Small-Field Flying
Big fun at SMALL 2011
THIS YEAR'S SMALL (Small Model Airplane Lovers' League) event was hot but great fun. It is certainly no surprise that June in Arkansas will produce hot weather. The first weekend of June 2011 was no exception. Although SMALL 2011 was hot it also saw calm winds each day—and a bunch of model airplane nuts having way too much fun.
While ducking in and out of the shade provided by the many canopies erected on the field, I had an opportunity to capture the details of several models that seemed a good fit for this column. First was an interesting profile biplane built by Carl Hock who lives near Houston. Carl happened to have an old issue of Flying Models that included a construction article for a 1/2A profile CL biplane called the Mini-Bipe.
Carl liked the lines of the model and felt it would translate nicely into an RC small-field flyer. He scaled the design up to a 20-inch wingspan and used sheet foam rather than balsa for the structure.
Power comes from a Balsa Products A2204-19 brushless motor (see the “Source” listing) driven by a two-cell 450 mAh LiPo battery pack. Control functions include ailerons (dual servos), elevator, rudder, and throttle.
With an all-up weight of 6.5 ounces, Carl’s Mini-E-Bipe is a nice-flying aircraft. It shows us that we can find inspiration for our next small-field RC model in unexpected places—in this case a vintage profile CL model. Nice work, Carl.
One of the highlights of SMALL for me each year is being able to catch up with friends in the hobby. One such person is Pat Tritle and he did not disappoint in terms of having a new model that is perfect for small-field flying.
Pat had recently completed his rendition of the old Comet Gull II FF aircraft. The original Comet Gull II tended to come out heavy and did not always produce a good-flying model. The overall design is decent if built light, and Pat recognized that fact.
Pat’s version is scaled up to a 50-inch wingspan and has a leaner internal structure. Watching Pat fly the model made the point that it is a good design. It is stable, handles well, and looks unique in the air.
The 50-inch wing generates an area of 362 square inches. With a flying weight of 13 ounces, the model has a modest wing loading of 5.2 ounces/square foot. It is no wonder it has such nice flying qualities. Power is provided by an RC Hotdeals 2208/17 brushless motor (see the "Sources" listing). The battery is a two-cell 1300 mAh pack. Control functions are throttle, rudder, and elevator.
Watch Flying Models for a construction article covering Pat’s scaled-up Comet Gull II. After the construction article is published, Pat will offer short kits through his website (see the "Sources" listing).
Before leaving SMALL 2011, there is one more model from Gary Jones I would like to share with you. Gary is a member of the Bob Selman Designs team and does some nice work for the smaller models. His gear drive is very well known within the micro RC community.
As a departure from the models that have been his norm in recent years, he had with him a new flying-wing model made from laser-cut balsa parts. In addition to looking nice, it flew great. It isn't something you would want to fly indoors; it has a spunky performance envelope.
Gary indicated his model is not intended for kit production but is a design study. It has a 26-inch wingspan and is powered by a Hacker A20-34S motor turning a GWS 8 x 4.5 propeller. The battery is a two-cell 540 mAh LiPo. It will be interesting to see if Gary’s design study will result in a future product from Bob Selman Designs.
The few models I have featured here represent only a fraction of the many great models at SMALL 2011. I’m already looking forward to the 2012 event.
Cartoon Jets from Keith Sparks
Although known for his many well-turned-out Scale models, Keith Sparks is a great supporter of the small-field flying community. His cottage business, Park Flyer Plastics, offers many items that are perfect for the small-field models. The items include kits, canopies, pilot figures, and upgrade parts for many RTF/ARF models.
In addition to being a master modeler, Keith is also an innovative designer. That innovation and a dash of mischief have resulted in two new fun models: a cartoon F-86 and MiG-15. These models are caricature representations of the full-scale aircraft. Although easy to recognize, these airplanes have that just-for-fun look. They also fly very nicely.
They look like ducted-fan models, but actually use a modified GWS propeller inside the fuselage to generate the thrust. Keith reports their flying speed to be in the 15-mph range. In other words, they look like jets but have the performance of a slow flyer.
Leave it to Keith to generate such interesting models that are ideal for the small-field venues.
The models have 27-inch wingspans with flying weights of 7.5 ounces. They use brushless motors with an rpm per volt (kV) rating in the 1800–2000 range, turning modified GWS 10 x 4 propellers. A three-cell 800 mAh LiPo battery pack is used to power the models. The airframe is made from sheet foam.
Keith is selling a plans/parts package. The parts include a canopy, pilot figure, and the nose inlet. See the "Sources" listing.
Control surface actuators
I am always amazed at the many and varied projects that are developed by reader John Krouse. He always seems to have a new twist for his next project.
Recently he happened to look over the well-used parts of an old FF model called the Mini-Maxer. It was built from a Sig kit and was rescued and redesigned as a small-field model.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
