MODAL AEROPLANE NOTES and General Hobbicraft

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 189, 12 August 1933, Page 3 (Supplement)

MODAL AEROPLANE NOTES and General Hobbicraft

Enthusiastic letters from all over New Zealand show that at last the country' clubs arc getting into their stride and soon «ill be making things hum. Thf Greymoutli Model Aeroplane Club has not been making a great fuss but I am assured by a letter just received that it is going forward. To quote from the advice received: '"Quite good progress has been made in building 'planes and flying them, the club record outdoors being 02 seconds, and the indoor record, in a building giving only a 25ft circle and 11 It height, stands at 00 2-5 seconds, an<l this lias been closely approximated in two or three other"instances. The club meets weekly and holds flying and working nights alternately under the direction of Mr. W. A. Judkins, whose knowledge as instructor at the Technical School, is very helpful to the club."

It is interesting to hear of good work done in the smaller towns, and from the letters I receive I feel sure that Rotorua will soon have a properly constituted club in operation. Mr. J. Aitken is very keen to see Rotorua "on the map" as regards model aeronautics, and certainly both he and his brother have being doing good work in this direction for a long time now.

From Gisborne conies the query as to the method of getting the best out of the new peanut F\.O.G. model, the plans of which Were published in the "Star" some months back. This little model is a good one for the beginner, or boy who is not quite an expert yet. Built as shown in the plans, it is a good allweather machine, and will give flights up 'to the minute duration without trouble. The tail gear should be sanded down as thin as possible in order that the .model shall not be tail-heavy. Another point to be watched is that the wing can be lightened considerably by cutting all the waste out of the ribs. At the present time these ribs are Hat on the bottom, and as the machine is only of the single surface type, the ribs can be cut away underneath to save weight. In making the flying adjustments, go about rt carefully, making only a slight alteration, at a time. If the machine rises after leaving the -hand going into a steeper and a steeper -climb, until it stalls, and nose; dives, you.must move the wing back a little. You will find that altering the wing position as little as l-32in will vitaly alfcct the' stability of the model, cso go easy on the adjustments.

LXIII

The tail and rudder surfaces being adjustable, allow you to trim the model up for left or riglit-liand flying, and generally help to stabilise the machine. Quite an amount of experimental flying may be necessary. Sec that the machine comer? (town with a "dead prop"; in other words;, that the propeller unwinds right out while the model is 111 the air. If it does not do this, add rubber to the motor until it docs.

N.Z. MODEL AEROPLANE ASSOCIATION.

At the committee meeting held on the evening of July 19 the executive of the X.Z.M.A.A. were in receipt of letters from a number of country clubs, and the application for affiliation from the Napier Club was accepted. As club secretaries are aware, the great multiplicity of records has been causing tlif association some concern, and the response to - a circular letter sent out showed that the main body of flying enthusiasts in New Zealand were quito in accordance with the committee's desire to reduce the number of records.

All secretaries of affiliated clubs will receive within the next few days a circular letter explaining the position exactly, but I will mention here briefly that records in future will come under three classes—spar models, fuselage models and scale models.

This classification, with its usual R.0.G., H.L. and R.O.W. senior, junior, indoor and outdoor subdivisions will give a total of 30 records available for competition, in the place of some 700 odd which proved so unwieldy before.

Spar model class will include all spar or stick models, whether tracker, pusher, twin pusher, or other. Another important item was the fixing of the annual general meeting of the association, to be held at 170, Queen Street, Auckland, at 7.30 p.m. on September 6. Two delegates from each affiliated club should attend this meeting, and in the case where it is impossible to personally attend owing to distance, proxies should be given to suitable gentlemen in Auckland for that occasion., All those clubs that are not yet affiliated, but intend to do so, are urged to get their affiliation forms ill before Wednesday, August 30, the date of the next management committee meeting.