Radio Control: Giant Scale
OUTTAKES. In looking through my files for some pictures for this column, it occurred to me that what usually gets published are the shots showing real smooth-looking takeoffs and landings. Now, we all know that the real world isn't like that, so this month I'm throwing in some of my outtakes. I won't embarrass anyone by naming the pilots, but if you hollered "Hey, Bob," we'd both turn around. Whither goest, IMAA? I'm writing this the end of June, but by the time you read it the IMAA's Third Annual Fun Fly Festival (in mid-August) will be over. I'm planning to be there, and I'm looking forward to it, I think. I was in Louisville in 1981 and Ida Grove in 1982, and I'm getting ready for the haul to Ida Grove again in August. Model Aviation will have my report on this year's Festival, probably in the December issue, but I'm already having some "reflections in advance" that I'd like to share with you.
IMAA Fun-Fly Festival
WE'VE ALL HEARD the old saw, "Everyone talks about the weather, but no one ever does anything about it." We all talked about the weather at Ida Grove last year (who would believe it was cold in Iowa in August?), and apparently someone did something about it. Unfortunately, that someone overshot on the adjustment. This year it was hot, hot, HOT! Except for the heat and a Saturday squall we'll mention later, the weather was great for flying. That heat, over 100º in the afternoons, had its effect, though. Obviously, it influenced engine and aircraft performance. Modelers, especially those from lower altitudes, got a good practical lesson in the effects of heat and air density. The heat also affected the density of spectators, both at the flight area and at the display booths.
Radio Control: Giant Scale
STARS Spangled Rally revisited. Four times in a row now, I have been lucky enough to get to the STARS Scale Rally in Olean, NY. For those of you who don't know, STARS stands for Southern Tier Aero Radio Society, a very active RC group located in the Southern Tier area of western New York and northern Pennsylvania. This is the group that, back in the mid-Seventies (when Giant Scale was just getting started), built a whole squadron of 1/4-scale Bristol Scouts. Their annual Scale Rally, while open to Scale models of any size, has become one of the premier Giant Scale events of each year.
Big Bangers: For Big Birds
OF ALL OUR engine reports to date, this has turned out to be the most difficult in some respects and the easiest in others. A combination of weather and equipment problems forced us to have a total of four sessions in order to complete runs on four engines. Normally, we would do all of them in one session. This was all spread out from March to June, with cool conditions for the first runs and hot, humid conditions at the completion. The first runs were with the big, 4.3 cu. in. Hornet. It was a clear but cool day in March, and things were moving along nicely. We got an early start and expected to make runs on all four engines that day.
Radio Control: Giant Scale
BIG BANGER STARTER. Starting our Giant Scale engines can sometimes be a bear. Many of them start easily by hand, but some otherwise outstanding engines can often resist all of our efforts to get them going. For some time now, I have been hearing rumors about a simple, effective, and inexpensive starter. The other day, one showed up in the mail, along with some information about it. I usually don't like to talk about something until I've had a chance to use it myself or talk to people who have been using it. In this case, I'll mention it now, and tell you more about it in an upcoming Big Bangers article.
