Letters to the Editor
All letters will be carefully considered; those of general interest will be used. Send to Model Aviation, 1810 Samuel Morse Dr., Reston, VA 22090.
Flopped!
As a new member of AMA (number 347736) I enjoy Model Aviation very much. I read it from cover to cover, although it sometimes takes a week or two.
The article "Behind the Scenes at Toledo" in the August 1990 issue was an excellent one. But on page 80 the picture of K. Leroy Irvis and Herb Wahl is incorrectly labeled. Mr. Irvis is the gentleman on the right, not on the left as the caption states. Mr. Irvis is well known in the Pittsburgh area both for his legislative activities and airplane modeling. The field where many local modelers fly is named K. Leroy Irvis RC Model Airport.
Thanks for the efforts of you and your staff for publishing the best magazine in the field of model aircraft.
H. Glenn Benton Pittsburgh, PA
Editor’s note: We wondered about that mistake the day we received the advance copies of the August issue. When the pictures and art boards came back from the printer, the answer was clear. MA’s printer had inadvertently flopped the screened negative for that picture when it was combined with the type for the page — and we failed to catch the error when checking the printer’s proof.
... And on the Preceding Page
My August issue of Model Aviation arrived yesterday. As always I began reading it immediately. When I got to page 79, I was surprised and flattered when I found a picture of me and my airplane right up at the top of the page.
Then I read the caption below the picture. It said the airplane was called Airtrax and that it was created by someone named Bob Ray from Ohio. The airplane is really named Enforcerus, and it was designed and built by me.
The picture was taken on the first day of the show. On the last day the Enforcerus was awarded first place in the MonoKote division and second place in Sport Power.
Power for the Enforcerus is by a Saito .90 twin swinging a 14 x 8 Zinger pusher propeller. It uses Spring Air retracts and has an onboard glow igniter to keep the four-stroke engine dependable on the low end. Strobe-F-Light strobes are installed in the "Truster Motors" in the wings. The whole thing is under the control of a five-channel Futaba PCM system. It even has a solar-powered, back-lit radar screen in the instrument panel.
I've enclosed a snapshot of the full-scale aircraft which was taken by a friend on the last shuttle flight.
Thanks for an always interesting and usually accurate magazine.
Faye L. Stilley Wilton, CT
Summer Day Camp Modeling
Seven Lakes Aeromodelers RC Club of West End, NC, is conducting a model building program for boys and girls enrolled in the Seven Lakes Landowners Association Day Camp. The first of three classes was held on June 28, 1990, when 11 boys and girls constructed AMA Delta Darts. Following the two-hour building session, each youngster had the thrill of successfully launching the rubber-powered airplane outdoors.
As most of your readers probably know, model aircraft construction and flying is an exciting activity for youngsters. Not only does it occupy the minds of children in a useful way, it specifically helps them with problem solving, creativity, and manual skills. To see the joy on the faces of youngsters when their self-created craft fly with grace and beauty is something to behold. Modeling is a wholesome, rewarding, and challenging hobby for young people that can be pursued and enjoyed throughout their lives.
Raymond H. Barnes West End, NC
No Finer People Around
I am new to RC flying. I flew Control Line when I was younger and enjoyed it very much. Now I've been flying RC for about a month, and there isn't anything better.
My first RC plane was an Astro Flight Mini-Challenger. I crashed it beyond repair, so I built a Bob Martin Pussy Cat. I cut down the wingspan to 60 in. and mounted a power pod so I could fly it in the AMA 702 RC duration contest in Baton Rouge on May 27. I didn't place in the contest, but I had a great time and met some real nice people there.
On one of my flights I forgot to turn on the receiver (dumb me), and away it went (my best engine run time, too). My plane flew about a half mile away, so I started chasing it with my wife and some friends from Beaumont. We couldn't find it anywhere.
The president of the Baton Rouge club hosting the event came up to us and said he had found the model about 100 ft. from where we were looking. It was right in the middle of a crawfish pond on an island. I told him I wasn't about to go out there (it looked like a snake pond). He (the club president) took off his shoes and socks, reached in his truck and pulled out the biggest machete I have ever seen, and started across the water to the island. About halfway there he came face to face with a water moccasin (the reason I wasn't going in the water). After wading through the water, he grabbed my plane and ran back with it. The model wasn't damaged.
I'm new to RC like I said, but if everyone in RC is as nice as the Baton Rouge RC Club guys—and they go out of their way to help others they don't even know—I feel there are no finer people around.
Leon Wilcox Beaumont, TX
Scale Model
I love Model Aviation magazine very much and look forward to getting it every month.
I am new to the sport of radio control airplanes. My father taught me how to fly Control Line models when I was younger.
The picture enclosed is of my fifth RC model and my second attempt at scale. It is a Pica 1/2-scale Focke-Wulf 190 D-9 powered by a K&B .61 engine. It flies great.
My first scale model was a P-51 Mustang. It was just beautiful, but it rolled in from low altitude one day.
Keep up the good work, guys.
James Tenesenk Virginia Beach, VA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
