Free Flight: Indoor
Bud Tenny Box 545 Richardson, TX 75080
Ken Groves — obituary
From John Marett: Ken Groves (Canada) apparently suffered a heart attack while golfing. Ken was well known in the U.S. and was a frequent entrant at U.S. Indoor meets. His standards of craftsmanship were the highest, and he was a strong competitor in many events. U.S. and Canadian fliers will miss a competitor and a friend; Canadians will also miss the hundreds of hours per year Ken devoted to promoting model aviation.
Danger alert
Recent letters and verbal warnings have spread the alarm about rubber motor storage. Several years ago it was discovered that the sulfur content of normal paper envelopes will ruin motors stored in them. At that time the best advice seemed to be to use plastic self-seal zipper bags instead of paper. In recent months it has been discovered that chemicals exuding from some plastic bags will also attack rubber motors.
Thanks to Manny Radoff for first noting the problem and spreading the warning, and to Dennis Pepperell of St. Albans, England, for identifying the damaging agent. Not all plastic bags are the culprits—to be safe, change to the materials described below.
What kind of damage?
- Sulfur from paper de-vulcanizes (softens) rubber. The primary symptom is loss of torque: motors no longer develop the same torque at any given number of turns.
- Vinyl chloride (reported in some plastic bags) makes exposed rubber brittle; it breaks easily under tension.
Are my motors damaged?
If you used anything except acid-free paper envelopes, assume your motors have been softened to some degree. The extent of damage depends on storage time and temperature (lower temperatures reduce reaction rates). You won't know for sure unless you have previously recorded turns vs. torque for your motors.
A simple vinyl chloride damage test: stretch a short section of the rubber. Severely damaged rubber can quickly reduce to a pile of short scraps in seconds. Note that naturally aged rubber may show a similar response to stress.
What's the solution?
- Glassine envelopes (used by stamp collectors) are available from stamp dealers for about 3–6 cents each, depending on size; typically sold in packs of 100.
- For bulk storage, use plastic oven (cooking) bags. These are made from nylon and are inexpensive. Oven bags are typically available in 10 x 16 in. and 16 x 20 in. sizes.
- Bags that can stand higher temperatures (over 400° F) are polycarbonate and are much more expensive.
- Smaller bags can be made from large oven bags by sealing excess material with double-sided tape. (No information is available on possible damage from the tape.)
Peanuts & Pistachios (again)
Bill Hannan has published number five in his series. This issue is larger and includes more international contributions. Price is $7.95 plus $2 P&H. Hannan's Runway has a new address: Box 210, Magalia, CA 95954. These publications are important for Indoor Scale fliers.
Flying opportunities
The listings below are all contest dates presently on hand. Contest directors (CDs) please fill in dates in February 1991 and beyond. Be safe: check contest status by phone before leaving home!
#### Connecticut
- Glastonbury: Indoor flying at Glastonbury has been canceled until further notice.
- Norwich: Flying sessions on Nov. 17 and Dec. 15, 1990; and Jan. 19, Feb. 23, Mar. 16, Apr. 27, 1991.
Contact: Jerry Bockius, 48 Division St., Norwich, CT 06360; tel. 1-203/442-8003.
#### Florida
- Miami: Cat. I Record Trials; Miami Youth Fair, Nov. 24, 1990.
Contact: Dr. John Martin, 2180 Tigertail Ave., Miami, FL 33133; tel. 1-305/858-6363.
#### Iowa
- Cedar Rapids: Regular unsanctioned sessions November through February; 34-ft. ceiling.
Contact: Paul McIlrath, 1524 48th St. NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402; tel. 1-319/393-4577.
#### Kansas
- Topeka: Unsanctioned indoor meets in the 22.5-ft. Stone Hangar site on Dec. 9, 1990, and Jan. 13, Feb. 10, Mar. 10, Apr. 7, 1991.
AAA Cat. II Kansas Indoor State Championship at White Field House, Topeka, KS, April 20, 1991. Contact: Jack Koehler, 3425 SW Arrowhead Rd., Topeka, KS 66614-3485; tel. 1-913/272-8439.
#### Oklahoma
- Oklahoma City: Sessions at the National Guard Armory on Nov. 18 and Dec. 16, 1990; three dates in 1991 to be determined.
Contact: Jim Beeson, 4933 NW 29th, Oklahoma City, OK 73129; tel. 1-405/946-1093.
- Tulsa: Tulsa Glue Dobbers Indoor contest at Tulsa Armory, Dec. 8, 1990.
Contact: Roy O'Mara, 9120 E. 7th St., Tulsa, OK 74112; tel. 1-918/815-1424.
Site contact persons
- California — San Diego: Howard Haupt, 3860 Ecochee Ave., San Diego, CA 92117.
- Colorado — Denver: Les Shaw; tel. 1-303/499-0946.
- Connecticut — Wilton: Roger Kleinert, 17 Gardiner St., Darien, CT 06820; tel. 1-203/655-1585.
- Georgia — Atlanta Area: Contact John Barker; tel. 1-404/436-9912.
- Indiana — Indianapolis: Bob Butsch; tel. 1-317/841-3786.
- Illinois — Chicago Area: Don Lindley, 420 Tupelo, Naperville, IL 60540; tel. 1-708/355-9674.
- Kentucky — Louisville: Burr Stanton, 9210 Darley Dr., Louisville, KY 40241; tel. 1-502/425-1915.
- Maryland — Goddard NAS: Tom Vallee, 444 Henryton So., Laurel, MD 20707; tel. 1-301/498-0790.
- Massachusetts — Cambridge: Ray Harlan, 15 Happy Hollow Rd., Wayland, MA 01778; tel. 1-617/358-4013.
- Minnesota — Burnsville: John O'Leary, 11425 Kell Circle, Bloomington, MN 55437; tel. 1-612/888-0638.
- Minnesota — Plymouth: Del Marchant, 17110 24th Ave. N., Plymouth, MN 55447; tel. 1-612/473-5971.
- Nebraska — Beatrice: John Pakiz, 4523 Poppleton Ave., Omaha, NE 68106; tel. 1-402/551-2966.
- New Jersey — Union Area: Fergus Collins, 48 East Hazelwood Ave., Rahway, NJ 07067.
- New Jersey — Northern Area: Don Ross, 38 Churchill Rd., Cresskill, NJ 07626; tel. 1-201/568-5272.
- New York — Queens: Bob Bender, 159 Raff Ave., Mineola, NY 11501; tel. 1-516/248-5118.
- NYC: Dan Marek, 210 West 101st St., #10F, New York, NY 10025; tel. 1-212/222-1546.
- Chappaqua: Art Maiden — telephone number not provided.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
