Letters to the Editor
Promoting the Sport
Last night I saw a flying lawnmower win third prize as America's Funniest Video. This may get a few laughs, but it is not winning over the hearts and minds of the politicians who control our access to flying fields. Without flying fields, the AMA will die. It's as simple as that. Without a venue we will have to abandon our sport/hobby. We may still enjoy the hobby of building planes, but we will not be able to enjoy the sport of flying them.
So what can we do? Do we just give up, or can we somehow change the public perception of our hobby/sport?
- We must create heroes. Heroes always and everywhere command recognition and respect. World champions are world champions regardless of what they are champions at — auto racing, chess, golf, billiards, weight lifting, or building and flying model airplanes.
- We must find media allies. To qualify as an interesting enough sport for television, we need action and conflict, tension, and rivalry between champions. Everyone needs to be able to tell who won—without a lot of explanation. It helps, too, if the final outcome is uncertain before the match begins so you can root for your home team. All races fit this description whether it's track, horse racing, auto racing, model racing, or dog racing. The trick is to get the media to cover the event. I think the results could be dramatic.
- We must start taking ourselves more seriously. I spent almost three years working with our U.S. team and invested a great deal of money in manpower and materials to help the team win. We were deadly serious in our aim of beating the German team, and we did beat them—soundly. Trouble was, even our own model press didn't notice—or didn't bother to recognize its heroes publicly. If our fellow modelers can't be our media allies, who can we turn to?
- Finally, we must put America first. We need to promote the good old U.S.A. and all the good people in this country.
Modelers should be the first to promote pride in America. This is the greatest country in the world.
Bob Boucher A Proud American Manufacturer
Smilin' Jack, Tailspin Tommy, Scorchy Smith and More
When I was a lad in the '30s and '40s I was quite an aviation buff and built many of the Comet 10c series of flying models and an occasional 25c model when I was especially flush. The comics enthralled me, and Smilin' Jack (May 1991) was my favorite. There were other aviation strips to be sure. The first I remember was Tailspin Tommy in the early '30s. It didn't really stir my imagination, but I thought Scorchy Smith was pretty good and, of course, Skyroads which Alfred Lehmberg mentioned in his article.
Flyin' Jenny, a Russell Keaton effort, also appeared. Its heroine, Jenny Dare, was probably one of the first aviation heroines to grace the comics pages, and during the Second World War we all thrilled to the exploits of Buzz Sawyer.
None of these strips captured my imagination like Smilin' Jack. For me this was the definitive aviation strip. The aircraft were all authentic, and any Sunday in the full-color section you could see a parade of Stinsons, Rearwins, Wacos and Spartans, to mention only a few.
Your readers may be interested to know that in 1943 Universal Films produced a Smilin' Jack serial of 13 chapters. The actor Tom Brown portrayed Jack in an action-packed adventure that took place in the Orient. Jack's last name, by the way, was Martin.
A couple of items in the article would seem to require clarification. Milt Caniff's Terry and the Pirates did not become Steve Canyon. Caniff wanted to own his own strip and Terry was owned by the syndicate. In 1946 Caniff gave up drawing Terry and began his own strip which he titled Steve Canyon. Terry and the Pirates continued on until the 1970s with another artist drawing it.
Thanks to Alfred Lehmberg for a fine article—obviously the result of a great deal of time and research effort. I loved it.
Doug Lawler Bellflower, California
Looking for a Russian Modeling Friend?
The following item was published in the "Bulletin Board" section of the March 1991 Air Force Magazine. I thought some of our other members might like to respond to it:
"Seeking contact with other model builders to sell or swap kits, photos, and information. Contact Michael T. Vinogradov, Bolshoi Prospect P.S. 71-4, Leningrad 197101, U.S.S.R."
William H. Allen Anza, California
These Models from Our Plans
Here are photos of three models I built from Model Aviation plans.
The first is a great-flying Bill Evans design, the Simitar .61P (Plan No. 385). I added a rudder and made over 150 flights with it.
The second is a 1/4A Miss America (Plan No. 447) by Doc Mathews. It weighs 21 oz. with a standard-size radio installed.
The third is an Elf Biplane Senior (Plan No. 451 — highly modified by me). Modifications include:
- Shortening the top wing to 57 in.
- Lengthening the bottom wing to 52½ in.
- Changing the wing airfoils from flat-bottom to symmetrical.
- Moving the engine firewall back to accommodate a .60-size engine instead of the .35 shown on the plans.
It is a good-flying aerobatic biplane. All three projects were very enjoyable.
Brett Horton Corinth, Mississippi
USING THE TECHNOLOGICAL MARVELS
If it can provide very accurate information, I won't be surprised to see it as the next accessory in auto dealers' catalogs.
Think not? I remember looking at a 1915 catalog of automobile accessories and seeing a music-box affair that mounted on the steering column and pointed left/right to indicate the route from one place to another. It was driven by the speedometer cable and programmed by inserting a brass disk that carried the steering instructions. I think it went out of favor because the roads kept changing. Loran doesn't care about roads.
Although I bought a table-model Loran, you might like something smaller. I've seen a hand-held Loran receiver which looks like a CB transceiver or operates from flashlight batteries. It includes a collapsing whip antenna, but it is more expensive than the L-100 and has a tiny display.
Everybody knows how to use a computer (well, lots of people do, and it's not really that hard), but the L-100 Loran receiver is something else again. It's a lot simpler to use.
One of the L-100's strong features is its backlit LCD with 1/2-in. numbers. It's easy to read, day or night, in my van. Once you know what you want to see in the multifunction display, you can scan it as quickly as when you look at your speedometer. In fact, it even has a speed display which reports average speed instead of the instantaneous speed you see on the automobile speedometer.
It is somewhat appalling to watch your average speed decay as you wait at a traffic light. The L-100 also predicts the time and distance left to travel if the current average speed is maintained.
The L-100 stores 100 locations in its battery-backed memory. It can chain up to nine of them into one "Go To" sequence, so it is practical to program a tour from one place to another, marking tunnels through mountains and bridges and over rivers as waypoints (preprogrammed locations).
Your driving becomes safer after the route has been entered in your Loran, because your eyes can spend more time scanning the road. I hate it when I see people driving down the road using one hand, then sneaking peeks at a map held in their other hand.
My Loran beeps to warn me when I'm approaching a waypoint. If I miss it, the Loran tells me to "Go Back," points in the proper direction, and tells me how far to go.
The display option I find most useful while driving shows the direction you are headed (magnetic bearing), average speed, magnetic bearing to the destination, and miles to the destination. Take whatever road gives the best match to the bearings and drive until "miles to go" equals zero. It's very comforting at night when you're in strange territory with rain, snow, fog, etc.
As with all navigation systems, your Loran might fail. If the L-100 can't pick up three stations (it looks for five) to triangulate its position, it warns "Check Status." The situation won't improve until you move somewhere else, so carry road maps and telephone numbers as a backup.
Having a CB radio and/or a cellular telephone can be helpful in some parts of the country.
The L-100 is designed to be mounted inside a boat and to be powered by the boat battery. It has an antenna which should be mounted somewhere outside the boat. The manual has a lot to say about correct mountings.
Right now I have the receiver in my van and it's powered by that battery. The antenna is fastened to a magnetic base for a CB antenna, and it works just fine when stuck to the hood, right over the engine. It also works well when fastened under the body, parallel to the road. I haven't seen any interference from the engine's ignition or electrical system, nor degradation of performance due to using it in the van. In fact, the reception is better there than it was when I had the whole thing spread out on my wooden workbench and powered it with the motorcycle battery from my field kit. I usually get three or four signal strength indications of "9" (which is very good) when driving around Long Island.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
