Table of contents for February 2023 in RCM&E

Welcome to the February issue of RCM&E. As this is the first issue to be published in 2023 it seems only right and proper to wish all our readers, contributors and advertisers a Happy New Year. Let’s hope it all goes a fair bit more smoothly at home and abroad than has often been the case in the last twelve months. Moving on, it’s time to put my hand up to a couple of niggles in the December issue. Most of the time our readers seem fairly relaxed if we have made a faux pas in the production of your favourite R/C model magazine and so thankfully it’s rare for us to receive any brickbats. Therefore, if I get more than two or three calls or messages about a particular…

We started this somewhat individual design last time out by tackling the curved gull wing, which was built on an appropriately bent building board. The lunacy doesn’t stop there as we carry on with the tail surfaces and then move onto that distinctive rear fuselage boom. TAIL TALE Attention now turned to the tailplane. It’s drawn on the plan as a conventional unit with normal ribs, but I wanted to simplify it a little bit to maybe save a bit of weight at the rear of this short-nosed model. I laid down an outline of 1/8” strip, again with a laminated leading edge. The central spar was planed to a taper from the centre line outwards and then cap strips were run across the chord, curving over the thicker spar…

Although the emphasis of this feature is on a brushless powered micro indoor aerobatic model, the new Brushless AIO 5CH Micro Receiver from Microaces can be used in any suitable size of indoor/outdoor model provided it uses a 1S LiPo for power. In fact, it was initially designed to improve the brushed motor performance of 1S LiPo powered WW1 scale models. Most of the Microaces WW1 models fly well with a coreless geared motor but larger models benefit from a quiet, smooth running and efficient brushless motor. The larger models currently are the Aero Series Bristol F2b with a wingspan of 500mm (19.7ins) and the Master Series Albatros with a wingspan of 450mm (17.7ins). By comparison the Aero Series Nieuport 17 C.1 has a 360mm (14.2ins) wingspan and the Fokker…

“I wanted a model that would soar in thermals but also be aerobatic” The original O-Four9ier was designed in 1991 to be powered by a Cox .049 Texaco. This engine was meant to use larger props and to run at lower rpm than most Cox engines and was designed for the 1/2A Texaco duration contest. This meant that it was extremely economical on fuel. I wanted a model that would soar in thermals but also be aerobatic, a specification that was matched by the full-size Fournier RF-4. I can say that mine performed perfectly on both counts. I remember one thermal flight where other club members who had joined me in the lift had to give up as they could no longer see their models. That brings me to the…

It was good to receive some positive comments regarding the re-release of Mike Delacole’s Chilli Breeze, in particular from Ken Lees, whose letter was published in last month’s edition. Ken mentioned he’s had three Chilli Breezes over the years, losing the second when disturbed whilst attempting a rolling circle. I never tried a rolling circle with mine, as far as I can remember - I was too chicken! All my Chilli Breezes were Irvine 36 powered. I lost the first after the 1994 Scottish Nationals, outflying the receiver battery whilst practising the FAI B schedule. The second ended up as match wood following a high-speed low pass at the Beaulieu flying site in the New Forest. Both had tissue covered and spray-painted fuselages, with film covered wings, and they did…

Model stand I thought I would share with you this useful addition to my workshop. Bending over my bench for any length of time is not as easy as it was. And looking at the average age of modellers nowadays I suspect I am not alone... So, what I came up with is a raised model work stand that can be attached or stowed away in seconds. I have a sturdy work bench, which I made some 40 years ago. Mine has an open front but if it had doors or draws, I am sure I could have modified it. The supports that I made simply slide into tubes that I have attached to the underside of my worktop. From my local Wickes store I bought two metres of 16mm…

VOLANTEX SPITFIRE £94.99 I www.cmldistribution.co.uk There’s always room in the market for another Spitfire and this durable EPP 15.75” (400mm) span RTF park flyer from Volantex is a welcome addition. Supplied dogfight ready, park fly enthusiasts of all abilities can enjoy this agile 4-channel model thanks in no small part to an integrated 6-axis XPilot gyro stabiliser system that provides three modes: Beginner Full Assist, Intermediate Part Assist and Manual Control Expert. The supplied 360mAh flight battery, powerful gearbox and coreless motor combine to deliver up to 10 minutes’ flight duration, which can be enjoyed at a range of up to 200m with the supplied 2.4GHz Tx that’s equipped with ‘one key’ aerobatics and U-turn features. A propeller saver is a welcome addition, disengaging the prop from the motor shaft…

As I write this in early December clubs up and down the country are hosting their AGMs with a view to discussing, amongst other things, annual subscription fees and, usually, the thorny question of whether they should be increased or frozen for the next 12 months. AGMs can be interesting occasions, not least because they invariably allow you to reacquaint yourself with all manner of things; rules, regulations, the health of the club, and even sleeping members. You know, those kindly folk who contribute to the coffers, help to keep the books balanced but never fly and never turn up at the patch. Of course, if your club is undersubscribed with no waiting list, sleeping members are wholly acceptable people to have aboard. They subsidise our flying, keep annual subs…

SABRE RATTLING Paul Mullen and I had a great day at North London MFC with our two generations of Sabre EDF jets. Paul’s F-86 is from HSD Jets and runs on 2 x 6S 50C 5000 LiPos powering a 120mm,10 blade HSD fan unit. Radio is powered separately, with twin 2900 LiPos offering backup via the MFC control / gyro unit. The F-86 is pretty substantial, with a 1.7m span and is 1.7m long. As you would expect she has retracts with working brakes, along with scale airbrakes. My F-100D Super Sabre is by Flex Innovations. A bit smaller than the F-86, coming in at 1.2m span and 1.4m long, she utilises a 90mm, 11 blade fan on a 6S 110C 5200 LiPo, with 9 digital servos. She comes complete…

BFW M.23c The BFW M.23 range of sports aircraft were developed by Willy Messerschmitt from his earlier M.19 design and for a time they enjoyed several successes as air racers. Following the demise of a previous model of an M.23b, Jim Newberry has returned to the series and has designed a new semi scale R/C model of the later variant for four channel R/C and electric or IC power. Scaled to approximately 1/6th of the full-size aircraft, Jim’s prototype M.23c is flown using a 6S electric power set up. THE SWAP MEET Swap Meets are a popular way for aeromodellers to while away a few hours, especially during the autumn and winter months when the weather is not so conducive to flying our models. As both an experienced buyer and…

What a great idea; an online and live model and engine auction to redistribute prized treasures to new owners and give sellers a fistful of cash. The BMFA Model Engine & Aircraft Auction was held on the 29th of October 2022 at the BMFA’s National Visitor Centre, Buckminster in the Goldsmith Hangar. If you didn’t know, the hangar was named after a very generous gentleman, Mr. Goldsmith, who left a donation in his will for the development of the Buckminster centre. The effort involved in setting up an event like this is immense but fortunately the BMFA’s Andy Symons, in a past life, was an IT wiz, so one less problem there. Lisa took on the significant task of producing auction catalogues, with the rest of the team addressing everything…

“What if there were lots of little RGB LEDs inside the wing” For over 10 years I have been designing and building small robots for education with my company 4tronix, using PCBs for both the electronics and for the construction material. A good example is the M.A.R.S. Rover, which uses 30 PCBs, not only for the chassis but for the legs, control arms and motor mounts, etc. Throughout this time, I’ve been wondering how I could combine this construction method with my R/C model flying hobby. Of course, it is only worth doing this if there are some benefits over traditional methods, including foam and GRP, so the idea just sat there waiting for inspiration. This came in the form of Dan Workman bringing his Bifinity (see RCM&E, August 2022)…

“I didn’t really design it, more likely it was built up as I went along” One wet and windy Friday night I was putting things away in my workshop when I came across a couple of sheets of Depron. Now, I get a lot of inspiration from watching modelling videos on You Tube and had only recently watched one of the Alula, a small DLG model. Its success was due to the refined aerofoil of the model’s designer, Dr. Mark Drela. The design was fairly simple in shape and was a little unusual at the time. It was hot wire cut from polystyrene and came in kit form. Not having any throwing arm left I thought that a model of a similar shape to the Alula, built from my Depron…

Even beings as mighty as the Weather Gods can sometimes be caught tying their shoelaces and this can be the only explanation for the super conditions on the scheduled day of this event. With a robust wind from the northwest, periodic sunshine and a total lack of precipitation, this was a day for which we had all waited for a very long time. The only fly in the ointment was the non-appearance of two members of my posse, Motley and Smallpiece, both of whom were incarnated at the time at His Majesty’s Pleasure on charges of balsa laundering. This lack of staff soon made its presence felt when I chucked off my new sixth scale Prefect for my first flight of the day. Three Red Tailed Kites were floating amongst…

Held over the weekend 8th/9th October 2022, the PSSA Fly-In at The Great Orme in Llandudno, North Wales must surely be recognised as one of the group’s most successful meetings for some time, considering all the elements which aligned so well for the organisers. Three events had already been held at The Orme earlier in the year, each of them flown from the less-than-ideal northwest or east facing slopes and with only medium to light wind conditions. This weekend was different… For the first time the most favoured southwest slope was in use, with its ample landing zone. The prevailing winds had been rock solid southwesterlies on the forecast all week, set to provide plenty of energy over the two days, giving idyllic conditions where all types of PSS model…