I AM sure many
have the impression
that Pylon Racing
requires the latest
and greatest hightech
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 with 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 9 x 6, 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, more simple is more 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. Tettra 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
Also included in this column:
• What’s with the syringe for
fueling?
• Airplane choice for club-level
Pylon Racing
• Two-piece composite wings
from Big Bruce Racing
• The 2006 season is underway
Pylon myth-busting
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Pylon Racing Kurt Bozarth
Bubbleless tanks. You can see the fuel bladder inside the clear Jett
tank. The white Jett tank has a popsicle stick taped to it, preventing
it from sliding forward and jamming the fuel lines against the
firewall.
Airpark Elite’s (Denver CO) new club racer: the World Models
Sky Raider Mach II ARF. Photo by Brian Neff.
Bruce DeChastel’s two-piece composite wing design is available
on his Shotgun and Slingshot Q-500 designs.
bladder divides the fuel from the incoming
air.
To refuel the tank, you must remove any
air that has entered the fuel 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, you will 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 racing 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 sportflying.
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 thoughts were that a sport flier could
purchase the Sky Raider, use an existing 40-
size engine and some standard radio
equipment laying around (we all have
standard equipment laying 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
from 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 nowoffering 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 onepiece
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 attach
the clevis to the other aileron and then bolt the
wings to the fuselage. If you must have a onepiece
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 Web site: www.darrol
cady.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 QM40 Classic
February 25-26.
As I have mentioned before, the
SpeedWorld RC Flyers group has an
outstanding facility and puts on an excellent
race. Attendance rivals the Nats. Look for
more details in my next column. If you can’t
wait that long, go to 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
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/04
Page Numbers: 116,117,118
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/04
Page Numbers: 116,117,118
I AM sure many
have the impression
that Pylon Racing
requires the latest
and greatest hightech
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 with 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 9 x 6, 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, more simple is more 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. Tettra 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
Also included in this column:
• What’s with the syringe for
fueling?
• Airplane choice for club-level
Pylon Racing
• Two-piece composite wings
from Big Bruce Racing
• The 2006 season is underway
Pylon myth-busting
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Pylon Racing Kurt Bozarth
Bubbleless tanks. You can see the fuel bladder inside the clear Jett
tank. The white Jett tank has a popsicle stick taped to it, preventing
it from sliding forward and jamming the fuel lines against the
firewall.
Airpark Elite’s (Denver CO) new club racer: the World Models
Sky Raider Mach II ARF. Photo by Brian Neff.
Bruce DeChastel’s two-piece composite wing design is available
on his Shotgun and Slingshot Q-500 designs.
bladder divides the fuel from the incoming
air.
To refuel the tank, you must remove any
air that has entered the fuel 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, you will 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 racing 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 sportflying.
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 thoughts were that a sport flier could
purchase the Sky Raider, use an existing 40-
size engine and some standard radio
equipment laying around (we all have
standard equipment laying 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
from 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 nowoffering 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 onepiece
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 attach
the clevis to the other aileron and then bolt the
wings to the fuselage. If you must have a onepiece
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 Web site: www.darrol
cady.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 QM40 Classic
February 25-26.
As I have mentioned before, the
SpeedWorld RC Flyers group has an
outstanding facility and puts on an excellent
race. Attendance rivals the Nats. Look for
more details in my next column. If you can’t
wait that long, go to 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
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/04
Page Numbers: 116,117,118
I AM sure many
have the impression
that Pylon Racing
requires the latest
and greatest hightech
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 with 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 9 x 6, 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, more simple is more 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. Tettra 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
Also included in this column:
• What’s with the syringe for
fueling?
• Airplane choice for club-level
Pylon Racing
• Two-piece composite wings
from Big Bruce Racing
• The 2006 season is underway
Pylon myth-busting
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Pylon Racing Kurt Bozarth
Bubbleless tanks. You can see the fuel bladder inside the clear Jett
tank. The white Jett tank has a popsicle stick taped to it, preventing
it from sliding forward and jamming the fuel lines against the
firewall.
Airpark Elite’s (Denver CO) new club racer: the World Models
Sky Raider Mach II ARF. Photo by Brian Neff.
Bruce DeChastel’s two-piece composite wing design is available
on his Shotgun and Slingshot Q-500 designs.
bladder divides the fuel from the incoming
air.
To refuel the tank, you must remove any
air that has entered the fuel 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, you will 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 racing 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 sportflying.
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 thoughts were that a sport flier could
purchase the Sky Raider, use an existing 40-
size engine and some standard radio
equipment laying around (we all have
standard equipment laying 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
from 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 nowoffering 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 onepiece
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 attach
the clevis to the other aileron and then bolt the
wings to the fuselage. If you must have a onepiece
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 Web site: www.darrol
cady.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 QM40 Classic
February 25-26.
As I have mentioned before, the
SpeedWorld RC Flyers group has an
outstanding facility and puts on an excellent
race. Attendance rivals the Nats. Look for
more details in my next column. If you can’t
wait that long, go to 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
