Radio Control: Giant Scale
John A. de Vries Colonel, USAF, Ret. 4610 Moffat Ln. Colorado Springs, CO 80915
THE SNOW should soon be swirling over the land — it's the beginning of building season! Hope you have your Giant Scale project ready to go.
A lot has happened during the past month's hiatus. This column is a potpourri of items from the Giant Scale arena.
Quadra engines and parts
- Good news for Quadra fans: Al Scott (Scott's Airplane Co., Rt. 1, Neodesha, KS 66757) is now U.S. Quadra. Al bought out Dario Brisighella and is the prime source for Quadra bits and pieces.
- Klaus Nowak has acquired the dies, facilities, and people and will soon (if he hasn't already) be manufacturing Quadra engines. Production had been in doubt after the Canadian manufacturer went bankrupt, but the outlook is considerably brighter now.
- Dario Brisighella continues to sell Giant Scale drawings (Waco ARE, Starduster, etc.). Dario: 1032 E. Manitowoc Ave., Oak Creek, WI 53154.
Herb Heaton's mishaps — lessons learned
Herb nearly lost his Giant model on the second flight due to a combination of issues:
- Noise filters in the aileron circuit failed to function because of a poor solder connection.
- He had used two types of plastic covering (a high-temperature film and a low-temperature trim film); on a hot day the films separated.
- Postflight inspection showed the elevators locked in the full-up position. This was caused by a subtle mismatch between servo drive studs and output-wheel recesses: servo wheels from one maker and servos from another fit with no load but, under airloads in flight, the studs could rotate within the recesses and jam the elevators.
Moral: be particularly careful mixing and matching parts when building Giant Scale models — Murphy's Law awaits the careless.
Young pilot — Sopwith Pup
About four years ago Dave Selvenis (Olyphant, PA) drew plans for a Giant Sopwith Pup for his son Mike, who was six at the time. Four years later Mike learned to fly R/C using the Pup as a trainer and is reportedly flying 90% of the time. Now 10, Mike is doing mild aerobatics and has convinced his dad to build Bob Nelitz's 1/4-scale Cub. We could use thousands more pilots like Mike Selvenis!
Scale plans — 1930 Lincoln Sport biplane
Doe (Doc) Pepino acquired Pat Pattison's stick-for-stick re-creation drawings of the 1930 Lincoln Sport biplane. The plans are excellent.
- Prices: $27.95 (1/4-scale), $29.95 (1/3-scale).
- Photo-pack drawings: $4 U.S., $6 overseas.
- Contact: Scale Plans & Photo Service, 3209 Madison Ave., Greensboro, NC 27403.
(Thanks to Bob Eson, Dawn Patrol Chapter 90 IMAA.)
Rally of the Giants — Odessa, TX
I hear the 1989 Rally of the Giants at Odessa was a spectacular success — over 400 models and 289 fliers. West Texas Magnum Squadron Chapter 172 and the Odessa Prop Busters R/C Club hosted the event, which drew modelers from far and near.
- Facilities included five flight stations and a covered pit area.
- Safety was emphasized; spectators were kept well behind the flight line and there were no mishaps reported.
- Popular types included many Cubs, P-47s and P-51s, plus exotic entries such as an all-metal 32-lb. model and several twin-engined gas ships.
- Sorry we don't have photos here; expect extensive coverage in IMAA's High Flight.
Aerodynamic-center and center-of-gravity (CG) calculation note
Once the wing area, mean aerodynamic chord (MAC), and aerodynamic-center location are determined, the wing can be treated like an ordinary wing to calculate the proper CG location. Use the equation presented in my July 1988 column (Equation 5). To determine where the CG should be located relative to the wing aerodynamic center you must compute:
- L: the distance between the aerodynamic centers of the wing and the horizontal stabilizer, and
- ST/2: half the horizontal-stabilizer area (i.e., the portion corresponding to the wing panel you just computed).
Next month I plan to discuss a possible expedient way of handling competition rule changes — I guarantee it won't be boring.
Other news and notes
- Society of Air Racing Historians: Don Berliner advises a new organization devoted to air-racing history has formed in Ohio. Correspond with the Society for membership information and their address when available.
- Fred Wallman is moving from Minnesota to his retirement home in Mesa, AZ. Before leaving he assembled his Ryan B-5 for a photo session; his scale engine is in place and the wing hinges are nearly assembled.
- Don Neill (1120 So. 40th St., Lincoln, NE 68510) has responded to a request for a Giant version of Rudy Kling's Folkerts SK-3. Don already has a flying prototype: span 66 in., fuselage 82 1/4 in. Power is a new AMF Sachs 3.2. He promises drawings and plans to install retracts.
- Dennis Crooks has his 1990 RC Scale Aircraft calendar ready — excellent color photos. Contact DC Aviation, P.O. Box 98, Big Rock, IL 60511. Dennis will customize calendars for clubs and organizations and accepts credit-card orders.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
