Radio Control: Giant Scale
FRIENDLY REMINDER. I've said what follows before, and I see it from time to time in all the magazine columns. When you write to a columnist and expect an answer, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE). A little thought should make the need for this obvious. The magazines don't pay postage for us, and, while it's nice to know that people out there are reading my stuff, I can't afford the cost of the postage to answer all the letters I get. If you're sitting out there wondering why I haven't replied to your letter, it's probably because you didn't include the SASE. When I get an SASE, I try to get the reply off immediately. I don't always manage it the same day, and sometimes other things get in the way, but I respond as quickly as possible.
1984 IMAA Fun Fly Festival
IMAA'S FOURTH ANNUAL Fun Fly Festival is only a memory now, but it's a very nice one. If the rest of the people there had only half as much fun as I did, they all had a wonderful time. There are a lot of things that went into making this FFF the success it was. The first, and probably the most critical factor, was the effort put out by the local modelers who hosted the festival. These people handled the myriad of nitty-gritty little jobs that must be done so the rest of us can indulge in our hobby. Anyone who has been involved in putting on a local contest or fun fly has some idea of the work required. Registration, transmitter impound, safety inspection, pit supervision, flight control, flight line supervision,
Radio Control: Giant Scale
TAYLORCRAFT kit. The new waves of larger four-cycle engines are showing up in more and more models that are within what I consider the lower limits of the Giant Scale category. Ikon N'wst has been putting out some fine kits in 1/5-scale, and their latest is a Taylorcraft BC-65 intended for use with a .90 four-cycle. Weight is listed as 9 3/4 pounds, and with a 90-in. wing, it should be a good performer on that size engine. This combination would make a great transition from "standard" RC into Giant Scale.
Radio Control: Giant Scale
I'VE HAD another STARSpangled weekend. I'm sorry to say that I missed the first STARS Scale Rally back in 1979. I've made it to every once since then, though, and I just got back from their sixth annual affair at the Olean, NY airport. It's hard to believe, but they have managed to top themselves five years in a row, now. Each year they attract more and more modelers and their aircraft. I don't know what the final count was, but on Sunday morning there were 130 registrants, and more coming in.
Radio Control: Giant Scale
A STARS-SPANGLED Weekend. Have you ever had a perfect weekend? I just got home from one that was almost perfect: fabulous weather, good food, great hospitality, an outstanding flying site, and bevies of beautiful big birds. I'm talking about the STARS Scale Rally in Olean, NY, on July 12-13. The STARS (Southern Tier Aero Radio Society) was one of the first groups to get interested in Giant Scale, and when these guys get started, they really do it up big. They don't just build replicas of airplanes, they build replicas of whole squadrons. Their justly-famous Bristol Scout was published in Model Airplane News a few years ago, and their Fokker D-VIII is due out soon.
