Minutes of the 3/9/04 Meeting of the TriArea RC Flyers
The meeting was called to order by President Wylie at 7:00PM at the SKP Clubhouse. Attending were: Wylie, Anliker, Ryder, Henely, Lemons, Davis, Greene, Phillips, Moffett, Lee, Austin, Calkins, Fitch, Dantzler, Crumley, Hanke and prospective members Gina and Greg Marken.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved. The Treasurer’s report showed assets of $3871.33, comprised of $3689.33 in the bank and $182 in fuel inventory.
The Sec/Treas reported that the AMA certification has been filed along with the insurance for the field owner. He was given authorization to purchase 54 gallons of 15% fuel to be picked up in the Vancouver area this spring.
Gina and Greg Marken were welcomed into the club as new members. They live in Poulsbo and theirs will be a family membership. The club has two more vacancies before the cap of 45 is reached. It was decided that when there are prospective members that have a valid reason for being unable to attend the club meeting, we will ask them to come to the field on a designated weekend. They can meet some of the members at that time and become acquainted with the facilities and requirements. They can then be voted in at the next meeting.
Lonnie Phillips told the members about Dick Benjamin’s recent operation and urged members to assist him as needed. Lonnie was complimented on the condition of the flying field as a result of his mowing and rolling.
There was a discussion getting some rock onto the road in to the field. It was suggested that the puddles be drained before putting rock in them.
Candidates for the Crash-of-the-Month Trophy kept a low profile until flushed out. It seems that Austin, Davis and Fitch were contenders. New member Gary Austin was given the award in an attempt to make him feel like a veteran flyer.
The meeting was adjourned and there was no program. Roy Greene provided cookies.
Submitted by Bill Anliker, Sec./Treas.
We have returned to Mesa (just behind Russ Petersen) and I think I have gotten most of my chores finished. Sooooo, it must be time to go flying. I did not get to fly at all during our 7 week Baja trip and most days have been breezy since we got back to civilization. Also, I took 3 damaged airplanes home at Christmas and all I have with me to fly is the little Stick 10 and the Slow Stick electric.
Friday the 12th was a slightly breezy day with temps in the mid 70s by the time I got to Superstition field. Russ was flying his big Giles with a new OS120 4 stroke as I parked. It did not take long to program the Stick 10 into the transmitter and I was able to get in 3 nice flights—even the landings were pretty good.
I know some of you enjoy reading about my traveling troubles and adventures. I have a 15 page Baja write-up and a condensed version than is only 10 pages long. Send me an e-mail if you want either and I will get it out to you.
Pete Granger
Product Review
GWS Slow Stick
I like to travel with an electric plane so that I have something to fly if the opportunity presents itself. The Mini-Laser was advertised as an acrobatic park flyer. It was OK on acrobatics, but 2 crashes in parks attest to the need for bigger parks or regular flying fields. We were on the road (in Mesa, AZ) when the second crash happened. The next day I went to a local hobby shop and after searching through their stock found something that my batteries would operate satisfactorily in a park size environment—the GWS Slow Stick.
When I opened the colorful box my first impression was that it was mostly empty. There was an instruction manual and some bags of parts along with the aluminum tube fuselage, leaving things looking a little bare. When the cardboard divider was removed I found the wings which came folded in half at the centerline. The tail feathers were packed inside the wing halves and a couple of odds and ends were in the bottom. I went through the instruction manual a couple of times (it does not take long) studying the tiny pictures and trying to relate the instructions to the hardware and photos.
In the end assembly took less than 5 hours to a flight ready condition working on the dinette table in the motorhome. The project was delayed for lack of a sharp blade, but that was the only hang-up. I chose to retain my motor with a small screw rather than using the furnished glue. So, I furnished 1 screw, 2 small servos, a receiver, and the speed controller. Everything else was included in the kit.
I have flow the plane with a variety of battery packs and they all worked well. The longest flight (18 minutes) was using an 8 cell 800 MAH NiMH battery. My 7 cell 1000 MAH NiMH battery kept the plane up for 17 minutes including several touch and goes. I have also had good success with 7 cell 600 MAH batteries, but the flights are shorter.
What about flying? The takeoff run varies between 3 and 9 feet (1 to 3 meters in the instructions) although with a little breeze it virtually levitates into the air at full throttle. It will climb slowly on ½ throttle or even a tad less. Loops require a dive to pickup speed to make them round; from level flight they look more like a flip. I tried for inverted flight once, but the under cambered wing refused to do it. The airplane has a nice glide and carries enough energy to flare just before touch down. My preferred landing technique is to bring it in on minimum throttle, then give it a little extra power at the start of the flare—touchdown is at virtually zero ground speed if done right. It flies off of rough dirt and shaggy grass with no problem.
I found that I needed more rudder throw because my servo arms were pretty short, so I poked a hole in the rudder control horn about ¼ inch inside the existing holes. That is the only deviation I made from the kit. When all the building was complete I found I had a number of small electric size fittings and hardware plus the tube of glue left over, and yes, they covered that in the instructions as well.
The retail price of the kit is just $35 complete and that should make it one of the biggest hobby bargains in existence. I have15 flights on mine at this time, many over 15 minutes as I have learned throttle management, and have not had any problem with the plane other than trying to fly when it was windy. This thing conjures up visions of one design combat in the local parks. I’ll bet it would be a blast!
March 12 update: Local experience found that the clear tape on the leading and trailing edges of the wing is not sticking well because of residual mold release. It is best to wipe the foam surfaces clean with alcohol before putting on the tape or decals. Also, some people (Russ included) folded the wings in flight due to failure of the aluminum dihedral braces. Folks are replacing these braces with brass and they seem to be holding up well.
The March issue of Model Airplane News has an article on turning this well behaved mouse into a wild child. They also suggest the brass dihedral braces.
Pete Granger