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News Flash


Parts are clearly marked on a separate sheet to aid in location of parts as well as full size patterns for constructing the various metal parts (at left). A small flat balsa board (above) is used to ensure a straight and accurate frame. The bottle is a 2:1 mix of water and Titebond adhesive. Construction should only take a few hours.


The story as told to me from Mark goes something like this. Mark’s daughter, Mel, is, well, eighteen! Mark showed his daughter the first kit and proudly exclaimed that it was her 18th birthday gift. Mel’s utter look of horror subsided once she was told that 100% of the proceeds every kit sold will go di- rectly to her college fund. So as you see, the News Flash is not only a freeflight model but also an instrument of “higher education!” Mark’s kits are all sold in a plastic bag


and although simple, they are quite com- plete. Opening the package I was impressed with the amount of materials included. This gives you three plan sheets, one with a gen- eral layout, plans (although you don’t need them), and a tissue layout sheet. There are four laser-cut sheets of balsa and bass to make up the bones of the kit as well as #64 Tan II rubber, prop, steel wire and Esaki tissue. Want to know what color your ship will


be? No problem, Mark has put labels on all his kits so you can plan your trim scheme. The kit is so complete that really all you need is the standard building materials, hobby knife with #11 blade, adhesive of your choice, building board, modeling pins and sandpaper. I built my News Flash with Titebond,


mixed two parts glue to one part water and applied it to my parts with a small bottle made for gear lube on R/C cars. The bottle is made by Muchmore Products and includes a steel applicator, which gives me excellent control. One could use CyA; however my per- sonal preference is the Titebond adhesive on all my freeflight models. Assembly is straightforward. The laser


cutting is smooth, accurate and only has a few “gates” that the modeler must set free with the hobby knife. A quick sanding with 220-grit sandpaper cleans the balsa and bass nicely. The aircraft is designed to be self jigging, so plans are not necessary and even the stringers are laser cut. All you need is a flat surface and some quality pins. Because the laser cutting is so accurate,


one doesn’t need the plans, it really goes to- gether like a three-dimensional puzzle; how- ever, Retro RC has included them for refer- ence. Pay attention to the assembly process of the nose and gear as it only assembles one way. As I built the Flash, I was aware of the


quality of wood used throughout the kit. Far too many beginners have been turned off of freeflight because of hard, heavy wood that predestines the model for lackluster flight, if at all. The News Flash is designed to fly,


and fly well. Mark has used this model as a project for a small group of young people that are eleven years old. Because of the kit design they successful-


ly built and flew the News Flash under his guidance. None of these young people had ever built a model airplane before. With this said, I had no problem getting things framed up. Most of the time was spent waiting for the glue to dry. With the assembly complete, I sanded everything with 220-grit sandpaper for a smooth finish. You can leave the wood parts of the gear and fuselage stick a natural col- or or you can do what Mark suggests and add color with a magic marker. The magic marker doesn’t add any real weight and tints the balsa nicely. My Flash tissue is blue so I used a bright yellow and applied it with a Sharpie marker on the fuselage and gear. The wheels are also made of balsa, sand-


wiched together then sanded and painted if desired. I used a black Sharpie to simulate a rubber like wheel. With the frame sanded and appropriate


parts colored, I applied a 50/50 mix of bu- tyrate dope and thinner and coated the fuse- lage and wheels. Next came the covering of the wing panels and tail feathers. In the past I would use dope to cover the frames with tissue but the instructions suggest a glue stick. It is important to note that one should use the UHU brand of glue stick. Another nice feature of the kit is the in-


All dressed up and ready to go. The printed Jolly Rogers on the wing panels certainly add to the fact that this is derived from a vintage design, yet Mel’s logo on the tail points to its modern twist.


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cluded pre-printed tissue, complete with the original Comet artwork of the skull and cross bones that are seen on the wing pan- els. To make sure the printed tissue is cen- tered on the frame correctly, a full size pat- tern sheet is included so you know exactly how to cut the included tissue. There is no need to shrink the tissue; simply place glue from the glue stick to the frame edges and slowly attach the tissue to the frame. Work slowly and work out any wrinkles. The glue gives you enough time to work with the tis- sue. When done, simply trim the tissue with a new #11 blade. Since I tend to fly outdoors in the early morning, I gave my Flash a light dusting of Krylon Clear. This seals my tissue and open frame and helps keep the airframe safe from


FEBRUARY 2012


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