Control Line: Aerobatics
Ted Fancher
STRANGER in a strange land. One of the many advantages of being a pilot for a big airline is that many of my trips take me to cities where I am able to visit friends who share my interest in CL Stunt flying. It occurred to me that this capability could allow me to expand my circle of such friends and, in so doing, provide excellent grist for my monthly mill here at Model Aviation. In addition, the column could become a forum whereby Stunters in one part of the country could get a feeling for what's happening elsewhere. It seemed like such a good idea that I decided that I should invite you to invite me to visit you. Here's what I have in mind.
Invitation
If the thought of a visit from a famous Model Aviation columnist is intriguing to you, drop me a line at the address noted at the end of this month's article. I will start a file of names, and if and when I am assigned a flight to your little corner of the world, I will give you a call to make mutually agreeable arrangements for a visit. I would suggest an informal get-together of your local Stunt group, perhaps over pizza or some such, and then (weather permitting) a good flying session.
There are two things of which you should be aware:
- My layovers are generally 24 hours or less in duration.
- I often don't know my destination very far in advance; therefore, notice is apt to be short.
If this sounds like fun, drop me a line and stand back!
Visit to New Jersey
As a case in point, this month (July) I visited the Garden State, New Jersey, home of "Pro Stunt Headquarters" and some of the very best stunt building and flying in the world.
The night before my departure, I called Lou Dudka, the sixth-place finisher at last year's Nats, who pretended to be thrilled to hear from me and promised to pick me up at Newark Airport the next afternoon.
Sure enough, the next day he picked me up (sans my suitcase, which somehow managed to go to Maui instead of Newark) and off we went to visit his home, wife, and workshop . . . and to get a shirt for me to borrow.
Next, it was off to the home of both the ninth-place Nats finisher and the highest-placing Nats finisher of the female persuasion, Glen and Karen Meador, for a fantastic home-cooked roast beef dinner and an evening of good, old-fashioned stunt talk. These discussions were enriched by visits from Ken "Parski" Purzycki and "Coach" Stout and his lovely new bride. Oh, yes — I also borrowed clean pants and socks from Glen.
One major topic of conversation was folding wings! No, not for storage on a Navy carrier — we're talking major stunt failure here. Lou and Glen each had built two new airplanes for the Reno Nats: one each of their basic Matrix and Eagle designs, plus two long-winged versions of James Greenaway's L.J. design, a popular New York ship noted for its high-aspect-ratio wing and very large flaps, full span and 30% of the wing chord. All four were built with beautifully crafted foam wings, flaps, and tails made by Lou and Glen. All had very light wing loadings, well under 11 ounces per square foot, and all had finishes which were typically Noo Yawk Gorgeous. Unfortunately, three beautiful machines folded wings at the wing/fuselage joint.
Pro Stunt observations
So, what did I learn of Pro Stunt in a 24-hour visit? It is just that: through the happy marriage of talent and propinquity, this group of stunt fliers has become greater than the sum of its parts. Any number of talented people have given of their skills for the improvement of all their members. The result is the current hot spot in American stunt, with a legacy of champions such as Bob Lamplione, Jim Kostecky, Billy Simons, Bobby Hunt, and Gene Schaeffer (the best stunter I've ever seen who never won a Nats). Add a current crop like Cacela, Urtnowski, Meador, and Dudka, and up-and-comers like Parski, Karen Meador, Doug and Mary Figgs, and Marty Cwikala (my bet for future stardom), just to name those on the tip of my tongue, and there is just no place like New Jersey for flyin' stunt!
Construction hint
One of the biggest obstacles to accurate construction and tight, precise glue joints is improper application of sandpaper to balsa wood. Too often, the part to be shaped is picked up in one hand and the shaping medium in the other and an attempt is made to rub them against each other as if your hands were precision milling tools. Often, the result is similar to shortening the legs of a table by eyeball — no good at all!
A much-preferable system is illustrated by the picture at the start of the column. A very large sanding board, about three feet by four inches, is grooved on one side to accept another board of similar dimension, as shown. The two pieces are then screwed together so that one sits in the centrally located groove at a 90° angle. Sandpaper is attached to both sides of the vertical member with rubber cement and also (not shown) on what appears to be the bottom of the horizontal member. The simple tool thus made is then clamped firmly to the workbench, and the piece to be shaped is applied with both hands to the tool. Ninety-degree angles and flat surfaces come automatically and easily. The paper on the bottom can be used in normal sanding-block fashion for even tapering of ribs on a wing, or the vertical member can be clamped in a vise and the paper used, for instance, to sand the entire joint surface of your fuselage box prior to attaching top and bottom blocks.
Once this tool is clamped to your bench, you will find you almost never actually pick up a piece of sandpaper! Try it — you'll like it.
Ted Fancher 158 Flying Cloud Isle Foster City, CA 94404
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
