Patch News – September 2024

I’ve just seen on TV that September was the wettest on record here in the south and Middle Wallop had four times the average September rainfall. I was away in warmer climes for part of the month but it seems there wasn’t much flying in my absence. Of course there was some flying but not as much as we’d hope for in September and we still haven’t seen the Indian summer that our chairman promised. While the month was very wet it was also reasonably warm and the grass continued to grow so was mown regularly.
Woody deserves a special mention as when nobody liked the look of the flying weather one Friday morning Woody took it upon himself to mow the patch alone. 1066 reckons he should be known as the Lone Mower so maybe the mowers should be Silver and Tonto?

I missed the Popham Model Show so I’ve asked Dougal Entendre to tell us about it: Popham this year was pretty much its normal self, but with marginally worse weather. Leo and I went on the Saturday, as this seemed to have the better forecast, though I think the Sunday turned out pretty much the same. Anyway, there was no weather-induced break in the flying while we were there, despite the odd light shower.
Having scored a winner with his Salto purchase the previous year, Leo had brought a wad of cash along, so we headed straight for the Bring-and-Buy. In almost no time at all he had parted with much of it for a rather nice Multiplex Joker glider (with electric conversion), and a slightly battered 3D Hobby Shop AJ-Slick (same as 1066’s, but with more history written all over it). This meant two long walks back to the car park to deposit the goods in the back of my estate.
Our legs were starting to show the strain, as was Leo’s wallet, so we headed for the flying displays. It was mostly a mix of Futura-style jets, petrol-powered 3D aerobatics, and the odd jet-powered glider. We were particularly impressed with a 12-year-old 3D pilot, and a couple of half-scale Piper Cubs which put on an excellent display of synchronised aerobatics:
On one of the trips back to the car we bumped into Captain Slow and Woody, and later on we met Patrick and his son Joe, who seemed to be enjoying the show.
Back at the trade stands Leo fell for a second-hand foam biplane (I can’t remember the details, but it did seem like quite a good price), so that used up even more space in the back of my wagon. When we left in the early afternoon there were still a few unsold items at the Bring-and-Buy; among them was quite a nice autogyro, fully equipped except for radio, which the guy offered us for a knockdown price. Realising I might be in trouble with Leo’s Mum if I let him buy that too, I hastily closed the deal myself, so we came back with quite a car load.
Subsequently Leo brought the Joker and Slick along to the patch, and both flew well.
The Slick has a motor which won’t take more than a 3S pack, so it’s not 3D capable, but it still seems like quite a good aerobat. The Joker had amazing performance, though there were several things which needed sorting (ESC, flaps and rudder), so I struck a deal with Leo – the Joker is now mine, and he has the autogyro (some money also changed hands)! I’m looking forward to getting the Joker in the air once I’ve sorted the electronics, and I hope we see Leo’s autogyro at the patch soon. So all-in-all a very enjoyable morning, with plenty of purchases to show for it!
Thanks for that Dougal, it sounds as if I missed a good day as well as some bargains. Leo shot some video at the show which he has added to his YouTube channel in two parts.
Take a look at them on his YouTube channel by clicking  HERE

I’ve trawled the internet for information on the Multiplex Joker that Dougal has now bought from Leo but have not managed to find out much at all. As far as I can tell the Joker was discontinued many years ago, there’s a suggestion that was due to the cost of production being too close to the selling price. The obechi veneered foam wings span 3333mm (virtually eleven feet) and the 1350mm long fuselage is moulded in fibreglass. Dougal tells me that on his Joker the wings have been beautifully glass-clothed. I have only found specifications for a glider version but there are several electric powered ones around so presumably there was an electric version available. It appears to be very well rated in everything I can find, no doubt I’ll be able to tell you more next month.

When writing Patch News I use the internet a great deal to find information on models etc. and very often Google comes up with stuff that is only very loosely related to my search but is quite interesting anyway. While I was looking for information on the Multiplex Joker I stumbled across a piece about full-size gliding which has a bit of local interest:
Robert Kronfeld, the famous pioneer, showed the way when on June 17, 1930 he flew from Itford Hill (East Sussex) to very near Portsmouth, a feat which amazed the other pilots at the time. An extract from his book is well worth repeating here: “I only cleared the last small hill near Petersfield by three hundred feet. In view of the noiselessness of my flight and the advanced evening hour it struck me that I was very indiscreet in flying over a small wood swarming with courting couples. I imagine that it was not exactly considerate of me to call out at the top of my voice “Whcre’s Portsmouth?”
Just outside Petersfield back in 1930? Bob the Builder was probably there!

Last month I showed you a couple of photos that 1066 had sent me of the Dancing Wings Cub that he’d started building and I promised some more info on the build this month.
Well, there’s been a development, this photo is 1066 with his Dancing Wings Cub…but it’s not the one he was building. The Cub that 1066 had started building was a 1200mm span version but then he spotted a larger used ready built and ready to go Dancing Wings Cub for sale locally which he snapped up. This one is the 1775mm wingspan version and is the actual Piper J-3 Cub that was built by Rob Lawes of the RC Model Geeks YouTube channel in 2017 and featured in several of his videos. It’s powered by a Propdrive V2 3548 900KV brushless motor linked to a Hobbyking Red Brick V2 70A speed controller. It’s fitted with four Corona DS339MG digital metal gear servos and the whole lot runs on a 4 cell lipo. The model features a proper sprung undercarriage as per the full-size Cub, two hefty 10mm carbon fire tube wing joiners and working light alloy main and jury struts.  The struts attach to the fuselage on a pin with an ‘R’ clip which ensures quick assembly and disassembly. Dougal took the photos when 1066 took it to the field for its first outing and since then he’s added some trim and lettering to brighten it up a bit. In this month’s video you can see that the registration he’s added is G-JEPH, I’m not sure why he decided to call it Geoff but apparently he’s having trouble with his speel chequer! So what has happened to the Cub 1066 was building? He says he wasn’t really enjoying the build so, having the larger one, he’s decided to sell it part built. It looks as if he’s done lots of the work already
I believe Chas has shown some interest but as far as I know it’s still available.

Gordon Bennett flew two new models on September, the first being an E-flite Mustang. Gordon’s excuse for the purchase was that he’d had a win on the Premium Bonds, not that he needed an excuse. The Mustang is 493mm wingspan and will fly on either a two or a three cell battery, Gordon is using a 3 cell 300mAh lipo. This is from the E-flite website: The P-51D Mustang is world-renowned as quite possibly the most iconic fighter aircraft of all time! (Flippin’ Yanks, that’s the Spitfire!) Its unique design resulted in it delivering some of the best performance among all fighter aircraft flown in WWII. “Detroit Miss” is a history-making P-51D Mustang that was flown by Urban “Ben” Drew, and in 1944 he became the first USAAF pilot to shoot down two jet-powered Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter aircraft with it. The E-flite UMX P-51D Mustang is an ultra-micro sized model of the famous aircraft that’s a warbird version of the popular UMX P-51D Voodoo racer. It’s equipped with expertly-tuned AS3X and optional-use SAFE Select technologies, is 2S and 3S battery compatible, and provides real-time battery voltage telemetry to compatible transmitters. Because of its ultra-micro size, the UMX P-51 can be flown in more places and smaller spaces including many yards, parks, and sports fields! The fixed landing gear with a steerable tailwheel makes it easy to taxi, take-off from, and land on smooth surfaces, or you can leave the landing gear off for more speed and vertical performance with easy hand launches over and landings on grass. It’s the most affordable, convenient, and easiest-to-fly replica of a P-51D Mustang yet!
On the first flight Gordon had to add full down elevator trim so before the next flight he made some adjustments to the elevator linkage after which it was fine.
The Mustang appears to fly really nicely and the stabilisation cancels out most of the effects from buffeting winds. Overall it’s a great little flier and a good purchase.

In Patch News a couple of months ago I showed you this photo of Dwayne Pipe’s Gnat that had suffered a minor misfortune…OK, a major misfortune…some would say a write-off!

But Dwayne is an ardent builder and he’s not put off by a minor setback like that. As he’d designed the Gnat himself he knew exactly how to undertake the repairs so in September the Gnat re-emerged looking as if nothing had happened. As you’ll see in the video the Gnat went way from the launch ramp well but the battery pack failed almost immediately. Dwayne got her safely down with no damage so just needs to sort out a replacement pack.

Gordon’s second new model was one he bought a while ago at a Southern Counties Swapmeet after selling his trainer there. It’s a Multiplex Extra 330SC which is an 1150mm wingspan full 3D machine moulded in foam with wood and carbon fibre reinforcement.
It appears to be discontinued but I found some information on the AT Models website: F3P World Champion Gernot Bruckmann with the internationally successful Extra Aircraft Company and the talents of the Mirco Pecorari design studio have created an aerobatic model aircraft that has been tailor made for pilots who know what they want, know how to fly, and desire the very best 3D performance that is possible to get from a stunning out and out pattern and freestyle aerobat. That model is the Extra 330SC and if you add Multiplex world-class design and manufacturing experience to the heady mix of talent, the package is further enhanced by a powerful and extremely solid Elapor airframe that sets new standards in the 1.2m class. Its versatile too, and with exceptional longitudinal stability, very precise, conventional, F3A-style aerobatics are a joy to perform. This, then, is a model you’ll instantly fall in love with and one whose secrets will make you look so good, you’ll be reluctant to share them.
The Extra has had some minor repairs but nothing major and it just needed a receiver and a three cell lipo to get it in the air. None of the Multiplex stuff is cheap and if I remember correctly Gordon only paid £80 so I reckon it was a real bargain for a top notch plane.

Gordon asked me to do the test flight and to trim it out. It needed no trimming and is an excellent flier so I quickly handed the transmitter over to Gordon to complete the flight.
Gordon’s still playing around with the settings to get the Extra flying exactly as he likes it but it appears to be good so far. He’s going to remove the aileron Y lead and use separate channels. You can see how both of Gordon’s new toys perform in this month’s video.

For the extra shots this month I’ve used some of Dougal’s photos from the Popham Show:

Video time now, this month with footage taken by myself and MacFly. Please watch the video full-screen, it’s so much better with small models flying around:

If the video won’t play for you please click HERE

This is a supposedly true flight safety announcement from a Southwest Airlines employee:
“Welcome aboard Southwest Flight XX to YY. To operate your seatbelt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight. It works just like every other seatbelt, and if you don’t know how to operate one, you probably shouldn’t be out in public unsupervised.
In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your face.
If you have a small child traveling with you, secure your mask before helping with theirs. If you are traveling with two small children, decide now which one you love more.”

Colin Cowplain