Top
Gun2013
Five days of the best scale models from modelers around the world to celebrate the 25th anniversary of this premier scale event.
PHOTOGRAPHY: ROB CASO T 40
his was my second year at Top Gun and it’s becoming pretty much a “must go” each year. The models are the best of the best and come from all over the world, but the greatest thing is that the modelers themselves are approachable and helpful with answers to “How did you do that?” questions. On top of that, “you can ob- serve a lot by just watching” and, as a result, I was able to improve my modeling skills dur- ing my visit through simple osmosis. FLYING MODELS sponsored the “Team High Static” award, which was won by Graeme Mears and his almost perfect USAF Thunderbirds T-33. Four-time Top Gun winner Dave Wigley took the Top Gun award along with numerous other awards, including high static, with his stunning, original design, 138-inch Beaufighter. Wit- nessing Dave’s expert flight routine along
with simply seeing the model in its element was worth the price of admission. Unfortu- nately for the rest of the Top Gun field, this was the Beaufighter’s first date and competi- tors will have to deal with this thing for four more years.
Conspicuous by its absence in the final standings, Mike Selby’s immaculate Saab J- 29 suffered a catastrophic wing failure and failed to finish. Yes, building and flying scale model airplanes can be an extremely unfor- giving endeavor, but I am sure Mike will re- cover with something exciting for next year. Most of the models are now allowed to be equipped with gyros, but the windy condi- tions this year still played havoc with the WWI models. Such are lightly loaded with a lot of drag; lose an engine and it’s coming down in a hurry and it appeared that a num- ber of flyers were struggling with the wind
all weekend. There seemed to be a greater number of WWI and biplanes in general this year over last, but it’s interesting to note that none of them won an event. I asked Dave Wigley what it takes to do well at an event like this and I would sum- marize his comments as follows: “dedica- tion, perseverance and knowing the rules”. His model took over five years to build and even he admits that some of it wasn’t fun at times. “None of us are expert in every- thing”, he added, “so you have to improve your weak points while mastering the strong”. The results, however, make it all worth it.
If you are a serious scale modeler and haven’t yet been to Top Gun, I highly recom- mend that you get it on your bucket list. Of all the scale events in the country, it really is the best.
JUNE 2013 By Rob Caso
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