Radio Control: Helicopters
Larry Jolly 15781 Empire Ln. Westminster, CA 92683
MARKING the annual mecca march to Toledo, OH, were the dates of April 6–8, 1990. For those of you new to the hobby, Toledo is the location of the show where each year's crop of new products debut. It's the American unveiling show, so to speak. I was not able to attend; however, my friends did, and with their help and the help of several manufacturers I think we'll have a pretty reasonable report, and we might even mention a few products for your wish list.
As always, I have to apologize in advance to anyone I might miss or fail to mention. If I don't mention you, don't get angry! Mail me some photos of your products and a PO sheet, and I'll do my best to include it in a future column.
Altech Marketing
That's right, the same folks who have handled Enya engines for the last several years now have a new line: Hirobo helicopters. Hirobo is welcomed back to the American market following an uncertain year's hiatus due to the breakup with GMP. Happily, it appears to have been a breakup that both companies have survived, and both will continue to prosper.
Altech has also managed to entice Mike Mas away from Robbe. This is a wise decision on Altech's part, as Mike will bring with him years of valuable experience and should add valuable insight into what is and is not good for the American market. Anyway, Mike is Altech's National Technical Representative, and I would guess that he will be at a lot of shows to answer your questions.
Altech will be marketing all the Hirobo pod-and-boom machines, including the Shuttle ZX and the Hawk series, as well as their new little cutie, the MH10.
There is still that little snag in the overall operation, inasmuch as Great Planes has the American O.S. distributorship, and in Japan O.S. and Hirobo work hand in hand. So since Altech and Hirobo are now teaming up, Hirobo's helicopters that have an engine included will soon be arriving in America with Enyas installed.
I have purloined an MH10 (with an O.S. engine installed) and have been asked by Altech not to review it until August, when the Enya-powered version makes its U.S. appearance. I will honor those wishes, but will show you some pictures in an upcoming column. This little cutie is two-thirds the size of a Shuttle and is powered with a .15-size glow engine.
The MH10 reminds me of an engineering study on just how different from the established norm you can make something and still have it function in the normal way.
To sum it up, I've made contact with Altech, and the company appears to be dedicated to getting Hirobo rolling again in the U.S. I think that by the end of May, Hirobo helis and parts will start showing up in abundance at your favorite hobby shop. I'll pass more info along as it becomes available.
Gorham Model Products (GMP)
The company's enthusiastic bunch, including Len Mount and Greg Molasovick, were celebrating a whole lot of good things for GMP. First and foremost, GMP is now an all-American-made company. That is, it has finished its Americanization process, and all kit parts are now being manufactured on this side of the Pacific.
The Legend Elite still enjoys its popularity as a state-of-the-art .60-size aerobatic machine, and last year's introduction, the Rebel, is still gaining popularity among first-time enthusiasts. But I'd have to say GMP's new .30-size entry, the Viper, caused the most excitement from the crowd.
Viper is a new .30-powered aerobat featuring aluminum construction. It is unorthodox in its drive train layout. The engine sits up front, shaft facing upward, cylinder head forward. This may be the wave of the future, though, because at least two other machines now feature this layout; the tail is belt-driven, and the appearance of the cabin struts is very modernistic.
The best part is the new, shrunken Elite-style rotor head used on this machine. This head appears capable of being retrofitted on most .30-size machines now available. I have seen the Viper and am favorably impressed. When GMP is ready, I'll do an in-depth review. Stay tuned.
Great Planes
Great Planes had the Kyosho Concept 30 on display, together with all the accessories now available for this fine machine. The Concept has held the lion's share of the .30 market for the last two seasons and is in a good position to remain the prime player. Parts are in good supply, and the Concept has proven to be a lasting design.
Rumor has it that we will be seeing a .60-size Kyosho machine toward the end of 1990. I'll keep you posted on that one and will be reporting shortly on the Concept Jet Ranger fuselage conversion. I have one, and it's a super project, definitely my favorite of the three fuselages available.
Hobby Dynamics / Kalt
Hobby Dynamics is doing an admirable job of getting Kalt's line established in your local hobby shop. Kits and parts are in good supply, and Hobby Dynamics is promoting the line like it's never been done before in the U.S.
Kalt's Omega, Cyclone II, and Excalibur all remain good movers. New for 1990 are the .30-size, Taya-designed Enforcer and the electric-powered Whisper.
The Enforcer is a new ARF, Concept-type machine with some innovative ideas. It's an attractive, well-designed chopper, and only time will tell if it is indeed the Concept-killer some authors have claimed. I will be reviewing the Enforcer next month, so stay tuned for an in-depth report.
The Whisper electric helicopter is Kalt's attempt to make an electric-powered machine available to the public. There's no doubt that the Whisper flies; indeed, Cliff Hayt flew it for several minutes on its internal battery pack at the Toledo Fun Fly. It features a seven-cell battery pack, plastic-and-metal construction, a single motor, and collective-pitch control.
As most of you know, I have a keen interest in electric flight, and I do look forward to working on a Whisper. This could be the first real electric helicopter since the Ishimasa Skylark. Again, as soon as I have more information, I'll report it.
Miniature Aircraft Supply (MAS)
I have to say that this company has not been standing still. I just got in a new catalog and was very impressed by the number of quality items now available. I don't have the space to go through the catalog verbatim, but I would suggest that you should have it on hand to see what's new. MAS has expanded its line to include custom blades, mufflers, and all sorts of accessories for most machines, not just X-Cells.
While the X-Cell series continues to do well, the most significant new item was the Triumph. Apparently working in complete secrecy, Ted Schoonard has developed an all-new, basically ready-to-fly FAI-type machine. The Triumph features new composite main rotors, frames holding the best of the X-Cell accessories, and a new belt-driven transmission. The engine is mounted on a soft mount, shaft facing up and cylinder head forward.
The fuselage is Kevlar-reinforced epoxy, coated with a white gelcoat. The model is delivered with all bulkheads and swash gear installed. All you do is install your engine and RC equipment. The Triumph fuselage is very reminiscent of a slimmed-down A-Star. This is a truly great undertaking by MAS. The Triumph will have X-Cell performance, even if you're not interested in FAI. It's available direct from MAS as you read this report. We will definitely get a closer look at this machine in a future column.
Raves
There seems to be some uncertainty as to the future of Raves. As you know, it carries the Graupner Heim line in the U.S. Dave Carter has relocated to Florida and continues to do business there. I will contact Raves and find out about the restructuring, then pass that info on to you at the earliest possible date.
Robbe
As you know, Robbe distributes the Schlüter line in the U.S. This year it was displaying the Champion and Scout series, the Magic and Magic Ranger, and the rest of the Robbe line of accessories.
Also new for this year is the Whopper autogyro. This new rotorcraft is the direct result of Vince Canzanese's interest in the famed full-scale Pitcairn autogyro. The Whopper features metal, helicopter-style frame construction, with an engine-driven main rotor. This is a useful feature that keeps the rotor speed from decaying to a dangerous level during maneuvers. If you remember, I had a lot of fun with Micro-Mold's Wallis autogyro several years ago. Perhaps the Whopper will fill the void and make autogyros popular. I like the prewar looks of this beauty and look forward to building one.
Toledo Static Scale Competition
There is a static scale competition at Toledo. This year there were only three helicopter entries.
- First place was won by Dave Davidson's BK 117 in Airvacs colors. This model features excellent detail and color finish.
- Second place was won by Jerry Hicks' modified BK 117 A-4. Jerry's heli is the latest version of the BK-117 and is apparently the first model built of this version. The model boasts 15,000 individual rivets and is highly detailed. The craft is as yet unfinished, with the tail cone still bare.
Those are the highlights of Toledo. If I missed you, please send me details of your products, and I'll pass them along.
Message for the readers
I need to hear from you. Let me know what you think of the column, and please pass along ideas to improve it. I want the column to grow and get better, but I can't do it by myself. Please send pictures of your models and give me some ideas.
BCNU
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
