SkySquires.com

More New Photo Albums

I've posted some more new photo albums to the site. Eric Lyon and Gene & Cheryl Farris sent in several great pictures from the Cairo meet and Eric also sent in some more pictures from out at the field. Check 'em out and, as always, feel free to send in your own pictures if you'd like them posted to the site.

Fly on the Cheap

Like most newcomers to model aviation my priority was to get up into the air flying as easily and quickly as possible. I settled on purchasing an ARF trainer and the associated radio equipment to make it fly. Well after many aborted takeoffs and many more raised eyebrows from my fellow Sky Squires I did manage to leave the Earth and soar like an eagle, but, like everything, what goes up must come down. That trainer did come down, many times much harder than it liked. Probably disgusted with my creative aerobatic flying it decided enough was enough. Citing airplane abuse it decided on its own to end it all in the branches of a large oak. Picking up its remnants I decided this will not deter me from conquering the skies. All I need is an airplane capable of flying at my level without giving up.

Well, I was directed by my fellow Sky Squires to lookup Spadtothebone.com on the internet. There I found SPAD (simple plastic airplane design) building techniques from which a plane can be constructed in a couple of nights. These aircraft are inexpensive and easy to build, and they can take a lot of abuse. My airplane is a stick type with a 48 inch span weighing in at 5lb 4oz, constructed from corrugated plastic, square plastic gutter pipe and salvage from my trainer. Wing loading is 24.5 oz./sq.ft.making it a more stable flier than the old trainer.

Total investment is $18.50!! And can it take abuse? Just ask those who watch me fly.

Lots of building going on

I've noticed some nice trends going on. A lot of us are building new models and more activity at the field untill the weather started getting bad. I certainly hope the weather holds for us late into the year. I find it very satisfying to build a plane and get it flying whether it is an ARF, a kit or scratch built. Modifying a plane can be fun too. The first flight of a new or rebuilt plane for me is always a real nail biter! A couple of more flights and a little trimming and usually everything is going great. All are good as well with electric, glow or gas power. My personal favorite is kit building, but usually an ARF is more affordable and does save a lot of time. Lets all hope for a mild, short winter, so our down time won't be so long. I must confess that if it is above 30 degrees and calm, I do a little flying anyway every now and then. I remember years back warming the cylinder on my .60 RJL on my Super Chipmunk with the exhaust of my car to get it warm enough to start. It was bitter cold and I had a real hankering to fly that day. It was cold enough I cut the fingertips out of a pair of jersey gloves to help make it a little more bareable and still have a good feel of the sticks. Even though it was bitter cold that day and a little breezy, I had a great time. Well, enough of my rambling, I will see you at the field.

A new album is up...

I just (finally) got around to uploading a number of pictures shot by club member Eric Lyon around the field. Here's a link directly to the new album and in case any of you haven't visited the Sky Squires Photo Albums Page, I've added a link to it near the top of the sidebar (on the right).

Check out Eric's pictures and thanks, Eric, for sending them! More are always welcome. From anybody. If you just have 5-10 you can email them to me directly, if you have a bunch send me an email and we can work out how best to transmit all that data.

A Buddy and a Box

Sunday, July 24, 2011, a hot, very hot, Sunday afternoon, moderate winds, Sky Squires Field, Marion, Illinois, and a buddy box with Jacob Foster, neophyte flier on one end and Wes Flannell, full scale licensed pilot and expert RC pilot on the other. Look at those faces! A study in concentration!

Jacob is going to be a third grader this year at Washington School in Marion Illinois and has been practicing for about a year on a computer Great Planes RealFlight G5 flight simulator. He also likes motorcycles and three-wheelers. His first buddy box lesson, with Doug Gwaltney, came a few years ago.

The airplane that Jacob and Wes were flying is a Tower Hobbies Hobbico Super Star 40 that used to be his dad's. Tim Foster did not get to learn RC flying as a boy, but like many others he started with RC Cars as a teenager. Tim's first airplane came along a few years later. Again, like many others, he ended up crashing it while trying to teach himself to fly. Tim, who has had an interest in RC for as long as he can remember, came to the Sky Squires for help the year the club moved to its present location five years ago. He joined in enthusiastically with other club members in helping to clear trees for the field.

Tim's present models are a Hanger 9 Twist 60 airplane and a Thunder Tiger Raptor 50 helicopter. He also has part ownership of the Hobbico Super Star Wes and Jacob were flying.

Wes Flannell's history with RC flying is different from Tim's, probably because his father, Larry, was deeply into model aviation when Wes was growing up. Wes, now an Emergency Medical Technician at Johnson County Ambulance Service, is a private, full scale pilot going to school, majoring in Aeronautics, started flying in 2001 at the age of twelve tutored by his father. He learned to fly RC on a Hobbico Superstar trainer, too, which he allows "is a very good trainer." During the ten years that he has been flying, Wes has mastered all the forms of RC aircraft. His current passion is 3D aerobatic airplanes. Wes has trained any number of new club members and helped members test fly their new models.

Jacob on the box got a good appraisal from his buddy: "Though bashful at first, he seemed to really enjoy it. He'll be flying solo in no time."

It seems that with a good buddy and a box, Jacob's model aviation experience might follow Wes's example-and that's a good thing!

Foto by Tim Foster