70 MODEL AVIATION
“WITH CONTROL LINE, the airplane
never gets more than 60 feet away from
you and you can watch it all the time—in
fact, you better watch it all the time!”
—Nick V.
CL Combat fliers may disagree (they
can fly by feel while watching their
competitor’s airplane), but keeping your
aircraft in sight is important for the rest of
us. Outdoor RC pilots frequently have an
issue with glare from the sun. The Red
Baron made use of the fact that an airplane
is hard to see when it’s in the sun, but now
we also know that ultraviolet (UV) rays
from sunlight can damage human eyes. Do
you wear UV-blocking glasses when
flying?
After my recent mention of various
eye-protection choices, Bruce Holden of
Zurich International contacted me. He is a
real sparkplug and promotes his highquality
safety sunglasses with great zeal.
Dave Gee
S a f e t y C o m e s F i r s t
Box 7081, Van Nuys CA 91409; E-mail: [email protected]
These spiffy tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver Grippers are hard to beat for removing
splinters. No columnists were actually harmed in this photo.
Do you keep fire extinguishers in your home and shop? The text
contains a sad story about a fatal but preventable fire.
Richard Cline spot-lands his tiny indoor Moth. Unlike indoor
fliers, outdoor pilots need eye protection from UV radiation.
Bruce says that UV protection is as
important as impact resistance because you
will usually be exposed to harmful rays,
but seldom (it is hoped) will you test the
shatterproof properties of your lenses. He
sent me one of his products which
withstood a bullet impact. (Note to Bruce:
To butter up a columnist, send him glasses
without bullet holes.)
If gunfire becomes a common issue at
my field, I’ll take up something safer, such
as bullriding, but readers have sent in
plenty of stories about propellers
shattering and engine mounts breaking.
Flying shrapnel is a possibility, and your
eyes are worth shielding. UV and impact
protection in one product is great!
I asked about cheapo, off-brand glasses
that claim to have UV protection—
especially the ones available from local
street-corner vendors. Bruce said it’s easy
to tell whether or not a lens blocks UV;
just visit a well-equipped laboratory that
has the proper multi-thousand-dollar test
meter. He wasn’t kidding, either. It might
be easier to just stick to a reputable brand
and skip the $2 specials.
Zurich products come in a variety of
tints and will fit over prescription glasses.
And no, I really didn’t get a free pair; we
run a legit operation here.
As long as I’m plugging products, I have a
first-aid tool that you will appreciate. Look
at the picture showing Sweet Diedra
removing a (simulated) splinter from my
finger; she is using a special pair of
tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver
Grippers. They are short and have
extremely sharp tips.
I own several pairs, and one lives in my
field box. They are by far the best
implement for sliver removal that I have
tried, including sterilized needles, scalpels,
serrated tweezers, and the kind with a
built-in magnifying glass.
A young relative of mine once tolerated
a splinter for two days until her scheduled
visit to my house, claiming that “Dave can
get it out without hurting me.” Don’t argue
with a 4-year-old about 48 hours of pain
versus 20 seconds, but you get my point.
This original brand is well made, but I
have seen knockoffs lately that look pretty
good. You can find them at camping
stores, drug stores, or, of course, on the
Internet by searching the brand name. The
price is roughly $5.
This is a heads-up about buddy-box
interference. I’ve gotten several E-mails
about instances of problems including hits
on other aircraft while training with a
buddy box.
The information is unclear and
sometimes contradictory, so I’m doing
some more research and asking for your
help. So far it seems to be confined to
certain older units and maybe to particular
geographic areas. If you have had such
trouble, please contact me. I’ll have more
about this soon.
Andrew Chiaraviglio checked in via Email
with kind greetings and claimed “I
have learned more than a few things in the
short time that I’ve been reading your
section.” He’s not the only one learning
things around here!
It’s been a few months, but I’m still not
used to being an MA celebrity author. My
wise-guy friends are always on the lookout
for unsafe behavior. It’s “Hey mister
safety guy, aren’t you being a bit casual
with that blade?” and “Dave should know
better than to launch like that.” And
heaven help me if I wear a Band-Aid.
The problem is, anyone watching for
me to goof up won’t have a long wait.
Sheesh!
Reheating the Soldering-Iron Issue: I
recently discussed good ways and bad
ways to keep hot soldering irons away
from body parts. Paul Anderson
recommends RadioShack’s solderingstation
tool, which is part 64-2078.
The device features a heavy metal coil
to hold the iron off of the table and has a
built-in sponge to clean the soldering tip.
It’s less than $10, sez Paul, and he claims
to have the scars to prove how necessary it
is.
Many E-mails came in on this topic,
and too many modelers have had
unpleasant encounters while soldering.
Please use caution and a good holder!
This subject is a bit off-topic from
modeling but still worth discussing. One
night last week a house caught fire a few
miles from my home. Several occupants
were badly burned, and a young boy died
because the back door could not be opened
without a key. There were no fire
extinguishers available.
This is an awful story, but let’s learn
from it. Please give your home and shop
the once-over for fire hazards, and make
sure your smoke alarms and fire
extinguishers are in good condition. I have
an extinguisher in each room and
occasionally drill my family on the
locations.
These inexpensive but vital cylinders
do not complement the decor unless you
need one, and then they look real pretty!
Be sure to get the kind of extinguisher that
works on multiple types of fires, including
electrical.
It’s surprising to me that few people
carry fire extinguishers in their vehicles. I
have used the one in my van on several
occasions throughout the years, and each
time my $8 investment saved someone’s
car from total destruction.
Have you noticed from the pictures in this
column that I possess a near-total lack of
camera-operating skill? It’s either practice
photography or landings, and I need the
landing practice even more.
Therefore, if you have a picture that
might be suitable for this column, your
submissions are welcome and will be
gratefully accepted. It is hard to predict
what concepts will need illustrating in a
given month, but I will print as many as
possible. Check out the MA submission
guidelines for photographs (at www.model
aircraft.org/mag/AuthorGuidelines.htm)
before you send them in.
I deeply appreciate the feedback and
topic suggestions that come in. Your
information and stories are the heart of this
discussion, so please keep ’em coming. I
use nearly all of what I get, so be patient
and your topic will come up. We all love
hangar flying, so send your best “closecall”
story and let us all enjoy it.
What is a Material Safety Data Sheet
(MSDS), and why should you care? It is a
collection of information about a specific
substance or product, designed to inform
workers and emergency personnel about
the proper procedures for handling or
working with it.
The program is set up for industry
rather than home use, but an MSDS has so
much useful information that we should
take advantage of it when possible. You
can find out exactly how toxic a product is
and what precautions to use or reassure
yourself of the harmlessness of something
with which you come into contact.
Internet users have an advantage
because there are many free online MSDS
libraries. Use a search engine such as
Google, and chances are that you can get a
copy of any MSDS you seek.
Keep in mind that a hobbyist’s use of any
given product will be far different from the
industrial processes for which the MSDS
was written, but the data is still useful.
On the cutting edge of the hobby-knife
matter, several readers wrote in with even
more tricks to keep them on the table and
out of your foot. Michael Montgomery
uses a yardstick to make a removable
“fence” around his workbench and claims
that it keeps small parts in sight too. Clever
guy!
Andy Kunz suggests using the rubber
eraser tips that plug onto the ends of
pencils, but he warns that some shapes
don’t do the job as well as others. I wonder
if a piece of thin dowel stuck crosswise
through the eraser would work for those
knives that can’t be drilled through. Some
brands of knives have octagonal crosssections,
which reduces the chance of
rolling, but I use a crosspiece as well.
After researching this subject, I found
that my tool drawer contains quite a
collection of these knives, with six brands
represented. What nut keeps buying more
of them? And is it really possible to have
enough tools? MA
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/03
Page Numbers: 70,72,74
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/03
Page Numbers: 70,72,74
70 MODEL AVIATION
“WITH CONTROL LINE, the airplane
never gets more than 60 feet away from
you and you can watch it all the time—in
fact, you better watch it all the time!”
—Nick V.
CL Combat fliers may disagree (they
can fly by feel while watching their
competitor’s airplane), but keeping your
aircraft in sight is important for the rest of
us. Outdoor RC pilots frequently have an
issue with glare from the sun. The Red
Baron made use of the fact that an airplane
is hard to see when it’s in the sun, but now
we also know that ultraviolet (UV) rays
from sunlight can damage human eyes. Do
you wear UV-blocking glasses when
flying?
After my recent mention of various
eye-protection choices, Bruce Holden of
Zurich International contacted me. He is a
real sparkplug and promotes his highquality
safety sunglasses with great zeal.
Dave Gee
S a f e t y C o m e s F i r s t
Box 7081, Van Nuys CA 91409; E-mail: [email protected]
These spiffy tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver Grippers are hard to beat for removing
splinters. No columnists were actually harmed in this photo.
Do you keep fire extinguishers in your home and shop? The text
contains a sad story about a fatal but preventable fire.
Richard Cline spot-lands his tiny indoor Moth. Unlike indoor
fliers, outdoor pilots need eye protection from UV radiation.
Bruce says that UV protection is as
important as impact resistance because you
will usually be exposed to harmful rays,
but seldom (it is hoped) will you test the
shatterproof properties of your lenses. He
sent me one of his products which
withstood a bullet impact. (Note to Bruce:
To butter up a columnist, send him glasses
without bullet holes.)
If gunfire becomes a common issue at
my field, I’ll take up something safer, such
as bullriding, but readers have sent in
plenty of stories about propellers
shattering and engine mounts breaking.
Flying shrapnel is a possibility, and your
eyes are worth shielding. UV and impact
protection in one product is great!
I asked about cheapo, off-brand glasses
that claim to have UV protection—
especially the ones available from local
street-corner vendors. Bruce said it’s easy
to tell whether or not a lens blocks UV;
just visit a well-equipped laboratory that
has the proper multi-thousand-dollar test
meter. He wasn’t kidding, either. It might
be easier to just stick to a reputable brand
and skip the $2 specials.
Zurich products come in a variety of
tints and will fit over prescription glasses.
And no, I really didn’t get a free pair; we
run a legit operation here.
As long as I’m plugging products, I have a
first-aid tool that you will appreciate. Look
at the picture showing Sweet Diedra
removing a (simulated) splinter from my
finger; she is using a special pair of
tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver
Grippers. They are short and have
extremely sharp tips.
I own several pairs, and one lives in my
field box. They are by far the best
implement for sliver removal that I have
tried, including sterilized needles, scalpels,
serrated tweezers, and the kind with a
built-in magnifying glass.
A young relative of mine once tolerated
a splinter for two days until her scheduled
visit to my house, claiming that “Dave can
get it out without hurting me.” Don’t argue
with a 4-year-old about 48 hours of pain
versus 20 seconds, but you get my point.
This original brand is well made, but I
have seen knockoffs lately that look pretty
good. You can find them at camping
stores, drug stores, or, of course, on the
Internet by searching the brand name. The
price is roughly $5.
This is a heads-up about buddy-box
interference. I’ve gotten several E-mails
about instances of problems including hits
on other aircraft while training with a
buddy box.
The information is unclear and
sometimes contradictory, so I’m doing
some more research and asking for your
help. So far it seems to be confined to
certain older units and maybe to particular
geographic areas. If you have had such
trouble, please contact me. I’ll have more
about this soon.
Andrew Chiaraviglio checked in via Email
with kind greetings and claimed “I
have learned more than a few things in the
short time that I’ve been reading your
section.” He’s not the only one learning
things around here!
It’s been a few months, but I’m still not
used to being an MA celebrity author. My
wise-guy friends are always on the lookout
for unsafe behavior. It’s “Hey mister
safety guy, aren’t you being a bit casual
with that blade?” and “Dave should know
better than to launch like that.” And
heaven help me if I wear a Band-Aid.
The problem is, anyone watching for
me to goof up won’t have a long wait.
Sheesh!
Reheating the Soldering-Iron Issue: I
recently discussed good ways and bad
ways to keep hot soldering irons away
from body parts. Paul Anderson
recommends RadioShack’s solderingstation
tool, which is part 64-2078.
The device features a heavy metal coil
to hold the iron off of the table and has a
built-in sponge to clean the soldering tip.
It’s less than $10, sez Paul, and he claims
to have the scars to prove how necessary it
is.
Many E-mails came in on this topic,
and too many modelers have had
unpleasant encounters while soldering.
Please use caution and a good holder!
This subject is a bit off-topic from
modeling but still worth discussing. One
night last week a house caught fire a few
miles from my home. Several occupants
were badly burned, and a young boy died
because the back door could not be opened
without a key. There were no fire
extinguishers available.
This is an awful story, but let’s learn
from it. Please give your home and shop
the once-over for fire hazards, and make
sure your smoke alarms and fire
extinguishers are in good condition. I have
an extinguisher in each room and
occasionally drill my family on the
locations.
These inexpensive but vital cylinders
do not complement the decor unless you
need one, and then they look real pretty!
Be sure to get the kind of extinguisher that
works on multiple types of fires, including
electrical.
It’s surprising to me that few people
carry fire extinguishers in their vehicles. I
have used the one in my van on several
occasions throughout the years, and each
time my $8 investment saved someone’s
car from total destruction.
Have you noticed from the pictures in this
column that I possess a near-total lack of
camera-operating skill? It’s either practice
photography or landings, and I need the
landing practice even more.
Therefore, if you have a picture that
might be suitable for this column, your
submissions are welcome and will be
gratefully accepted. It is hard to predict
what concepts will need illustrating in a
given month, but I will print as many as
possible. Check out the MA submission
guidelines for photographs (at www.model
aircraft.org/mag/AuthorGuidelines.htm)
before you send them in.
I deeply appreciate the feedback and
topic suggestions that come in. Your
information and stories are the heart of this
discussion, so please keep ’em coming. I
use nearly all of what I get, so be patient
and your topic will come up. We all love
hangar flying, so send your best “closecall”
story and let us all enjoy it.
What is a Material Safety Data Sheet
(MSDS), and why should you care? It is a
collection of information about a specific
substance or product, designed to inform
workers and emergency personnel about
the proper procedures for handling or
working with it.
The program is set up for industry
rather than home use, but an MSDS has so
much useful information that we should
take advantage of it when possible. You
can find out exactly how toxic a product is
and what precautions to use or reassure
yourself of the harmlessness of something
with which you come into contact.
Internet users have an advantage
because there are many free online MSDS
libraries. Use a search engine such as
Google, and chances are that you can get a
copy of any MSDS you seek.
Keep in mind that a hobbyist’s use of any
given product will be far different from the
industrial processes for which the MSDS
was written, but the data is still useful.
On the cutting edge of the hobby-knife
matter, several readers wrote in with even
more tricks to keep them on the table and
out of your foot. Michael Montgomery
uses a yardstick to make a removable
“fence” around his workbench and claims
that it keeps small parts in sight too. Clever
guy!
Andy Kunz suggests using the rubber
eraser tips that plug onto the ends of
pencils, but he warns that some shapes
don’t do the job as well as others. I wonder
if a piece of thin dowel stuck crosswise
through the eraser would work for those
knives that can’t be drilled through. Some
brands of knives have octagonal crosssections,
which reduces the chance of
rolling, but I use a crosspiece as well.
After researching this subject, I found
that my tool drawer contains quite a
collection of these knives, with six brands
represented. What nut keeps buying more
of them? And is it really possible to have
enough tools? MA
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/03
Page Numbers: 70,72,74
70 MODEL AVIATION
“WITH CONTROL LINE, the airplane
never gets more than 60 feet away from
you and you can watch it all the time—in
fact, you better watch it all the time!”
—Nick V.
CL Combat fliers may disagree (they
can fly by feel while watching their
competitor’s airplane), but keeping your
aircraft in sight is important for the rest of
us. Outdoor RC pilots frequently have an
issue with glare from the sun. The Red
Baron made use of the fact that an airplane
is hard to see when it’s in the sun, but now
we also know that ultraviolet (UV) rays
from sunlight can damage human eyes. Do
you wear UV-blocking glasses when
flying?
After my recent mention of various
eye-protection choices, Bruce Holden of
Zurich International contacted me. He is a
real sparkplug and promotes his highquality
safety sunglasses with great zeal.
Dave Gee
S a f e t y C o m e s F i r s t
Box 7081, Van Nuys CA 91409; E-mail: [email protected]
These spiffy tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver Grippers are hard to beat for removing
splinters. No columnists were actually harmed in this photo.
Do you keep fire extinguishers in your home and shop? The text
contains a sad story about a fatal but preventable fire.
Richard Cline spot-lands his tiny indoor Moth. Unlike indoor
fliers, outdoor pilots need eye protection from UV radiation.
Bruce says that UV protection is as
important as impact resistance because you
will usually be exposed to harmful rays,
but seldom (it is hoped) will you test the
shatterproof properties of your lenses. He
sent me one of his products which
withstood a bullet impact. (Note to Bruce:
To butter up a columnist, send him glasses
without bullet holes.)
If gunfire becomes a common issue at
my field, I’ll take up something safer, such
as bullriding, but readers have sent in
plenty of stories about propellers
shattering and engine mounts breaking.
Flying shrapnel is a possibility, and your
eyes are worth shielding. UV and impact
protection in one product is great!
I asked about cheapo, off-brand glasses
that claim to have UV protection—
especially the ones available from local
street-corner vendors. Bruce said it’s easy
to tell whether or not a lens blocks UV;
just visit a well-equipped laboratory that
has the proper multi-thousand-dollar test
meter. He wasn’t kidding, either. It might
be easier to just stick to a reputable brand
and skip the $2 specials.
Zurich products come in a variety of
tints and will fit over prescription glasses.
And no, I really didn’t get a free pair; we
run a legit operation here.
As long as I’m plugging products, I have a
first-aid tool that you will appreciate. Look
at the picture showing Sweet Diedra
removing a (simulated) splinter from my
finger; she is using a special pair of
tweezers called Uncle Bill’s Sliver
Grippers. They are short and have
extremely sharp tips.
I own several pairs, and one lives in my
field box. They are by far the best
implement for sliver removal that I have
tried, including sterilized needles, scalpels,
serrated tweezers, and the kind with a
built-in magnifying glass.
A young relative of mine once tolerated
a splinter for two days until her scheduled
visit to my house, claiming that “Dave can
get it out without hurting me.” Don’t argue
with a 4-year-old about 48 hours of pain
versus 20 seconds, but you get my point.
This original brand is well made, but I
have seen knockoffs lately that look pretty
good. You can find them at camping
stores, drug stores, or, of course, on the
Internet by searching the brand name. The
price is roughly $5.
This is a heads-up about buddy-box
interference. I’ve gotten several E-mails
about instances of problems including hits
on other aircraft while training with a
buddy box.
The information is unclear and
sometimes contradictory, so I’m doing
some more research and asking for your
help. So far it seems to be confined to
certain older units and maybe to particular
geographic areas. If you have had such
trouble, please contact me. I’ll have more
about this soon.
Andrew Chiaraviglio checked in via Email
with kind greetings and claimed “I
have learned more than a few things in the
short time that I’ve been reading your
section.” He’s not the only one learning
things around here!
It’s been a few months, but I’m still not
used to being an MA celebrity author. My
wise-guy friends are always on the lookout
for unsafe behavior. It’s “Hey mister
safety guy, aren’t you being a bit casual
with that blade?” and “Dave should know
better than to launch like that.” And
heaven help me if I wear a Band-Aid.
The problem is, anyone watching for
me to goof up won’t have a long wait.
Sheesh!
Reheating the Soldering-Iron Issue: I
recently discussed good ways and bad
ways to keep hot soldering irons away
from body parts. Paul Anderson
recommends RadioShack’s solderingstation
tool, which is part 64-2078.
The device features a heavy metal coil
to hold the iron off of the table and has a
built-in sponge to clean the soldering tip.
It’s less than $10, sez Paul, and he claims
to have the scars to prove how necessary it
is.
Many E-mails came in on this topic,
and too many modelers have had
unpleasant encounters while soldering.
Please use caution and a good holder!
This subject is a bit off-topic from
modeling but still worth discussing. One
night last week a house caught fire a few
miles from my home. Several occupants
were badly burned, and a young boy died
because the back door could not be opened
without a key. There were no fire
extinguishers available.
This is an awful story, but let’s learn
from it. Please give your home and shop
the once-over for fire hazards, and make
sure your smoke alarms and fire
extinguishers are in good condition. I have
an extinguisher in each room and
occasionally drill my family on the
locations.
These inexpensive but vital cylinders
do not complement the decor unless you
need one, and then they look real pretty!
Be sure to get the kind of extinguisher that
works on multiple types of fires, including
electrical.
It’s surprising to me that few people
carry fire extinguishers in their vehicles. I
have used the one in my van on several
occasions throughout the years, and each
time my $8 investment saved someone’s
car from total destruction.
Have you noticed from the pictures in this
column that I possess a near-total lack of
camera-operating skill? It’s either practice
photography or landings, and I need the
landing practice even more.
Therefore, if you have a picture that
might be suitable for this column, your
submissions are welcome and will be
gratefully accepted. It is hard to predict
what concepts will need illustrating in a
given month, but I will print as many as
possible. Check out the MA submission
guidelines for photographs (at www.model
aircraft.org/mag/AuthorGuidelines.htm)
before you send them in.
I deeply appreciate the feedback and
topic suggestions that come in. Your
information and stories are the heart of this
discussion, so please keep ’em coming. I
use nearly all of what I get, so be patient
and your topic will come up. We all love
hangar flying, so send your best “closecall”
story and let us all enjoy it.
What is a Material Safety Data Sheet
(MSDS), and why should you care? It is a
collection of information about a specific
substance or product, designed to inform
workers and emergency personnel about
the proper procedures for handling or
working with it.
The program is set up for industry
rather than home use, but an MSDS has so
much useful information that we should
take advantage of it when possible. You
can find out exactly how toxic a product is
and what precautions to use or reassure
yourself of the harmlessness of something
with which you come into contact.
Internet users have an advantage
because there are many free online MSDS
libraries. Use a search engine such as
Google, and chances are that you can get a
copy of any MSDS you seek.
Keep in mind that a hobbyist’s use of any
given product will be far different from the
industrial processes for which the MSDS
was written, but the data is still useful.
On the cutting edge of the hobby-knife
matter, several readers wrote in with even
more tricks to keep them on the table and
out of your foot. Michael Montgomery
uses a yardstick to make a removable
“fence” around his workbench and claims
that it keeps small parts in sight too. Clever
guy!
Andy Kunz suggests using the rubber
eraser tips that plug onto the ends of
pencils, but he warns that some shapes
don’t do the job as well as others. I wonder
if a piece of thin dowel stuck crosswise
through the eraser would work for those
knives that can’t be drilled through. Some
brands of knives have octagonal crosssections,
which reduces the chance of
rolling, but I use a crosspiece as well.
After researching this subject, I found
that my tool drawer contains quite a
collection of these knives, with six brands
represented. What nut keeps buying more
of them? And is it really possible to have
enough tools? MA