RC Giant Scale

Author: Sal Calvagna

A large silver and red scale airplane with two men standing behind it on a grass field.

RC GIANT SCALE

MICRO
FASTENERS
MASTER KIT
BOX

By Sal Calvagna | rcgiants@optonline.net

WELCOME BACK. I wish you a very happy and healthy holiday season as we approach the new year. If you’re looking for that perfect birthday or holiday gift for that favorite modeler, check out this offering from Micro Fasteners. In addition, I’ve included some photos from the Golden Age RC Model Meet that was hosted by the Tri County Sky Barons.

For many years, Micro Fasteners, in Easton, Pennsylvania, has offered quality fasteners in a variety of US and metric sizes at great prices. Currently, the company offers a Master Kit Box with more than 3,000 fasteners that are neatly assorted and labeled by size and type in clear, plastic storage containers. All of the containers fit neatly in or are attached to a heavy-duty, pharmaceutical-quality case. The case also has plenty of room for tools and other hobby-related items.

In addition to the screws, nuts, and bolts, the Master Kit Box also includes screw and nut gauges in metric and standard sizes. The metric gauges range from M1.6 to M6, and the standard gauges range from 0-80 to 1/4-20. There is more than $600 worth of items if they are sold separately. The online price is $425.

The Master Kit Box is available directly from Micro Fasteners or it can be purchased from National Balsa. Check it out.

Golden Age RC Model Meet 2024

Just off of I-78 in Berks County, Pennsylvania, nestled in the cornfields of the town of Bethel, lies Grimes Airfield, a small private airport. The airport houses the Golden Age Air Museum, which is dedicated to preserving aviation’s golden past. The airport is owned by an American Airlines pilot who, while not flying the most up-to-date Boeing airliner, hops into his OX-5-powered 1915 Curtiss Jenny, SPAD XIII, Sopwith Pup, Fokker Dr.1, or Great Lakes trainer to relive an earlier time. The museum has a cadre of volunteers who build, restore, and fly these amazing aircraft.

On August 14-17, 2024, the Tri County Sky Barons hosted its annual Golden Age RC Model Meet. There were no restrictions on the aircraft type for Wednesday and Thursday; however, on Friday and Saturday, only aircraft that were initially flown prior to 1942 were allowed to participate. This year, 90 pilots and approximately 200 model aircraft were in attendance—the event’s largest number to date.

An open orange case displaying organized trays of fasteners and hardware. — The Micro Fasteners Master Kit Box includes more than 3,000 fasteners that are neatly stored in this case, along with the standard and metric screw and nut gauges.

Because this column is limited in word count and photos, the following are a few select models that were present.

Rob Caso, of Boyertown, Pennsylvania, brought along his amazing work in progress, the fuselage of a 1/6-scale Fieseler Storch. The Storch will have a wingspan of 93 inches when it’s completed. Rob is well known for his scale detail, and if you look closely at the photo, I believe he has achieved perfection.

Also pictured is test pilot Ben Haggerty and owner Bill Bernart, of Staatsburg, New York, with Bill’s rare BFW M.35 of 1930s vintage. It is also known as the Messerschmitt M35 because it was the very last airplane that Willy Messerschmitt actually designed.

The 1/3-scale model was produced by Bräuer Flugmodellbau in Germany and

An open orange Micro Fasteners storage case. — The Micro Fasteners Master Kit Box comes ready to use in this rugged case.

A detailed model Fieseler Storch fuselage framework. — This is a perfectly detailed 1/6-scale Fieseler Storch fuselage built by Rob Caso. Rob used only three-views from books for documentation.

Scott Fisher with a 1/4-scale SR Hobbies Fokker Eindecker model — Scott Fisher, of Fairfax VA, with his 1/4-scale SR Hobbies Fokker Eindecker. The model is powered by an Avian 6362-200 Kv electric motor on two 6S 4,000 mAh LiPo battery packs.

A large Piper L-4 model landing on one wheel — Adam Lilley, of Manchester Township NJ, expertly lands his large Piper L-4 on one wheel after the main gear came apart in flight.

A CARF-Models Gee Bee R2 model with four members of the Malchione family — The CARF-Models Gee Bee R2 model of the well-known Golden Age racer is pictured here with three generations of Malchiones (L-R): Tony, Dave Jr., Dave Sr., and brother, Pete.

is powered by a Valach R250 radial engine. Only 15 of the full-scale aircraft were built, and if you look closely at the photo, one of the original registration plates adorns the fuselage side just below the cockpit.

Scott Fisher, of Fairfax, Virginia, enjoyed many flights with his 1/4-scale SR Hobbies Fokker Eindecker at the event. Scott easily had 9-minute flights with his electric-powered configuration. A few were flown together with my gas G-38-powered SR Eindecker.

The best landing of the event went to Adam Lilley, of Manchester Township, New Jersey, with his large Piper L-4. During his last flight, the main gear assembly sort of disassembled, leaving one wheel precariously hanging. Adam skillfully landed on one wheel and was able to slow the Cub to a crawl without any further damage.

Last but not least, Dave Malchione Jr. was on hand early Saturday morning to show the crowd that you can fly and successfully land a large Gee Bee R2 racer. Dave is a super pilot and flew the CARF-Models R2 just like Delmar Benjamin did in the full-scale racer.

That’s all for now. Please have a safe and happy holiday season.