Free Flight Fanatic

About Free Flight Fanatic

John discusses the new and old of free flight model aviation. Includes kit reviews, current projects, how to information and interviews.

Publisher

John McAvoy

Category

leisure

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

6 Oct 2019

Latest episode

15 Aug 2022

Latest episodes

30 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 Aug 2022

   Episode 29 - Laser Cutting

   Bernard and John discuss their ongoing projects, Nats anticipations as well as a detailed look into the science and art of laser cutting parts. New Products: Howard Littman Ukranian Resistance Embryo, $29.95 The Ukrainian Resistance Embryo is inspired by the valiant resistance of Ukraine to Russian invasion. $5 from every kit sold will be donated to Ukrainian relief. This is an Embryo model with all the extra points, 30 degree windscreen, wheel pants and exhaust stacks. This is a complete kit with laser cut sheet parts, strip wood, hardware and rubber. Alignment tools are part of the kit. The propeller included is North Pacific. Includes a tissue sheet with Ukrainian Air Force markings and "Ghost of Kyiv" pilot figure. http://www.hjlmodels.com/sre.html J&H Aerospace SPIN – BEGINNER’S INDOOR AUTOGYRO, $35 Spin is a simple model legal for the AMA Autogyro competition class. At 12" span, it easily flies in a large living room with flights approaching 3 minutes. Flights in the 4 minute range are possible in a large gymnasium. The rotor design is based on Don Slusarczyk’s record setting Rotare which has won multitudes of national championships since its introduction in the early 1990s. https://jhaerospace.com/product/spin/ PHANTOM FLASH FULL KIT, $25 The Comet “Phantom Flash” is an enduring 1930’s stick and tissue model designed by the legendary Joe Konefes. Josh Finn almost always recommends this design to those wishing to try their hand at rubber powered free flight. This is a full laser cut kit for an outdoor-capable Phantom Flash, so it doesn’t build to a super light sub-5g airplane, but if you pay close attention to weight and scrape some excess material off the propeller, you can achieve 5-6g airframe weights which provide a 2 minute capable airplane. https://jhaerospace.com/product/phantom-flash-full-kit/ 36" WS MERCURY, $65 Albert Hatful's beautiful Mercury rubber model was introduced by Worcraft at a time when customers wanted gas models. A few years later, the smaller Senator took the model airplane world by storm, leaving the Mercury lost to the sands of history. Those who have built the Mercury know that it flies every bit as well as the Senator, if not better. 36" flat wingspan, 168 sq in projected wing area, and uses a 11 to 14 inch propeller. With a 14" carver prop, we recommend 16-20 strands of 1/8" rubber, 30" long. The included 11" plastic prop is best on 12 strands of 1/8" rubber, 30" long, which provides a very strong climb. Our full kit for the Mercury includes all of the laser cut balsa parts - ribs, hardpoints, nose block, wingtips, and even the uprights and cross pieces! The kit also includes stripwood, tissue, clear window material, and a full hardware pack including materials for a fuse DT. https://jhaerospace.com/product/mercury-full-kit/ Paul and Ralph Bradley About 13" WS J4F Plans, Free to Download They've added the J4F sport Free Flight model designed by Hank Sperzelhe. J4F (Just For Fun) is a easy to build sport Free Flight model. While a bit different in configuration from other sport Free Flight models, it delivers good performance for a lot of fun relaxed flying. And you can download both the build plan and an assembly guide for free from their website. http://parmodels.com/j4f-by-hank-sperzel Retro R/C 30" WS Fortastrop 30 Kit, $65.98 LASER CUT KIT 1/4A Nostalgia Free Flight, 30"; span, for 020 Replica or electric. Original 36" 1/2A model designed and developed by F.S. Garcer. 1938-1941, to win Class A duration at the 1941 Nationals. http://retrorc.us.com/retroemoth-1-2-1-3-1-1-5-2-1-2-3.aspx More New Old Stock Items for Sale Used kits in excellent condition, plus some new and used engines for sale. http://retrorc.us.com/ (http://retrorc.us.com/) Volare Products Peanut Electric Power Packs, $15.00 – $20.00 This is the power pack from “the Rookie” from Wooden Shoe Aviation Toys. I have successfully used this to power a Peanut model. I estimate you could use this for free flight models up to 50 square inches. It appears that you can add a Gizmo Geezer Nose Button for an additional $5. These units are a small motor pre-wired to a circuit board. The circuit board has a charge jack and a 5 Farad capacitor. The capacitor is the energy storage unit – no batteries onboard the model. The weight of the onboard package is just a sliver over 5 grams. They are originally designed for a Pusher configuration. To use these unit in Tractor configuration, you will need to rewire the wires coming from the motor to the circuit board. Then remove the prop from the motor and reverse it and reinstall. https://volareproducts.com/blog/?product=peanut-electric-power-pack

2. 

   8 May 2022

   Episode 28 - The Indoor and Outdoor Nats

   John and Bernard catch up on their activities, as well as tips and tricks for cutting out print wood parts. Safety first: Save your lungs and your relationship with your cohabitants/family members and build yourself a vacuum sanding table: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_OmRlL60Ys Plus: How do participants and their models travel to distant free flight competitions? New Products: J&H Aerospace 8" WS Spitfire Half Size Nocal, $18 Full kit for Steven Wrigley’s delightful 8″ span nocal (“no calories”) scale Spitfire. Includes full set of printed tissue using Epson waterproof ink, 4″ plastic propeller, preformed prop shaft, and Liem Kou Phing aluminum F1D bearing. https://jhaerospace.com/product/spitfire-half-size-nocal/ 10" WS Howard DGA Nickel Scale - Full Kit, $22 Rendition of the Comet “Nickel Scale” Howard DGA has been remastered by Steven Wrigley and is intended for the FAC special event and includes all laser cut parts, hardware, and water resistant printed tissue. https://jhaerospace.com/product/howard-dga-nickel-scale-full-kit/ Peck Polymers 9, 9.5 and 10 inch plastic propellers, $1.99 to $2.49 These new 9, 9.5 and 10 inch props are a bit different from their others, in that the P/D ratio is 1:1.25 and they feature a larger hub which can be used as-is or drilled out for custom clutches or front-ends. These work out-of-the-package with our 3/64" prop shafts and bearings. These are also available in 3-packs. https://www.wind-it-up.com/products/new-9-5-prop-single?_pos=1&_sid=8b3e5be18&_ss=r KP Aero Small Winder Counter, $8.49 This clever new counter from KP Aero keeps track of your rubber winds effortlessly! Attaches to any KP Aero small winder and tracks the number of handle turns. Simply multiply the number on the display by your winder ratio (5, 10 or 15) for the number of turns in your rubber. *** This counter is only meant for use with KP Aero Small Winders. *** Easy to attach to any KP Aero small winder, whether it's brand new or the one you bought 15 years ago. https://www.wind-it-up.com/products/new-kp-aero-small-winder-counter?_pos=4&_sid=8b3e5be18&_ss=r Retro RC Scale Rubber Power Kits, $19.95-$39.99 8 kits. Appear to be NOS or from a colloection, and all printwood except SR-7. 3 from GAR and 3 from Comet, othe 2 unknown. P-39 Aircobra, Fokker DVIII, Fokker DVII, P-40, A26, A35, SR-7 Laser Cut) and Aeronka K (unknown) http://retrorc.us.com/scalerubberpowerkits.aspx KeilKraft Kits, $54.52-59.18 All six KeilKraft Kits by Ripmax are now in stock and available for immediate shipping. http://retrorc.us.com/keilkraftkits.aspx Ripmax Current Offerings: KeilKraft: Caprice, Invader, Ajax, Ace, Gipsy, Senator, 10" prop, 12" prop. APC 5x3 prop. ZT Model Aviator and Beaver float planes. http://www.ripmax.com/search.aspx?Search=free+flight Volare Products Meteoro P-30 SHORT KIT, $22-$35 "A beautiful P-30 designed by Omar Grassetti in Brazil. Geodetic wing and tail and sheeted fuselage. A little heavy at 50+ grams, but designed for windy conditions. With nearly 125 square inches of area, it should have no problem soaring into thermals. SHORT KIT contains his original plan sheet (annotated and translated), a supplementary instruction sheet, and 6 sheets of laser-cut parts. Optional 9.5″ Gizmo Geezer Prop Assembly for +$13, and this comes with laser-cut nose block for Gizmo Geezer." https://volareproducts.com/blog/?product=meteoro-p-30-short-kit ZT Model http://www.ztmodel.com/product/category.php?productCategoryId1=69

3. 

   23 Apr 2022

   Episode 27 - The Box

   Bernard and John catch up regarding the goings on in March. After a listener writes in about covering tissue over mylar, Bernard explains how he handles this intriguing aspect of our hobby. We wrap up this episode with a conversation with Bernard's F1B teammate, Tony Mathews. New Products: J&H Aerospace TSA (Technology Student Association) and SO 2022 RULES GAGES, $7 each Convenient jigs for displaying all measurements for 2022 TSA MS and HS and SO flight rules. https://jhaerospace.com/product/tsa-middle-school-2022-rules-gage/ https://jhaerospace.com/product/so-2022-div-b-c-rules-gage/ https://jhaerospace.com/product/tsa-high-school-rules-gage/ Laser Cut Planes 45cm or 17 3/4" WS Sea Story–Wright Stuff C Div, $21 The “C-Story” is designed for the 2022 Wright Stuff event for C Division (high school students). 45 CM wingspan, 9 CM Chord. Because of the generous weight limit (8 grams), covering with the included tissue is just fine. The kit comes with an Ikara 24 CM prop, 3/32" rubber, laser-cut balsa and plywood parts, and of course, photo-illustrated instructions to make the build successful for new builders. Despite its low-tech construction, the plane is very nice flyer, and congratulations to the young ladies who just won Colorado’s Southern Regionals with a beautiful 2:23 flight with kit #1. https://lasercutplanes.com/product/sea-story/ Peck Polymers Many of Peck Polymers' kits are now in stock. https://www.wind-it-up.com/pages/model-airplane-kits Volare Products 13" WS Fleetwood Flyer Short Kit, $12 This is a tiny old timer, a 13″ span, with a rolled tube fuselage. You will have fun with this quick-building model. The “Victory” models were war-time models designed to save the builder balsa and rubber. This was published in the August 1943 Air-Age Magazine. This qualifies for the Flying Aces Club events “2-Bit Plus One”, “Old Time Fuselage”, and “Victory Models” (Pinkham Handbook) https://volareproducts.com/blog/?product=the-fleetwood-flyer-short-kit

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Apple Podcasts (US)

4.6 / 5

8 ratings

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