Astron
SEVERAL months ago during a discussion with your editor about the many variations of the Simitar, he asked about the bottom line. Well, after designing and flying Simitars ranging in power from 020 to 40, and even the twin 049's, 09's and 19's my reaction was that the last word in Simitars would be a biplane. I had envisioned that the Simitar Bipe would have the wings one above the other, separated by at least 6 or 7 inches and that they would be negatively staggered. A ship so built would have been the stepping stone between the Simitar 540 (RCM, Oct. 78) and the Astron. Avoiding convention, the move was to leap over the Simitar Bipe, and beyond, to the Astron. At first, the thought of anhedral in the lower wing gave rise to doubt. It quickly dissipated when I rationalized that the Simitar inverted flight characteristics are excellent, even with the one inch of dihedral under each tip, which produces the same amount of anhedral when inverted. Besides, some birds fly with their wings in the anhedral mode. Once over the initial worry that it shouldn't, or wouldn't fly, the real work began.
Man Alone Foam Cutter
WOULD you believe that it is practical for one man alone to cut good foam cores consistently? It can easily be done with the M.A. (Man Alone) Cutter. From time to time, techniques have been made known that permit one man to cut foam cores. Those techniques that involve fairly complicated, difficult to construct machinery, do the job well and are applicable to most shapes and configurations. Until now, the more simple one-man techniques were limited to simple configurations, some producing poor quality of cut cores. This new technique is simple to make, set up and operate. Also, it it applicable to all airfoils and wing configurations, including taper. The method described is a simplification of the author's much more complicated automatic equipment.
Dasher 40
A Californian group has been flying 40-powered Dashers in `Rap Sessions'-Race and Precision event flown around pylons. That takes a going, aerobatic machine. So if you are an adept stick tweaker, Dasher will add zest to your sport flying.
Winterhawk
WINTERHAWK combines the strength of a tank with the flight characteristics of a "bird of prey," a combination that delivers superior thermal time and airframe longevity. If it has been your goal to say to your fellow fliers, "gee it won't come down," the Winterhawk is the answer. The chief complaint from other fliers is, "you've been up for more than an hour, how about landing so I can use the frequency." Project Winterhawk was undertaken to deliver a thermal craft with several desirable qualities; they are:
Foam Techniques: Part 3
FAST CONSTRUCTION is one of the best reasons for using Polystyrene foam-core wings. Once the techniques of cutting cores (described in Parts I and II) are learned, the equally simple foam covering techniques can be acquired almost before you can sort out all the parts for a built-up wing. These techniques will be made clear as you read on, and background given to enable you to get the maximum advantages from foam while avoiding pitfalls. Properties of Foam and Reasons for Covering Mechanical Damage Denting: Foam is relatively soft. It can be permanently deformed easily by harder materials. This same characteristic allows it to absorb shock better than a hard brittle material. By covering foam with a firmer material, the force is spread over a larger area and the shock is absorbed by the foam. This protects the foam from denting and the firmer covering material from breaking.
