Small-Field Flying-2012/04

www.ModelAviation.com April 2012 Model Aviation 87
electrics
Greg Gimlick
[email protected] Plans and a New Model
sm all-field flying
Paul Bradley
[email protected]
the model from glow to electric power,
Ernie added elevator control, taking
advantage of today’s small, lightweight
multichannel radios. Nice work, Ernie.
There really are no limits when it
comes to small-field model choices. The
combination of small RC gear, electric
motor options, and excellent laser-cut
FF kits makes it possible to have nearly
any model we could want for our smallfield
venues. There is a large variety of
FF kits in many sizes. Nearly all of them
would also make excellent RC models.
FF Conversion
John Jones, from the Mobile,
Alabama, area, recently used a FF kit
to create a small-field RC model. In
this case, he chose the Dumas Walnut
Scale Piper J4-E Cub Coupe kit. The
Walnut Scale class in the FF community
means the model has a wingspan of
17.5 inches. At that size, we get a micro
small-field flyer.
John used the Spektrum micro RC
gear to provide control functions, but
stuck a brushless motor in front. The
motor is a Park 180 that gets energy
from a two-cell pack of 120 mAh LiPo
cells that turns a 3.75 x 3 propeller.
Covered with CoverLite, the model has
a flying weight of roughly 2 ounces.
John reported that the model flies
well, however he cautions that with
models in this size range, you have to
pay attention to wind conditions. Good
work, John.
Imust confess that
I am a model
airplane pack
rat. I can’t believe
what I have saved
throughout the many
years I have enjoyed
this great hobby.
Space is always an
issue, so hanging onto
old airplanes can be a
real problem. I have
a bunch, including
some that really are junk because of
crash damage. You never know when a
situation will come along that you will
need something from one of the old
aircraft.
I am not an advocate for saving
useless stuff and I try to keep my shop
organized. However, I don’t think I am
the only modeler who saves old aircraft.
An old airframe can sometimes be just
the ticket for something new.
Ernie Hoenigmann from the Jericho
RC Flyers of Long Island, New York,
helps make my case. I received a note
from Ernie that mentioned a Goldberg
Junior Falcon he built more than 40
years ago for 1/2A glow power and
single-channel RC gear.
He never flew the model when it
was new because he couldn’t afford
the RC gear. The Junior Falcon was
placed in storage until he could add the
equipment—likely not expecting that
day to be 40 years later.
Today, smaller, electric-powered
models are just right for flying in small
spaces. I can hear Ernie’s Junior Falcon
calling to him, saying, “I am just what
you need and I sure would like to take
to the air one of these days.”
Ernie decided some new covering
and a SuperTigre 370 outrunner motor,
powered by a three-cell 1000 mAh
LiPo, would be just right for his model.
He reports that he has been flying
his Goldberg Junior Falcon and it has
proven to be a terrific, modern smallfield
model. In addition to converting
PLUS:
> Dumas FF kits are
a good choice
> FF conversion
> Bob Aberle’s
Super Drone
> Buck Rogers
or reality?
John Jones built this 17.5-inch-span Piper J4-E
Cub Coupe with a Dumas Walnut Scale FF kit.
Built more than 40 years ago by Ernie Hoenigmann,
this Goldberg Junior Falcon has a new life as an
electric-powered small-field flyer.
88 Model Aviation April 2012 www.ModelAviation.com
sm all-field flying
things that would have been only a
Buck Rogers concept not long ago, such
as computer radios, brushless ESCs,
laser cutters, computer-controlled
machine tools, computer-controlled
graphic cutters, and computer-based
design software. All of these items have
enhanced our hobby.
While reading the laser-cutting article
by Fred Randall in the November 2011
issue of MA, I was reminded of how
innovative modelers can be when it
comes to adopting new technology.
Laser-cutting and CAD have been
available via RC Micro
World. See the “Sources”
listing for contact
information.
Innovative Designing
Buck Rogers’ vision is alive and
well. Depending on your age, you
may know of comic book character
Buck Rogers—a space-traveling hero
of the future. Back in the day, making
reference to something being “Buck
Rogers” meant it could only exist in the
distant future because there was no way
to create it with the current technology.
I am constantly amazed by emerging
technology, especially in the world of
model aviation. We take for granted
Super Drone
Bob Aberle and old model plans are
a nice combination. When Bob came
across old FF plans for an early 1932
British light aircraft called the British
Aircraft Company Super Drone, he
knew a modern small-field RC model
must be built.
The original FF plans were for a
model that is larger than Bob wanted
for this updated rendition of the
airplane. He scaled the plans to deliver
a wing area of 125 square inches—
just the right size for smaller outdoor
venues and larger indoor sites.
The finished model has a 6.7-ounce
flying weight and is powered with a
Park 280. Bob said a Park 180 would
also work. Flight controls include
rudder and elevator. Bob found rudder
control challenging.
The full-scale aircraft has no dihedral,
which is not practical on a small model
with only rudder control. Bob added
5° of dihedral to the wing, but it was
not enough to allow the rudder to turn
the model. He reworked the wing to
add more dihedral, resulting in a Scale
model rarely seen at your local flying
site.
As is the case with many of Bob’s
recent designs, the full-size plans are
A closer view of the
3-D printed Hellcat.
An early British-made ultralight was the BAC
Super Drone. This one was rendered by Bob
Aberle at 125 square inches.
Left: Bob Aberle’s Super
Drone doing its thing in a
blue New York sky.
All the parts you see
were created by Finnish
modeler Toni Palmen
with a 3-D printer.
around for a while, but creative
modelers were among the first to apply
those technologies.
One Buck Rogers idea that is now
emerging is the ability to create a design
on your computer and print it. There is
new technology that actually “prints” an
object from a computer-based model.
The process involves laying down
successive thin layers of a material that
is mixed with a bonding agent. Many
passes are made with each slightly
raising the print head. The material
layers stack up until you have the
desired object setting in front of you.
This is a simplified description of the
process. Three-dimensional printing is
sometimes used when prototype parts
are needed.
Where there is emerging technology,
there are also modelers. Once such
modeler is Toni Palmen of Finland.
To give you an idea of what can be
accomplished when you give a modeler
good technology, look at the photos of
the 16-inch-span Hellcat framework
that Toni created using a 3-D printer.
What you see are the parts as they came
from the printer. No glue, no jigs, no fat
finger breaks anywhere—just a clean,
relatively complicated structure.
There is work to do in the area of
material development and related
subjects, but it does not take much
imagination to visualize your latest
small-field project as a computer
file. Place that file on your computer
and you will soon have a complete,
ready-to-cover airframe. The cost
of the equipment and material
limitations make that vision difficult
today, but watch this space for future
developments.
Wrapping Up
This is a wrap for now. I hope your
winter season has resulted in one or
more new projects emerging from your
workshop. Why not share a few photos
for us to enjoy? My contact information is
in the “Sources” listing.
Sources:
Dumas Products, Inc.
(520) 623-3742
www.dumasproducts.com
RC Micro World
[email protected]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RC -Micro-World
Paul Bradley
10201 Scarletoak Dr.
Independence KY 41051
[email protected]
www.parmodels.com