Focal Point
AT-6 Texan
Charlie Smith (2406 N. Chama Ave., Loveland CO 80538) sent a photo of one of last winter's projects—a Top Flite® AT-6 Texan.
The radio-control model was done in Royal Canadian colors; the markings were taken from a photo in Air Classics magazine. "The Harvard Mk II and III served well as trainers," wrote Charlie.
The AT-6 is powered by an O.S. .61 FX engine, has Rhom-Air retracts, and is covered with MonoKote®. The radio is Airtronics. According to Charlie, it flies great!
Citabria
Gary A. Worsham (Box 301, Mountain Home NC 28758) and his daughter Amanda (15) present his 81-inch Citabria.
Gary found the bare-bones aircraft, minus the tail surfaces, at a swap meet in Spartanburg, SC, for $30. The model had been crashed and partially fixed, but it had a bad warp in the wing and fuselage at the tail section. He straightened the warps with hot water and a hair dryer, covered the Citabria with MonoKote®, and added a Magnum 91 engine with a homemade muffler, an easy-fueler, and a remote glow hookup. The radio is Futaba.
"I hope to test-fly at our field—Apple County Aero Modelers in Spring Creek, NC," wrote Gary.
Bücker Jungmeister
"With all the interest in small airplanes, I thought you might be interested in this one," wrote Silas Seandel (551-3 W. 22nd St., New York NY 10011).
This is his Bücker Jungmeister, highly modified from an old Flyline kit designed by Don Srull. The biggest change Silas made was to substitute basswood in all the spars and longerons, because of his proclivity for "hangar rash and heavy handling."
The model weighs 30 ounces, spans 32 inches, has polyester covering, and is powered by an O.S. Max 10 with a diesel conversion. The engine is the in-line version, so the cowl and the wheel pants are Chrome MonoKote®-abraded to look like metal. Rigging is elastic thread, paint is silver AeroGloss, and the muffler is brazed brass to accommodate the diesel. It is three-channel.
B-25
This is Steve Moon's (9930 Edgecliff Cir., Dallas TX 75238) latest effort for Control Line Aerobatics: a profile B-25.
The 57-1/2-inch wingspan model weighs 57 ounces and was built with Gotcha 500 foam wing cores. Power is provided by two O.S. 20 FPs turning APC 9 x 4 propellers. "It looks realistic in the air and flies a pretty good Stunt pattern," wrote Steve.
Duster
Buck Foster (Box 92, Chattaroy WA 99003-0092) scratch-built his radio-control Duster, designed by the late Bill Winter, from AMA plans (#871) by John Hunton.
Power is provided by a Saito FA-65GK four-stroke hemi-head. The wingspan is 72 inches, and the model has 912 square inches of area. The Duster has five standard servos, mid-wing flaps, full ailerons, rudder, elevator, throttle, and strobe and navigation lights.
Construction is built-up balsa, and the covering is 21st Century fabric, film, and paint.
F4U Corsair
This is Jeff Callahan's (Opihikea@aol.com) 1/12-scale F4U Corsair, built from a Pica kit.
The model has a 40-inch wingspan, a 9 x 6 propeller, and a Magnum 28 engine. The fuselage is sheeted, fiberglassed, and epoxied. The wing is sheet and MonoKote®.
Giant Aeromaster
Clifford R. Clemens (9200 Hambletonian Pl., Suite B, Vienna VA 22812-2043) built his Giant Aeromaster from a Great Planes kit.
In the cockpit is a 3-D instrument panel, a denim head pillow, and a control stick for Mark McGwire—the home-run king from the St. Louis Cardinals. Clifford covered the biplane with Dark Red and White UltraCote®, and the 73-inch wingspan is International Miniature Aircraft Association (IMAA) legal.
The Aeromaster is controlled with a Futaba 8UAPS PCM transmitter and receiver, with nine servos onboard: two elevators, four ailerons, one rudder, one electrical cutoff, and one throttle. The electrical cutoff and throttle-control rods are made from fiberglass to prevent electrical spark-plug noise from coming into the fuselage. All aileron servos are mounted nearby.
The model has a Zenoah G62-A 3.8 cubic-inch gasoline engine under an aftermarket fiberglass cowl. The engine swings a 22 x 10 propeller.
B-17 Flying Fortress
David M. Seales (235 Jefferson St., North Wilkesboro NC 28659) built this B-17 Flying Fortress from an Aerotech kit (England) over a period of 1-1/2 years.
The model weighs 19 pounds, has a wingspan of eight feet, six inches, and is powered by four O.S. 25 engines. Covering is MonoKote®. "I built the plane to hear the sound of the four engines together, and I was not disappointed," wrote David. "It flies gracefully."
David is a member of the River's Edge RC Flying Club Inc., and he is interested in hearing from others who build multiengine aircraft.
Focal Point - 2001/02
Ultra Sport 60
John Cimock (3640 Roosevelt Cir., Jackson MI 49203) has logged more than 6,000 flights since he joined the AMA 14 years ago. He has built and flown nearly every type of radio-control aircraft.
This Ultra Sport 60 is the latest addition to his current squadron, which includes:
- a nine-foot Petrides Dolphin
- a Sweet Tater
- a Bird Utter Kaos
- a Kaos
- a Scat Cat
- a Gentle Lady
- an Aerostar 40
- a Senior Falcon
- a Miss Norway
- an Atlas
- an Eagle
"Our club includes builders who don't fly and fliers who don't build," wrote John. "I'm becoming a pilot who builds almost as well as he flies." His Ultra Sport 60 is powered by an O.S. 60 FP with a Futaba six-channel FM radio.
Staudacher S-600
Mike Smith (2753 Gail Dr., Gilbertsville PA 19525) built a Lanier Staudacher S-600 powered by a Zenoah twin engine and controlled with a JR 10X radio.
At 25 pounds, the model has agile and very smooth flight characteristics, and landings are slow and stable. At the time of the photo, the Staudacher had four flights on it—two at Valley Forge, PA, and two at Flagler Beach, FL. According to Mike, more information about the model can be obtained at kthmic@aol.com.
Globe Swift
Joe Casey (128 St. James Way, Naples FL 34104) built his model of a 1950s Globe Swift from a fiberglass-and-foam short kit.
"It is sporting a freshly polished aluminum paint job, and has several thousand small pins to simulate the rivet detail," wrote Joe. The Swift has a 94-inch wingspan, weighs 24 1/2 pounds, has Robart retracts and flaps, and swings a 20-inch propeller.
Ford 5-AT Tri-motor
Andy Anderson (1258 Adell St., Prattville AL 36066) scratch-built his Ford 5-AT Tri-motor from plans drawn from Wylam's drawings.
The 1/6-scale model is as close to scale as Andy could make it; it weighs 62 pounds, has a 13-foot wingspan, and is powered by three U.S. .35 engines. The Tri-motor has corrugations, control cables, and bellcranks outside the fuselage, and rubber-biscuit landing-gear shock absorbers.
The full-scale airplane is in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. "I had the pleasure of making a part and repairing the airplane and flying it when it was on its goodwill tour in Montgomery, AL, before being put in the Smithsonian," wrote Andy. The Tri-motor was photographed at Dannelly Field (Montgomery, AL) by Gene Hannah, who built and photographed it.
A Contender
Glynn Breaud (40286 Causey Rd., Prairieville LA 70769) and his daughter Amanda are shown with his new Top Flite® Contender.
The camouflage scheme and the Magnum .53 engine are a perfect match for the model, which is covered with MonoKote®. It flies well, according to Glynn.
Brown B-2 Racer
Ben Siprus (Cactus County RV Park, 10195 S. Houghton Rd., Tucson AZ 85711) took this picture of Jim Lynch and his Brown B-2 racer after Jim made his first successful flight with it.
The 31% model is powered by a Thunder Tiger 1.20 on CH Syncro-spark and is finished with Sig dope. "Jim does a fantastic job of flying it," wrote Ben. Jim Lynch's address is 6270 E. 2nd St., Tucson AZ 85711.
Taurus
R. Jerome Parker (3334 Oak Knob Ct., Hillsborough NC 27278-7849) built this Taurus.
Ed Kazmierski designed the model in the early 1960s and won the 1961 Nationals Pattern event with it. "In 1964 I built my first Taurus, but was busy raising a family and couldn't afford an engine for it," wrote R. Jerome. "I sold it to see it fly. At the same time I promised to build another one."
He was 34 then, and he's 70 now; the Taurus shown is the one promised. It is powered by an O.S. 52 four-stroke engine swinging a 12 x 6 propeller and is controlled by Airtronics electronics.
Proud of your latest building/flying effort? Share it with Model Aviation's readers! Send us a glossy color print (no digital photos, please—no photocopies, please), with an appropriate description (no handwritten submissions, please), and we'll run the best submissions as space permits.
Please include your full address (including e-mail, if available) so that interested parties may contact you directly. Send to: Model Aviation, 5151 E. Memorial Dr., Muncie IN 47302; Attn: Focal Point.
Because of this section's popularity, it may be several months before your model is featured.
Blue Maxx
Scott Boone (351 Dorado Ct. NW, Salem OR 97304) built a Blue Maxx, a reproduction of a Veco Chief. It's his first attempt at a control-line stunt airplane.
The wingspan is 42 inches, power is from an O.S. Max .40, and the model has operating flaps. The fuselage is covered with fiberglass and UltraCote®, the wings are covered with UltraCote®, and the graphics are adhesive Mylar™.
"As seen in the photo, Oregon fliers fly even in wet weather!" wrote Scott. "The airplane is very stable in the air."
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
