Control Line: Aerobatics
Wynn Paul
IF THE AMOUNT of advance preparations already completed for the precision aerobatics event at the 1977 Nationals at this writing (January 29) is any indication, then this Nats should be a dream for competitor, official and spectator alike. Maybe even for the wives too! Event Director Arlie Preszler already has his assistant director, several tabulators, and eight of the 12 judges lined up and is well into the logistics of equipment, supplies and organization of appearance judging, pilots' meetings, etc. PAMPA certainly has a good man to run this one.
Appearance judging for Open contestants will be a little different this year and should be an exciting experience. According to Arlie it's going to be done "Preszler style" and this will bring all the stunt planes together at once for judging. Here's how it will work: Open stunt competitors will check into the Nats Main Hangar no later than 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 9, with their airplane in hand ready for appearance judging. Arlie and assistant director Lanny Shorts will check for proper AMA identification on the airplane, receive any special handling instructions, and get the pilot to sign a certificate stating that he is the "builder of the model."
All of the airplanes (usually in Open Stunt from 60 to 80) will be placed in a large roped off area (similar to the RC Formula I toys) then the pilots will draw for circle assignment and flight order for the next day's Open Qualifications. For the next two hours Arlie and Lanny will play musical airplanes while they place the airplanes in groups according to the number of appearance points. According to Arlie, "The anticipated time for this is two hours — 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m." This should certainly be an improvement over some years when it took up to six or seven hours for processing. One thing for certain, it will be an impressive array of beautiful airplanes, one that the photographers will have a ball with!
Missing Persons: In order to clear up some mysteries for the nearly completed "History of stunt—1940-1976," the writer seeks help in locating two stunt champions from the '40s. Robert "Bob" Daily won the open stunt division in the 1949 Nationals and was one of the first to utilize the "I-beam" wing construction. He originally was from Ferndale, Michigan. W. Howard Thombs won the Walker Cup in 1949 flying, according to George Aldrich, a profile biplane with about 12 degrees of engine offset. Thombs was originally from Warren, Ohio, but later was supposed to be working for an aircraft company in Texas. Any information on the whereabouts of these two stunters would be appreciated.
Aldrich Handle: The old Nobler man George Aldrich has come out with a new control-line handle which should catch on immediately. His "Magnum" handle is ready for shipment after some delays in production. Weighing in at 37 grams, the Magnum is seven grams lighter than the popular E-Z Just Hot Rock. This featherweight is made of polypropylene and comes in six colors: red, yellow, blue, green, orange and black. This handle is a molded replica of the one used by George when he won his four National Stunt titles. We promise not to say when those were! The grip is molded for the hand, felt quite comfortable to the writer, and is certainly big enough for those with large hands. There is a heavy braided steel cable with an adjustment screw on the bottom of the handle which is one of the highlights of the handle. Adjustment is quite simple and once set will not come loose or drift. Line separation is the same as the E-Z Just at four inches. Priced at $2.75, this could be the answer to the stunt fliers' need for a very light handle with quick adjustment. Order from George at: Aldrich Products, Inc., P.O. Box 1426, Mission, TX 78572; Telephone: 512-842-3379.
Engine Rework: It has been the writer's policy to attempt to list as many special products and engine rework specialists as come across the board in an effort to let stunt fliers have a chance to sample the products and services. No guarantee goes with any of these. It's up to the individual to evaluate the products and services offered. From out west comes T&L Model
CL Aerobatics/Paul
Specialties with Tom Lay offering to rework the O.S. Max 35 stunt engine. He states, "I will modify piston, head, venturi, needle valve, hand lap piston and sleeve, and precision assemble your engine. One-flip starts and smooth, steady power will result. I'll have old style O.S. mufflers available soon." Prices are $10.00 for rework to a new engine plus postage. Used engines reworked for $10.00 plus parts and postage. Address is: T&L Model Specialties, P.O. Box 6052, Torrance, CA 90504. Incidentally, Tom built the .010 stunter shown in the picture.
Y and O Props: Many of the veteran stunters swear by the Y and O Props. They are available from Bill's Mail Order Hobby, 503 West Astor, Lee's Summit, MO 64063; Telephone: 816-524-1634. Here are just some of the sizes offered: 10-4, 5, 6, and 7; 11-4, 5, 6, 7; 12-4, 5, 6, 7; they also have laminated props in 10-6, 11-5, 11-6, 12-5, 12-6 for those who might want them. Bill's also has a very good supply of old model airplane magazines for anyone who collects.
PAMPA Booth at First Southwestern Modelers' Show: Those Texas PAMPA members led by Jerry Pilgrim got together a very fine display for the first Southwestern Show and did it on very short notice. Five stunt ships were displayed representing classic, semi-scale, futuristic and jet-style approaches to stunt. Lee Uberbacher gave a demonstration of the stunt pattern in the frigid weather of January 15 and 16 in Dallas, Texas. Al Rabe's slide collection was on continuous display. Ron Harding's Bearcat Stunt ship won first place for finish in the static display. Also on hand to help were Bob McKinney, Dave McClellan, Dorsey Brewer, Bob Gieseke, Joe Musumeci Sr., and Joe Jr. According to Bob Gieseke, the PAMPA booth was one of the biggest hits of the show and the display grew from the original one table to a 10 x 20 ft. area with four tables. Bob said that major credit should be given to Jerry Pilgrim for putting the display together.
Half-A Standard Design Stunt Event: Larry Renger and Keith Trostle have been discussing the possibility of establishing an aerobatic event for Half-A which would be governed by rules for design and building features. According to Larry, "When you consider that Quickie 500 and Quickie 200 racing have stimulated rather than hurt the more sophisticated events, I think a good simple Half-A single design aerobatics event would be a good thing for stunt."
The design of a "Standard Half-A aerobatics airplane" would probably be along these lines. Engine: muffled Tee Dee .049/.051; wing: built-up, straight chord, coupled flaps optional, 200 sq. in. total; fuselage: simple box, square front end using an RC-type radial mount; tank: no regulations; controls: no regulations; weight: 10 oz. minimum and 13 oz. maximum; control lines: .008 steel cable, 35 ft. long.
The competition for this event would consist of either the AMA novice pattern or the regular pattern without appearance points. Perhaps if the AMA novice pattern were utilized more "other event fliers" would take a swing at stunt. Any comments on this venture should be directed to Larry Renger, 1774 New Hampshire Dr., Costa Mesa, CA 92626.
Incidentally, Cox Manufacturing has
Control Line: Aerobatics
agreed to again sponsor the unofficial Half-A precision aerobatics event at the 1977 Nationals. Junior, Senior and Open competition will take place using the complete AMA pattern minus appearance points. The probable date would be Saturday, August 13 before and after the Walker Cup Flyoffs. Engines are limited to a total of .051 in. maximum; no requirement on the builder-of-the-model rule, however, the same plane may not be flown by more than one pilot. Back-up model may be used as per AMA rules. Airplanes must have identifying numbers as per AMA rulebook except that 1/2 in. high numbers are permissible. This event has developed into a popular and lighthearted unofficial contest with last year's entry at 25 and spectator enthusiasm high. It's worth watching and even more fun competing in this event.
For information on PAMPA or precision aerobatics write: Wynn Paul, 1640 Maywick Dr., Lex., KY 40504.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
