Flying for Fun
Mail brings information to the modeling press about new products directed at the readers' varied interests. Some of the product announcements are widely distributed to try for free "plugs," and are usually deferred to the "new products" sections of the magazines. However, some new products are of such interest, and of sufficient novelty, that they merit hands-on trials and subsequent reports. Through the years, new products such as FabriKote, Koverall, MonoKote, Ceconite R/C, Solartex, cyanoacrylate adhesives, Davis diesel conversions, etc. were subjects of modeling magazine articles, although some products do not work successfully in our hands and are never written about.
Flying for Fun
CHEAP THRILLS: Last month I chatted about the fun of flying really small Free Flight (FF) models. Those comments were directed primarily at the K&B Infant. 020 reproduction that Bob Langelius is selling. The appeal of sport FF lies in the large amount of fun that is available for very low equipment and material costs, and in the availability of flying fields - many playgrounds and athletic complexes are suitable. It's difficult to fly aerobatics (at least deliberately) with sport FF models, but the beauty of an aircraft following only the commands of wind and gravity can be very rewarding. It saddens me to realize that many readers have never experienced this thing of pure beauty; they're missing out some of modeling's very special moments.
Flying for Fun
Wow! My July 1997 column featured the Piper Skycycle as a potential Scale model, and in the nearly 20 years that I've been writing columns for Model Aviation, no other subject has generated so many letters and photos. The response proves, as I had suspected, that the Skycycle is an exciting Scale subject. By coincidence, the July issue of Scale R/C Modeler also contained a piece on the Skycycle! The article featured some of the old material to be found in Air Trails and Air Progress, since the publisher acquired the rights when Potomac Publications failed several years ago.
Flying for Fun
WOOD: This information about balsa is going to be a refresher for old hands, and basic information for newcomers. I am doing a kit review (for another magazine), and the design uses a great deal of sheet balsa in its structure. The plywood and balsa are above average, but wide variances in grade and weight still exist in the kit box, so individual sorting must be done to best utilize the supplied material. This project reminds me of some long-known, but often-ignored realities about balsa. For optimum strength and durability, one must select and grade the kit wood on the basis of use. An old adage states, "straight-flying models are built straight." To that I add, "you can't expect to build straight with the wrong wood." Have you ever observed someone sorting through every sheet of balsa in a hobby shop, yet buying none of them? This builder has a specific use in mind for which only one type of balsa is suitable, or he or she may be hoarding the good stuff for future use.
Flying for Fun
Milestones: There are things that mark passage through life; weddings, births, graduations, moves, new jobs, and other personal events become reference points as we weave the fabric of our lives. However, they are not usually of any particular importance to anyone but ourselves. I have completed 20 years of writing columns for Model Aviation. I originally prepared this column as a historical retrospective, then realized how insignificant those 20 years are to anyone else, and how arrogant such a column would be. While two decades of columns seems long, it pales in comparison to the tenure of Clarence Lee, Chuck Cunningham, and those from the past, such as Ed Lorenz and John Pond. One common thread motivates some who write columns regularly: a sense of fulfillment in hopefully entertaining readers with enthusiasm for modeling and adding to their enjoyment.
