Sm Tall alk F
all is no doubt the best time of year for flying because the winds are down, the monsoons have passed, and the temps are cooling down
nicely. Early mornings here in Albuquerque are the best time of the day to fly small light models, and there’s just nothing like shooting touch and go’s on those calm, cool mornings. However, after the first ten or fifteen thousand landings you’ll need to add a little spice to your repertoire to keep things from getting boring. That’s where the side slips, one wheel landings, flat turns and other fun stuff come into play. You’ll also find that your efforts in learning to use the rudder will really pay off now. We’ve talked a good bit about the use of the rudder for coordi- nated turns and landing approaches, so now let’s add a new wrinkle and take what we al- ready know and use it to learn the side slip. The slip is used to bleed of altitude quick-
ly without building speed that a dive would produce. When landing over tall obstacles surrounding a small field speed can be a problem, but the slip produces so much drag that the model won’t build speed on the way down. The idea is to “cross control” the rud- der and ailerons to set the model up to fly somewhat sideways, exposing the side of the fuselage to the air stream.
Learning to side slip Here’s how it works; when rudder or
aileron is input, the model will typically roll in the direction of the input. In a slip you want the model to roll in one direction while maintaining a straight line. In a right hand slip, add right aileron to get the right wing tip down, and left rudder to move the nose left while the right tip is still low. To main- tain the line, the nose of the model will ac- tually be to the left of center. It works the same way in a left hand slip as well. Every airplane is different, and varying amounts of input will be required to hold the line, and power is used to control the rate of sink.
PHOTO: TONY MOORE
by pat tritle You can reach Pat Tritle at 10313 Snowheights NE, Albuquerque, NM 87112 or via e-mail at
patscustommodels@aol.com
PHOTO: DAVE OBERTHAYLER
The Pilatus Porterhas proven to be a popular subject among Small Field modelers. Dave Oberthayler’s 60- inch span Porterproves the theory as he guides his Porterthrough those low slow fly-bys.
With most models, either the rudder or
aileron will be the dominant control, so feel out your model to determine the amount of each input needed. Over the years I’ve found that the venerable old J-3 Cub is a perfect trainer for learning the slip as its controls are the most balanced of any high wing scale model I’ve ever flown. To enter the slip, reduce the power to a typ-
ical approach speed, and then add equal amounts of opposite rudder and aileron. Of- ten times the rudder will over-power the ailerons, so use full aileron deflection and control the angle of both bank and yaw with the rudder. And because there is so much drag involved, the model will come down quickly, so use the elevator to hold a slightly nose down attitude, and power to control the rate of sink. The first couple times you try this it’s go-
ing to feel pretty awkward, so start out high until you know what the model is going to
do. Then once the whole thing starts to feel more comfortable you can start allowing the model to sink a little lower before you go back to straight and level flight. It’s also im- portant to practice in both directions until the maneuver starts to feel natural. Once you get a feel for a specific model, you can slip it all the way down and level off just be- fore touch down. And once you get good at it, slip it all the way down till the low wheel touches the runway and hold it there using the ailerons to keep the bank angle and the rudder to maintain your line on the runway until it lifts off again, then level the wings and fly straight away. And that’s how it’s done. Side slips are a
ton of fun, and it will teach you a level of con- trol over your model that you didn’t think was possible. And once you’ve mastered the art of “Cross Control”, you can start fooling around with flat turns, and then on to turns that actually bank the wrong way.
PHOTO: TOM BARNETT
Tony Moore’s XP-55 is finished now and ready to test fly (at left). Watching a new designer complete a very unusual project is always a joy, and we’ll continue to watch this one closely. Since Old Timers were new releases they have been notoriously good flyers. Tom Barnett shows us that, by using modern power and guidance, those tried and true designs make perfect platforms for R/C as well (above).
62 DECEMBER 2011
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