104 MODEL AVIATION
Test-flying new models and the AMA Safety Code
Safety Comes First Dave Gee | [email protected]
Also included in this column:
• A fail-safe accident story
• Field-interference saga
• Park flyers can bite you too!
• Soldering iron update
Walker Burr (R) shows what true concentration looks like as he launches his Sky Streak.
He couldn’t be more engrossed if the model cost thousands of dollars!
Hugh Langhans mans “the board” at a Burbank, California, meet
while displaying a massive twin-propeller behemoth.
Don Smith’s well-worn foam Cub has lived through good times
and bad. He has made many careful repairs and it still flies fine.
I’M GUILTY! I confess! The AMA Safety
Code reads “I will not fly my model aircraft
in sanctioned events, air shows, or model
demonstrations until it has been proven
airworthy.” I’m the king of all-night
building sessions, and showing up at a
contest with a very freshly painted model is
nothing unusual for me.
Perhaps this rule could be overlooked in
the case of a 9-gram No-Cal Rubber model,
but I’ve done it with bigger airplanes too.
Granted, I am not known for coldly rational
decision-making, but I am not the only one
who breaks this rule.
My confession was prompted by a pack
of readers, led by LeRoy Cordes, who
noticed more than one recent picture caption
in this publication claiming that the model
shown had performed its maiden flight at a
big event or contest. LeRoy said it sends the
wrong message, and he is right.
Flying an untested model at an event
where people will gather is less than ideal.
The urge to show off a new airplane or
helicopter can bring great emotional
pressure to make a crowd-pleasing flight
despite problems that may arise. Judgment
calls can lean toward push your luck instead
of play it safe. I have seen this tendency and
I have been caught up in it.
Again, the seriousness of this situation
varies with the kinetic energy of the model
involved. An out-of-control FF Peanut Scale
aircraft is not much of a hazard, but many of
our flying machines have the power to cause
great harm to humans.
A model’s initial flight test is a delicate
time, in which unforseen problems may
arise. Adjustments may be required.
Mishaps are common. Open space could
suddenly be handy for an impromptu
landing or “arrival.”
Do we have the good judgment to
postpone the first flight if a new model was
not finished in time to be tested before the
big meet? Can we make our egos secondary
to an important but often broken safety rule?
It looks easy from here, but it is much
tougher after a late night of last-minute
model building.
(Editor’s note: The mention in MA of
models being flown at a sanctioned event for
the first time proved to be misleading. The
11sig4.QXD 9/26/06 9:02 AM Page 104aircraft in question were test flown after
the official sanctioned event hours, when
the field was open to normal model-flying
activities and test-flying was permitted.)
Following is a great E-mail from Ash
Nityanandan about an RC fail-safe system.
“I am writing to report a near miss in
the hope that it will save someone else’s
airplane (or fingers or cat; mine escaped
with only a scare). I will be the first to
admit that it could have been prevented if I
had thought ahead.
“I successfully programmed my new
Berg MicroStamp 4L receiver for the failsafe
mode with turn gently left and throttle
back. A couple of days later, I powered up
my radio on the bench for setup work.
Following my usual practice I set the
transmitter at half throttle first, then
plugged in the receiver and the Pixie-7P
ESC to prevent accidental arming of the
motor.
“I tested the fail-safe by powering down
the transmitter. It worked fine; slow left
turn and no motor. Then I thoughtlessly
turned the transmitter back on.
“Since the fail-safe was ‘low throttle,’
the Pixie had already interpreted this as an
‘arming’ signal. Since the transmitter was
still at half throttle, my airplane took off in
the basement. Minor damage and no
injuries.
“The ironic thing is that two good
safety features combined to create a new
hazard. The manufacturer said that they
would add the info to the manual.”
I’m always saying how much fun indoor
flying is, but Ash learned that you either
need a bigger basement or a smaller
airplane.
Those of us who use fail-safes
appreciate his hard-earned wisdom. These
gizmos can save your model under certain
circumstances, at the cost of one more
system to learn about and keep an eye on.
How about a little controversy? The
following letter from John McBride was
forwarded to me.
“We recently had a blip at our flying
field. One of our members pulled an old
lawn mower out of the shed and began
mowing the weeds along our crosswind
runway. Meanwhile one of the best pilots
in our club lost elevator and crashed into
the ground while doing a inverted flyby.
“After that another lawn mower
began mowing around the main runway.
Another member’s helicopter fell from
approximately 100 feet [altitude] sideways
into the ground.
“After discussing what had happened,
we set up a helicopter on a test bench,
turned on the receiver and a transmitter,
and instructed the pilot to move rudder
only. As he walked around the field with
the transmitter, we noticed intermittent
control blips, sometimes including severe
action of all servos.
“We came to the conclusion that the
lawn mowers were interrupting the
transmitter signals to the airplanes and
helicopters. Please let more AMA members
know about this. It is a safety concern and
a threat to bystanders and pilots.”
John’s note came to me with an
attachment from the authorities at Muncie,
Indiana. After careful consideration,
AMA’s technical director and the Safety
Committee chairman do not think the lawn
mower was responsible for the
interference. They said that unless the
people at the field did detailed testing with
the mower on and off, there is no way to
substantiate it.
It is possible that an older mower that
perhaps did not have a resistor-type sparkplug
cap could produce some interference.
However, it is fairly unlikely that this was
the cause of the problem.
I get reports of such incidents from time
to time, and seldom are the modelers able
and equipped to do a proper scientific
investigation of all possible sources of
interference. Most of us have experienced
some type of RC glitch at some point, and
the reality is that often we cannot find the
true cause.
Just remember that our systems are not
100% reliable and fly accordingly. Takeevery reasonable precaution and maybe a
couple unreasonable ones. I’ll bet John
made sure the mowers underwent an
ignition-system overhaul just in case!
Marty Jasin shares my feelings about those
little RTF park flyers; they are great fun for
the price! He wrote:
“Just want to inform you that a ready-tofly
airplane propeller can bite pretty good. I
loaded my airplane into the car before
removing the battery when suddenly the
throttle went wide open. Seems that another
flier was using the same channel as I was
on 27 MHZ.
“Some of the manufacturers of the RTF
airplanes are not including an arming
switch. In trying to remove the battery from
my airplane, my little finger said hello to
the propeller and shed a little skin.
“This is something that could have been
prevented with a switch that could have
been turned off with the push of a button, as
is standard procedure with wet-fuel
airplanes when the airplanes are retrieved.”
I fly a bunch of these models, mainly
small ones, and I have a hard time
remembering to turn on the transmitter first,
plug in the battery last, and unplug battery
right after landing, before turning off the
transmitter.
Marty kidded me for trying to save the
weight of a tiny switch, but I will probably
pay in blood for the extra bit of
performance! Besides, my fingers have a
hard time working some of the teensy
switches that do come installed on these
models. I told him I would see what the
readers have to say about it.
If you use the E-mail address at the top
of the column, be sure to use an informative
subject line about MA or airplanes so my
antispam program doesn’t eat your
message. Messages about “EeZee
PreskripShuns” or investment offers do not
make it through. For those pen-and-ink
types, my address is Box 7081, Van Nuys
CA 91409. It’s always a delight to get
stories, comments, or corrections from them
what are smarter than me.
Recent stories in this column about heat
guns and soldering irons causing trouble
brought many suggestions to simply leave
such tools unplugged when they are not in
use. That’s basic, but apparently I neglected
to make the point.
I have a great fear of losing my tools
and equipment by fire, so I make quite sure
to take that precaution before leaving my
workbench. Even a faulty electrical device
won’t cause trouble if it is unplugged.
I almost forgot about the pictures!
Sometimes it takes some convoluted
reasoning to get a particular photo into the
safety column, and these may push the
envelope.
Walker Burr is a sharp young man, and
he knows how to get the most out of his
rubber-powered FF model. Check out the
intent look on his face!
This same level of concentration can be
a problem at the RC field since it can blind
us to anything beyond our models. Wise
fliers use an experienced assistant to keep
an eye on the rest of the world for us, and
we take turns doing the same for our pals.
That portable frequency board was in
use at a casual electric-powered park flyer
meet. Even those lightweight models need
the safety of a control board. There was no
transmitter impound at this event, and
nearly everyone knew everyone else, but
nobody wanted interference!
Hugh Langhans is posing with one of
the excellent Aero Ace RTF models. A lady
from the parks department made her first
RC flight that day with a similar airplane,
which delighted her and may help the local
club the next time a park reservation is
needed!
The Aero Aces are made by Air Hogs.
They are available at toy stores or via the
Internet from www.aeroacemods.com,
which also offers a terrific upgraded
transmitter.
That beat-up-looking Cub belongs to
Don Smith, who has made many careful
repairs to various damaged components. He
may have been involved in the crashes also.
He says that repairing a model is as
important as building it since the weight
gain and strength of the airframe depend on
the quality of the work.
Don also said he wished he didn’t have
so much skill and experience at repairs. I
was deeply sympathetic and know exactly
how he feels. MA
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/11
Page Numbers: 104,106,107
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/11
Page Numbers: 104,106,107
104 MODEL AVIATION
Test-flying new models and the AMA Safety Code
Safety Comes First Dave Gee | [email protected]
Also included in this column:
• A fail-safe accident story
• Field-interference saga
• Park flyers can bite you too!
• Soldering iron update
Walker Burr (R) shows what true concentration looks like as he launches his Sky Streak.
He couldn’t be more engrossed if the model cost thousands of dollars!
Hugh Langhans mans “the board” at a Burbank, California, meet
while displaying a massive twin-propeller behemoth.
Don Smith’s well-worn foam Cub has lived through good times
and bad. He has made many careful repairs and it still flies fine.
I’M GUILTY! I confess! The AMA Safety
Code reads “I will not fly my model aircraft
in sanctioned events, air shows, or model
demonstrations until it has been proven
airworthy.” I’m the king of all-night
building sessions, and showing up at a
contest with a very freshly painted model is
nothing unusual for me.
Perhaps this rule could be overlooked in
the case of a 9-gram No-Cal Rubber model,
but I’ve done it with bigger airplanes too.
Granted, I am not known for coldly rational
decision-making, but I am not the only one
who breaks this rule.
My confession was prompted by a pack
of readers, led by LeRoy Cordes, who
noticed more than one recent picture caption
in this publication claiming that the model
shown had performed its maiden flight at a
big event or contest. LeRoy said it sends the
wrong message, and he is right.
Flying an untested model at an event
where people will gather is less than ideal.
The urge to show off a new airplane or
helicopter can bring great emotional
pressure to make a crowd-pleasing flight
despite problems that may arise. Judgment
calls can lean toward push your luck instead
of play it safe. I have seen this tendency and
I have been caught up in it.
Again, the seriousness of this situation
varies with the kinetic energy of the model
involved. An out-of-control FF Peanut Scale
aircraft is not much of a hazard, but many of
our flying machines have the power to cause
great harm to humans.
A model’s initial flight test is a delicate
time, in which unforseen problems may
arise. Adjustments may be required.
Mishaps are common. Open space could
suddenly be handy for an impromptu
landing or “arrival.”
Do we have the good judgment to
postpone the first flight if a new model was
not finished in time to be tested before the
big meet? Can we make our egos secondary
to an important but often broken safety rule?
It looks easy from here, but it is much
tougher after a late night of last-minute
model building.
(Editor’s note: The mention in MA of
models being flown at a sanctioned event for
the first time proved to be misleading. The
11sig4.QXD 9/26/06 9:02 AM Page 104aircraft in question were test flown after
the official sanctioned event hours, when
the field was open to normal model-flying
activities and test-flying was permitted.)
Following is a great E-mail from Ash
Nityanandan about an RC fail-safe system.
“I am writing to report a near miss in
the hope that it will save someone else’s
airplane (or fingers or cat; mine escaped
with only a scare). I will be the first to
admit that it could have been prevented if I
had thought ahead.
“I successfully programmed my new
Berg MicroStamp 4L receiver for the failsafe
mode with turn gently left and throttle
back. A couple of days later, I powered up
my radio on the bench for setup work.
Following my usual practice I set the
transmitter at half throttle first, then
plugged in the receiver and the Pixie-7P
ESC to prevent accidental arming of the
motor.
“I tested the fail-safe by powering down
the transmitter. It worked fine; slow left
turn and no motor. Then I thoughtlessly
turned the transmitter back on.
“Since the fail-safe was ‘low throttle,’
the Pixie had already interpreted this as an
‘arming’ signal. Since the transmitter was
still at half throttle, my airplane took off in
the basement. Minor damage and no
injuries.
“The ironic thing is that two good
safety features combined to create a new
hazard. The manufacturer said that they
would add the info to the manual.”
I’m always saying how much fun indoor
flying is, but Ash learned that you either
need a bigger basement or a smaller
airplane.
Those of us who use fail-safes
appreciate his hard-earned wisdom. These
gizmos can save your model under certain
circumstances, at the cost of one more
system to learn about and keep an eye on.
How about a little controversy? The
following letter from John McBride was
forwarded to me.
“We recently had a blip at our flying
field. One of our members pulled an old
lawn mower out of the shed and began
mowing the weeds along our crosswind
runway. Meanwhile one of the best pilots
in our club lost elevator and crashed into
the ground while doing a inverted flyby.
“After that another lawn mower
began mowing around the main runway.
Another member’s helicopter fell from
approximately 100 feet [altitude] sideways
into the ground.
“After discussing what had happened,
we set up a helicopter on a test bench,
turned on the receiver and a transmitter,
and instructed the pilot to move rudder
only. As he walked around the field with
the transmitter, we noticed intermittent
control blips, sometimes including severe
action of all servos.
“We came to the conclusion that the
lawn mowers were interrupting the
transmitter signals to the airplanes and
helicopters. Please let more AMA members
know about this. It is a safety concern and
a threat to bystanders and pilots.”
John’s note came to me with an
attachment from the authorities at Muncie,
Indiana. After careful consideration,
AMA’s technical director and the Safety
Committee chairman do not think the lawn
mower was responsible for the
interference. They said that unless the
people at the field did detailed testing with
the mower on and off, there is no way to
substantiate it.
It is possible that an older mower that
perhaps did not have a resistor-type sparkplug
cap could produce some interference.
However, it is fairly unlikely that this was
the cause of the problem.
I get reports of such incidents from time
to time, and seldom are the modelers able
and equipped to do a proper scientific
investigation of all possible sources of
interference. Most of us have experienced
some type of RC glitch at some point, and
the reality is that often we cannot find the
true cause.
Just remember that our systems are not
100% reliable and fly accordingly. Takeevery reasonable precaution and maybe a
couple unreasonable ones. I’ll bet John
made sure the mowers underwent an
ignition-system overhaul just in case!
Marty Jasin shares my feelings about those
little RTF park flyers; they are great fun for
the price! He wrote:
“Just want to inform you that a ready-tofly
airplane propeller can bite pretty good. I
loaded my airplane into the car before
removing the battery when suddenly the
throttle went wide open. Seems that another
flier was using the same channel as I was
on 27 MHZ.
“Some of the manufacturers of the RTF
airplanes are not including an arming
switch. In trying to remove the battery from
my airplane, my little finger said hello to
the propeller and shed a little skin.
“This is something that could have been
prevented with a switch that could have
been turned off with the push of a button, as
is standard procedure with wet-fuel
airplanes when the airplanes are retrieved.”
I fly a bunch of these models, mainly
small ones, and I have a hard time
remembering to turn on the transmitter first,
plug in the battery last, and unplug battery
right after landing, before turning off the
transmitter.
Marty kidded me for trying to save the
weight of a tiny switch, but I will probably
pay in blood for the extra bit of
performance! Besides, my fingers have a
hard time working some of the teensy
switches that do come installed on these
models. I told him I would see what the
readers have to say about it.
If you use the E-mail address at the top
of the column, be sure to use an informative
subject line about MA or airplanes so my
antispam program doesn’t eat your
message. Messages about “EeZee
PreskripShuns” or investment offers do not
make it through. For those pen-and-ink
types, my address is Box 7081, Van Nuys
CA 91409. It’s always a delight to get
stories, comments, or corrections from them
what are smarter than me.
Recent stories in this column about heat
guns and soldering irons causing trouble
brought many suggestions to simply leave
such tools unplugged when they are not in
use. That’s basic, but apparently I neglected
to make the point.
I have a great fear of losing my tools
and equipment by fire, so I make quite sure
to take that precaution before leaving my
workbench. Even a faulty electrical device
won’t cause trouble if it is unplugged.
I almost forgot about the pictures!
Sometimes it takes some convoluted
reasoning to get a particular photo into the
safety column, and these may push the
envelope.
Walker Burr is a sharp young man, and
he knows how to get the most out of his
rubber-powered FF model. Check out the
intent look on his face!
This same level of concentration can be
a problem at the RC field since it can blind
us to anything beyond our models. Wise
fliers use an experienced assistant to keep
an eye on the rest of the world for us, and
we take turns doing the same for our pals.
That portable frequency board was in
use at a casual electric-powered park flyer
meet. Even those lightweight models need
the safety of a control board. There was no
transmitter impound at this event, and
nearly everyone knew everyone else, but
nobody wanted interference!
Hugh Langhans is posing with one of
the excellent Aero Ace RTF models. A lady
from the parks department made her first
RC flight that day with a similar airplane,
which delighted her and may help the local
club the next time a park reservation is
needed!
The Aero Aces are made by Air Hogs.
They are available at toy stores or via the
Internet from www.aeroacemods.com,
which also offers a terrific upgraded
transmitter.
That beat-up-looking Cub belongs to
Don Smith, who has made many careful
repairs to various damaged components. He
may have been involved in the crashes also.
He says that repairing a model is as
important as building it since the weight
gain and strength of the airframe depend on
the quality of the work.
Don also said he wished he didn’t have
so much skill and experience at repairs. I
was deeply sympathetic and know exactly
how he feels. MA
Edition: Model Aviation - 2006/11
Page Numbers: 104,106,107
104 MODEL AVIATION
Test-flying new models and the AMA Safety Code
Safety Comes First Dave Gee | [email protected]
Also included in this column:
• A fail-safe accident story
• Field-interference saga
• Park flyers can bite you too!
• Soldering iron update
Walker Burr (R) shows what true concentration looks like as he launches his Sky Streak.
He couldn’t be more engrossed if the model cost thousands of dollars!
Hugh Langhans mans “the board” at a Burbank, California, meet
while displaying a massive twin-propeller behemoth.
Don Smith’s well-worn foam Cub has lived through good times
and bad. He has made many careful repairs and it still flies fine.
I’M GUILTY! I confess! The AMA Safety
Code reads “I will not fly my model aircraft
in sanctioned events, air shows, or model
demonstrations until it has been proven
airworthy.” I’m the king of all-night
building sessions, and showing up at a
contest with a very freshly painted model is
nothing unusual for me.
Perhaps this rule could be overlooked in
the case of a 9-gram No-Cal Rubber model,
but I’ve done it with bigger airplanes too.
Granted, I am not known for coldly rational
decision-making, but I am not the only one
who breaks this rule.
My confession was prompted by a pack
of readers, led by LeRoy Cordes, who
noticed more than one recent picture caption
in this publication claiming that the model
shown had performed its maiden flight at a
big event or contest. LeRoy said it sends the
wrong message, and he is right.
Flying an untested model at an event
where people will gather is less than ideal.
The urge to show off a new airplane or
helicopter can bring great emotional
pressure to make a crowd-pleasing flight
despite problems that may arise. Judgment
calls can lean toward push your luck instead
of play it safe. I have seen this tendency and
I have been caught up in it.
Again, the seriousness of this situation
varies with the kinetic energy of the model
involved. An out-of-control FF Peanut Scale
aircraft is not much of a hazard, but many of
our flying machines have the power to cause
great harm to humans.
A model’s initial flight test is a delicate
time, in which unforseen problems may
arise. Adjustments may be required.
Mishaps are common. Open space could
suddenly be handy for an impromptu
landing or “arrival.”
Do we have the good judgment to
postpone the first flight if a new model was
not finished in time to be tested before the
big meet? Can we make our egos secondary
to an important but often broken safety rule?
It looks easy from here, but it is much
tougher after a late night of last-minute
model building.
(Editor’s note: The mention in MA of
models being flown at a sanctioned event for
the first time proved to be misleading. The
11sig4.QXD 9/26/06 9:02 AM Page 104aircraft in question were test flown after
the official sanctioned event hours, when
the field was open to normal model-flying
activities and test-flying was permitted.)
Following is a great E-mail from Ash
Nityanandan about an RC fail-safe system.
“I am writing to report a near miss in
the hope that it will save someone else’s
airplane (or fingers or cat; mine escaped
with only a scare). I will be the first to
admit that it could have been prevented if I
had thought ahead.
“I successfully programmed my new
Berg MicroStamp 4L receiver for the failsafe
mode with turn gently left and throttle
back. A couple of days later, I powered up
my radio on the bench for setup work.
Following my usual practice I set the
transmitter at half throttle first, then
plugged in the receiver and the Pixie-7P
ESC to prevent accidental arming of the
motor.
“I tested the fail-safe by powering down
the transmitter. It worked fine; slow left
turn and no motor. Then I thoughtlessly
turned the transmitter back on.
“Since the fail-safe was ‘low throttle,’
the Pixie had already interpreted this as an
‘arming’ signal. Since the transmitter was
still at half throttle, my airplane took off in
the basement. Minor damage and no
injuries.
“The ironic thing is that two good
safety features combined to create a new
hazard. The manufacturer said that they
would add the info to the manual.”
I’m always saying how much fun indoor
flying is, but Ash learned that you either
need a bigger basement or a smaller
airplane.
Those of us who use fail-safes
appreciate his hard-earned wisdom. These
gizmos can save your model under certain
circumstances, at the cost of one more
system to learn about and keep an eye on.
How about a little controversy? The
following letter from John McBride was
forwarded to me.
“We recently had a blip at our flying
field. One of our members pulled an old
lawn mower out of the shed and began
mowing the weeds along our crosswind
runway. Meanwhile one of the best pilots
in our club lost elevator and crashed into
the ground while doing a inverted flyby.
“After that another lawn mower
began mowing around the main runway.
Another member’s helicopter fell from
approximately 100 feet [altitude] sideways
into the ground.
“After discussing what had happened,
we set up a helicopter on a test bench,
turned on the receiver and a transmitter,
and instructed the pilot to move rudder
only. As he walked around the field with
the transmitter, we noticed intermittent
control blips, sometimes including severe
action of all servos.
“We came to the conclusion that the
lawn mowers were interrupting the
transmitter signals to the airplanes and
helicopters. Please let more AMA members
know about this. It is a safety concern and
a threat to bystanders and pilots.”
John’s note came to me with an
attachment from the authorities at Muncie,
Indiana. After careful consideration,
AMA’s technical director and the Safety
Committee chairman do not think the lawn
mower was responsible for the
interference. They said that unless the
people at the field did detailed testing with
the mower on and off, there is no way to
substantiate it.
It is possible that an older mower that
perhaps did not have a resistor-type sparkplug
cap could produce some interference.
However, it is fairly unlikely that this was
the cause of the problem.
I get reports of such incidents from time
to time, and seldom are the modelers able
and equipped to do a proper scientific
investigation of all possible sources of
interference. Most of us have experienced
some type of RC glitch at some point, and
the reality is that often we cannot find the
true cause.
Just remember that our systems are not
100% reliable and fly accordingly. Takeevery reasonable precaution and maybe a
couple unreasonable ones. I’ll bet John
made sure the mowers underwent an
ignition-system overhaul just in case!
Marty Jasin shares my feelings about those
little RTF park flyers; they are great fun for
the price! He wrote:
“Just want to inform you that a ready-tofly
airplane propeller can bite pretty good. I
loaded my airplane into the car before
removing the battery when suddenly the
throttle went wide open. Seems that another
flier was using the same channel as I was
on 27 MHZ.
“Some of the manufacturers of the RTF
airplanes are not including an arming
switch. In trying to remove the battery from
my airplane, my little finger said hello to
the propeller and shed a little skin.
“This is something that could have been
prevented with a switch that could have
been turned off with the push of a button, as
is standard procedure with wet-fuel
airplanes when the airplanes are retrieved.”
I fly a bunch of these models, mainly
small ones, and I have a hard time
remembering to turn on the transmitter first,
plug in the battery last, and unplug battery
right after landing, before turning off the
transmitter.
Marty kidded me for trying to save the
weight of a tiny switch, but I will probably
pay in blood for the extra bit of
performance! Besides, my fingers have a
hard time working some of the teensy
switches that do come installed on these
models. I told him I would see what the
readers have to say about it.
If you use the E-mail address at the top
of the column, be sure to use an informative
subject line about MA or airplanes so my
antispam program doesn’t eat your
message. Messages about “EeZee
PreskripShuns” or investment offers do not
make it through. For those pen-and-ink
types, my address is Box 7081, Van Nuys
CA 91409. It’s always a delight to get
stories, comments, or corrections from them
what are smarter than me.
Recent stories in this column about heat
guns and soldering irons causing trouble
brought many suggestions to simply leave
such tools unplugged when they are not in
use. That’s basic, but apparently I neglected
to make the point.
I have a great fear of losing my tools
and equipment by fire, so I make quite sure
to take that precaution before leaving my
workbench. Even a faulty electrical device
won’t cause trouble if it is unplugged.
I almost forgot about the pictures!
Sometimes it takes some convoluted
reasoning to get a particular photo into the
safety column, and these may push the
envelope.
Walker Burr is a sharp young man, and
he knows how to get the most out of his
rubber-powered FF model. Check out the
intent look on his face!
This same level of concentration can be
a problem at the RC field since it can blind
us to anything beyond our models. Wise
fliers use an experienced assistant to keep
an eye on the rest of the world for us, and
we take turns doing the same for our pals.
That portable frequency board was in
use at a casual electric-powered park flyer
meet. Even those lightweight models need
the safety of a control board. There was no
transmitter impound at this event, and
nearly everyone knew everyone else, but
nobody wanted interference!
Hugh Langhans is posing with one of
the excellent Aero Ace RTF models. A lady
from the parks department made her first
RC flight that day with a similar airplane,
which delighted her and may help the local
club the next time a park reservation is
needed!
The Aero Aces are made by Air Hogs.
They are available at toy stores or via the
Internet from www.aeroacemods.com,
which also offers a terrific upgraded
transmitter.
That beat-up-looking Cub belongs to
Don Smith, who has made many careful
repairs to various damaged components. He
may have been involved in the crashes also.
He says that repairing a model is as
important as building it since the weight
gain and strength of the airframe depend on
the quality of the work.
Don also said he wished he didn’t have
so much skill and experience at repairs. I
was deeply sympathetic and know exactly
how he feels. MA