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So I have now flown for the first time post stroke..! had my first flightat my Dad’s club flying field in Whissendine, Rutland all of it on the buddy box with the gyro on 2D mode to keep me and. My stoopid left hand on the straight and narrow! Other than realising half way through that I now need the elevator and rudder stick ( mode 1 ) much longer now I have to pinch the sticks it went quite well - no unscheduled Aeros or arrivals. Thanks to the gyro. In the main! The hardest thing was walking into the field over some very uneven ground! As I couldn’t roll in in the chair

A couple of photos of my latest PSS model which, after a slow 'start/stop/start' kind of build was finished and flown for the first time in December 2024. The model is a 1/8th scale Hunting Percival Jet Provost TMk4, built conventionally from balsa and light ply from the Andy Blackburn plans available through the PSSA. It spans 57" with the tip tanks on and has an AUW ready for the slope at 6lb 4oz. It's finished in 25g/m2 Fighter Aces glass cloth and resin and painted in Lifecolor acrylics to represent an RAF Tactical Weapons Unit airframe from by 79 Sqn at RAF Brawdy in the 1980s. It uses 4 channel R/C for ailerons, elevator and rudder with speed brake and flaperons mixes programmed in for landing and light condition soaring. Canopy was vac-formed by Steve at Vortex Vacforms with pilot and seats 3D printed by Andy Meade. Vinyl decals by Lee at Pyramid Models. Waterslides all made on the home PC.

I was offered a very nice Mick Reeves Hurricane that for some reason I accepted and after some discussion with Byron and then negotiation with Mark the builder a payment plan was agreed on! I do not use savings to buy aircraft. Mark competed in 7 World Jet Masters competitions and was always amongst the top in static so the Hurricane is built to a very high standard. Originally built as an electric so it could met the weight limits but later converted to a DLE 85 as it was never flown in competition. The Volks filter is not scale but added to hide the cylinder head. Last Friday Byron and I drove the 1100km to go and collect it! this is one very special aircraft with lots of detail, far more accurate that we do!

My latest scratch build using composite construction of Depron, and planked xps foam all 50g epoxy cloth covered. Built from scaled up 3 view and pics. found on internet. Model is of Avro 539. Presently fitted with wheeled undercarriage, but will probably convert to floats after test flights, hence use of foat plane fin. Scale 1 / 5. 60inch wingspan. weight 2.45 kilos. This is the second Avro 539 I have built. Last one, 40 inch span is fast, agile, and great fun to fly. Will be interesting to see any different flight characteristics of larger model. Waiting for wood prop. Plastic prop just does not look right.

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My f86 is finally airworthy so all being well it will be maidened at Elvington at the end of the month. If all goes well, i will add stenciling, rivets and weathering! Home made twist and retract nose gear, Futaba 16sz and Xicoy x95 (a tiny little engine for its thrust!!). The part finished kit was bought at the nationals swap meet about 7 years ago. Dont know what kit it is but the latest theory is its a 1/7th BVM clone by Peter Leibertraill (not sure of spelling), the Graupner hotspot designer. Windy

The vast majority of kids who are into model flying tend to be the offspring of people already in the hobby; usually parents or grandparents. So I was impressed to hear about this young boy. He has no relatives in the hobby but is mad about aeroplanes. He has a tiny, lightweight P51 Mustang foamy which he has taught himself to fly, albeit with a lot of rough edges. He is 8. His grandad got in touch and we arranged a session at the Corby Model Flying Club where the youngster could have some goes on larger, more conventional models (on the buddy box). That's it.... he's hooked. He loved every minute. He is a very bright boy and is a fast learner. It shouldn't be long before he is going for his "A" Certificate.

Leccy's Home For Distressed Aeroplanes opened it's hangar doors again this week to accept a few airframes being retired to free up workshop space by my prolific plan builder pal Jim, so that he can create yet more masterpieces. Dropped in on him yesterday to pick up a spinner for last week's donation and the Flair SE5a that he was moving on, to receive another surprise gift, a lovely 1m span twin pusher Vulcan. I can't wait to get these pre-loved aeroplanes back in the air again and to see what will come out of the new found space in Jim's workshop in the coming months. Here's some piccies that I grabbed of these new to me aeroplanes when Jim was flying them. Avro York, built from blue foam from the Tony Nijhuis free plan and handed on to me last week after here final flights under Jim's care. Avro Vulcan - 39" span ,two wee Turnigy 2212 motors turning twin pusher props. Might try this one on the slope. Flair SE5a , Turnigy D3542 motor, 3s1p 4000mah lipo, 12x6" wood prop - lovely model.

With the wings cleared it was time to check where the CoG was at so far. while it was in the living room wifey manages to snap these pictures. Unfortunately it was a little too dark to get really good detailed shots but she is looking fairly complete in these pics

About a month ago I decided that I needed a slope soarer as one of my clubs had planned a visit to the North Norfolk coast for some sloping. I haven't flown a sloper since the early 80's and no longer had any in my collection but back then I used to fly a Chris Foss Middle Phase and loved it but always wanted a Phase 5 (not Ripmax). So I went ahead and bought the plan then made a laser cut kit and built it. I made a few changes including a 4 servo wing but wherever possible kept to the Foss design. the fuselage has been glassed with 25g cloth but the fin, rudder all moving elevator and wings have been covered with laminating film. It's then been primed and painted using car paints. According to Chris the original came out weighing 2 ¾ lbs and required no nose weight, mine has a 1300 mAh 3S battery but still required nose weight and has come out at 2.65 lbs but Chris says that he tended to always fly with his ballasted to about 3 ½ lbs so shouldn't be a problem. I will probably create a YouTube vid of the build using photos as the process involved converting the paper plan into electronic media that I could use in Fusion 360. I also used techniques that, if you watched last year's ITAT sessions you will have seen, in particular how I created the rib set and also the shear web pieces! Anyway I'm now waiting for favourable wind conditions for the maiden but in the meantime here is the model

I’m in my late 70’s. Surviving and all the bits left inside me are working well. I’m more of a builder than a flyer but it still gives me a thrill to fly one of my own models whether it has been built from a plan or one of my own designs. The aches and pains are being magnified by the cold weather. So I thought to make life a little more easy it was time to take a hard look at my fleet. Apart from a little Park flyer and one electric glider I’ve always loved I.C. engines: · The smell · The noise · The successes of tuning, etc. However the downsides are: · The cleaning · The heavy flight box · The bending, etc. · They are starting to take the edge off things. So blasphemy took hold and I have gone electric: · Easy to start · No mid air engine cuts · Cleanliness · No heavy flight box · And I can load batteries sitting down. To increase flight hours I have also modified my fleet. To cope with the weather and field conditions I now have a fleet that can cope with: · Blustery winds · Damp heavy fields · And those few, long forgotten, halcyon days. Some of the modifications include: · New cowls to accommodate motor, esc, balance weight and necessary cooling Larger wheels with beefed up u/c · Conversion of some trikes to tundra type tail draggers Building lighter. Not being at all comfortable with electrickery, phone calls to George at 4max sorted out my requirements. To get accustomed to and give me some confidence in the dark side, I took part in a consortium build of a 60” version of Andy Blackburn’s Vans RV4. One club member donated wood. I built, covered and added some servos. The last member supplied the motive power and the necessary flying ability. This was completed in the early part of this year and is a beautiful beast in the air. It has taken me until now to very enjoyably convert the fleet. The models are slowly being maidened. I hope the grim reaper will turn a blind eye! Keith

Just finished building my Junior 60 Took me 3 months and really enjoyed it.

Well its the end of another year and despite the poor weather a lot has happened on the Warbirds Replicas Front . The D Day anniversary pair of Dogfighters went very well . In fact better than expected in some ways . I did want to eliminate the hurdle of retracts in order to build confidence in those that fancied having a go a WWII practical scale stuff . Thanks to the innovation (and variation) of a number of trail blazers within our group others were able to follow with similar Dolly Launchers made from odds and ends from the scrap box . The excellent and confidence inspiring videos of models leaving the Dollies has opened up the Warbird scene significantly and we have gained a few new followers who are already proving to be valuable contributors to our threads . (Lipo man and Mighty Peash being good examples ) The B &Q paint and paint brush finishing has also broken down barriers , together with our tried and tested brown paper covering . Ron Gray's excellent organisation of the Buckminster Best of British show has really set the scene for 2025 and by bringing it forward in the year , when hopefully weather and warmth plus plenty of prior advertising will make the next show bigger and better . It was a wonderful opportunity to meet some of you at the event and chat about the models you liked and hear your views on the possible models for the future . I think this year I have dealt with around 65 of the gang ,maybe 70 . Some of whom have bought more than one model total probably around 100 . Considering that involved two new designs and a rehash of the 110 and its modified undercarriage , that is pretty busy for me . Its not really a job , more of a hobby so I have other stuff I like doing so it all has to fit in . However , there isnt a member of our group I havent spoken to and I have to say we are all cut from the same cloth . Its like being in the best flying club where everyone has similar interests , not just telling me where they got their latest Wot Ever ARTF from and how it was discounted (sorry Chris F) . I am grateful to the RCMF forum too , without which , where would we meet ? Not too interested in selling my kits outside of our group , which might sound mad , but its striking the right balance really in terms of being busy but not overwhelmed . You see , the thing is . You chaps have known me long enough to get it . You understand that the kits will not be perfect because we never sell enough to re visit a design generally and hence correct small errors . The instructions are minimal and the plans , just a guide . But that is irrelevant given the nature of the group and group assisted build . Look at the process . I sniff around listening and reading between the lines of what you might like ,but with the advantage of 30 years of designing ,can work round or avoid any associated issue like poor handling or delicate undercarriages . The prototype is made and flown by me till I am happy that it can be enjoyed every week at the local grass field . Then it gets redone as a kit with all the associated moulds and hardware . In the mean time I will also search out and stock up on motors, spinners ,retracts decals etc in order that you dont hit a wall at some point . Then what happens is that one or two experienced modellers will do an on line build or video . They are not paid by me so they are free to point out bits that dont quite fit or make small mods , all of which can be expected on what is actually a first production run . I dont mind at all . Some people helpfully suggest that I produce a new website (probably will ) and perhaps have more sophisticated manuals but there would be a knock on effect to you my friends . The manual for my massive train model was like a book and cost a fortune .It took nearly as long to produce as the model . Given that WR consists of me , Paul on 3D design Phill the kit cutter and two part time Muppets , it would be fair to say that for a traditional approach , you would get half the designs if we adopt a normal approach . Consequently , having Ron and Eric charging through the build while answering questions as they go is a far more efficient and targeted way of getting the gang to build quicker . So please feel free to put up your hand and ask "a stupid question " because it never is . It highlights a detail in the shadows . We must all be patient with those questions as to swell our ranks slightly and justify the input we need new blood . The new lads will and have rewarded us with a fresh look at things . On that note , I'd like to talk about future designs . Where possible I like to stay practical . I need to enjoy taking any of my models to the field and if I dont, then its scrap as far as I'm concerned . I do like to try and take a sideways look at designs and not follow what has been done before . It's too easy to look at a fabulous Brian Taylor design and produce my own version ( Sorry Brian , bless him ) . But where is the challenge ? Or sense ? Brian was trying to win competitions at the highest level , not fly off a grass strip with hoof dents and a wire fence . No , we need short cuts . We need easy assembly , cheap and reliable components and a rugged structure capable of 300 flights . (Sounds a lot but I can assure you all of mine have that kind of mileage on the clock or more ) . Why would I design for 5 or 6s batteries that would cost you £60 each when I can achieve the same for £25 on 4s ?Three batteries for a decent morning would be £180 instead of £75 . The difference is pretty much my Fw190 kit ! The Mossie is a massive challenge because of all of the above . I want it to be different . I want it to be be robust , reliable , friendly and easy to store . Cheap to run and practical on a rough patch , but look as good as any Mosquito yet produced . So looking forward to 2025 , and at the same time thanking you all for of your patience for a cottage industry producer who is bucking the trend . It really is a team effort because you all help, even though you may not realise it . Sometimes a chat on the phone or a picture of your finished model gives me a little boost when I'm losing my Mojo . So thanks Chaps.

The reason I put this photo of Pauls up again is because my favourite aeroplane is .............. the 109. Sorry everyone , Ive learn't over the years I'm in a minority . Paul is bringing the 109 to Buck at the weekend . Now this is interesting because it exemplifies how the whole Warbirds thing works . I and my Puppet friends are effectively a one man (and two pets) business . I am also probably the least known British designer and manufacturer of long standing 30+ years. I met Paul , like a lot of my now close friends , through him buying a Spitfire . What better filter for genuine like minded people? Over the last few years he has become even more valuable by teaching himself 3D design . I have supplied him with the equipment and he does the studying that I dont have time for . His model above , does me a great honour . It looks like the best static display 1:24 Airfix kit anyone could make and yet it flies ! I now have a close friend on my side who listens to my latest crazy idea and assists by chipping in now and again but more importantly , creating 3d models of what I am thinking . Together we are now in a stronger position to carry on creating more new products , when most others are giving up . Look at the number of new designs Warbirds have released in the last few years . The reason behind our "success" is complicated . I am mostly retired and although I need Warbirds to at least make a little money to justify all of the time I put in , it runs very efficiently . Mostly because it's my passion . I do have to lay out considerable amounts in advance of a project before the money (hopefully) comes back in . Do the sums on 80 kits at trade price plus all the accessories needed to keep my gang happy ! I'm not loaded as you will probably know . You all may know that a couple of years ago I was going to stop as the market seemed dead as a doornail . But this is where you all come in . Its all about contact and information that this wonderful forum makes possible . My growing band of followers provides excellent feedback , enthusiasm and in many cases experimentation . I have made some very good friends on here and hope to make more . In turn , many have helped me keep the new projects coming , Ron Gray , Eric "the Professor ", Graham Davies , Graham R and in fact pretty much everyone Ive spoken to on the phone has given me something . Views , thoughts , wishes . These are all to be listened to . Ignore at your peril , designer! As a company Warbirds may not be successful , since it makes little money , but that isnt the only measure on both side of the counter . I'd like to think that a whole community has been built around the Warbirds Designs , I look forward to meeting a few more faces next weekend . I will be there on an informal basis . Apparently Manny has allocated some hanger space for me , but I am not interested in a trade stand . I am much more interested in chatting to the gang and listening to your views . One thing you can be sure . I will never let you have anything that I dont fly myself on a regular basis (and I am no hotshot pilot !) . I will bring the 190 ,Tempest , Yak and Mossie, plus some kits of the first two in case anyone has a friend that missed the boat . My Website is pretty much defunct , but my intention is to make a new website this Autumn based around a more limited but continually stocked inventory . The 190/Tempest will be available as starter kits and perhaps a couple of other designs . The Mosquito will join in the new year with a very polished kit with a full gloss manual like the Spitfire . Thanks for listening to my ramble . Richard

Also posted this on my build notes in the scale section. Jerry Bates Plan F6F 96’”, Saito Fg 90 R3 radial for power. First impressions are of a well behaved warbird. Trainerr’esque wing area and huge tailplane combined with a modest weight (16.4kg).

Fantastic day today. Set off in thick mist and an hour and a half later climbed out of the mist and crossing the Highland Boundary Fault saw the first hints of a blue sky. Arriving at the field it was still cloudy, but calm and during the morning the clouds moved away, the wind settle to a comfortable 5mp breeze, initially not in a brilliant direction, but then swinging round to a nice SW wind. Not too many of us at the field, which was now bathed in sunlight and with big bright blue skies. The warmer weather recently has caused some late growth in the grass, but not enough to cause problems with reasonably sized wheels. I like to start the flying off with one of the wee Volantex 400mm warbirds and then after a bunch of bottle building flights with my Flightline Spitfire, HK Hellcat, SEMFF Zero and Warbirds FW190 it was time for the main business of the day - my Flair Beaufighter, I'd made a new dolly, which sits between the nacelles and supports the Beaufighter fuselage and wing. I'd also swapped out the 3 bladed Graupner nylon props for 12x6" APC-E props for the maiden flight. The dolly tracked Beautifully and the Beaufighter leapt into the air and climbed out a little steeply, but perfectly in control and with no drama. The model flies perfectly and feels like a much bigger aeroplane. After a series of low and high passes for Derek to capture some images, I threw in a no-drama loop and roll, before setting up for an approach and gentle belly landing. The model behaved impeccably from start to finish and I'm delighted. Thanks so much to Derek for these excellent pictures that he's rushed through to me this evening. Enjoyed several more flights before setting off back into the mist for a memorable day. At home it seems that the mist didn't lift at all and it had been drizzling the whole day.

Here's an extra flying shot from yesterday provided by my pal Derek - featuring the two Warbirds FW190s pictured above - my Black 13 and Murat's White 4 desert version.

A quick update on the Mossie . Converting the half foam board model into a wooden kit had concerned me in a number of ways . Firstly , could the weight be kept similar (particularly at the back end ) in order that a 64" model could balance with just one 3300 4s battery ? Secondly , the joint separation behind the wing being easy be structurally sound . Thirdly , with the upswept rear fuselage meaning that my usual central crutch would not be horizontal , how did I mount the tail assembly firmly ? On the mock up shown below you can see that the tail has a long overlap onto the crutch and is at the same time , sandwiched by the foam decks making it nice and stable . The fuselage joint is nice with the radio aerial being extended through the model to pin it in place . There will be a magnet at the bottom of the aerial tube , so no screws or fasteners to lose at the field . The best result is that even with one pack and no props it balances pretty much on the money . Also note the little tail moulding which saves both work and weight at the rear end (well done Paul ) Out of interest , we found the quickest route was for me to make a wooden one , send it to Paul who then creates the same in 3D for a male mould . It compares well with the foam board variant in the last shot .

HI ALL !! THAT'S IT she's done... I'm Just going to post 1 photo as a trailer because : i'm very happy to say , she will be in the RCM&E MAGAZINE !! I want to say thank U all for following , commenting, helping me to achieve and completing this wonderfull bird !!! i will post a video giving the best of her in the air . The first chance i get i will fly her in the UK to give U the chance to see it live. If U know a good opportunity, like a big fly-in , please shout! THANKS ! Dirk

Not a new model but it’s finally finished as intended with some “scale” details. Took it out for a wee beauty pageant amount the daisys She flys beautifully, she was built around a 3 channel electronics from a cheap foamie so has stabilisation built in. Far nicer to fly than the donor aircraft she will truck around the sky sedately but with the added washout (quite a bit) she will dip a wing if you try hard enough so will turn faster.

This is my Mark Rittinger 'Super Sportwin. Wings by 'Bill', the rest from stock. 3542/1000 motors, 40A Hobbywing ESCs and Banggood retracts. I found out the hard way that when you build a twin, you effectively commit yourself to building 3 fuselages! I maidened it a month or so ago and it flew superbly. The second flight - not so much... The wing survived, as did the tail feathers and all the hatches. So when I've summoned up the willpower, I'll build 3 more ^%^*&% fuselages (and 'character' as well, apparently...)

Finally managed to get the maiden done on my Beaufighter today. Went really well, flies really nice and a peach of a landing!

been a long time but managed a test flight last week ,no undue surprises everything worked fine even the much anticipated landing was a non event came in steady for a smooth touchdown,ive only done the bare minimum of finishing to get it flying and now starts the long process of detailing not a lot of rivets and thats a bonus the cockpit and canopy is a diffrent matter lots of work with that. it didnt need any balast in the front for the cg which is surprising for a mossi the batteries probably made up for it.

Just to let you know I escaped from hospital a few weeks ago and was cleared of the possibility of a second stroke phew!👍, and am doing ok and stair climbing is fine but the additional left sided weakness is still persisting to some extent I have lost a lot of the hard earned grip strength and coordination I got back in my left hand but am doing lots of left handed exercises to recover it.On the upside I have found an RC hobby I can do safely solo for this year whilst I recover more left hand dexterity: One of these is on order...DF65: Not as exciting as flying but very relaxing...:

Having built the Warbirds Replicas Tempest V and enjoying the flying experience, I thought I would try to build a Tempest 2 from the Warbirds kit. I started building the fuselage last week, it was built up to the front wing former which has to be drilled for the wing dowl. I built the wing to the point where I could mount it in the fuselage then once in position I was able to continue with the fuselage. Richard supplied a FW190 cowl which worked out very well. I made two 3mm ply formers to suit the cowl, one replacing the original F2, and the other mounted 32mm in front of F1 which was replaced by a new former for the central mounted motor.

Cold and murky at the patch but a nice breeze in a good direction. Well mannered on the ground and in the air after a short run and still at only half throttle. Four or five clicks of down trim needed and a couple of left aileron and all was good. I probably need to reduce the elevator throw by a fair bit but otherwise I got the sense of a lovely flying warbird. Cloud base was so low I didn’t fancy a loop and was content to do some circuits a roll and a couple of slow 1/2 flap down fly pasts to feel out the approach and landing. The slow speed handling with the huge wing area and tailplane is a new warbird experience for me and she came in like a dream using very little of the patch. Happy days. Credit to our club Chairman Chris for the photography. F6f Hellcat 1/5.3 scale 96” span AUW dry 16.4 kg Engine - Saito Fg 90R3 Jerry Bates plans Slec/Belair laser cut parts Stencils - Flightline Graphics. Cowl & canopy- Fighteraces

Thanks Chris - the maiden went very well indeed. The new dolly worked perfectly and the Beaufighter flies like a dream. Have already shared some of Derek's pictures on the daily flying thread, but as the Beau is my latest I'll pop a few in here as well.

Seaplanes Scotland choice selects from the weekend. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇬🇧👌😎 Best flying ever and wonderful company.

More successful flying with Dad on Friday evening at my location this time, anwe are off for another go later today and the modified longer stx sticks seem a big improvement though long term I still think moving to mode 2 may be easier for me, but at the moment I want to continue with mode 1 as practicing the fine dexterity needed to controll the elevator with my left hand is probably good for me!!!

With almost all of the surface detailing completed on the fuselage I have sprayed a final light coat of primer. All the preparation work to create the overlapping panel lines have worked out well. The rivets are a little inconsistent in some areas as a result of a glue change part way though, but hopefully once the final gloss blue is sprayed there will be a some softening of the details. Wings are next in line for detailing.

Met up with Tony Nijhuis yesterday to shoot some of his new jet designs. This Javelin (70mm fan if memory serves) stood out in my opinion, looked good with that certain something in the air.

Meet Albert, downloaded free from Thingiverse and 3D printed by my brother-in-law. DIY foam body, clothed by my wife Beccy and installed in a 1/3 scale Super Cub. I spent hours faffing around painting him and making seat harnesses etc, but isn’t that the point of hobbies 😂

My Dad was in the RAF through the WW2, working as an engineer on whittley bombers on an airfield in Devon UK, after the end of conflict he joined forces with a group of like minded enthusiasts who wanted to design and build models, at first they concentrated on free flight but they quickly realised that the future was in radio control, they set up a workshop to design and built single channel control with a rubber band powered actuator connected to rudder only , and controlled through a small valve receiver operated from a ground transmitter that was a car battery powered box with just a push button signal sender that would click right , then left alternately, so if you needed to turn right with two separate commands you , would double click to skip the left turn command, at the age of 7 years , I and my older brother were taught how to control the aircraft by circling it around us until the fuel ran out , then landing back at our feet ( or as near as we could manage) Through contacts in the military the group acquired permission to fly from Kevil airdrome in Wiltshire and consequently set up a model flying club, every Sunday weather permitting, we would all assemble to fly our planes and talk models, I continued to fly with my father until I was 15, building my own aircraft , but as radio control advanced so quickly it became easier to buy the equipment rather than build, at that time I remember the first multi channel aerobatic plane being demonstrated at the club, and as a direct result of the demonstration the plane and kit was purchased by another club member for a reported £1000, This was 1963 when a new car was less expensive than the model , I don't recall if the new owner was able to fly it but it certainly caused much discussion around the club members. My father was still working for the RAF and was moved to Nottingham to a new job, so the models were shelved temporarily I continued in rc right through my young adulthood, marriage, two children and into my later years, moving with the trends, building my own designs and eventually changing to electric flight, and of course drones and helicopters. I originally built in balsa and tissue paper, tried cardboard, depron foam but now find it easier to purchase polystyrene pre build models and simply convert them to rc electric. Now aged 77 years and struggling with many health issues I still love to get out on the local farmers land and fly my latest creations, some good and some not so good , but as I gain the most enjoyment from building , the flying has taken a back seat ,but I still like to watch others fly at the local club and listen to all the latest chat about models and rc. I hope I can get a few more years in before I have to call it a day and get great enjoyment from reading many of the articles on this forum, cheers everyone.

A bit more on the Mossie chaps . The nacelle mouldings came out really well . Nice and crisp with sufficient thickness to require little internal structure . I also made a wooden tail cone , which I sent to Paul to convert to a 3D model before creating a vac formed male mould . That will save a lot of time for the kit builder . The laser cut ply internals for the nacelles have a very close fit and by being jig tabbed cannot be out of true . So far so good . We will be moving onto the forward part of the fuselage next . I have already completed most of the back end .

Decent session this morning, though it was a bit chilly, started nice and bright, but gradually becoming overcast with increasing windspeed - forecast was for 5mph, but it ended up at 10mph. Perfectly flyable but cold on the fingers. I'd hoped tp maiden my wee Beaufighter, but my pal Jim had a couple of failed dolly launches with my dolly and we concluded that it might be better to wait until the grass had been cut to get more speed on the dolly. My Warbirds FW190 got off the dolly no bother at all, but has rather more excess power. I also bottled doing a maiden flight of my wee Red Arrows Hawk, though clubmate Jim had great fun flying his. Some days you get a feeling that it isn't the day for a maiden flight and that's what I felt today, when the motor mount on my Spitfire fractured on a perfectly normal landing. Did manage a first appearance of the A400 though, which flew beautifully and I was chuffed to get some pictures.

Dennis Tapsfield Spacewalker. Structure built pretty much as per plan. Most interesting part is the spars and wing joiners are offset relative to each other, which made for a few moments of thinking when building the thing. Kit from Hangar One. Cowl & spats from Fibreglass Specialties. Ceconite covered. Stinger 20cc gasser side exhaust, exhaust out the bottom. The collet poking through the lower end of the instrument panel is the choke pushrod 🙂 Seems i got a bit heavy with the paint, total weight came in at 6.3kg, somewhat more than D.T's 4.5kg! Interestingly, i also needed 400gm of lead block hanging off the engine mount. Thought i'd try this idea, since the construction of the model leant itself to it: Removeable engine box. 6 cap screws hold this box to the firewall. Inside/on the box is not only the engine, but the fuel tank, throttle servo and ignition module. only "external" connections are 2x servo leads (ignition and servo) and choke pushrod. The point being, in event of maintenance, the whole shooting match can be pulled from the plane to work on easily.

This thread is to help those having issues over their registration. Any further posts going over the same old gripes, will be deleted because you're clogging the thread up.

I managed to get the fuselage covered and undercoated, I am trying a single lipo in the nose, the version I am making has 1 cannon sticking out further than the other 3.I have epoxied this one in to use for pulling the nose off for battery access, the nacelles will be retained by screws leaving the option for fitting 2 batteries if the single doesn't work out.. It is covered with Tesco birthday paper which goes on very well. Still a fair way to go.

The other point that always occurs to me when I see posts from the usual suspects knocking the BMFA is..... why? Surely, if for whatever reason you don't like or support the BMFA then simply don't be a member. Don’t endlessly pick on every negative point you can and start another debate - it gets rather tedious.

Klasskote paint and catalyst finally arrived and yesterday was both warm and dry for a change; ideal for cranking up my old dental compressor. Spray gun is a £30 1.00mm nozzle gravity fed job from Amazon. I am told that Hellcats in dark navy blue came out of the factory in a full gloss finish. My Minsi 3 is a restored flying Hellcat and also has an immaculate finish. For the main colour I have used 7:3 parts of gloss and satin catalyst as full gloss is just a bit OTT for me. Looking forward to adding all the insignia which will be sprayed through masks using an airbrush and SMS model acrylic paint.

More milestones coming thick and fast at the moment…! Two days ago I carried my toast upstairs in my weak left hand on a relatively heavy chin plate., Then today via the amazing powers of the functional electrical stimulato device that is retraining my brain to prevent foot drop from happening , I walked without my stick at all from the kitchen to the lounge whilst carrying a cup of coffee in my stronger right hand! Yeeeesssss! That is an enormous milestone that hugely extends how independent I can be at home.

Slightly off topic, but I am becoming more and more disenchanted with this forum due to the large number of whinging threads. When are people going to accept that everything gets more expensive all the time ? That's how western economies work (and always have done). The question is are prices relative ? I ask this question. If you compare your quality of life with that of your grandparents at your age are you better, or worse off than they were ? Was your grandfather able to afford to go out and buy 5 litres of fuel for his weekends model flying (ok a gallon then) ? Life is too short to spend what little we have left complaining.

Just a quick one as i popped in to laser today to sort out one or two bits. First, some have got the wrong idea about the fix needed for the inline engines and a pair of flat twins have appeared for 'fixing'. There is no fix for the FT's as they do not need one. The return/fix is only for the inline engines. Secondly, spares...again, and in particular, valve springs. Stop getting in a flap about valve springs. There is no problem with them, and there will be no problem with availability. MSL just need to phone Stirling Springs (the manufacturer) and say 'oi, we need another bag'. £2000 and a few weeks later 500 springs will arrive. I have been informed that someone on the laser facebook page is saying 'i can get you some springs' and offering to fit them to engines.... Unless he raids the factory, no, he cant get you springs. You cannot just use any random spring. If you do it will either fail, or the engine will not run correctly due to the spring not being strong enough, too strong etc. Do not use anything other than the correct springs or your engine will very likely be damaged and if it is, not all spares are going to be readily available to fix it. So if you use bobs random spring and it fails, the valve will drop into the cylinder destroying itself, the piston, and the head. If that happens the engine is finished as heads are not something there will be many spares of and are not something it is easy to just knock up. Equally if bobs spring is too firm it will overload the timing gear and cause premature wear on rockers, pushrods and adjustors, tappets, cams, backplates and crankcase bushings. Things like rockers, crankcases, backplates and cams are very unlikely to be available in quantity as spares. In fact if the spring is really firm it could even cause fatigue failure of the valve at either end, cause fatigue failure of the collet retainer....the list is endless, just use the right parts and dont trust people on the internet who promise the world. Finally, stop being so impatient. Closing down a business that has run since the 60's takes time. The machines are not yet all sold, some are still working, some have moved out, and this has been the focus. With my departure there is no day in day out attention on laser so its taking a while to tie up the loose ends. It might be another year before the final laser engine is actually assembled and efforts are currently being made to actually make the stuff as an engine can be assembled later on the coffee table assuming all the parts are there. It might be annoying that your favourite model is out of action while waiting on a part, but accept that, park the model for a season and fly the wings off it next year. Whinging and bodging will not make things happen any faster and, ultimately, may destroy both the engine and the model its bolted to. Attached are a few photos showing some of the slowly growing spares stock. This will last a good long while as long as people dont totally loose their minds and buy up stuff they dont need.

Yes I know it won't fly but it was made by a modeller who flies an assortment of planes. Made between 1965 and 1975 it is R/C and was made from pics scaled down. The material is old metal oil cans, the seat is wood and the tracks aluminium sheet milled to size. The track securing links, old brass curtain hooks (those of a certain age will remember). The owner and his brother, who aided the building, both used to drive these for a living. Just thought some appreciation of the skill involved as we often rightly praise our scale modellers.

Peter Houghton built one of the Warbirds Fw190s over the winter and has been flying it for the last couple of weeks (when the wind eased off ) . Unfortunately I was the only camera man available so apologies to all those on this thread who take magnificent shots . His 190 is based on a fighter bomber sent to North Africa , hence the Tan paintwork . It's quite light ,even with retracts so seems to be a keeper . I know the bloke who designs them ....

Anyone interested in a build thread? This will be Typhoon no2 for me, the first one i lost after an engine failure 3 years ago. Pic below. Laser 155 engine Original BT cowl, canopy and spinner. I salvaged the original retracts, pilot, exhaust stacks, but that was about it. I've built a new retractable tail wheel assembly, lighter and better than the previous one. I

Slope Soaring Safari this weekend! Saturday with @Jolly Roger(posted earlier) and interesting soaring conditions today with Graeme and Jonathan and ‘Wee Man’ Hugo. A mixed bag of Mammatus, Lenticular, Anvil Heads and Wave Clouds with a low frequency wave bar sat at low level just off the slope and slamming its lift into the upper systems. Wind much stronger than forecast and Jonathan rightly exercised discretion over valour when looking to maiden the Vulcan! 👍