, send
in your thoughts, comments, and concerns.
Please, send in those photos and
descriptions of your RC Giants.
Keep up the good work! MA
98 MODEL AVIATION
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