Model of the Month

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Model of the Month
The basic rules of the Model of the Month Contest are very simple. The model has to be built or assembled by the club member.
There are two categories: 1: ARF and 2: Built Up. (Built up includes kit built, plans built, or your own design.) You must bring a model to the meeting to win. Monthly winners may receive a mouse pad of them holding their model,and they will be entered in the Model of the Year contest at the Annual Christmas Dinner. The award for the Model of the Year in each category is having all of your annual club fees paid for by the club.
2006 Model of the Year Winners.

(Click image to enlarge)	Phil Greasley's beautiful P-47 won Model of the Year in the Built up Category. It is from a Top Flight Gold Edition Giant Scale kit.	(Click image to enlarge)	Joe Lupton won Model of the Year in the ARF Category with his BAE Hawk ducted fan jet.

January 2007 Winners
Built-Up Category		ARF Category
Dennis Hawks brought his new Raptor 50 Titan helicopter to the meeting. Dennis is new to the helicopter side of the hobby and stated that the Raptor was a great initial project. With the help of some experts in the Club, the Raptor 50 went together nicely and is a stable flyer. The helicopter uses an OS 50 Hyper helo engine for power and Dennis incorporated a Futaba 401 gyro slewed to the tail rotor servo which calms the beast down quite a bit. Dennis says the Raptor 50 is fully capable of performing all the acrobatics common in the higher end helicopters and he will get around to learning how to do that in the future. Of specific interest to club members was that Dennis said he practiced flying the helicopters on his simulator program loaded on his computer and it was a great help to prepare for actual flight. An absolutely super looking helicopter Dennis…we wish you much luck with it.		Bill Sorrell entered an aircraft in the ARF category that many of us have seen him fly at the field. Bill brought in his E-flite Super Airliner that very much resembles a Boeing 757 airliner. The airplane is constructed entirely of foam and incorporates twin ducted fans, each with an elite DF 400 Outrunner brushless motor for power. Bill uses a Spectrum DSG radio to fly his airliner and he says it will perform many acrobatic maneuvers. We know it will because we have seen Bill put the aircraft through its paces. Bill pointed out the operating main landing gear trucks on the model and club members were surprised that the aircraft weighed in at only 2.5 lbs. A great looking and superb flying airplane Bill; thanks for sharing it with the club.
February Winner
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ARF Category (No entries received for the built-up category) Steve Kolet displayed his Extreme Flight YAK-54 model at the February meeting. Few airplanes can match the beauty of the YAK-54 with its radial engine, wide stance, and streamlined fuselage. The aircraft’s performance is superior as they dazzle millions of airshow spectators each year. Steve’s model is powered by a YS-140 four stroke mounted to a Hyde softmount and he installed a Precision Products muffler. The aircraft incorporates a large hatch that is easily mounted and removed so Steve placed the radio switch inside where it is hidden from view. A pilot figure, carved by a friend, peers out of the large canopy. Steve briefed club members that the hardware set that came with the model was well above average and included a carbon fiber tail wheel package. Steve estimates the model to weigh in the neighborhood of 11lbs and at a cost of $400 plus shipping, he recommends the model to anyone wanting to take that next step in their flying skills. Thanks for sharing your project with the club Steve and good luck with your flying.

March Winner
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ARF Category (No entries received for the built-up category) Steve Kolet seems to be on a role. He brought another beautiful model to the meeting for members to enjoy. This time he displayed a scratch built model of Kermit Weeks acrobatic bi-plane called the Weeks Solution. The 17.5 lb model was built by a very good friend of Steve's who based the construction on a set of drawings printed in an RCM magazine form 1991. The model was covered in Sig Coverite and painted in black dope with white trim colors. Steve reported that a Supertigre 3250 with Bisson muffler drags the aircraft around the sky with authority. Steve told members that his friend gave the aircraft to him because the builder feared that the aircraft would be much too quick for him to handle. Steve confirms that the model is a handful and briefed the club that he almost lost it on the first flight due to aileron flutter. The bi-plane looks like a cross between a early Pitts Special and a GB racer. Steve says the airplane seem to do better each time it flies so we hope to see it in the air allot. Because Steve was not the builder of the model, it was decided to enter the project in the ARF category. Good luck with that pretty bi-plane Steve and thanks for letting the club have a good look.

April Winners

Built-Up Category Kenny Combs surprised the membership when he brought his entry for the Model of the Month in the Kit Category. Kenny can be found at the field most days, but rarely does he have an airplane with him. He certainly proved to all, however, that he has some solid building skills when he showed off his old Flyline Kits Fairchild 22B model. I say old only because Kenny says he actually built the aircraft back in about 1964. It was originally covered in tissue and dope and has rested up in Kenny's attic until he recently brought it down, cleaned it up, recovered it in Monocoat, repainted it, dropped in a Enya 15 type 3 motor, and installed a new Berg 4 Channel radio. The very pretty cream, orange, and blue color scheme coupled with the high wing bring out those classic Fairchild lines that would transition on to later Fairchild airplanes such as the PT 19. The model weighs in at around 2 lbs and has a 45" wingspan. Can't wait to see it fly Kenny...and you can bring your work around anytime for us to see. Good luck with your Fairchild.		ARF Category David Thompson won the ARF Category with his beautiful Wild Hare product Edge 540T. This is a large airplane sporting a 84 in wing span and is well powered by a Brison 3.2 (52cc) gas engine. David has all that power transitioning to a 23x8 PT Models CF prop and the whole setup pulls the 17.5 lb model with authority. David says he has steadily been moving the CG further back in the airplane till it now hangs on the prop with ease and flies with the agility of the full size edge. In fact, if you have had the pleasure of watching David put the edge through it's paces at the field, you could easily mistake it for an edge that Patty Wagstaff was flying. David has installed twin Lio-poly 2800mah at 7.4 volts for the radio gear, and one 1650mah NICAD 4.8 volt for the engine so the aircraft has plenty of voltage for an extended trip to the flying field. David would recommend this aircraft to anyone who is ready for that 25 to 30% thrill. He reports the aircraft flies smooth and predictable. We are glad you brought your colorful edge around for us to see David. Good luck with her.
May Winner
ARF Category Jerry Winkler showed his model of a Macci MC 200, the first modern fighter that the Italians built before WW II. The kit was made by Nitro. It came in Olive Drab finish. Jerry repainted it with a splotched light brown/ olive drab scheme, following the scheme for a squadron that fought against the Russians in 1941. He made the insignia by printing the symbols on decal paper. He has an inverted OS .91 four stroke engine with a three bladed prop. Wing servos are Hi Tech low profile servos; the rest are Futaba. The plane weighs 9 lbs.

No Entries for June

July Winner
Phil Goodwin showed up at the July meeting with an absolutely beautiful model of the Gee Bee Senior Sportster. In its black on yellow livery, the Pacific Aero Models rendition of the 30s era pylon racer was a surprisingly sleek aircraft despite its large radial engine cowl. Phil briefed club members that the ARF is very complete, coming out of the box with fuel tank and throttle pushrod already properly installed. Phil's Gee Bee required some modification due to the fact he was installing a Evolution 26 GT 25.4cc gasser as opposed to the standard glow engine. Phil also made note that although the model is designed to have the wings mount in halves, he decided not to incorporate that particular feature. He opted instead for wing tubes and gluing the wings together into a single unit. The wheel pants house a very well designed set of wire landing gear and set off the aircraft nicely. Phil says he has yet to weigh the model and he should have it flying this week in preparation for the upcoming Club Scale event. At $399, this beautiful Gee Bee goes on my want list. Congratulations Phil on a very pretty entry. Good luck with your Gee Bee.
August Winners
Built-Up Category Red Covington showed his beautiful 48” wing span Sky Cruiser. He had built it from Model Airplane News plans. It is powered by an Eflite 480 outrunner spinning a 10-7 propeller, and energized by a 1500 mAH LiPo battery. He modified it slightly from the original design by extending the ailerons out an additional rib bay to give improved roll performance. Though it lands a bit fast, he is very pleased with its performance.		ARF Category Dennis Hawks showed his huge Cap 580. He had modified the kit somewhat, principally to smooth out the front and to convert the cowl to a two piece, easily removed system to go around the 2 cylinder 3W106 engine. He is controlling the plane with a 10 channel JR system. On board electronics are powered by LiPo batteries through regulators and servos are controlled through a power expander. While he is currently flying it with a beautiful 2 bladed prop, he intends to go to a three bladed prop when the engine finishes breaking in.
No Entries for September
October Winners
Built-Up Category Bruce Thompson brought in his latest project for club members to envy. Bruce's .90 size Stratus helicopter kit was a fine example of the detail that goes into these larger helicopters. Bruce briefed that the kit comes with an assembly manual that is 190 pages long and the builder will need every page to put a model like this one together correctly. Bruce installed a O.S. .91 Pumped Hyper engine for power and uses one of the new 2.4GHz Spectrum radios to control the model. The helo sports a Shaft drive tail rotor system and both tail and main rotors are constant drive technology. Bruce ordered an aftermarket Canopy for the kit from Arizona Helicopters and the results are awesome. The canopy is beautifully finished and painted with automotive paint systems. Although pricy, Bruce says that the kit is worth every penny. He has flown it a few times and reports that he still has some "Micrometer" work to do on the engine to work out some vibration. I am sure Bruce will tune her up right. Thanks for sharing your beautiful helo with us Bruce and good luck.		ARF Category Jerry McGhee is a new Pa Pa once again and celebrated the occasion with a new ARF Racing Airplane. Jerry displayed his new great Planes Lil Toney Pylon Racer, aptly renamed Peyton's Place for his new son, and the airplane looked like it was going fast sitting on the table. Jerry loves Dubb Jet's racing engines and decided to mount a Jett 90 in this model which makes the project scream. Jerry told club members that the model is light with its fiberglass fuselage and he believes the model will do in the neighborhood of 135 miles per hour. That is cooking! Jerry controls the racer with a JR radio and proudly displayed the home made graphics that he substituted the Great Planes graphics with. Jerry's Lil Toney may not be as wonderful as the son he produced, but club members thought it was pretty neat anyway. Good Luck with both of you new projects Jerry, and thanks for sharing them with your fellow club members.

November Winner
Built-Up Category Club Members were pleased to see Ed Belford enter his absolutely beautifully finished Fieseler Storch model at the November meeting. The Storch is generally thought to be the world’s first Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) aircraft and Ed’s model is a great representation of that capability. Ed briefed members that he built the model from plans purchased from Bob Holman. Ed installed a Saito .91 four stroke for power and covered the engine with a scale fiberglass cowling also purchased fro Bob Holman. The two structures that the Fieseler Storch has that normally scares modelers off are the intricate green house cabin glass and the complicated landing gear. Ed briefed the club that he solved the landing gear issue by purchasing the scale shock absorbing gear that bolts on the model from Bob Hallman. He told members that this saved him hundreds of hours of work and was well worth the money. However, his construction of the green house cabin assembly demonstrates what a fine scale modeler Ed really is. Ed purchased a small sheet metal break at Harbor Freight Tools and used it to construct an aluminum cabin frame that holds numerous pieces of canopy material. Ed used the break to properly bend plastic tube to add realism to the cockpit area which also added tons of realism. Ed covered the model with a polyester covering and painted the model with latex house paint, clear coated with polyurethane. Weighing in at around 11 lbs, and sporting a long wing span with scale leading edge slats, Ed’s rendition of the Storch was a hit all around and we can’t wait to see it in the air. Congratulations Ed on a fantastic project and thanks for sharing it with us.

View previous Years Winners in the archives. 2002/2003 \| 2004 \| 2005 \| 2006

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