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I thought people might like to see flight video of my 50” wingspan 1916 Blackburn Triplane Zeppelin Hunter which turned out to be a very sweet flier. Amazingly it flies like your second plane after a trainer. Anyway, here are some supplementary photos of the model. It really is an excellent example of a bunch of airplane parts flying in formation. The detailed build article is in the October 2021 RCM&E issue. My friend Chuck took the video and the photos. Jon

And this is a short flight video where I was flying it like a DR1 inclose to the camera. It is really fun to fly! Could use a touch more power. The pusher prop makes an unholy racket that sounds better than it does in the videos. Jon

I thought that you might like to see my Rhapsody wing as it is now. Not sure is I would qualify for wings so taking my own

My confusion is your statement that "Subsequently, if we did not have an "in house" examiner, in theory the student could potentially be on the lead ad infinitum until a suitable examiner could be arranged." but it seems like this isn't the case so let's not get too hung up on it. If you fail the RCC (or get a couple wrong) on the first attempt, the system tells you which answers were incorrect and shows the correct response - you simply repeat the "test" and answer the questions again, using the correct information. It's as much a learning exercise as a test...hence the statement "effectively unfailable".

I don't think its just the RCC test that is "putting off" examiners. (With the potential loss of all that knowledge and experience). As has been discussed on other threads, like it or not the average age of us "flyers" is getting older, not younger. Not everybody is up with the latest computer jargon, and to some it might as well be a foreign language. Putting a stamp on a letter is more or less a thing of the past. Not everybody finds it easy to "https://achievements.bmfa.uk/rcc-upload" etc.etc. Ok, with the help of the younger generation it could probably be completed now and again. But every year?. For what its worth, I think this whole issue is an unneccessary burden, which appears to be already losing valuable examiners.

Ken that is interesting! I hope that book your friend has is being preserved for future generations.

Is the creator of this nice machine “Microaces” Jon Porter? No is the answer, different surnames is always a clue.

Very cool model, looks great in the air. I dont think it needs more power though - I am pretty sure it is massively over-powered compared to what the full size would have had, so jsut enjoy it as is. Part of the fun of flying a "period" plane for me is having to manage the power carefully to achieve manouvres, just as the full size had to.

The RCC is really not a big deal. I tend to keep up to date with things as all club examiners should do, whether a particular examiner is run ragged with regular testing or in the case of some clubs, a quiet life where there are few new flyers or others don't wish to progress beyond their 'A'. The achievement scheme can be promoted as much as you like, but you can't force people into doing something that they simply don't wish to do beyond what is absolutely needed e.g. an 'A' to fly solo in many clubs. The achievement part doesn't appear on most club flyers' radars. Depending on local circumstances, It's not impossible that a perfectly able and capable club examiner might only be called to do an occasional test and then have an extended period before another newcomer to the hobby joins their club and eventually asks to do his 'A' - so I think we need to be careful about getting a tad overzealous with labelling some examiners as 'inactive'. Clubs would be the best arbiter of this as has been said, rather than the number of examination forms that an examiner might submit if that was ever to be considered. I wonder what the age demographic is for club examiners? I'm guessing, but I'd estimate that it's mainly 50+ or even a bit older and with fewer younger people coming into the hobby or starting much later in life, or those that just tend to give model flying a go for a while and then jump to something else, a source of long experienced modellers with the right mindset ideal to be examiners will begin to dwindle. Where will we be then? Naturally, we need new and younger people in all parts of the hobby, but please don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. BTW, When I saw the the new requirement for examiners, I took the test there and then and passed it without any need to mug up on it. You might need to repeat it now and again.....so what? A lot of over-thinking going on IMHO.

Hi all! Tonight i painted the inside of the mould after the waxing and a coat of pva. The white paint i used is a polyurethane 2C product from HP textiles called IMC (in mould coating ) . It will connect with the following resin and glass so when the fuse exits the mould it will be like it's painted white...I hope !!? I'm going to let it cure for two days so it's hard for saturday . The second marathon starts 4pm !

MH, you only get all the correct answers when you have passed. Prior to that you get a red cross on the wrong ones and in green the options you could later take. There is nothing whatsoever in there about actually assessing flying which is surely what being an examiner is about. Any examiner worth his salt instinctively knows when a candidate is safe to go solo. Being able to interpret Paragraph X, sub paragraph Y, section Z does not make for a capable, safe, flyer. Technical committees may live and breath these terms but it is about time that they realised that the rest of us do not.

Who the hell has come up with this ridiculous idea?it is a hobby,I know plenty of guys who have been flying for years without A or B tests and that looks likely to increase.The BMFA have to much time on their hands.

The status that shouldn't be seen as such! I may be wrong but I suspect that there may be a number of people out there who have been examiners for decades and feel this imparts some sort of status within their peer group. They may hang on to the rating because of this, rather than allowing someone less experienced but keener to pick up the reins, while not seeing the need to keep abreast of changes, attend workshops etc.

OK - I'm confused. They come off the lead when "deemed experienced and capable enough" and "instruction is continued but without the lead"...but they can't come off the lead until you've passed them for their A test? I do appreciate that they may not be allowed to fly unaccompanied without their A but these are club rules which could be tweaked to allow you (or other suitably experienced members) to adjudicate should your club not have access to an examiner. More importantly the bottom line, in my opinion, is that I understand the need for an examiner to keep current and spending half an hour once a year completing an effectively unfailable test in order to check/update understanding and knowledge of current legislation is something that anyone interested enough to be an examiner shouldn't baulk at. You sound like such a person as you have the interests of your students at heart but I suspect there may be examiners out there who are reluctant to let go of their "status" while having lost interest in the real aims of the scheme - these are the ones who this new requirement will weed out, to the overall benefit of the scheme's credence.

Danny Hi The exhaust is soldered up copper pipe sourced, if I remember from Screwfix, after a balsa mock up was made to make sure it fitted in the cowl. The manifold came from Just Engines, all connected up with Mick Reeves flexible pipe.

Yes I quite agree that an examiner such as you have described would be definitely worth keeping. But with 'no' being the answer to two out of the three questions I personally would question the value of those questions in the first place. And who decides that 'he can still demo a very very good B' unless that person is an examiner himself? You only have to read Duncan McClure's last few articles in BMFA News to realise that the expected standard of a B schedule is pretty high and I'm not sure that relying on the opinion of non-qualified committee or general club members to agree or otherwise that he can fly a very very good B schedule is right. That's just my opinion of course but is the way I would interpret the letter of yesterday. Really?? If we don't think about these things now we can hardly complain when things go awry in the future. Just because the BMFA says something, it doesn't always make it right or that it should be rubber-stamped without airing one's concerns. Again just my own point of view. Brian.

Definitly a model off the beaten track, well executed and I like it well done Jon??

Only 193 published so far but a few are in the USA. See Outer Zone A few of those 193 are duplicates in other countries and a a couple are resurrected vintage designs

Thanks for your help guys but I sorted it cleared my data out for that model for some reason it’s ok now

My answer. Saito 100F.

BEB is a miss...canny lad who i met a couple of times. ken anderson...ne..1...BEB dept.

Perfect timing that Andy, we just put a member forward, test being arranged for the near future. Man's a long time member of our club, but he's moved house so we'll now be his second club, membership voted all in favour.

EB, that's why I said to contact me...I have access to the cutting files and a contact who can laser cut the GTC parts for you + a spare canopy should you need one of those. PS I waited for two years for Sarik to promise and not deliver on a kit for the GTC. ?

Ah well.If you have dead stick on one engine with electric power then Grumpy Tiger Cub is a MUST build!!!!

Beautiful Model Jon. Thanks for the Chuckle Don. ? D.D.

That's exactly the situation I wrote about in my post yesterday. I'm with C8 on this, too much over thinking going on.

Mount is 96mm assuming you have the round one. Earlier engines had the 4 point lug mount and that was a different size entirely. Again assuming you have the radial mount the dimension drawing below should be accurate. As the 240 is out of production i pulled it off the website but by that logic i should pull everything off so i might put it back.

Overpowering these early aeroplanes is often a bad thing, they start to display strange flight characteristics like wanting to climbing at a too steep angle or even shoving the nose down even when elevator is up. Light structures that bend/twist is one cause.

Jonathan, I made mine more or less the way Nigel describes, but you can buy them just look for "Dubro Over-Ride Servo Saver".

We know that circumstances are different at each club and for each examiner. I have just been speaking to one that is in 2 clubs and ratified by both. However he very rarely visits one of the clubs, maybe only once or twice a year and then just to take a test, however he is a very active flyer, can still demo a very very good B, and actively promotes the scheme, so the club would have to answer no to the first and third question, but the examiner is still definitely worth keeping.

I've mentioned before...........my friends dad was a Halifax pilot,35 squadron,shot down in 1944 and ended up in stalag luft 111(the great escape camp) cooking on one of the stoves that had a tunnel underneathis dad was a bit of an artist and he showed me a book c/w drawings in he had made during his stay in the camp.it has drawings of the huts and drawings of the men gardening(naked) so they didn't spoil their uniforms. His name didn't get entered into the escape and as such he stayed in the camp. after the war in 1963,the camp survivors were invited to the first showing of the the film "the great escape" at London,when they came out and were comparing notes, they all agreed what a load of Tripe it was..... ken anderson...ne...1....Tripe dept. substitute Tripe for your own words....☠️

Jonathan, As the hinges need to be pinned I suggest you pin the hinge material to the movable surfaces then cover them. Next fit the movable surfaces and pin to wing/tail etc and lastly cover.

I cannot see how the Battle of Britain film could be considered outdated -the flying sequences are outstanding and seem very realistic. Couldn't be made again today as the supply of old WW2 planes to destroy for film effects has dried up. Computer generated stuff is never as good. It's a classic and is so much better seen on a large screen TV than on the tiny TV screen I first saw it. Frankly I found last nights Great Escape destroyed the atmosphere and tension by interspersing the drama with comments from people today. I prefer to watch old documentaries filmed a few decades ago when the veterans were alive to tell us their story firsthand. Or to watch the original film or the old TV Colditz series. If you haven't already noticed the Secret Army series is currently reshown on several TV channels and has almost unbearable tension as you follow the risks taken by the resistance heroes & heroines who rescued aircrew. Great TV.

PS - I am going to link to this example from the OpenTX - what's the fuss about thread here for future reference. @Jonathan M, if you have any further questions on OTX that is a good place to ask them.

IMHO, Just fly the Ohmen and enjoy it and if you want to build then I would recommend an electric Grumpy Tiger Cub...another of Peter's designs and a really nice flyer for a twin. Lots of room for the odd mod and adjustment for electric, George at 4Max did the electric set up with runs on 4S3300 and best of all it fits in the car fully assembled Lots of post on here about different GTC builds and message me if you are interested as I have a spare canopy + other info A club mate and myself built one each.

10 Years After Cricklewood Green favourite album around 1970 until Zeppelin came along .

I watched the episode last night, and it never ceases to amaze me how much time and effort they put in. How on earth did they manage to hide everything from the "goons"?. Civvy clothes, suitcases, rations, forged documents etc. etc. etc. Stuck in that tunnel when the lights went out............beyond terryfying. And the chap pulling the signal rope for over two hours, so his mates could get out.......amazing. He could have been well on his way in that time, instead of laying in a freezing forest. We all know what happened in the end. Such brave, brave guys. RIP.

An old hacksaw blade heated with a blowlamp makes a good polystyrene cutter as well as a soldering iron, if you don't mind choking to death on the smoke.

Impressive!

Trying to taxi cross-wind is always a problem as models always want to weathercock so with a tricycle u/c I use down elevator when taxing to get nose wheel steering authority.

Hi Jon, if you google P51 mustang images there is a lot showing the fillets from all angles. I would leave the ailerons off while you cover the wing I can't remember about the flaps I seem to think they were not easily removed once assembled into the wing. Same applies to the rudder and elevators cover then fit.

Up elevator, blast of throttle. If the main gear is close enough to the cg the nose will lift or become very light and turn with rudder

Once you've sorted it the way you want I think you should be able to make it a Global Function. Then you can select that for any ic model you want without having to set each one up individually.

That's the essence of it for me (except I don't have the throttle-activated voice alert as you do). I do all my pre-flight checks in the pits before/after starting (i.e. the model checks), then do my pre-takeoff checks (i.e. check what else is in the air etc) once I've positioned the model on the strip and taken my position in the pilot-box. That's enough for me - I don't want the timer on a switch, I want it on the throttle, but only over 25%. Will get my head around the programming... ?

Admire your tenacity!

I covered the wing of the Hurricane with lam film, I had intended to use brown paper but having a good result on the tail feathers I went ahead and done the wing. I am happy the way it has turned out, no wrinkles. pity I can't use it on my face. Slotting the tail plane and elevators the black etch primer come off the film despite rubbing down with 600 grit wet and dry. I have used car plastic bumper paint on the wing I hope that holds better.

Does it really matter if there is not a lot of interest? What really matters is: Do you like the model? Do you enjoy building it? Do you enjoy flying it? If the answer to those questions is "YES" why worry about what other people think. I design and build what I want and if others like it, Great!. If not I am happy with it and that is what matters to me.

This is how you scribe the optimum angle on the blocks. Cheers Danny

Managed a little more this evening, I must confess this is not really very satisfying. The fit of the parts is quite a bit off. I pride myself on good tight fitting joints and I cannot do a lot with these apart from re-cutting bits. So all I am doing is a jigsaw at the moment. As you can see the parts are all nicely cut and everything is labelled very clearly, 400 series for the tail-plane and elevator, 300 for the rudder and fin. The joint at the centre of this picture was so bad I had to add packing to allow it to stand a chance of survival. But that's the fin and rudder complete. I am not happy with the way that the fairing is between the fin and fus, the tail plane will get in the way of covering. The full size fus is covered AND then the tail plane fitted so a slight deviation will occur here and the tail plane split in two halves with carbon rod joiners. The tail plane will be fitted AFTER the fus is covered. Anyway that's it for now, wings or fus next? BTW the wings will have modified ailerons, I cannot be doing with centre hinged ailerons when they should be bottom hinged Friese type. I am also adding flaps. Both should be fairly straightforward (famous last words) Cheers Danny

Hello, still got to get around to glassing top of wings. In the meantime have stolen a few idea s seen on other Hammer builds as above. Covered V-tail in tissue and dope today, will prime and spray that later on e mounted. Swapped the snakes for carbon ones from Hyperflight. Will use ball links on Vtail end. Test  fit thee cockpit areas today. cheers mike         Edited By MikeQ on 29/11/2020 21:56:24 Edited By MikeQ on 29/11/2020 21:56:55 Edited By MikeQ on 29/11/2020 21:57:18