Wings and Wheels 2019

[Jon H]

Just out of curiosity is anyone going?

I know a few of us from the Stampe thread will be there flying but i was just wondering of anyone else was around. If so feel free to come and say hi after our slot.

Weather is looking good and the flight program sent to the pilots looks quite varied with sport, civil scale, WWI, WWII, Aerobatic, Jets and heli's all covered. There are some trade slots and the panic team as well so its looking good from my point of view.

As long as i dont get sun stroke it will be a good weekend

[cymaz]

Posted by Jon - Laser Engines on 28/06/2019 19:27:29:

As long as i dont get sun stroke it will be a good weekend

You can borrow my drug dealers hat if you want.....( you’ll see what I mean on Saturday)

[Jon H]

its ok, my 'day release' hat should already be in the car :D

[John Tee]

I'm there Sunday

[Tim Flyer]

See you tomorrow. This year a good number of my club mates are on holiday at RC Hotel in Corfu, but I will be flying our flag there along with clubmate Nick and a few others

[Trevor]

I’ll be there today. If there’s a large green fishing umbrella blocking your view please come and say hello before lodging your complaint 😇

Trevor

[Robin Kearney]

I'm popping along today, got a few models to put in the bring and buy sale, fingers crossed!

[cymaz]

Well, what a hot day... Wind was a demon though, stiff cross wind for most of the day.

[martin collins 1]

Will be there Sunday..........

[KiwiKid]

Don't forget the pics!

[Jon H]

Finally home.

I flew 3 models in 15 slots. Most of the models now need some sort of minor maintenance but nothing major. I on the other hand need a complete overhaul so im going to lie down for a bit.

I hope those that attended enjoyed it. I certainly did even if i am a bit crisp around the edges.

[Tim Kearsley]

Posted by Jon - Laser Engines on 30/06/2019 18:49:48:

Finally home.

I flew 3 models in 15 slots. Most of the models now need some sort of minor maintenance but nothing major. I on the other hand need a complete overhaul so im going to lie down for a bit.

I hope those that attended enjoyed it. I certainly did even if i am a bit crisp around the edges.

We were there on Saturday Jon and I'd like to thank yourself and ALL the pilots who entertained us for a superb show. The only downside is that it makes you realise how mediocre a pilot you are yourself!!

Tim.

[Tim Flyer]

Really enjoyed it on Saturday too . Well done and thanks to all the pilots who had to cope with tough cross wind plus a lot of heat. The retailers too were being frazzled in the tent shops but were cheery and helpful as always. I really enjoyed watching the flying plus did some “serious shopping” too. I bought a 80in RAF Chipmunk kit from SLEC amongst a number of other “ bits and pieces” purchases . Given the lack of high street model shops it’s so useful being able to see physical product . It’s also a great place to go and buy model fuel which I always do. I go every year .

Edited By Tim Flyer on 30/06/2019 19:47:30

[Jon H]

The saturday heat was brutal. Loads of us had engine problems due to the heat and the wind wasnt kind either. There were a few incidents but Perry loosing his jet was the worst of them. I have never seen a model so totally destroyed.

Today the wind was strong but a better direction, at least from my point of view, but a number elected not to fly due to the conditions.

Faced with empty slots a number of us just flew and flew to put on the best show we could. I think i did 3 slots out of 4 at one point just trying to keep something in the air. My evening spent practicing cross wind landings the other day was time well spent!

From my point of view i would like to thank the guys running the flight line. They were out there all day with no chance to rest between slots and didnt fly themselves. The last 3 years have seen incremental improvements both in the display and the evening entertainment. This year was a far cry from past shows and i really enjoyed the weekend. I hope everyone who visited enjoyed it as well.

[Martin McIntosh]

I can echo the above completely. Thanks guys. A few bargains carried home to boot.

[cymaz]

Great effort by all,  I apologize for putting my Stampe out of action so early in the day. Well said Jon

Edited By cymaz on 30/06/2019 23:07:26

[bert baker]

[Bill Reed]

Not knocking a great event but having been going over the years its not the same minus DB sound.

Anyone agree?

[Cuban8]

I didn't go myself this year, I could do without being frazzled in the heat and sun these days. Had contact with club mates who did go and I'm afraid the feed back was once again far from positive. The consensus is that the show has still lost its way and remains a shadow of its former self.

Hard work for the pilots who can only do their best, and of course the traders who rely on a healthy attendance but have no control over show organisation or how it's presented.

[Jon H]

What were their issues Cuban? if they werent happy get them all to call wings and wheels and give them feedback on what can be improved.

This year saw the addition of the drone fest. Not everyone's cup of tea i know but it was something new. RC cars were back but perhaps not in the way they were.

Night flying was a new addition last year. Pyrotechnics and late night fireworks with night flying were all new additions this year. Until the last year night flying was not allowed by the airfield owners, this year they lifted the restriction on pyro's and fireworks.

There are already plans for expanding a few things for next year so hopefully they will all come through.

[Nightflyer]

I think jumping onto Cuban and Jon's posts (and sitting on the fence at the same time) I would say the format has evolved over the years (and you can argue that the world changes etc) but if it changes and is not so appealing I agree positive feedback on what works and what does'nt is what organisers need from people. At the same time there is also the argument that if you don't change things to cater for changes (because you might have the view that change is not necessary based on prior history) then that also can lead to shows becoming less appealing.

That said, having been involved in model and full size shows there can be a miriad of constraints that affect what you can do, aside from legislative changes, health and safety, or site operating restrictions, sometimes other factors such as general direction of modelling direction (i.e. think of ARTF's vs scratch, kit or plan built models) pilots own interests, and also model trade itself (and lets face it traders have their own headaches to overcome to achieve sales, etc.

No one is ever going to please all of the people all of the time, but maybe there should be some useful universal thread or forum for model shows for reasonable positive feedback to show organisers, trade and even pilots, that allows them to formulate plans for future shows. Posters must post sensiblly, as if people want more shows, better shows, more trading, traders want to maximise involvement and sales, and pilots opportunities or thoughts on what to fly or routines. Lets face it there are small armies of people who work tirelessly to organise and participate in shows (thank you one and all), and the number and variety of shows these days has sadly shrunk from what used to exist.

We all have a vested interest in the future of our hobby cum sport like never before.

[Jon H]

That pretty much sums it up.

I often hear 'its not as good as it used to be' which is a little bit of a one size fits all answer and not very helpful as specific issues are not really mentioned so cannot be fixed.

In fairness, i suspect i know what most people mean by that and frankly its never going to be that way again. The hobby has changed. Retailers cant offer the special offers they used to, products have changed, there is more diversity in model styles etc and no matter what happens none of that can be rewound. Like it or not, model shows will never be as you remember them back in your day.

My dad visited the show last year and complained he couldnt find some bits and bobs for his flair se5a kit build. I forget what it was he needed, but it was something common place when people built flair kits all the time, but now not so common. Is it then fair to conclude the show is not as good as it used to be because they were not selling an item that many would consider obsolete but you consider vital?

The question is now how to make them enjoyable and relevant today instead of worrying about how they compare to shows of 20 years ago.

My only request for next year is that they bring back the model steam train they had last year. They could lay a track that runs from one end of the show ground to the other with a stop in the middle. it could be 2 quid for a trip to the other end or perhaps 5 quid for an all day pass. If they were to add a luggage carriage to the back of the train it would mean you wouldnt have to carry your heavy purchases back to the carpark and that sounds like its well worth 5 quid!

Edited By Jon - Laser Engines on 01/07/2019 14:34:45

[John Tee]

I have been not so impressed for a few years now. I go mainly for the trade stands and the bring and buy. I enjoy the flying but as others have said in the past having a model costing £3000+ is impressive but way out of my league. There used to be a lot of flying of models people could afford but not now.

On the trade side , I only went Sunday so fair play a lot of kits may have been sold on Saturday. Not looking for rock bottom prices but most of the kits I liked the look of were in the £200 - £500 price range unless you wanted the smaller planes for indoor. The bring and buy always amazes me for some of the prices asked. Some planes were in good condition as far as I could see but the prices asked weren't far of what they would have cost new after a few years use. I hoped there might be a 70 size 4 stroke in the bring and buy but every size but 70 was there. one very early open rocker four stroke was up for £150 which was probably near it's asking price fifteen years ago. Same applies to the heli's even the "outdated" i/c ones ( my LMS term as flyers want electric these days).

Still had a good time and bought most things I was after but still took home a lot of money I expected to spend .

John

[Cuban8]

I haven't had a chance to get some more details from my friends who went, but I've been increasingly disappointed with the general feel of the show for the last four or five years. I have contacted the organisers with some constructive criticism, but I think they have their idea of what they want to do and pretty much stick to it. That's fair enough if a little short sighted. If it makes money (which the show must do in a worthwhile amount otherwise they'd not bother), why give yourself the headache of change?

For the record, I have in the past suggested that they have a full size display again (remember Denny Dobson in his Pitts?) maybe a war bird fly by or display? Wings and Wheels, so how about a parade of military vehicles? Plenty of room for a drag racing demonstration. Some times we need a change from model aircraft. I don't include drones, I'm afraid.

BTW, did the commentator do better this year? His OTT style spoilt things for me last time.

[Jon H]

John

I agree with you on a few points.

The organisers i think are trying to turn the show into a trade show. So what you see fly is what you can buy at the stalls behind you. As i have mentioned before (this same discussion last year) there is a problem here as people wont pay money to watch an acrowot fly. For a start it would be small at the safe distances we have to fly at and then if you wanted to see an acrowot you would just go to the local field and there will probably be one or something similar there. Its a balance and they are working on it.

All of the model i flew were within reach of a club modeller with the most expensive being about £2000 if all bought new. Again, an acrowot all new could easily cost you £500 so a large scale model at £2000 is not outrageous as long as you dont bin it right away.

£200-£500 is the cost of all ARTF kits now. That is just what they cost. Petrol used to be 60p a litre when i was a kid, its now at least double that.

I bought two props, a small lipo and a nice pair of wheels for my Spitfire. The props (over 20 inch) were less than 20 quid each, the lipo was £1.50 and the wheels only £8.50 for some really nice light weight wheels of 5'' diameter. I was happy with the prices on those items.

The bring and buy is always full of optimists. Ebay and BMFA are often the same way, we all want top dollar when selling and to pay pennies when buying


Cuban, not sure about full size display as the other end of the airfield is still active and who knows what the airfield owners will permit. There were some classic cars the last 2 years but perhaps its something worth suggesting more of.