MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING—None

This was our annual SKP appreciation night, and I think it was one of the best ever. A lot of SKPs showed up and there seemed to be a deeper interest than I have heard in the past. Lots more questions and comments.

All eyes were on Jim Cook’s little helicopter as he flew it around the stage. It is just visible next to John Fitch’s head in the picture. Not to be left out, Bob Reinach put his tiny twin motored biplane into the air and kept everyone on their toes as he zoomed about. This show did not have as many airplanes as we have had a time or two, but the quality was readily apparent! I think we should keep, and improve, our demos.

AROUND THE CLUB

> I sent out a bulletin earlier this month that asked folks to be on the lookout for Mike McIntyre’s lost airplane. I have been told that the plane has been recovered and returned to Mike. Happiness is!!!!!

>I finally got around to test flying my new Mini 30 some more—what a bust!!!! It turns out that the plane does high-speed stalls or snaps on the down hill side of loops. It sure did energize my pucker factor when it did an uncalled-for 1-turn spin before recovering. Anliker and Fitch were lurking about like a pair of vultures, which did not help things either! I got it down without incident, but it is a crash waiting to happen and I will not fly it again.

>Thanks to Pete Hanke the WYLIE FIELD sign has been repainted and reinstalled on the side of the storage shed. It looks better than new, Pete!

>Seen at the field: Birds following Gary Austin’s glider as he desperately looked for lift. I guess they thought he knew something they didn’t!

> Several of you have asked me if it was all right if they sent me something for the newsletter. The answer is yes! In fact, the less I have to write to build the newsletter, the happier I will be! This is YOUR newsletter, not mine. I will do a spell check and perhaps try to clarify wording, or if the material seems inappropriate I will talk it over with you. Other than that anything goes.

HINTS, KINKS, AND STUFF

>I read about a neat substitute for wheel collars the other day. Slip a small piece of fuel line on instead of a wheel collar and apply a drop of ca glue taking care not to glue the wheel as well.

I’m sorry, but Jim and I failed to connect this month—and I know he has something to share with us.

JUST PLANE FUN

I got this from my Winter Texan flying buddy Ron Jans:

Enjoy, Ron

SPARKS

Last month we got to the acquisition of my 12 V power source. I have completed the hookup wiring (2 female banana sockets) and was finally able to fire up that fancy Triton charger. The first battery I tried to charge had voltage that was too low and that smart little charger sounded the alarm! I switched batteries and the second one charged normally. The first battery is being exchanged, but for now I have only one battery.

I have been modifying my George Hicks designed Tribute (a flat foamy that was very underpowered when I flew it several years ago) to accept a firewall mount that will handle the new brushless motor. I also stiffened the landing gear, which was "floppy" to say the least. Since I finally had a charged battery, I was able to set the controls up and check the motor thrust. WOW! I had expected 10-size power, but this feels more like a 20 size. Sunday July 30 I managed to get to the field between showers, do a range check, and try to fly the thing. It was off the ground by the time I was up to half throttle, but I continued to add power until I realized that the plane was getting small and the tail was wagging!!!! The fuselage is not stiff enough to handle all that power. After I nearly folded the wings on a subsequent flight I decided the plane was just too wimpy for the motor.

I happened to have an old House of Balsa Stick 10 decorating a wall in my workshop and decided to try the new motor in it. The conversion was pretty simple, and everything actually went smoothly—not the norm for most of my half-baked projects. After 6 good flights I can say that the motor is stronger than the OS 10 on 15% fuel—and that is strong! In a vertical climb the little plane gets small so fast it is scary. Loops are tight and quick, takeoffs have perhaps a 3-foot roll, but the plane still will not do snaps or spins. I’m thinking that the Hacker A30 is roughly equivalent to a good .15 cubic inch displacement engine.

I really like the Triton charger. It is easy and intuitive to setup and gives lots of information. I’m getting amps input, MAH input, and voltage during every charge.

I have learned to not leave the battery balancer connected to the battery after charging is complete, as it will slowly draw the battery down.

FUN FLY REPORT

This newsletter was delayed a couple of days so I could include a report on the Fun Fly. This was the biggest event I can remember with 12 competitors, and we had several things happen for the first time: First lady pilot (Cindy Cook)

Youngest pilot (Abel Tolpin age 5)

No fuel burners won an event!!!!

It has been rumored that the CD placed in every event, but I actually was disqualified on the spot landing because the lazy judges would not walk that far. Jim Cook was awesome with his souped up Slo Stick—he was first in Loop and Land and Number of Loops. Gary Austin easily won Climb and Glide with a score of 165; the next closest was Dick Benjamin with a 60. Jim Tolpin nearly stopped on the spot to win Spot Landing while his son Abel came in third. The Tolpin boys are mighty competitive.

Special thanks to Grant Smith for judging every event, and to George Kober, a SKP visitor, for helping Grant on the last 2 events.

The bring your own picnic thing seemed to work OK although my wife preferred the potluck format. Actually there were several dishes offered in a potluck mode anyway.

EDITORIAL—Who is flying?

My perception is that we are flying a lot less than in the past. I know we have not had the best weather this year—and I had numb fingers after 2 flights on August 15(!) to prove the point. However, instead of the 5 or 6 flyers we used to have on a nice day, 2 seems to be the norm these days. I really miss the BS sessions we used to have, and I will be the first to admit that I have flown less than half as much as I normally do in the summer. My problem has been a combination of physical, social, and chore conflicts plus poor flying weather. Perhaps the rest of you have had similar demands on your time. Or is it that we are getting old and just don’t have the drive to get to the field that we used to have?

FOR SALE OR TRADE

If you want to list an item, just send me the details including your name, phone number, and asking price or trade-for item. Low pixel count digital (JPEG) pictures are also acceptable.

MONTHLY MEETING—September 12, 7:00 at the SKP Clubhouse

The officers meeting will be at the new time 6:30 instead of 6:00. I have some old planning information that says the program will be presented by Gary Austin on Hand Launched Gliders, but that may not be what happens. Our annual Swap Meet is scheduled for the October 10 meeting. It is not too early to start gathering up all the treasures you want to "share" with your flying buds.

Pete Granger

granger@olypen.com