Model of the Month
July 2008
Shawn Braunegel
   
April Model of the Month Nomination:
David Redsun's Spitfire!
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Future Model of the Month!!!!.jpg)
John never fails to suprise us!  
March 2008
Ladyhawk
It was built from plans I got from RC Modeller mag. It's 3 channels; 2 for elevons and one for inflight ignition of the second motor. It uses 24mm reloadable rocket motors. At the meeting I Iaunched it on an F39 motor and an F24 for inflight ignition.It weighs about 1 lb so a motor with 8 lb avg. thrust is pretty effective.
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February 2008
  
 
Peter's F-16
Read More .........
August 2007
Kyosho Calmato .60 ARF with Floats
(By Martin Martin Stohr)
     
March 2007
Balsa USA EAA Bipe
(By Bedford Pearcy)
This plane has been around a while. It is a Balsa USA EAA Bipe kit I received as a gift back in ’86. After some lengthy distractions it finally took to the air for the first time in September of ’92. That was in a previous life with an Enya 120 4-stroke and pretty standard. It laid up for 4 years while I added upper wing ailerons, shortened the nose by 3”, and painted it with Rustoleum. I needed to shorten the nose to accommodate the heavier gas engine. The adjustment worked out well because the balance is on CG without lead (that hasn’t happened to me much lately). The original covering was pre-painted 21st Century fabric, which had faded and decayed over time. The Rustoleum beat the heck out of re-covering!
The Bipe has a wing span of 60” and a weight around 12 lbs. The little Echo 22cc gasser in the nose pulls it rather nicely. With four ailerons, it is very nimble and capable of much more aerobatics than the guy on the sticks. I added a yaw gyro to help with ground handling. It takes a remarkable amount of the fickleness out of it on take off and landing. The gyro can be disabled from the transmitter (will screw up flight) and I don’t use it all the time, but it is nice to have it there when I need it.
Balsa USA kits are good building exercises, with plenty of opportunity to put in time for needed solitude and therapy. I highly recommend them.
Bedford
   
January 2007
PTS P-51 Mustang
(By Phil Castellanos)
Wing Span: 58.25 in (1480mm)
Overall Length: 50.5 in (1284mm)
Wing Area: 627 sq in (w/droops), 603 sq in (w/o droops)
Flying Weight: 6.5-7.0 lbs (2.9-3.2 kg)
Engine Size: Evolution .46
Radio: JR SX600 6 channel w/ 6 servos
This is the Hangar 9 PTS (Progressive Trainer System) designed for the new R/C pilot with new technology that allows you to advance from learning the basics to advanced sport aerobatics without having to upgrade or purchase a new plane. This plane is setup with many features designed to slow down and tame the flight characteristics of a warbird that was designed with speed and maneuverability in mind.
In order to reduce the top speed, the plane include speed brakes on the landing gear struts, training flaps (22 degrees) and finally a three blade prop. With these three features this otherwise speedy warbird is brought down to a top speed that any new pilot can handle comfortably. Once you gain some experience you can easily remove the speed brakes, flaps, and install a two blade prop. The ground handling is truly amazing with this plane. I would be so bold to say it is nearly impossible to nose over with this plane while taxing. This was a concern of mine as many people told me tail draggers can be difficult to steer on the ground. My only complaint with ground steering is it can be hard to steer if you are taxing on a rough surface. Otherwise this plane handles superbly on the ground.
Another great feature of this warbird is the NACA wing droops that add stability to this warbird's flight characteristics. With the droops installed you will be hard pressed to snap-roll, spin or tip stall this warbird which is ideal for a beginner. They are also made from transparent plastic which makes them difficult to see in the air which keeps your P-51 looking like a P-51 (very important feature for us newbies :) we don't like to stand out).
I've been flying everyday at the field and everynight on the simulator and I think it's time to shed the training gear and see what this warbird can really do! I removed the wing droops, removed the speed brakes, installed a flap servo (for optional flaps), installed a 11x6 2 blade prop and removed the baffle from the muffler. As advertised, my trainer now became a very agile sports plane. I must admit I was really amazed at the speed of the Evolution .46 plus it's ease of operation! Within no time I was doing acceptable rolls, loops, cubans, inverted flying, split s and other basic maneuvers with ease and comfort.
The transition from Trainer to Sport plane was a smooth transition and found the plane still very manageable with all the training gear removed. My one concern was landing without the wing droops installed which provide more lift and more importantly more control at slower speeds. However, when I came down on final it was basically a hands-free affair all the way to touch down with only needing to add a touch of down elevator to keep her on a nice glide scope. All in all I can not be happier in selecting the PTS P-51 Mustang as my first plane.
  
More pictures here.
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