Pylon myth-busting
I am sure many have the impression that Pylon Racing requires the latest and greatest high-tech equipment (i.e., the most expensive). This is not true. You might also be wondering where in the world we get all the unique racing equipment. And the biggest question is probably “Why do we need a syringe to fill the fuel tank?”
Let me address the equipment issue. To present this concept from another perspective, if wooden hockey sticks were good enough for the Great One—Wayne Gretzky (as opposed to Mike Del Ponte)—to set the all-time National Hockey League scoring record more than 16 years ago, they are probably good enough for most of us today. Or must we all have the latest and greatest (i.e., the most expensive) composite hockey sticks? I wonder if the NHL has had the same issue with composite hockey sticks as we have had with composite versus wood airplanes.
In 1997, when Richard Verano won all four Pylon Racing events at the AMA Nats, I’ll bet his airplanes were not painted-in-the-mold composites nor did they have digital servos. I would also bet that he could beat most of us today with those same setups. Richard has been on the US Pylon team numerous times and most recently competed in France last year at the World Championships.
If you are just starting out, you do not need $100 digital servos, a 10-channel transmitter, and a fully composite airframe and hockey stick. So what do you need? The AMA rule book specifies what types of engines and airframes are allowed in AMA event 424: Quickie 500 (Q-500). The Q-500 ARFs currently on the market are perfect for that class, and the Thunder Tiger .40 Pro is the most commonly used engine. The propeller of choice is normally an APC 9x6, with 15% fuel provided by the club. Standard sport servos will suffice, along with a standard-sized receiver and battery pack. A middle-of-the-road transmitter is all you need, but exponential, dual rates, and endpoint adjustments are nice to have. In Pylon, simpler is better; ask Ed Smith in any of the online discussion forums.
If and when you are ready to jump knee-deep into Pylon Racing and want to compete at the national level, you might feel pressured by the other misfits out there to get the latest and greatest equipment, regardless of price. If you find yourself experiencing this pressure, sit down with your spouse (call mine if you don’t have one) and share your heart’s desires. I’m sure you will be cured and back to normal in a matter of minutes. But if by some strange set of circumstances you still feel the need for speed, go online and you will find everything you could possibly want. Try www.nmpra.org and www.rcpro.org for starters.
And why do Pylon racers use syringes to fuel their tanks? Because we use bubbleless tanks. Tetra and Jett Engineering offer these in several different sizes, the most common of which is approximately 6 ounces.
The bubbleless tank isolates the fuel from the air. In a normal sport model’s fuel system, muffler pressure is directed into the tank and this air is free to mix with the fuel. This can create bubbles, which can lead to inconsistent fuel flow to the engine. In a bubbleless tank a small bladder divides the fuel from the incoming air. To refuel the tank, you must remove any air that has entered the bladder to make room for the fuel; this is where the syringe comes in. Suck the air out of the bladder with the syringe and then clamp off the fuel line, leaving a vacuum in the bladder.
Many modelers use hemostats or fuel clips that are sold by some of the RC helicopter companies to clamp the fuel line. You must know the size of the fuel tank before the next step.
Unclamp the fuel line and push the correct amount of fuel into the bladder with your syringe. If you try to push too much fuel in, you might burst the bladder (an unpleasant experience). The hard tank shell will also prevent you from overfilling. After you have filled the bladder, clamp the fuel line again and leave it that way until you start the engine.
This is not the same type of fuel system the CL Combat pilots use, where a short length of surgical tubing is pressurized to the size of a water balloon. Their tanks are pressurized; ours are not.
Do not forget to remove the clamp when you get to the line and are ready to start your engine. Not that I would do such a thing.
I hope you have a better insight into a few aspects of Pylon Racing and recognize that it is not as intimidating as one might initially think. But as in any other sport, those in the upper echelons will not hesitate to do what it takes to gain a few more miles per hour, regardless of cost. To them I say, “go for it.” We all enjoy the benefits of their new techniques and technology down the road.
Club-Level Pylon Model
In Colorado very few new pilots have attended our local races in the past few years. We are getting a wee bit tired of seeing the same old ugly faces over and over. We would love to see more local sport fliers get into Pylon Racing, as would most racing clubs across the country.
Although Q-500 is an entry-level Pylon Racing event, it still requires a Pylon airplane to be legal. These models are easy to fly if set up correctly but are not much fun to sport-fly on all the other nonrace days in the year.
As an alternative to Q-500, our club has created its own event centered around the Sky Raider Mach II from The World Models, distributed in the US by Airborne Models. This is a low-wing, 40-size ARF that is capable of aerobatics and general sport-flying. The price is roughly $70.
We allow any 40-size engine for the first three races. After that we require a Q-500-legal engine. We do not allow the airplane to be modified, other than re-covering it for easier identification, and we only allow standard-sized radio equipment.
Our thought was that a sport flier could purchase the Sky Raider, use an existing 40-size engine and some standard radio equipment lying around (we all have standard equipment lying around, don't we?), and start racing. And when this new racer wasn't racing, he or she could still enjoy the airplane in sport-flying.
Last year was our first season racing the Sky Raiders. Did we see new participants, as planned? Unfortunately no, but our same old group of die-hards had fun racing again.
Why didn't we see new racers attend, especially when we applied the "if you build it, they will come" tactic? Because nobody knew about it!
So for 2006 we are taking our show on the road. Instead of having the monthly races at our field like we have done every year, we are coordinating with the other clubs in the area to have them host races at their fields. We will bring the racecourse and course workers to them.
Fortunately we have a great relationship with a local CAPS (Can-Am Pylon Society) group who works the course in exchange for donations to its squadron fund. All we ask of the local clubs is for the use of their field Friday evening for setup and most of Saturday to race.
This is our revised plan to attract new racers in the area. All the active pilots have agreed to show up to these races with Sky Raiders, knowing this class will have the greatest potential for bringing in new fliers.
I will let you know how the season goes. Let me know if you have other ideas to draw in new participants.
Two-Piece Composite Wing
The world of composites keeps getting better. Bruce DeChastel of Big Bruce Racing is now offering his Q-500 and Quarter 40 (Q-40) composite wings in a two-piece design. Not only does this allow him to ship them from Australia (he recently returned to his native land from the US) at a lower cost, but it allows those die-hards who fly to contests to pack their models in smaller suitcases. In a recent online discussion, Darrol Cady, who distributes Bruce's aircraft in the US, wrote, “I have not done it yet, but I am pretty sure that four airplanes with two-piece wings will fit into one snowboard case for getting on an airplane.”
I received one of Bruce's two-piece wings several days ago and I am extremely impressed. When the wing halves are joined, the seam is hardly noticeable. The structure weighed 1 pound, 2.6 ounces, and my one-piece wing from Bruce was 1 pound, 0.6 ounce.
The wings are quick to join by sliding the halves onto a 5/8-inch-diameter carbon joiner. The aileron servo must be mounted on one wing half. The only thing left to do is to attach the clevis to the other aileron and then bolt the wings to the fuselage. If you must have a one-piece wing for fear of change, buy some glue.
Darrol Cady made an excellent suggestion for trimming the ailerons. Rather than heating and twisting a composite wing to correct aileron-trim issues, you can put a couple layers of tape on the wing saddle in the appropriate place, shimming up the LE or the TE a bit. This will allow you to return the ailerons to neutral. Darrol has more information on his website: www.darrolcady.com.
Look for a future write-up about Bruce DeChastel's latest Q-500—the Slingshot—which incorporates a two-piece composite wing. The Slingshot is basically a V-tailed version of Bruce's successful Shotgun design. I have also learned that Bruce will be releasing a balsa/foam version of the Shotgun called the BB Gun. This will be a great option for Q-500 and for those who love to build.
2006 Season
The 2006 Pylon Racing season got off to a great start with the Winterfest Q-500 race in Phoenix, Arizona, January 21–22, hosted by the SpeedWorld RC Flyers. This group also held the Phoenix QMA/LO Classic February 25–26.
As I have mentioned before, the SpeedWorld RC Flyers have an outstanding facility and put on an excellent race. Attendance rivals the Nats. Look for more details in my next column. If you can't wait, look at www.nmpra.org.
It's never too early to start planning your trip to the Nats this summer—especially if you need to quit your job to free up valuable practice time. Recent online chatter has centered around the A/B-matrix concept and whether or not it will be implemented this year.
I'll be back in two months.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
