Indoor News and Views (INAV)
January 1962
Page 2
BUD TENNY "Voice of N.I.M.A.S." JANUARY 1962
| On the return trip, Bill Netzeband put us up at
his home in Tulsa, and again the welcome mat was out.
Bill is past president of the Tulsa Glue Dobbers, and
made it possible for us to meet Dave Carter of the FF
section. Dave is interested in indoor and plans to
cajole the Dobbers into flying a little indoor. Our
bull session lasted into the wee hours, and left us
haorse from talking.
Of course, the hospitality is always wonderful at times like this, but the real treat is the opportunity for more bull sessions. Without these bull sessions, our hobby would soon be characterized by its lack of change and challenge. Bull sessions provide direct stimulation for all participants, and many new ideas are triggered in this way. Often, the result is a new model class or a new record for others to shoot at. Consequently, we take this opportunity to thank our recent hosts again for the opportunity to "recharge our mental batteries"; truly, they are nice people. DRAFTSMAN STILL WANTED Last month we issued a plea for volunteer drafts- men to help prepare plans for publication. Just before this issue went to press, one man stepped forward and offered to help. He is welcome, but we will need more volunteers so no one will be overloaded. Volunteer work is one thing - let's not make a slave out of this man! The amount of work involved varies from tracing a set of plans in ink, to re-arranging a set of plans or redrawing them to proper size. ****GETTING STARTED**** We have received mail which asks the question, "How do I get started in indoor?", or, "How can I get regular indoor sessions started in my area?". Far be it from us to assume we know enough to answer such questions completely, but we hope to point out a general direction and cheer you on. We read with delight an account of how one group solved their problem a very good program. The group: The Union Model Airplane Club of Union, New Jersey; the problem: develop indoor activity to bridge over the winter months of cold weather and low activity. This group was fortunate enough to be able to start with an impressive list of old-timers such as C. V. Russo, John Triolo, Ernest Kopecky, Julius Rudy, Emanuel Radoff, Dave Call, Bill Bigge, and Pete Andrews. With that list of indoor buffs, one might be tempted to ask, "Who needs an indoor program?" However, these fellows realized that their total experience wouldn't help the average builder one iota unless a carefully developed program was set up to help him start right and develop to his maximum potential. What kind of program did they come up with? To start, an auditorium was obtained for their meetings, and R.O.G. models built "stock" from kits were flown at the first meeting. The club furnished identical loops of rubber for each flyer, and then helped them to adjust and fly the models. As a follow-up to this program, the next meeting went into how the kit models could be "souped up" to increase performance, followed by a contest to test the newly-acquired skills. The next meeting will combine a Category I record trials with discussion and demonstration of advanced building techniques. Final meetngs will round out the program with special awards for neatness, originality, and high time, plus a contest for all classes of indoor models. Before someone complains that they don't have all that talent, bear in mind that similar programs will work even if everyone starts at similar skill levels, but it will take longer to reach the top. The basic principle is to start with simple models and gradually work up to lighter models until microfilm models are mastered. Then practice will make the difference, the more practice the better. |
Unfortunately we know of very little printed material which deals with indoor techniques, However,
there is a booklet entitled "Indoor Sketchbook" sold
by Lew Gitlow, 2763 Roseview Ave., Los Angeles 65,
California which puts more basic indoor information
under one cover than we've seen any other place. After
all, indoor models are simple until you get fussy over
the weight, all the rest is practice. Send Lew $1 and
ask him for a sketchbook - every group should have one.
The basic necessities for starting an indoor group are: a place to meet and fly regularly and often, and a group of people interested in indoor flying. All the rest are luxuries, to be acquired as the group grows and has need of them. Further, the flying site need not be higher than 12'-15','but' the ceiling should be reasonably smooth and the floor space should be at least 20' x 30' or more if possible. Higher sites (over 30') unless they are perfectly smooth, can present more problems than advantages until the flyers learn to control the climb so hang-ups can be avoided. Nothing can discourage a novice so much as to hang a model and demolish it while retrieving! Besides, the larger sites are harder to get, especially until the group proves they have outgrown the smaller site. Personally, we wouldn't recommend any microfilm projects for a while unless an experienced indoor man is around to give help. Simple paper covered models are much better to start with, and will polish all aspects of indoor building except for the techniques of microfilm models. Keep the size of the models down to about 18"span so they will work in your smaller site, and concentrate on learning building and flying. Most important - fly regularly and often. This improves technique more than any other single thing.- no matter what kind of models you fly. One final point, and that is where to buy indoor supplies? If there is no indoor activity near, you will have to mail order supplies from one of two sources:
****LATE FLASH**** PETE SOTICH HAS BEEN REELECTED AS PRESIDENT OF AMA! We wish Pete the best of everything as he again assumes one of the most important and thankless Jobs we know of. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Last month, at the initiation of this column, we indicated that some questions would be thrown out for general comment, while others would be sent to some person generally accepted as expert for his comment. To aid in keeping the questions straight without re- peating them, each question will be referred to by the number assigned here in the column. Bill Bigge responded to the December column by answering questions #1 and #3 as follows: 1. "It is news to me that there are accepted stab and rudder areas. My rule-of-thumb is: Stab area x moment arm = wing area x average wing chord. Rudder diameter = 1/4 prop diameter. Sounds like a lot - it is a lot. - but the thing always climbs well under high power. The propellor diameter should be as much as the model will take and fly well up to 60% of the wingspan. Use a popular blade width or aspect ratio. Pitch/diameter ratio should be 1.7 or more unless it flares." 3. "There is no relation between fuselage length and wing span. (see preceding paragraph) The relation between the motor stick and boom is a matter of emphasis. A short stick cuts weight but tends to let the C.G. move too far back. Likewise, the wing aspect ratio is a compromise between weight, drag, and torque control. If you are a lot better at building wings than fuselages, use long wings and short fuselages. Note that similar models of the same wing loading should have the same duration and use motors of the same length." |
