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At the last Meeting...

Attending were:

Don Hart

Joe Bolden

Vance Penton

Eric Bair

Ted Frisbee

Chris Reeder

Larry Bobisud

Dave Walker

Bob Boettcher

Pat Gates

Joe Bolden told me that Bertle Spence is in the hospital, but should be out Friday. We all wish him well.

Tahir Cader and his two young sons came to get some information about modeling. He and his friend George Wos are interested in getting their kids involved in building and flying models. George was unable to make this meeting, but plans to come to a future meeting.

Bob Boettcher brought a Nikko electric glider he got in Spokane. It's all molded plastic with about a 36 inch wingspan. He installed the motor and radio from the Lite Cub that he brought to a previous club meeting. He wasn't happy with the Lite Cub in windy conditions. The Nikko should handle the wind much better.

Chris Reeder has returned to R/C flying. He brought his two kids and his latest model, a Edge 540 profile. It has a wingspan of 48 inches, is powered by a MVVS 40 and weighs four pounds three ounces. Elevator and Rudder servos are mounted in the tail. The controls are set up for EXTREME 3D flying - LOTS of throw! Chris says he hasn't flown it much, but expects to be hovering like a master soon (right Chris?). Chris found this new kit on the internet (http://members.aol.com/ff540p/).

Don Hart brought his X10 video system. This consists of two small wireless CCD video cameras and a receiver. Lots of work needs to be done to make the system ready for airborne video, such as building an airborne power supply and omnidirectional antennas for transmission and receiving video. The system should be installed in his Midwest Citabria soon.

Mel Colvin and Joe Bolden have suggested that we change the winter club meetings from a Tuesday evening to a Saturday morning, a breakfast meeting at Eric's Cafe. There was some discussion, noting that many people have family activities on weekends that would prevent attendance at the club meeting. Another option would be to have both. The official club business meeting on the first Tuesday of the month and a breakfast meeting on a Saturday. What do you think? Please send me your ideas.

We're updating the freqency usage chart on the website. Please send me a list of the frequencies you are currently using.

The election of club officers is the primary agenda item for the December meeting. If you would like to serve as President, Vice President or Secretary/Treasurer, let me know. You must be a current, dues paying member of the Palouse Ridge Runners R/C Club and AMA.

Demonstrations are an important part of our club meetings. Please send me your ideas for demonstrations you would like to see. If you have a building technique to share with the club, let me know.

Those club members with access to the internet might be interested in getting the club newsletter from the club website (http://users.colfax.com/dhart/prr/). This would save the club a significant amount in postage. If you would prefer NOT to receive the "snail mail" newsletter, let me know. A notice will be sent by e-mail to let you know when the latest club newsletter is available on the club website.

The Super Bowl Saturday Snow Fly is an event that has been put on for several years by Jeff and Tawny Nelson at their home near Troy, Idaho. Jeff has confirmed that he and Tawny will host the Snow Fly this year. The event is scheduled for the Saturday before Super Bowl, in January. We all hope there will be snow!

Flying continues as weather permits. Dave Walker, Mel Colvin and Jeff Snook flew the Sunday before the November club meeting, though they were not all at the field at the same time. I flew on Sunday the previous week with John Sawyer. Dress warm, the flying is great! Start building skis, flying from snow is a real blast!

There was a great turnout the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Mel Colvin, Ted Frisbee, Les Grammer, Brian Murphy and myself. Hope I didn't forget anyone! It got a bit cold, but the wind was nearly calm and the flying was great!

by Joseph M. Nunes

If you’re tired of balancing your latest aeronautical creation on your fingertips, while at the same time trying to add weight or shift the radio system around to get the correct location for the center of gravity (CG), then this simple half hour project could be just what you need. Once you finish it, you’ll be wondering why you hadn’t thought of it yourself.

Use of this simple building aid to correctly locate the CG will produce a more stable, flyable model. I designed and built mine in one hour at a cost of a dollar. With convenient work shop tools, "around-the-home" materials, and a piece of scrap pine lumber, you, too, can have a balancer that will serve for a long time.

Materials Required:

One 3/4-inch x 6-inch x 12-inch clear pine board

Two 5/16-inch x 10-inch wood dowels (be sure they are straight)

Two long, slip-over-a-pencil-end-type erasers.

Base Construction: Cut the base from a piece of scrap lumber, making sure the board is flat on the table. Sand the edges, top, and bottom smooth. Chamfer the top edges if desired. Locate the center of the board. Draw a center line along the width and length of the board. Holes will be located on the long axis. See the drawing for spacing dimensions. Locate the hole positions, mark with an awl, and drill the holes completely through the board. Note in the photo the use of a square to aid in keeping the drill vertical. This works fine if you do not have a drill press. Take your time, use a back up board, and note also the piece of tape placed one inch from the drill tip. This controls the depth of the drilling operation.

Assembly: The hole spacing will allow adjustment of dowel placement to fit many different aircraft types. Choose the location that best serves your particular model. Push the dowels into the holes. Do not glue the dowels in place. Note the eraser position in the photos.

Conclusion: Be sure to observe the correct balance location from your building plan when placing your model onto the balancer. Designers choose these CG locations because they want the aircraft to have the flight qualities described in the article (or in the information about the kit). Do not change the CG location unless you are a experienced builder and flier. Tail-heavy aircraft tend to fly in a most peculiar way. Read: "Accident about to happen!"

A safe bet, should you have a plan without the CG position indicated, is to balance the aircraft between 25% and 30% of the wing chord. This is measured from the wing leading edge. The aircraft should balance in a slight nose-down attitude when there is no fuel in the fuel tank. Freeing your hands while the model rests on the balancer will allow you to shift items, such as the radio, forward or backward, in order to achieve the desired balance point.

Use of the balance stand will avoid the "finger balancing act," and you will end up with a better flying airplane. Try it, and you’ll wonder why you didn’t use a balance stand before. Build yours today. Take care, fly safely, and tell someone new about model building and flying.

from the newsletter of the Twin City Flyers

Dan Twomey, editor

Pevely MO

While we’re in our winter building cycles, we will soon be faced with the age-old question about "What color should our new creation be?"

If this is a scale representation of a full-scale airplane, then the color scheme is predetermined. If we are young and eagle-eyed, then the color is chosen more on the basis of aesthetics rather than visibility.

However, if our eyes aren’t quite as good as they used to be, then the color needs to be such that we can see it better.

The following paragraphs are reprints from previous On The Flight Line presentations which deal with the best color and scheme for best visibility. If you can’t see it, then you can’t control it.

From the May 1996, issue comes the following chart which shows the visibility index for a variety of colors;

What does all this mean to modelers? It says that International (luminous) Orange is the most visible under most light conditions, and that most dark colors are only about half as visible as luminous orange.

This second article came from the September, 1996, issue (originally from the St. George, Utah club newsletter).

While contemplating what colors to put on that new model, consider the following:

• Avoid single-color aircraft. particularly solid silver or solid dark colors.

• Beginners are advised to color the bottoms of aircraft wings a dark color and the tops a light color.

• Orientation recognition can be enhanced by placing large dark circles under the wings and a starburst pattern of straight lines on the top.

• Any series of adjacent colors on your aircraft that is intended to facilitate orientation should be gray-scale opposites—not color opposites.

• Don’t rely on intricate patterns; they tend to blend together to form an edgeless fuzz at approximately 100 feet away.

• A bright red or orange leading edge on your wing and horizontal will help you keep your wings level during landings.

• Color lines parallel to and above the fuselage horizontal thrustline provide a good angular reference on the glide path prior to the final turn.

• For better loops, make the wingtips and horizontal stabilizer red or orange, and the body background a very light color such as white or yellow. This helps you tell if the wings are flat.