F/FSport
“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.” —COACH JOHN WOODEN
I
n modeling, it becomes quickly appar- ent when talent and hard work have merged. The results are always head and shoulders above the crowd. A mod-
el designed by a talented and hardworking individual and constructed by a talented and hardworking individual is sure to be- come a classic, against which all other mod- els of its type are measured. In the February issue of this year, I pre-
sented Thomas Designs newest kit, the T- 50/UC-78 twin, familiarly known as the Bamboo Bomber, and famous as a military light transport ship. The new kit was over four years in development by the talented Greg Thomas and resulted in arguably the most complex, most complete, and admit- tedly most expensive rubber powered scale airplane ever offered to the modeling public. With a limited kit run of only 20 initial kits, we’ve all watched with great interest as Greg began distribution of the model and its 1400 plus laser-cut wood parts, precision vacu-formed cowling, fairings, engine de- tails, canopy/windshield, and a myriad num- ber of detail components. As part of that distribution, Greg has also teamed up with a talented builder, Rich We- ber, who not only is building one of the kits, but is offering it as a build thread at
http://tinyurl.com/72b3l2s, the web site of “Hip Pocket Aeronautics”. In case you are not familiar with the site, simply type
www.hippocketaeronautics.com/ into Google and you will be rewarded with a most inter- esting location for downloadable freeflight, control line and R/C plans, discussion fo- rums, and of course, build threads! You’ll also find it populated with the names in freeflight that you recognize from Flying
by larry kruse You can reach Larry Kruseat 18 NW Heatherstone Drive, Lawton, Oklahoma 73505, or via e-mail at
aircats@att.net
PHOTO: BILL SCHMIDT
This rarely seen Convair L-13 was an unsuccessful entry into the military liaison aircraft competition in the late ’40s, but it is a successful model by Bill Schmidt from Megow plans. While Bill’s is a model of the in-line version, the full-scale plane was later fitted with a radial engine.
Aces Club, AMA, and SAM competitions. It will become a staple for you in terms of stay- ing connected with the hobby and up-to-date on new developments. At this point, Rich is well underway with fuselage construction and the “fiddly parts” as he calls them, including the assembly of the Jacobs engine cylinders. As he notes, “The nacelle front/motor mount/crankcase parts are the most interesting bit of model design I’ve seen. It’s a whole lot of parts, but when it’s assembled, there’s not much wood there, and it’s amazingly light. I’m still working on the sheet infill in the forward cabin area of the fuselage. Parts have only been rough sanded.” To whet your appetite further, Rich was
kind enough to provide a couple of this month’s photos to illustrate what a terrific
project the plane has already become in combining the talent and hard work of two of this country’s outstanding freeflight modelers.
High and dry The good folks ofFM’s editorial staff have pointed out that the web address I provided last month for Bob Hodes’ very useful Excel spreadsheet for calculating rubber motor sizes didn’t lead any place. After reviewing what I submitted, it became apparent that I either simply stopped typing with only half of the address complete, or that I may have hit the “Backspace” key at a critical point and erased about half of it. In either case, I have sentenced myself to
ten lashes with a six-inch strip of old T-56 rubber, and a commitment to check web ad-
PHOTO: MARK TROUTMAN
Mark Troutman’s newest addition (above left) to his stable for this year’s competition season is actually a design nearly five decades old, originally designed by Californian Mel Schmidt and named the Shocer, after his model club, the Sky Hoppers of Orange County. Details in the text. Author’s veteran
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PHOTO: LARRY KRUSE
Skokie (above right) is a Jimmie Allen design that would be eligible for this year’s 2012 Jimmie Allen Postal Contest, hosted by last year’s winning club, SAM 27 of Napa, California. The Skokie has been a popular model at many freeflight events throughout the years. More information in the text.
JUNE 2012
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