Small-Field Flying - 2006/08

102 MODEL AVIATION
TEACHING an 8-year-old to fly—small-field style! For those of us
afflicted with the model-airplane bug and who have children, sharing
the interest with our sons and daughters is always something special.
All too often, children have a passing interest in the activities of
their model-airplane-nut parent(s), but they don’t really follow the
hobby on their own. When a child shows genuine interest, we want to
do what we can to foster and grow that interest. After all, who better to
pass on our accumulated knowledge than our own children?
Gordon Johnson, who lives near Boston, Massachusetts, had such
an opportunity. Gordon is a well-established member of the microradio-
control modeling community. When his 8-year-old son Sam let
him know it was
time for him to start
flying radio-control
models, Gordon got
the ball rolling.
He happens to
be pretty good at
developing new
model designs on
the computer, so it
was a natural for
him to come up with
his own trainer for
Sam. Gordon
decided to use the
outlines of the wellestablished
vintage
Buzzard Bombshell
FF design.
This planform
offers a nice, rectangular-wing layout with a pleasing cabin-style
fuselage. Rendered as a foam-based profile model, it would also be
easy for Sam to participate in the build. A great approach: encourage
building models as well as flying. The photos show Sam hard at work
on the fuselage.
The finished model has a wingspan of 18 inches and weighs
slightly less than 27 grams. That is less than 1 ounce! The wing
loading worked out to be a scant 2 ounces per square foot. That
translates into an extremely slow flyer that is perfect for introducing an
8-year-old to the joys of model-airplane flight.
The equipment side of the project includes a 7 mm geared motor,
JMP receiver, magnetic actuators, and single 90 mAh Li-Poly battery.
All the equipment came from Bob Selman.
Gordon Johnson’s techniques for teaching a youngster to fly
Small-Field Flying Paul Bradley | [email protected]
Also included in this column:
• Details of Steve Lawrie’s foam
B-25
• Winged Shadow Systems How
High altitude sensor
• Classic plans source
• Pat Tritle’s de Havilland D.H.4
highlighted
Eight-year-old Sam Johnson is working on a profile Buzzard
Bombshell, which is his first solo model.
Sam Johnson’s dad Gordon selected the Buzzard Bombshell
because it’s a forgiving model for a first-time flier.
Steve Lawrie’s 30-inch B-25 features working flaps, bomb-bay
doors, and a steerable nose wheel.
Steve Lawrie’s 30-inch B-25, painted and ready for action, weighs
slightly more than 7 ounces.
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Steve Lawrie and Marc Stermer are now offering plans and kits for
models such as this Grumman Skyrocket.
Ever wonder how high your model flies? Read in the text about
the 2.2-gram How High altimeter from Winged Shadow Systems.
Pat Tritle has another new model on the way! Dumas will be
selling his electric-powered de Havilland D.H.4.
The little Bombshell trainer delivered in spades. Sam was able to
solo in no time during the maiden outing. He had the benefit of some
dual time with his father on other models, but the Bombshell was his
successful venture into solo flight. Gordon noted that the polyhedral
wing does a good job of letting the model turn then return to straight
flight after the rudder is neutralized.
An excellent effort, Gordon and Sam. Gordon, I can’t wait to see
what you will come up with for Sam’s 5-year-old brother Chris when
he is ready.
A Continuing Story: Awhile back I had the opportunity to share with
you some of the projects of Steve Lawrie and Marc Stermer. In case
you don’t remember, Steve is doing some interesting work with sheets
sliced from blue foam. He was developing a neat B-17 when I last
mentioned his efforts. Marc had a nice profile F-7F Tigercat that
featured three-dimensional motor cowls.
Steve and Marc are flying buddies who like to build and develop
models that would appeal to many of us in the small-field-flying
community. Both modelers are quite skilled.
If you look through the photos, you will see Steve’s nice B-25. On
the surface you might think, “Ho hum, another foam-based B-25.” I
will admit that the B-25 has been seen more often lately from some of
the ARF manufacturers. After I reveal some of the details of Steve’s
effort, I think you will see why this model got my attention.
The B-25 has a 30-inch wingspan, which is good for our favorite
small-field venue. Where things get interesting are the working
features of this model. One of the photos shows it while under
construction. Look carefully and you will see the flaps are deployed.
Yes, this small B-25 has working flaps!
Steve installed working bomb-bay doors as well. To cap things off
he set up the nose wheel to be steerable. All of this in a 30-inch model!
That is impressive.
To power the B-25 Steve is using two direct-drive GWS 50XC
motors turning 3 x 2 propellers. Both motors are controlled with a
GWS 5-amp ESC. Power comes from a 700 mAh, two-cell Li-Poly
battery pack. Control is handled by a Futaba six-channel receiver. The
overall flying weight is slightly more than 7 ounces.
Steve reports that the model has excellent power. He likes to fly it
in an inflated golf dome, and deploying the flaps slows the model to a
comfortable speed for indoor flying. I imagine he really gets the
crowd’s attention when he starts dropping bombs. It’s a nice model,
Steve.
After seeing some of the projects from Steve and Marc, I wonder what
might be next. Along that front I have some good news. Since they are
having so much fun, they decided they would share their creative side
with the rest of us.
These flying buddies have formed a partnership to make plans and
kits of their creations available for sale. As a teaser, take a look at the
photo of Marc’s Grumman Skyrocket that was nearing completion at
the time of this writing. For those of use who like profile scale models,
subjects such as the Skyrocket are a real treat.
Between the plans and full kits, I have the feeling they will be
giving a number of us an opportunity to join the fun. I have their
contact information at the end of the column.
How high? I can’t begin to tell you the number of times I have
wondered how high my model was flying. There have been times
when it was a speck that nearly disappeared before I had the good
sense to get it back down again.
At such times I could not help but wonder how high that thing
actually was. I’m sure our perceived altitude and the real number are
quite different. Fortunately an innovator named David West has just
the gadget to help me answer the how-high question.
David and his company Winged Shadow Systems have recently
introduced the How High altitude sensor. This is a unique product in a
number of ways. Foremost is the small size and light weight. It is
roughly the size of a postage stamp and weighs only 2.2 grams.
I like how the device is used. You don’t need a computer or any
special equipment to extract the information. For radio-controlled
models, it plugs into an unused receiver channel or a Y cable if all
channels are in use.
If you want to evaluate your FF model, the How High just needs a
08sig4.QXD 6/23/06 10:40 AM Page 103power source of at least 3.2 volts but not
higher than 12 volts. That is a wide sourcevoltage
range. For a FF model a small single
Li-Poly cell would do.
Once power is applied, you fly the model.
No special setup or other steps are required. It
is after the model is flown that the innovative
features of the How High really come to the
forefront. It has been designed for field
operation. If you look at the photo of the unit
you will see something sticking out of one
side. That is not a probe but an LED. That is
how the little device communicates.
After the model lands and while you still
have things powered up, you point the LED
toward a bright light source such as the sun.
Move your finger in front of the LED several
times. That tells How High you want its
stored information. It will then oblige and
start the altitude readout.
The LED blinks out the number
associated with each digit of the altitude
starting with the most significant number. If
the altitude your airplane reached was 354
feet, How High blinks three times, pauses,
blinks five times, pauses, and then blinks four
times. Zeros are represented by a quick
double blink that is easily distinguished from
the other blinks. If you mess up, just start the
sequence again.
How High will remember the value even
after power has been removed. That altitude
value is actually retained until you fly again.
The next time the model is flown, How High
will hold the last reading until the model has
gained 50 feet in altitude from the launch.
When the model has flown to at least 50
feet above the launch point, How High will
reset so it can measure the current flight. The
50-foot threshold is to make sure the unit
does not lose the memory from a previous
flight because of movement of the model or
changes in atmospheric conditions.
How High is accurate and can measure
altitudes as high as 7,000 feet. That range
should certainly handle our models. I think
this is a great device and plan to use one in
some of my models. I’m sure we will see
other great products come from this
innovative manufacturer.
Please see the contact information at the
end of the column.
A Great Source for Classic Plans: Those ofus who like to build models from plans are
always looking for that special set of plans for
our next project. There are a number of great
sources available. Some plans from the earlier
eras of model aviation can be a little harder to
track down—especially if you want a copy
that is legible and suitable for actually
building a model.
Fortunately there are members of our
community who specialize in collecting and,
more important, enhancing plans from the
early years of model aviation. One such
individual is Charles Schultz of Louisville,
Kentucky. He sent me a few samples of what
he has to offer along with a complete
selection list. The list is extensive, the quality
of the samples is truly first rate, and the prices
are quite reasonable.
Glancing through the plans list reveals
selections from bygone kit makers including
Berkeley, Burd Model Airplane Company,
Comet, Ideal, Megow, and many others. A
large number of the plans would be great
small-field conversion projects as drawn.
Others would be perfect for rescaled projects.
This is a great plans source. The contact
information is at the end of the column.
Pat Tritle Strikes Again: I truly do not know
how one person can be so prolific. Thanks to
him, I am beginning to have a standard way
to end each installment of this column: to
introduce another new design from Pat.
Pat designs perfect small-field flyers.
They are light, fly at modest speeds, and do
not require the high-powered, more expensive
equipment. This time he has delivered a nice
rendition of the de Havilland D.H.4. Please
take a look at the photos.
The D.H.4 is a striking biplane. It sports a
35-inch wingspan with 305 square inches.
With a flying weight of 7.9 ounces, it is a real
floater. Watch for this lovely model to be
added to the Dumas line of kits for electricpowered
radio-control models.
Here we are at the end of this installment. If
you have a project that you would like to
share, I can be reached at the E-mail address
shown in the column header or via regular
mail at 32238 Spinnaker Run, Magnolia TX
77354. MA
Sources:
Plans and kits from Steve Lawrie and Marc