RADIO CONTROL COMBAT - 2003/01
The nATionAls is not only a showcase for modelers but
model manufacturers as well. The 2002 Radio Control (RC)
Combat Nationals, held at the AMA Headquarters in Muncie,
Indiana, was no exception as manufacturers came out to show
their stuff and several new designs were presented.
Open Class B Combat seemed to be the happening place,
outpacing not only new Scale kit development but new releases
in all other Open-class sizes combined, including the new Class
C Combat.
RADIO CONTROL COMBAT - 2001/05
open combaT has been growing at a fantastic rate in the last
several years. One of the reasons it has been so successful is that the
models can be built very quickly, decreasing the amount of time you
have to invest in the model you fly.
The first goal is to find a competitive design; e.g., not a wallowing
dog in the air. The rest of the goals (in order of most people’s
preference) are that the design be quick to build, cheap, and durable.
Toward those ends, several fliers have been looking at building
their models with inexpensive plastic materials. Corrugated plastic,
polyethylene foam, PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipe, and HDPE
(high-density polyethylene) have been borrowed from industries,
and applied to kits and used by scratch-builders.
Although most modelers are familiar with balsa, plywood, and
polystyrene foam, many builders are unfamiliar with some of the
new materials in the way they cut and the way they fasten—in short,
how to build with them.
As more modelers try to build with these alternate materials, several
have found them extremely frustrating to work with; I have been one
of those people. So this column, and future columns as time and space
permits, will be dedicated to building tips for alternate materials.
RADIO CONTROL COMBAT - 2001/03
ThErE arE So many great Combat events happening throughout
the year, it is impossible to cover them all.
I attended the Arkansas Combat Championships, hosted by the
Ozark Flyers Radio Control (RC) club of Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Unfortunately, the early-November weather did not cooperate, and
the day started out like the two previous ones—with dark, low
clouds and constant light rain.
Despite the weather, 11 pilots showed up for the event and
almost every one came equipped to fly in the Scale and Open
classes. Participants included Scott Fitzgerald, Nikitea Clark, Neal
Rohrke, Gene Smith, Wes Parmenter, Dave Goetz, Daniel Vought,
Rod Bauer, and myself.
The drizzle finally stopped, causing only a slight delay in the
scheduled start time. However, the dark, low clouds remained, and
they made orientation and identification difficult all day.
There was a positive side to the rain, though; the soft, soaked ground
saved several engines from serious damage. A few fliers, including
myself, tested this feature successfully—some more than once!
Six pilots flew in the 2610 Scale portion of the meet, including
four Radio Control Combat Association (RCCA)-ranked fliers
trying for some late-season adjustment in the national standings.
Although Scale Combat was hotly contested, the final scores were
low; the damp weather played havoc with the streamers, and several
airplanes shed theirs without the assistance of anyone else’s propeller.
Neal Rohrke came all the way from Nebraska, only to learn it
was going to be a tough day in Scale Combat. In the first round, he
lost one of his three identical Me 109H models in a midair with
Gene Smith’s Ki-84 Frank.
RADIO CONTROL COMBAT - 2001/01
sePtember 30, 1990, the first Scale US
Open RC [Radio Control] Combat Meet was
held at Milan City Field in Milan, Michigan.
Four pilots showed up for the event
and—typical of Michigan in the fall—it
rained all day. We stayed at the field for
several hours, huddled under the small roof
at the radio-impound stand, and waited for a
break in the rain that never came.
We talked about the future of RC
Combat, and we wondered out loud when
we would get our first Nationals (Nats).
Our question was finally answered
almost a decade later—the morning of July
5, 2000—when the first RC Combat Open
class model was launched over the rainsoaked
AMA International Aeromodeling
Center at Muncie, Indiana.
Despite morning rain for the first two
days of the event, the 2000 Nats RC Combat
event was a huge success and a milestone
for the RC Combat movement.
The unofficial event drew 47 registered
pilots for Scale Combat and 28 registered
pilots for the Open class event.
The weather forced a reduction in the
total number of combat sorties flown.
However, the Scale and Open classes had an
impressive combined tally of 580 sorties by
the end of the event.
That’s a lot of flying in two afternoons
and one morning!
RC Combat
Terry Harmer of California built this Davis Manta fighter. The full-scale Manta was to feature counter-rotating props and promised superb maneuverability. THE TEXAS CLUB Combat Series is one of the largest round-robin Radio Control (RC) Combat campaigns held anywhere. The series is hosted by the Paris Radio Control Association, the North Dallas Radio Control Club, the Richardson Radio Control Club, the Greater Southwest RC Club, and the Metro East Radio Control Club, all in northern Texas.
