What a great meeting!  We had 23 members and guest, with a nice selection of projects and conversation.  We also broadcasted on Zoom.

Don't forget, if you can't make it to the meeting in person, you can join us "via-Zoom".  Just send Scott Anderson an email.  We'd love to see you shop, join us!

Brandon Archer's, 1/5th Scale Chipmunk

Brandon Archer Displayed a couple of projects including his Great Planes Chipmunk that he’s restoring.  It's done in 1/5th scale (actually 21.5%).  The Art Scholl Chipmunk stands out as one of the finest aerobatic airplanes that has ever flown.  And stands to reason that Great Planes would take the time to bring it to the R/C modeling community.

The Chipmunk has a fiberglass fuselage and a 3-piece wing made from balsa ribs, hardwood spars, and covered with Monokote.

He said the original shipping box had two holes neatly punched through both the outer and inner shipping box by the shipping company, but luckily, upon further investigation, no damage was done to any of the contents.  "I took some time to unwrap all the various pieces and parts, checking them for any other damage and to weigh each one to get an idea about the total weight of the completed plane".  Everything inside the box weighed 8.95 pounds, and since everything in there has to go in the air, it provided a good reference to total weight.

He mentioned the beautiful red, white and blue color scheme might look even sharper if black pin stripes were added at each color separation point, but it may not be scale.  I’ll check on it though, and if I find the pin-striping would be scale, I'll add it.

I had familiarized myself with the assembly manual, ordered all the extra items I would need ... servos, a heavy prop hub and other odds and ends, and I was ready to start assembly.  I used Pacer Epoxy and ZAP CA.  He reminded us that care must always be taken when using adhesives, especially CA's.  Ventilation is mandatory and special precautions should also be taken when sanding and/or shaping fiberglass parts. So with those words of warning, I started putting together the new Great Planes Super Chipmunk.

Chris Mayer's, Tempest Project

Chris brought in his cowl from his new Tempest project.  The panel lines and fit truly highlight his artistry and talent!  He's been posting pictures of his progress fairly consistently on his Facebook page but I have to say that it's a real treat to see the model at our SFM Meeting this month!

This project uses Roy Vailancourts 96", 1/5th Scale plans that are now available through Nick Ziroli's website.  Although, he said this build is just for fun, we hope he brings this one to Top Gun next year like he did  a couple years ago with his P-51.

Dennis Simmons', UMS-7, 90cc

Dennis shared his UMS 7 cylinder, 4 stroke gas radial engine that he had acquired for his next WWI project.

The UMS 7-90 is a very reliable radial engines which uses gas as fuel.  UMS has a ton of experience building radial engines.  It has brought more than 2000 engines to market so far.  The design and construction are upper class leading to a outstanding reliability.

CH Ignitions is the US distributor and service center for repairs.

Highlights of this motor from there website are:

• 7 cylinder radial configuration absolutely stunning looks and realism

• 90cc displacement perfect for scale project

• Comes complete with exhaust collector ring, spark plugs, electronic ignition, and engine mount ready to run

• User-friendly choke and throttle bell cranks included makes installation and operation easy

• Made from aluminum or bar stock where appropriate and CNC-machined accurate and repeatable specifications each and every time

• Cylinder head and crankcases produced from aircraft grade alloys

• Heavy duty double bearing crankshaft

• Billet aluminum pistons and hardened steel rings

• Hard chromed and lapped cylinder bores

• Hardened steel cams

• Burns 87-110 octane gasoline with 32:1 gas/oil mixture

Scott Andersons', D.H. 100 Vampire

Scott Anderson shared his Durafly D.H.100 Vampire Canadian Edition EDF.  It is the small version with a 70mm fan and flies all day on a 3000mAh 4s battery. Scott say’s touch and goes are a dream.  Brandon Archer shared techniques on how to fill in the molded, non-scale panel lines to get a more realistic finish on molded foam ARF’s.

Scott also had question concerning refinishing large scale ARF’s w/fiberglass and paint.  The membership offered many solutions.

Although the initial version of the Vampire was a very stable flier Durafly has tightened up the tail booms and elevator with carbon fiber supports to give it even better control. With the change to the RCAF colors, the silver scheme has been “dulled” to give a more realistic color and the plane also has a smoother finish with cleaner panel lines.

Under the hatch, the Vampire has been updated with an AeroStar 60A ESC with a built-in BEC (rather than the separate ESC and BEC) and an upgraded 2836 3300KV brushless motor to provide more performance and efficiency.

Joe Niedermeyr's, F86 Sabre & Corsair II.

Joe shared two of his EDF jets, a F86 Sabre and a Corsair II.

He also discussed his observations on coupled control techniques for elevon-ailerator control effectiveness using only 2 servos.

Scott Russell's, BAMF-2 Monarch Scheme

Scott brought in a hand launch glider that is launched by flinging it like a Frisbee.  It is incredibly compact, light and tough due to its carbon fiber construction.

Be prepared to spend a little green on this glider. 

This carbon-fiber, two piece wing glider will cost you a little over $800 USD but those that have them love them.  You can place an order directly through email (order@armsoar.com) to order the exact layup and graphics you want.

Customers outside of North America can also consider using email orders for the BAMF 2 for cheaper shipping from the factory direct. Custom and email orders have a wait time of approximately 6-8 weeks (updated Dec 27, 2021)

Specifications:

Highlights:

    Wingspan: 1495 mm

    Wing area: 18.55 dm²

    Wing airfoil: modified Synergy 2

    Light AUW: ~205-210 grams

    Standard AUW: ~215-220 grams

    Strong AUW: ~225-230 grams

Solid Cascell molded wing and tails, Light: CW30 skin, Standard: CW40 skin, Strong: Co-axial CW60 skin, Tails: CW20 skin, 1-piece fuselage, 2-piece wing, Right-handed launch (please message us for left-handed version)