Radio Control: Helicopters
THIS MONTH, let's talk safety again. I received a memo from Geoffrey Styles, Flying Site Programs Director and AMA HQ coordinator of the Safety Committee, as follows: "A question raised by one AMA member during the Toledo Show related to Helicopters and other fixed-wing aircraft (powered) sharing the same field. Operational characteristics are different especially for the Helicopter pilots who are beginners. "Attention was drawn to the parking of cars/vans close to the Helicopter flight line as a matter of convenience. The constant noise and smoke from helicopters was mentioned as a distraction for fixed-wing beginners.
Radio Control: Helicopters
BOB COUSINS is featured this month, with two of his tricks of the trade. Bob is from Corpus Christi, TX, where the winds average 15 mph. That's a pretty stiff breeze for learning to fly, which no doubt had a little something to do with his first suggestion for Heliboy owners. As you'll notice in the photo, the vertical fin of Bob's Heliboy has been changed so as to double both as vertical fin and tail skid. Having gone through a number of tail rotor blades and main gears due to the weakness of the standard skid, Bob chose to fashion the fin from aluminum plate. Dimensions are not critical. Approximately 1/16-in. sheet aluminum cut in a similar shape will do. Clearance of the fin/skid above ground while the helicopter is at rest should be about one to one-and-one-half inches. Attachment is per original Heliboy fin specs.
Radio Control: Helicopters
THIS MONTH: a helicopter that looks like it might have been designed for a Space: 1999 or Star Trek TV show. Doug Law of Baldwinsville, NY lets us in on his impressions of the Horizon Helicopter. The photographs of Doug's Horizon are the work of Bill Shumay. Here is Doug's letter. Dear Dave: I thought you and your readers might be interested in some information on the Horizon Helicopter. As many of your readers may know, this machine was designed by Hubert Bitner and Helmut Holder in Texas. The kit has been anticipated for a couple of years, and it is my impression that it is now in production.
Radio Control: Helicopters
I'LL CONTINUE the discussion, begun in the February column, of flybars and rotor modifications with a look at mixing direct rotor control with control by servo rotor. This seems to be the accepted practice with some of the newest machines. To review some of the things mentioned over the past few months regarding rotor blade and servo rotor (flybar) control, I'll start again at the swash plate. You will recall that the swash plate is the device we rely on to transmit the motion of our stationary servos into pitch changes of the main rotor blades. In some RC Helicopters, the swash plate is used to transmit both collective pitch changes and cyclic pitch changes directly to the main rotor blades.
Radio Control: Helicopters
THANKS to Ken Kiel and others who have helped bail me out for the past few months. My time flying model Helicopters has been replaced by time flying via Delta Airlines and a rented Grumman AA5B. The company I work with has added a few new branches, so time at home has been at a premium. I must apologize for not being responsive to most of the letters I've received over the past few months; here again, business travel will have to do as the excuse. I'm recovering slowly, so by the time you read this column, the letters will have been answered.
