Radio Control: Scale
I've often heard our sport-type counterparts quip that Scale modelers don't fly very well. That's a very broad statement, but admittedly there's more than just a hint of truth behind it. In the days when many of today's Scale fliers got their start in the hobby-long before the time of instant adhesives and laser-cut parts-there was no such thing as an Almost Ready to Fly or Almost Ready to Cover model airplane. There were only kits and plans. Anyone who wanted to fly a model airplane was positively required to build one, and not everyone enjoyed that end of the hobby to an equal degree. As newcomers joined the hobby, they would either regard the building process as a necessary evil or fall captive to the challenge and rewards of constructing a flying machine with their own hands.
Radio Control: Scale
MANUFACTURERS' NEWS: If any aircraft was to challenge Piper's J-3 Cub for the distinction of being the most-recognized airplane of all time, it would have to be the Dakota-the Douglas DC-3. In commercial service, the DC-3 carried passengers and cargo to every corner of the globe. In military service, the DC-3 was designated C-47, and was affectionately known by all who came in contact with it as the Goony Bird. Goonies flew transport duty, they dropped supplies to troops in the field, and they dropped the troops themselves-most memorably over the skies of Europe during World War II. The DC-3 has always been a popular modeling subject. Almost every plastic kit and die-cast company has issued a model in one form or another. More recently, the Radio Control world has become enamored with the DC-3. Top Flite has brought us a traditional wood kit; Kyosho offers a slightly larger airplane in an Almost Ready to Fly version; and Hirobo offers the graceful twin in a glass-and-sheeted-foam version for Electric power.
Radio Control: Scale
Docu-Search: There's only one Docu-Search request this month: it comes from Walt Buskey. Walt is searching for a photograph of the Ord-Hume OH-7, an early British homebuilt airplane that looks much like a miniature J-3 Cub. Walt currently flies an OH-7 in Indoor Rubber events, but would enjoy building a larger model for RC. If you know of this airplane and have a photo available, please contact Walt Buskey at 100 King Road, Etna NH 03750-3521. Simulators Part Two: If you're anything like me, your building skills enjoy some degree of superiority over your flying capabilities. Today's RC flight simulators have come a long way, and the good ones can really capture the feel of a large number of actual Scale model airplanes.
Radio Control Scale
Docu-Search: This month's first request comes from Astor, Florida; Robert Pease is in need of three-views, photos, and/or dimensions for the Parker Pal, built by Willard Parker in Cleveland during the 1930s. Robert tells us that only two of these aircraft were built, and his father owned one of them for a couple of years. Robert remembers being taken up in the Pal when he was only two years old, and now he would like to build an RC (Radio Control) version of the airplane. If you can help Robert with documentation, please write to him at 21714 Sunset Dr., Astor FL 32102.
Radio Control: Scale
Model Aviation's December issue was packed from cover to cover with reports on the AMA National Aeromodeling Championships (Nats). As much as I wanted to attend this year's contest, I had already spent almost a week in Muncie for the Grand Event, and business commitments rarely permit me to make more than one summer trip to AMA's International Aeromodeling Center. Stan Alexander graciously handled the Radio Control (RC) Scale event coverage in my stead. When you see him, don't forget to thank him for his blow-by-blow, first-hand account in the December issue.
