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VIEWFINDER - 2014/09

Author: William C. "Bill" Doran


Edition: Model Aviation - 2014/09
Page Numbers: 171

File: 09viewfinder.lt1.doc
[Photo: Viewfinder_Doran.jpg]
[Headline: Delta Dance]

William C. “Bill” Doran ([email protected]) submitted this photo of Next Dance, one of seven Deltas piloted by Southern Air R/C Club member Jarred Esau. The Delta wings were all scratch-built designs by Bill over several years. Bill wrote:

“Next Dance is the sequel to 10 Cents A Dance, which was lost because of an electronic failure in 2012. Next Dance was at first powered by an O.S. .77-converted ducted-fan engine in 2012 and it reached a radar-clocked speed of 163 mph. An O.S. .91-converted ducted-fan engine replaced the O.S. .77 this year and the new speed has not been instrument checked so far. We guess that it has to be quite a bit faster with the more powerful O.S. .91 engine. The prop being used is a 10 x 10.”

Next Dance features a 44-inch wingspan and weighs 63/4 pounds. Built from balsa and aircraft plywood with carbon fiber for reinforcement, it is covered with Ceconite aircraft fabric and has a dope finish. The radio system is JR. No landing gear is used other than a metal skid, because it is always hand launched. The custom-blend fuel is 5% nitro, 20% oil, and 75% methanol. The bladder-type fuel system is pressurized from a tuned pipe.
The unofficial expert club photographer, Gene Peele, took the photo, while Ike Green launched the Next Dance for Jarred to pilot. Gene used a Nikon D70, with an ISO of 100 and f-stop of f/9 at 1/300 second at a maximum aperture of 3.8.

Email your high-resolution “Viewfinder” photo and a short note telling the airplane or helicopter story to [email protected], or visit www.modelaviation.com/viewfinder.

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