Ihavetaken to protecting my LiPoconnectorswith3Dprintedcaps to prevent anyunintendedshortcircuits.A�ter one�lyingsession, Icouldn’t finda missing cap, but Ididn’t worryasIhad plenty of replacementsbackathome.
any unintended short circuits. A�ter
ThatsamedayIheard amysterious crunchwhenclosing my car’stailgate afterextracting my modelsattheflying field. Ididn’tthinkmuchmore of it,being keen to getflying anditwas promptly forgotten. However, on thedrive home Inoticedthatthetailgatewarninglight wason,soIpulled over to investigatebut thedoorwasshutnice andtight.Backon thedrive andwitheverything unloaded,I lockedthe carbutwhen pressingthe key foballthedoorsstayedunlocked.The tailgatelight wasstill on,soI guessedthat wastheculprit.Aftersprayingthelock withpenetratingoil andproddingthe mechanismwith ascrewdriverIwas just abouttocalloutthe breakdownservice when Ispotted astrangeobjectdeep insidesaidmechanism. Pullingitoutwith apair of pliers,mylostLiPocap revealed itself,muchworse forwearafterbeing assaultedmultipletimes as Ibouncedthe tailgateopen andshut.Sothat waswhat thatearliernoise was!
Despiteitsdistortedshape,o�feringit up to themechanismshowedthatthere wasno easy wayfor it to get lodgedinside –notina month of Sundays!
Haveyouencounteredanythingsimilar inthehobbywherethatoldsaying canbe applied. LetmeknowwhileI go andhavea liedown!
Okay,it’stime to takea quicklookatsome of themain articlesinthismonth’s magazine.
MentionElmbridgeModelClub to modellers of acertainage andtheywill gomistyeyedwhen remembering the much-missed Sandownshow, organised by EMC. Themodelshowmightbelonggone buttheclubisstillgoinggreatgunsand
recentlycelebratedits 50th anniversary. DavidAshbyjoinedinthebirthday celebrations.Shaun Garrityisthe first of ourregularcolumnists,fillinghis Retro Ramblingspageswith areportfrom the PontefractSingleChannelmeetingbefore handingback to DavidAshby(Just ForFun) whotakesa lookat oneman’ssizeable collection of own-designtaillessgliders. PhilStonefollowswithpartthreeofhis ‘Building with Correx’ article.Next,Danny Fenton,a�ter winningsilveratthecontrol line Scale WorldChamps,filesthe first of threereportsfrom Romania. Thenit’s over to JonHarper forthismonth’spull-outplan feature,wherehefinisheso�f and�lieshis Boulton-PaulOverstrandbiplane bomber. We have severalshowreports to bring you inthis andsubsequentissues,including allthe actionfromawet andwindy Weston Park Show courtesyofMikeand Al Freeman. In Aerobatic SceneUK team member MalcolmBalfourreportsfrom the F3A EuropeanChampionshipshostedin BelgiuminJuly.
SteveBishopand histeamhavebeen running theWestonParkModel Show for27years andonceagain they hadbaggedsomeimpressive models andpilotsfor this year’s displays,suchasPaulMetcalf ’s 1/6scale EnglishElectricLightning, �lowninstyle by hisson Luke.This year’s show wastreated toweather of biblical propor tions, especially on theSaturday, includingwind, rain, hail andthunder.However,the sun didshowupbetween theshowers andasfar as thedisplay pilots were concernedthe show must go
Regulars
8 SWITCH ON
Ourlatestround up of model� lying news.
58 PILOTS’PICTORIAL
Send us apicture of anew or favourite modeland it couldappearinour regularreaders’modelsgallery
70 ALLWRITE
Have your sayinRCM E’s monthly chat room
92 GOINGPLACES
Ourupdated list of modelshows, events andcompetitionsfor youtovisit over thenextfew months
Backthenmodelhelicopters were huge,beforequad-copter dronesshrunkthehelicopter market and,ultimately, a�fected modelshopsingeneral. Many shopsdidnot realiseit wasthe helicoptermarketthat kept themgoingwiththeconstant requirement forhelispares, especiallyduringthe3D craze.
Therelationshipwith Graupner led to Motors &Rotorsimporting fixedwingmodels andmoreofthe huge Germancompany’s range of accessories.The owner of Motors &Rotors, Dave Wilsherecouldsee thechangecoming anddiversified intospecialistmodels andretail sales,particularlyjetturbines a�ter ameetingwiththe owner of JetCat
enginesat aGermany helicopter eventin1996.
Dave’sengineeringbackground hashelpedthroughoutM&R’s historywhen working withthe companieshehasimported from.Motors& Rotors were the firstimportersofmanybrands startingwithSABhelicopter
blades and immermann exhausts inthe 99 s, through PowerboxSystems andCARF-Modelsinthe early2000s.
Dave is uniqueinhis experience of rotary andfixedwingmodels when�lying at the highestlevel, representing Great Britainin bothdisciplines.
DELUXE MATERIAL SPHOTO ETCH GLUE
Photoetchingis amanufacturing processused to produce precision metalparts andcomponents. It is commonly used foradding fine scaledetails to plasticmodels, but youmay findphotoetched partsused to addsmall and intricatescaledetails to R/C models,especiallywhen detailing acockpit for, say,a modernjetaircra�t. This
techniqueinvolvesusing chemicals andlight-sensitive materials to selectively remove materialfromametalsheet, leavingbehindfinely detailedparts.
Theonlyissuewiththis techniqueisthatattachingthe intricatemetalparts canbeabit tricky.Ifyouever findthatyou need to attach aphotoetchedpart to
2024 sees anotherchange for Motors &Rotorswith abusiness move a�ter years in Unit to Unit9,Kingley Park inKings Langley.Themove is awhole 50metres,mucheasierthan thecompany’s previousmove from Watford!
Dave wouldliketostate that hedoesnot promoteonlinesales, preferring to communicatedirectly withhiscustomers.
amodel,thenDeluxeMaterials nowhaveaspeciallyproduced adhesive foritintheirwide range of modellingglues.
PhotoEtchGlue25mlAD93 enableseasy andaccurate application of metaletchparts. It is water based,iseasilyspread, nonbrittle andfor bondingall types of photoetchtoplastic andmetal.
PhotoEtchGluehasseveral advantages overcyanoglueas ithas alongshelflife, allows for adjustment andcan be cleaned upusing water.
A mlbottle of Deluxe MaterialsPhotoEtchGlueAD93 retailsat£8.00 andisdistributed to allgoodmodelstoresintheUK by Ripmax Ltd. Tel or visit www.2ripmax.net
FUTABA ADDITIONS
J. PerkinsDistributionhavebeenbusybuilding uptheirstock of Futaba radiocontrolproductsand accessories.Here’sthe latest additions to their already comprehensive rangeof Futabaproducts
Futaba S9 177SV DigitalHVSer vo £129.99
Availablefrom your localJ Perkinsstockistthisdigital,high voltageservo offers aperfect combinationofsize, torque, quality andcompetitive cost. Packedin astandard case and operating on . - . itboasts an impressive 41 kg/cmoftorque . ,dualball racedmetal gears,programmablecircuitry, S.Bus compatibility,softstart technology andexceptional speed . sec 6 . .
Futaba Transmit terCases
£22.99 –£124.99
Buying atransmitteris o�tenasignificantfinancialexperience and, accordingly, you’llalmostcertainlywanttomakesureyourinvestment is protected. Futaba’snew range of durable,highqualitytransmitter cases aremanufacturedfromlong-lastingsyntheticfabrics(and orribbed plastic) withhigh-qualityzips andfasteners.Designed to o�ferstrength, practicality andease of frequentuse,thesequality cases bringpeace of mind when storing andtransportingthat precious radio Tx. Pleasevisitthe Futabapagesatthe J. Perkins websitefor more details of this andotherFutaba products www.jperkins.com
F-18HORNET
Hot on theheels of theF- featuredlast month,BarryStevensassembles thenextplaneinthe Fly-Model range of twin mm EDFjets
Words BarryStevens
Photos BarryStevens,KevinCrozier, BarryAtkinson
Thisstylish705mmspan semi scale model of theMcDonnellDouglasF/A-18Hornet ispresentedhotontheheels of the XFly-ModelsF-22Raptor reviewed by SteveHannonlastmonth.Butthe timelinebetween thereleaseofthesetwo models is longer than it appearsastheRaptor review washeldup by thewet weather last springandstrongwindsand overcast conditions overthesummer.But we got thereinthe endandso cannow move on to show youXFly’s newestaddition to theirexpanding range of twin 40 mmEDFpoweredjets.So, let’sseehowBarrygot on putting togetherthisfastbuild kit.
When Iwas o�feredthe Fly-ModelFHornet to review Ihad to decidebetweentwo attractive colourschemes.Thechoiceiseithera BlueAngelsstylelivery in navybluewithyellow wingtips,stabiliser tips andfintipsorthegrey ‘Hawks’scheme of aUSNavycarrierjet.Either wouldhave been welcome by me but it was suggestedthatin-�lightphotographymight be atad easierif we went fortheBlueAngels version. Havingbeenparty to theeditor’s
frustrations over waiting forgood conditions inwhich to capture theF- , Iwasmore than happytoassemble the bluemodel.
OPEN THEBOX
Previousreviews of Fly kits have laudedthe presentationandpackagingfrom this relatively newmanufactureroffoamARTFkits andthis oneisnoexception,so Iwon’t dwell on these attributes,apartfrom givingmyown ‘thumbs up’tothe unboxingexperience.
Thisis akit of fewparts,dominated by the impressive one-piecefuselagewhichcomes fittedwithlarge verticalfins.The CML website claims an assembly time of just minutes, aided by clearinstructionsinthe English halfofthe bilingualmanual. Andwhile Ididn’t time my build itcouldn’t have been faro�fthis,itjust requiring the carbon wingtube to beinsertedinthebody, followedbyeachwingpanel andsecuringeach with apair of hex-headed 3mmcountersunk screws.The all-�lyingtailhalvesare addednext, pushingeach onto arotatingsha�tbeforelocking inplace with apan headed 3mmscrew.Flats on eachsha�tmeanthatthestabilisers can’tcome o�f provided youtakethe trouble to linethem upwiththescrewholes, of course! Thestabilisers areeachcontrolled by aseparate servo andcare needs to betakentosetthepushrods up sothat bothstabsassumethesameneutralposition, whichismarked by amoulding linejust under thefrontroot of each tailplane.However,while oneoftheselines wasniceand crispthe oneon
Aileronneutralsare easily adjusted by tweaking the Ubends in thewirepushrods.
theotherside wasa littlemore di�ficult to see so Iendedupusing my squintedMk. eyeball to checkthatboth were equallylinedup.
GE AR ON
Havingnotedthe comments in the reviews of boththe FlyTwinliner andthe F- about thesmallwheelsneeding asmooth surface to take-o�ffrom Iresolvedtohandlaunch the F- .Besides,being asleekfighter,itwouldlook betterintheairwithoutdragging anydangling wheels around. Ithereforeonlyfittedthe wheelssothat Kevincould takegroundshotsof themodelbeforeitsfirst�light.
However, if youdodecide to fit the undercarriagepermanentlythen youwill find it’s an easytask,starting by dropping thenose legintoitsholenearthe nose, not forgetting to addtheplasticthrust washer. Theend of theleg protrudesintotheRx LiPobay ashort distance from the factoryfittedsteering servowhereit islockedinplace withtherearofapair of welldesigned steering arms,thefrontone of which isalready screwedtothe servo.The twoarms engage to providethenosewheel steering.
Furtherback,thetwomain undercarriage legs,completewithnicelymadewheels, clickintomatchingslots on theunderside of thefuselage.
SE TTINGUP
Assemblyofthe F- is completedbythe additionofthe nose cone,whichis held in place by astrongmagnet.Thisshouldpop o�finthe event of an unplanned,nose firstarrival.
Somestrips of strong‘hook loop’tape are suppliedwithwhichtofixa receiverinfront of thenosewheelsteering servo, with alonger strip addedbehind to retaina S 3 - 6
Nose cone is held in placewitha strong magnet, allowing it to popoff if it makescontact with the ground when landing.
Be sure to addthe whiteplastic thrust washer when ftting thenoseleg.
Main legs area push ft in theirslots in thebelly of theplane.Theycan be easily removedfor flying withoutthe undercarriage.
Each all-flying stabiliser is operated by itsown servo.
Back endofthe Hornet showingits distinctivetwin fns, largeall-movingstabilisers andthe welldetailed mock af terburners
mAHLiPo. Iused a oltz S mAhpack to powerthismodel.
A�tercheckingthe CG position wascorrect, movingtheLiPobackwards to do so,itwas time to checkthat the controls were moving in thecorrectdirections andtoset up the throws asperthemanual. In my experiencemost manualsthesedays provide aprettygood startingpoint regardingcontrolthrows anda safe CG foramaiden�light,soI washappytoset themup accordingly. Greatcarewastaken to ensure thatthestabilisers were moving equally on bothsides as Ididn’t wantthem to be giving anyunwantedtaileron e�fect.
WiththeESCscalibratedtomytransmitter’s throttle range,aspertheinstructions,and with failsafe checkedthe modelwasput away, leaving anoteinthecockpit to performa range checkbeforeitsfirst�light.
F-18 Hornet is agood-lookingjet from whicheverangle youlookatit.
Theone-piece canopy hasaneatlymoulded interior complete with jetstyle pilot.
WONKY WINDER
Ihavea bit of abad habitofleavingassembled models resting on theirnosesand onewing tip.Ifthey aremadefromfoamandhavea removeablenose,then Iwilltakethat o�f to preventit crushing on oneside.Butwhat Ihadn’tspotted wasthattheF- features integralSidewinderstylemissiles on each wingtip,eachofwhichhasno internal bracing. So,when Ireturned afewdayslaterthe missilethathadbeen resting on the �loorwasasbentas abanana!Despite my beste�fortsitcouldn’t be teasedback intoits originalposition,althoughIgot prettyclose,soIhad to resort to pushing acocktailstickdeepinside,along its length, to realignit.Inow storethis model on itsnose,withoutthecone.
JOINING THEBLUEANGELS
Unfortunately, Iwas unable to makeitonthe appointeddayfor theF- ’sphotographyand first�lightsso Ireluctantlyhanded it back to the editortofor thenextphase of thisreview
A�tergivingthe Hornet athoroughcheck over,itwastime to performa range test.With no problemsinthatdepartmenttheF- was pointedintothe briskwind,slightlynoseup and givena firm,straightlaunch by my clubmate Rob. Thebellyofthismodel is abit toowide to gripin onehandsafelywhenpoweredupfora solohandlaunch,soI’drecommendcollaringa reliable�lyingpal to give it alob.Notknowing thetrim of thoselargestabilisers,I askedRob to keepthingsnice andlevelasI didn’t want the Hornet to rear upas it le�thishandatlow airspeed.Asithappensthe reverse wastrue andthemodelneeded afewclicks of uptrim, so asitgot away itdippedslightly. Butitwasn’t anything toworryabout andthe Hornet was soonclimbing away withplenty of power. Shealsodipped on launchnumbertwobut by numberthreeRob haddecided to dohis ownthing andhegaveita shovethata javelin throwerwouldhave been proudof! TheHornet didn’thavea chance to dipthistime,although to be fair by thisstage Ihad it pretty welltrimmed. It didneedquitea fewclicks of uptrimbutwhen checkingthe Tx later Iwaspleasedtoseethatno aileron trim wasrequired.
Forthefirsttwo�lights Imaintained fairly low airspeeds, which were necessary in order for ourotherclubmate, BarryA,tohaveachanceto capture thissmall andagilefighteroncamera, interspersedwith afew fastpasseswhilsthe wascheckingtheback of his camera.Atnotime didtheF- feelclose to thestall andhandling feltassured,evenintightturnswhichisusually when amodeljetwillexhibitits displeasure.I performed acouple of low-speed,highpasses to testthemodel’slowspeedattributes and onceagainit gave no cause forconcern,which wasgood to knowasthetime wasrapidly approaching to slowherdown forlanding. At fiveminutesthe Tx timersounded so the Hornet waslinedup andmadeanofussbelly landing on thecloselycropped grass.
With athumbsupfrom Barrya�terchecking hisphotos,Iwasfree to explore the�light envelope abitmore forthethird �light and thistimeit wasmadeatprettymuchfull throttle.Withthestickfirewalledthe Hornet
Asheet of tail numbersissuppliedtoallow youtopersonalise your F-18.
First flight!Rob givesthe Hornet afrm,straightlaunch.
It’s an easy jettof ly with no nastysurprisesupits sleeve.
Closinginfor afastpass.
reallylooksthepart,beingbothquickbut also remarkablyquiet,whoosingpastwitha pleasingbutlow-leveljet soundemanating from thetwin mm fans.Jetstyleaeros are easywhenshe’snipping aroundathigh speed although Imuchpreferredusinghigh rateson elevator.I kepttheaileronsonlow ratesatall times,theF- having agood roll rate duringall manoeuvresatthissetting.
A�terthree�lightsthe Fly-ModelFHornet receivedawell-deservedfive-star rating from me.However,a�tercheckingthemodel overbeforereturningitBarryS,I wasa bit dismayedtoseethat oneofthe airintakes was startingtoshowsigns of wear andteara�ter just afewbellylandings(seethe photoatthe end of this review). Sorry, Barry! So,ifyouintend to �ly herwithoutwheelsthen youmay want to add protective tapeinthis area.
ON WHEELS
A�ter Kevinhandedthe Hornetbacktome,I decided to fitthewheelsasmylocal stripisa lotlesssmooththanthe onehe�lew it from, not wanting to addtothe ‘grass rash’onthe underside.Sheep arealsosometimesgrazed on ourpatchsothewheels would help keepher cleanwhenlanding. Abelly-landingslide intoa freshdepositdoesn’t bearthinkabout! Despitea fewbumpsourstripisclosely croppedinlatesummer,soI decided to trysome wheeledtakeo�fs.Itwas abitlikewatchinga triplejumperat an athleticsmeetingbut a�ter
regularattendees.Thatweenduredthe accommodationfor whichBrean became infamous wasdue to thefriendlyand well-run �lyingsitesnot farfromthe camp.No Elmbridge,noPontins.
Or Sandown,ofcourse. Thefull Sandown storyisfor anothertimebut what struckme,
readingtheclub’s22-pagehistoryatJuly’s th AnniversaryFamilyDay,was thesheer amount of hard gra�tand organisational nous required to set up andrun what grew to become Europe’slargest workingmodelshow. Startingin1976, andfor thenext30 years, some clubmembers wouldeachtakeuptothree
Good company, good weather, good models andgoodfood. TheElmbridge Club’s 50th AnniversaryFamilyDay haditall.
weeks annualleave around the show weekend, such wasthe vast amount of time ande�fort required to setup anddismantletheevent. Small wondertheclubnowboasts afine�lying field,clubhouse andfacilities.
EMC cameaboutin1974when20members formed amulti-disciplineclubencompassing boats,carsandaircra�t. Represented by aseparate sub-committee,eachgenre hasgrownoverthe years, helped by the acquisitionofbespoke facilities;theclub hasits own�lying field,boatinglakeand car trackwith totalmembershipnowexceeding ,theaircra�tsectionaccountingfor 6 includingninejuniors.
The�lyingfieldencompasses acres, set out to theBMFA’ssuggesteddimensions, withfieldsborderingthesiteowned by the club andlet forgrazinghorses.Thepitarea hasconcrete pathways, thereare battery
Afamilyday isrunevery year as away of getting kids, wives, sweethearts andfriends together to enjoysome�lying, food anddrink in arelaxedsetting. Trainers were on hand to give �lights to anyonewho’d liketotry,asseveraldid.
WALK ROUND
An earlyshowerquickly passed,leaving brighter skies andagentle breezefor theremainder of theday. Cars,vansand�lyers arrivedthrough thecourse of themorningdisgorging anice variety of models.
Rob incent andCharles Smithemanhad lineduptheir Black HorseMidget Mustangs, instantlymakingmewishI’dhad onewhen they caught my eyea fewyearsago.You’d need amiracle to find onenow,although Robgot luckywhenhissearchesledhim to ashop in Luxembourg,whoselastexample wassoon
eof Ward’s marvellous P- came from theremains of an oldHangar ARTF.
ome yearsold andrecentlyrecovered this is harles mitheman’s ProctorEnterprises’Antic.Designedfor single channelbackinthe day, it nowref lectsthe modifcationsand improvements he’s made.The cowl metalworkisall his.
Informed commentary from Martin Painter left and ohn Tancockwentdown well -the lunchtime communitysing-song notsomuch… Aleisure batterybeing‘tested’!
heading to Surrey.Everyonestopped to watch whenthey�lew together.
PATTERNSHIPS
Avariety of bespokeaerobatsgraced the pits andHairoOkanessianbrought several, including a . metrespanLuminaF3AARTF that cameallthe wayfroma shopin Japan.
Appropriately, Charles was�lying aCurare, the64”designthat wonthe 1977 World Champs.AppropriatebecauseCurare designer andmultiple WorldChampionHanno Pretner �lewat Sandown formanyyears,amazingthe crowds andprovidinginspirationfor many upand-coming aerobatic�lyers.
Charles’modelis anow discontinued ARTF from Germanretailer Schweighofer, about 10 yearsold,electricpoweredusingsixcells, with Rohm-Air retractsmovingthe U Clegs. He mentionedthatitneedstobe�lown ina di�ferentmanner to modernF3Amachines, thethinfuselage forinstancemeans knifeedgemustbe�lown faster,but atimeless thoroughbreditremains.
LITTLE JE TS
John Simpson’sEECanberrawas anotherhead turner.The sight andsound of thetwin70mm fansmovingthe1.6 mspanmodel around was memorable.ItusestwoWemotec fanswith
Geofwithhis tweakedversion of theNijhuis 50mm EDFGnat.
DavidEbdon’s AirCamperpotters past.
Nice cockpitdetailonGeof’sGnat.
David Ebdon right broughtalong hisfriendAndrewand Andrews’sgrandsonDevon to seewhatmodel f lyingisall about.
ohn impsonwithhis pretty little mm Mirage III, hislatestdesign. ook out forthe kitindue course.
oudon’t seeaRipmaxHarmony foryears then twoturnupatonce! This one belongstoDaveCharles’…
3W20motorsand a6SLiPobattery, weighs around3.5 kg and,best of all, hekitsit! Have alookat www.englishelectricmodels.co.uk whereyou canbuy atwin50 mm Canberratoo, alongwithanEELightning in50 mm and70 mm sizes.
Although Ididn’t seeit�lyhisnew mm MirageIIIlooked very sweetindeed and, alongwith an F- Hornet,shouldbe available induecourse.
Geof Ward’slittle mm FollandGnat, builtfrom the Tony Nijhuiskit,was another beautifullycra�tedlittlejet.Hereworkedthe
and this was harles mitheman’s re-engineeredexample.
ducting to improve thethree-cellperformance, thenfinisheditwith afine ‘Arrowsscheme.
WARBIRDS
Geof admittedthat he enjoystimein his workshopasmuch as�lying, his P- ,a superbexampleofmodelling cra�tsmanship, demonstratingthat he makesgood use of that time.Itstartedlifeasa Hangar 96 -size warbird -youknow, theshinydarkgreen brown one introducedbackin2005. Geof savedthe bits a�terthe model’sfirst owner re-kittedit,took them home,rebuiltit,added�laps,recoveredit,
“Hangar9’s60-size warbirdsalwaysflew welland,perhaps with abitofthat DNAstillinthebalsa, thisonedoestoo”
