Letters to the Editor
Send your Letters to the Editor to: Model Aviation, 5151 East Memorial Drive, Muncie, IN 47302
Correction
The most recent listing of AMA Hall of Fame members (March 1999 issue) omitted the names of LeRoy Cox (elected 1981) and Keith Storey (elected 1998).
MA staff
Love for the Hobby
I just received the April edition of Model Aviation, and read the touching letter that Mr. Fox had written about his dad. I also had to face a great loss on February 23, 1999; I lost my dad to a sudden heart attack.
He and I started our father/son relationship with flying and building RC airplanes in 1985. The love for the hobby was one that kept him with me up until his death.
My dad and I enjoyed scratch-building from pictures and blueprints. Each month he couldn't wait until the AMA magazine would arrive. He would always go straight to the construction articles, where he would again come up with more very helpful ideas.
I guess I was his test pilot. We would work out the little problems that sometimes would occur. The workmanship that Dad put into each and every airplane was always his best. When we would go and try one of his newly built airplanes, there was no doubt in my mind that the airplane would fly. There was always that same great feeling that would come over me when I looked over at my dad and saw that smile on his face as I lifted his airplane off the tarmac.
Then about four years ago, my dad lost sight in one of his eyes. I knew then that his building would soon come to an end. To my surprise, he worked even harder to put the same great workmanship into building each new airplane.
As the months went on, I could tell that my dad's health was deteriorating. I then set up my old computer and installed a flight-simulator program, where he would fly for hours and hours enjoying the hobby that he loved so very much.
I have not only lost my dad, but my copilot as well. I know that one day my time will come, and I will again be standing beside my dad and watch that same smile come on his face, as we fly his airplanes again.
Terry Lee Robertsdale, Alabama
Likes Microhenrys
In the April 1999 issue of Model Aviation, Ed Henry issued a call to readers to say if they still liked The Microhenrys.
I don't have email, and so must respond the old-fashioned way, but the fact remains that the idea that I like the strip is the understatement of the century. I am, in fact, very enthusiastic about it. It's the first thing I open to with each new issue of the magazine, and I would be sorely disappointed to get an issue with no Microhenrys.
In a June 1996 letter, I not only complimented Ed on his creation but called attention to the clever double entendre in the name Microhenry, which is a common unit of inductance as well as the chosen name for Mr. Henry's little people. I also pointed out that the basic unit of inductance, the henry, is so named following the physicist's tradition of naming scientific units after famous scientists — in this case, Joseph Henry (1797–1878), who did original basic research in electromagnetism.
Anyway, you get the idea that I really like The Microhenrys, and yes, that includes the dog! Keep 'em coming!
Dean S. Edmonds Jr. Naples, Florida
Problem Solved
Thank you for solving a perplexing problem that I have had for almost a year.
I have been trying to build an RC skydiver and a rectangular ram-air parachute. I wanted him to free-fall, open his parafoil on command, then be able to fly him to a target. A few months ago in the District Report ("AMA News") section of our magazine, I saw a report from the District Vice President Mr. Wally Gitchel (11050 Fancher Rd. #135, Westerville, OH 43082-9766).
Wally is doing successfully what I had been trying to do for months. I contacted him; what a great guy! He has information that he has gathered over the years on how to build your own jumper, his parafoil, and the method of carrying him aloft and releasing him.
The average 40-size trainer will carry a jumper to altitude and release it.
Wally is having an RC parachute rally in September. Three of my RC buddies and I are building a Robinhood 99 and fitting it with three drop points. We are going to Wally's rally.
This is the most fun I have had in RC. Thanks again, Model Aviation.
C.R. Fowler Somerset, Kentucky
Satisfied Customers
We hear so often of companies that do not honor their warranties that I thought it would be refreshing to list one that has: Norvel has more than met any possible goal for customer service so far as I am concerned.
I notified them that I was having problems with my Big Mig .061 engine after a year or so, and they requested that I send it back to be checked. To my amazement, within a very few days they returned a new, broken-in, ready-to-fly engine to me! The new engine performs beautifully! No fuss, no questions, just great service.
Thanks, Norvel. Glenn Bolick Mechanicsville, Virginia
This is an "attaboy" to Steve Anthony and the folks at S-R Batteries. In the present day of impersonal "talk to the machine and send us the money" kind of hobby distributors, it is a real pleasure to find someone who actually answers his phone and seems to enjoy it. And their batteries are pretty darn good, too!
Thanks for listening. LaRoy H. Mickelson Fresno, California
NACA
I am so very proud that you published the Frank Parmenter article on the NACA Modelmakers!
Frank was hired in late 1941, and I was selected during the summer of '42. My modeling and engineering career there became my vocation and avocation that has served me well through the years.
Frank and his wonderful wife, Sandy, know a lot of the history of that great NACA period, and most of the great modelers that worked there at that time. Many became the supervisors, leaders, shop foremen, and wind-tunnel operators. Many stayed on and became the nucleus of NASA at Houston, after it took over the functions of the NACA research labs. Most dispersed all over the nation as aero-professionals, designers, and engineers in the aircraft industries, some becoming Nats champs along the way.
I am biased, but I think that it would be of interest to many of your readers if "Parmenter Sequels" to that article could follow.
There are so many stories about this great group of dedicated people that a book could and should be written on how these teenagers were developed into aero scientists.
Jesse Shepherd Sr. Bedford, Texas
Hobby Shops
I have read the "Now You're Talking" in the October 1998 Model Aviation and the responses to the article in the January 1998 "Now You're Talking."
As an RC pilot in the Los Angeles area since 1988, I had heard of the Red Baron hobby shop in Camarillo, and on one occasion I stopped in there on my way to Santa Barbara. It was indeed an "old-time" hobby shop. It reminded me of the hobby shops I went to as a kid in the 1960s. I loved the place, and the salespeople were very friendly and helpful. Even though I don't live close enough to Camarillo to patronize the place, it's sad to see the last of the real hobby shops disappear.
In my ten years of RC flying, I have learned the ins and outs of buying equipment. The mail-order hobby stores sell airplanes, engines, and radios for a fraction of the cost of what the small hobby shops sell the same items for.
An airplane that retails for $250 sells for $250 at the local hobby shop, plus state sales tax — another 8% here in L.A.! The same kit that retails for $250 sells for $150 at the mail-order hobby store. And no sales tax. There is the $6 or so in shipping costs, but you still save more than $100.
The simple fact is that as much as we'll miss the old hobby shops when they're all gone, it all comes down to saving money. Only a fool will spend 20–40% more for an item that can be delivered to his/her door in a couple days for substantially less money. The local hobby shops have gone the way of the little corner stores that sold penny candy 30 years ago.
I'm sure that small "mom and pop" operations can't compete with the prices of the large mail-order companies. But all of the ones I've been to in the Los Angeles area gouge their customers. They sell everything at the highest price possible. I'm sure they could at least sell a little below full list price. It is for this reason that I have no sympathy for them when they fold up.
The simple fact of life is that savvy RC buyers only go to the local hobby shop when they need a $2 part (that mail order sells for 75 cents) and because of the $5 shipping costs, the item is actually cheaper at the local hobby shop (miracles do exist!). It is these small items (along with uneducated novices) that keep the local hobby shops in business.
And yes, you can call the big mail-order places and get help and advice from an expert. And no, the guy at the hobby shop isn't going to close his shop and go to the field with you to help you. That's what clubs and club instructors are for.
Example: In the spirit of helping to keep the small hobby shops in business, I used to go to a local family-run hobby shop to buy whatever small items I could.
One day the owner and his mother were so ignorant and rude to me that I put my purchases on their counter, left, and never returned. I'll enjoy the day when I hear that they close down.
We in Los Angeles have a third option: we have a large hobby supermarket with 11 stores in the Los Angeles area, and they also sell mail order to the entire country. They have prices like the best mail-order houses, and expert staff who can help you in person. It's the best of both worlds, if you're lucky enough to live here.
And they're open seven days a week. I can walk in and buy the same radio for $125 that the small hobby shop a few blocks away sells (or doesn't sell) for $200, and ask questions and get expert advice. And I don't have to deal with the rude little jerk at the small hobby shop when I need a clevis or propeller anymore. Thank God for the hobby supermarket!
There are some really nice people running those small hobby shops (Red Baron seemed like one of them) and I really feel sorry for them. But the owners of the small hobby shops need to learn why their shelves are well-stocked: nobody in his or her right mind will pay their ripoff prices.
The rank beginner will, until he joins a club or visits a flying field. The first thing a good club or experienced flier tells a beginner is not to buy from the little hobby shop. They tell him to buy his stuff mail-order—or hobby supermarket, if available—and save himself hundreds of dollars getting into the hobby.
The owners of the little hobby shops need to learn what the small corner store owners learned: people aren't stupid. They'll spend their money where they get the best value for their dollar. If they can't sell their goods for a price comparable to the mail-order stores, because of high overhead or greed, they need to find some other business.
Forget the idea that people want to do business with a small operation and will pay through the nose to keep your unneeded business going with their charity. Ask yourself this: when you want to buy a new car, do you go to the tiny little dealer with only three cars to choose from, and pay $30,000 for the car, when you can go to a giant dealer with hundreds of cars to choose from and get the same car for $22,000?
Small hobby shops are dead — the owners just don't know enough to be.
A few greedy price-gougers are going to go out of business, but we the consumers are benefiting with more selection and better prices.
And that's what's really important.
Lance Novak Studio City, California
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
