Radio Control: Sport & Aerobatics
NEW RULES. The first two contests of the year for me have come and gone. Since I compete in the Expert class, the maneuver schedule is now different: it is shorter (yeaa!), and two new maneuvers are in the pattern. After the first two contests, I can report that the Figure M With 1/4 Rolls isn't as tough as I'd feared, and the Square Loop is a lot harder (to do well) than I expected. Both are no picnic in strong winds, but I discovered that the Square Loop requires a lot of finesse to achieve square corners and nice straight sides. Perhaps my observations are colored by the fact that my new airplane does such nice stall turns, but most of the other Expert fliers also seemed to mess up the Square Loop and do reasonably well on the Figure M With 1/4 Rolls.
Radio Control: Sport & Aerobatics
RESPONSES. As I expected, the first letters about the effects of wind on aircraft began to arrive less than a week after the August issue was mailed out. What I didn't expect was the moderate tone of the letters. That may change as more letters come in, but so far all the letters, which disagreed with my claim that an airplane is unaware of a steady wind, have been cordial and restrained. Some letters didn't really disagree, but asked questions about apparent contradictions due to observations made in strong winds.
Radio Control: Sport & Aerobatics
LETTERS, I got letters-stacks and stacks of letters! Modelers get windy on the subject of wind effects. Of course, most of the letters took exception with my contention that an airplane is unaware of a steady wind. Very few people will write to agree with you, but opponents don't hesitate. A notable exception was Gene Mathis (Daphne, AL) who wrote, "I appreciate your effort to put the wind myth/optical illusion to rest. Were it true that an aircraft can `feel' the wind, yours truly and countless other professional pilots and navigators would have been spared a lot of heartburn trying to answer the essential question, `whence cometh the wind and how strong does it bloweth?'
Radio Control: Sport & Aerobatics
RICH MIXTURE. This column is intended to be a mix of topics relative to sport RC flying and to Aerobatic RC flying. I try not to emphasize one aspect at the expense of the other, but I often get letters from sport fliers who complain about an excess of Aerobatic flying topics, and vice versa. In trying for a proper balance in the column, I rely on the letters I receive as feedback in deciding what to do in the future. Some letter-writers will ask me to cover a topic which has not been in the column before, and I usually try to oblige the request. Often, a letter-writer will ask for a topic which was contained in a column several years ago. This reminds me that there are newcomers to RC who have never read many of those old columns.
Radio Control: Sport & Aerobatics
NEW TECHNOLOGY. A few months back, I mentioned that the nasty fraying of fiberglass can be stopped by using Jet (or other similar cyanoacrylate glue) along the line where the cloth is to be cut. It works well to stop the fraying, but if too much Jet is applied along the cutting line, a stiff area in the cloth will result, making it difficult to use. I learned to apply a thin line of Jet and avoid the problem. Then I got a telephone call from John Kenney, who operates the Square Loop Hobby Center in Greenwood, MS. John suggested spraying a product called Fray Check along the cutting line. He claimed that it worked and didn't make the fiberglass cloth stiff; he's right. I don't know if Fray Check is available in fabric stores nationwide, but it's worth looking into.
