|
The
Prez Sez
Hi Folks!
When I looked at the month this is written for, I have a hard time believing
that it is fall (September) already, and that soon we'll be eating turkey
and Christmas dinner as well. I think that I know where the time
has gone; I've been on a number of trips this year, more than the usual.
My thanks to both the City folks and our own members and guests alike who
worked to complete the field grading. Tommy Fenn and Big Tom Fenn
led this group, and deserve a big "Thanks!".
Folks, I keep hearing of a grass roots movement to re-open the move to
lease Bollin Field from the City. Until the Club is incorporated,
proper amount of member votes supports that movement, and the funding to
support the move is identified, this can't go anywhere.
I'll also remind you that it is almost time to nominate your operating
officers for 2005 - the nominations are, by our charter, to occur during
the October meeting, with the voting to occur during the November meeting.
The following article is really an accumulation of hints from several AMA
member clubs, and although some are oldies, most bear repeating:
Electric
Starter Safety
People who start engines by turning on an electric starter and jamming
it against the spinner or prop hub are acting in an unnecessary and hazardous
manner. This could slip and go into your hand, break props and needle valves
or tear up your fuselage.
Please place the starter firmly against the engine, and then turn it on.
This will save a lot of broken equipment and will create enough torque
to turn your engine over effectively.
Washout
Have you been coming in long, low and slow, only to have one wing tip or
the other stall? Does the airplane roll to one side faster than any other
time?
To prevent this, you need to check your washout. Lay your wing halfway
on a flat table, and hold it down near the center. Measure how high off
the table the leading edge is, and then measure the trailing edge.
Compare this side of the wing with the other. If the leading edges and
the trailing edges are flat down on the table, and both sides are the same,
there is no problem. If you have, for example, one trailing edge up and
the other down, you will have stalls.
The wing that is down is the one that will stall first. If you want your
airplane to be a pussycat when it’s time to land, give both wing tips up
to a ¾-inch washout. That means warping the wing to have the trailing
edge stand up at the tip.
With washout at the tip, when you come to stall speed, the center will
stall first and the tips will follow. If the tips are the same, your airplane
will stall at the stall speed but won’t be as likely to roll.
Both
above are from
The
Pilot Log
Isabella
Rovoldt, editor
Getzville,
NY
Testing
Your Transmitter
You can tell if your transmitter is working, even if you don’t have a receiver
hooked to a servo nearby. Turn on a television to channel three or four,
turn on the transmitter, and wiggle the sticks. You should hear a change
in the buzzing sound if it’s working. This trick works for AM or FM, but
it does not work with PCM. Common causes for no transmitter output might
be a dead internal fuse, which may not be easy to find, or a bad connection
to the antenna, which should be easier to fix. Another cause could be loose
cells in a clip, as is sometimes the case with transmitters using alkaline
cells. To be really safe, it is recommended that only soldered-up batteries
be used.
While on the subject of transmitters, did you know that leaving them turned
on, for any length of time without the antenna being extended, can result
in overloading the output circuits--perhaps to the point of failure?
From
Winnipesaukee
Radio Controllers
Laconia,
NH
Fuel
and Air Leaks
Fuel
and air leaks around sloppy-fitting needle valves can be stopped very easily.
Simply wrap the threaded area of the offending needle valve with Teflon
thread sealing tape. It is available from most hardware stores. Stretch
the tape slightly to get a tight fit, and apply only one layer of tape.
From
News-O-Flyin’Jack
Needham, editor
Lake
Havasu City, AZ
The
Pinch Test
If you pinch the fuel line, and the engine speeds up, it is on the rich
side of the adjustment. How much it speeds up shows how close you are.
If it speeds up a lot, you are rich. If it speeds up just a little, you
are just right. If it doesn’t speed up at all, you are just going lean.
If it slows down, you are lean.
This test temporarily starves the engine for fuel and is reliable to test
for a too-lean condition. At full throttle, quickly pinch the fuel supply
line. The engine should momentarily increase rpm before starting to die.
If it starts to die immediately, then it’s already too lean and should
be adjusted.
From
BAMAC
via
Contact, Tim Mihalski, editor
Hockessin,
DE
Glue
Be Gone
After you put that beautiful covering on your model, you accidentally spill
some CyA glue on it, and you think it’s a mess. To take care of the problem,
get a bottle of “Debonder.” Put a little on a paper towel, and rub the
glue right off. Wipe it clean, and you’re brand new again!
From
Oroville
Air Corps Flight Line
Sid
Maxwell, editor
Tightening
Spinner Backplates
To tighten a spinner backplate that fits too loosely on the shaft, use
a center punch to make a few punch marks around the shaft hole. This usually
pushes the metal inward enough to take up a few thousandths of an inch
clearance.
From
Plane
Torque
Syd
Russell, editor
Snohomish
Radio Aero Club
How
to Servo Wire
Another method for fishing servo wires through wings, especially ribbed
wings, is to go to the hardware store and get about three feet of the smallest
beaded chain you can find. You know, the stuff like on the pull chain of
your ceiling fan, only smaller. Drop this chain in your servo bay, and
rock the wing back and forth. The chain will find its way down like water.
Tie a string or your wire to it, and pull it right through.
Bolts
That Hold Tight
From hardware stores, you can get rubber-backed washers. Use these on the
cowl and canopy bolts. They are nice because they hold the bolts in a way
that they don’t vibrate loose, and the rubber backing is easier on the
paint than bare metal.
Both
above from
http://www.gsal.org
via
DCRC Newsletter
Silver
Spring MD 20905-5875
Until next month, keep the wheels pointed down while landing!
Bill
Club
Meeting
The next meeting of the MMRCC is scheduled for September 2, 2004 at 7:00
P.M. The meeting will be held at the Northrop Grumman facility Personnel
are required to sign-in and sign out for security purposes. |
