Control Line: Scale
DOCUMENTATION: In the June column, I wrote about Scale documentation based on comments by Russell Knetzger in an issue of Replica, the newsletter of the National Association of Scale Aeromodelers (NASA). I wrote about having too little or too much documentation, the need to provide static Scale judges with the proper amount of documentation, and being accurate in what is included in the presentation. One item that I did not include in that column is a subject in itself. It was Russell's suggestion to "doctor" three-views so that they match the balance of documentation where it is obvious that the three-views are obscure or inaccurate compared to the prototype.
Control Line: Scale
RECENT MAIL included a letter from Barry Murill of Chandler AZ. He had just read the June column in Model Aviation regarding Scale documentation, and wanted to let us know of some sources that he had found very useful. Barry said that he is currently interested in Free Flight (FF) Scale and Radio Control (RC) sailplanes, and is working on a 1/5-scale model of the P-40C from Jerry Bates plans. He also builds 1/72-scale (and smaller) plastic models. While he has not yet tried Control Line (CL), Barry reads all of the Model Aviation columns for the valuable information they provide. I hope that Barry will try his hand at CL Scale flying, and experience the joy that Control Line Fliers find in building and directly controlling the flight of the models.
Control Line: Scale
ELECTRONIC control handle upgrade: In the February 1999 column I featured a new, electronic Control Line (CL) handle designed by Bill Young of Flagstaff AZ. I wrote about the handle as it was being used and tested on CL models that were powered by electric motors. In that version of the handle, the trigger (throttle control) was such that there was a full range of throttle control, but when the trigger was released, the model's motor would automatically stop. Fred Cronenwett sent in a video showing that the handle has now been upgraded to include functions (switches/buttons) that allow it to be used with glow engines. The handle can now be set for a minimum-throttle setting, and when required, a touch of a button releases the preset minimum-throttle mode, allowing the model's engine to be shut down.
Control Line: Scale
BUILDING WITH PAPER: In last month's column I introduced you to Ken Long's approach to scratch-building a Control Line (CL) Scale model using readily available corrugated cardboard and card stock material. This month I will provide you with some ideas on construction. Ken told me that there are two basic types of fuselage construction that work well with paper: "cross frame" and "box frame." For the purposes of this column. I'll assume that you have a full-size set of plans for the airplane to be modeled.
Control Line Scale
MUSIC WIRE: Building from scratch frequently requires bending music wire for landing gear, internal pushrods for operating control surfaces, or cabane struts supporting the wing. Because it can be hard to figure out where to make bends or how to produce identical bends, it's a good idea to have extra wire in case of errors. The problem is knowing where to clamp the wire in a vise. An approach that works for me is to make the bends working away from the center by measuring in from the ends; this avoids having to measure over a bend to figure where the next one goes. If you start with two identical lengths, your chances of producing two struts of the same shape are pretty good.
