Mini Field Box
I some competition events like Scale, Pattern, or Pylon Racing, the model's engine is started on the runway, not in the pits. Sometimes the runway is quite a long walk from your pit position, and a lightweight, compact starter box is a great help. You certainly can't lug your huge field box (with a gallon of fuel and half of your workshop) back and forth for each round!
Make Your Own: Exhaust Manifold
THE STANDARD MUFFLER that came with your engine probably does a reasonably good job of quieting it. However, there are a few reasons why you might want something different. A Scale model almost always needs a custom exhaust system. Sticking a muffler out of the cowling never does look right. A custom-made manifold, made as described here, can lead to a separate muffler. If you are using a two-stroke engine, you can join the manifold to a muffler with silicone exhaust tubing.
Javelin
The Javelin is an ultra-low-cost, easy to build design that has surprisingly good performance, because of a high-efficiency Eppler 201 wing airfoil section. The airplane flies well from towline or slope, and makes an excellent trainer. It is intended for use with regular-size servos, receiver, and a 500 mAh battery pack, or the four-penlight dry cell pack that comes with low-cost two-channel radios. It features a foam wing, with dowel-rod spars, covered with regular brown kraft paper, and a very rugged, simple balsa sheet fuselage and tail. This construction is quite incredibly cheap-maybe as little as $30 ready to fly. Foam wings may be a bit off-putting to a novice, who does not have the means at hand to cut the foam cores. However, there are several ways around this, and there are big savings in building time if you go this route. Some ways to get foam wing cores:
