What to do, what to do............

I have a major problem! I cannot decide on a plane to fly.
I have flown quite a few and like several of them! Loved my short fling with my USA-1, have gotten that "comfortable" feeling with my Geo Juno (Saturn), had a blast with my Parrott P-47, liked my Argus, grew very fond of my SV-11.... and on and on.
I guess I am doomed to being a mediocre contest flyer who loves to fly a bunch of different planes.
Gonna build probably two PAMPA planes and 2-3 Classic planes by spring. All different!

Bill <><

My vote is for the Super Clown in OTS!!!

Hi John,
Well I think I will keep the Super Clown going for OTS so that I can kick Sir Thomas of Luper and Sir Charles of Reeves butts next time! hahahahahaha

Wow those are big words, knocking off Luper & Reeves with a single Clown!

OTS really looks like a ton of fun, I really like building the old designs.

>Wow those are big words, knocking off Luper & Reeves with a
>single Clown!
>

But it's a SUPERCLOWN!!!!

>
>OTS really looks like a ton of fun, I really like building
>the old designs.
>
>

So do I
Bill <><

Bill,

I don't see hte problem with that. I want build a Dolphin for classic because I like it. I bet they can almost all fly pretty good once trimmed correctly. My problem is the massive number of planes by Spring.

Enjoy,
Zuriel

Hi Zuriel,
I get several days at Thanksgiving, and about a month at Christmas.
Get to build almost all that time!
everyone says to settle on one design to get used to it. I just can't seem to do that so I will just have to settlew for having fun, and never winning the Walker Cup.
BTW: I saw Todd Lee fly his Dolphin with a stock Fox 35 and it would do outstanding square CLOVERLEAFS!
Bill <><

Were those cloverleafs (-leaves?) intentional, though?

>I have a major problem! I cannot decide on a plane to fly.
>
>I have flown quite a few and like several of them! Loved my
>short fling with my USA-1, have gotten that "comfortable"
>feeling with my Geo Juno (Saturn), had a blast with my
>Parrott P-47, liked my Argus, grew very fond of my SV-11....
>and on and on.
>I guess I am doomed to being a mediocre contest flyer who
>loves to fly a bunch of different planes.
>Gonna build probably two PAMPA planes and 2-3 Classic planes
>by spring. All different!
>
>Bill <><
>
I struggle with this problem, too. Plus, as an absurdly slow builder, I am building planes that often times are "obselete" by the time I finish them, as regards design or powerplant choices.-ie they just don't fit the direction I want to go in by that time.

I need to pick one design for Pampa , and stick with it and develop it, but I have no idea what plane might be best for me. Sort of aggravating. My long range plans for making expert are in total disarray. Classic just confuses things even further, especially when I am not always convinced that my pampa planes fly much better than my Noblers.

There are just too many great airplanes out there, and not enough time to build and fly them. Those that say that this is a new Golden Age of stunt aren't kidding-its just that the number of great choices is totally overwhelming.....

>My long range plans for making expert are in total disarray.
>Steve

Hi Steve, old buddy, old pal, old friend.........
Of course you do realize that your next win will get you the boot in more ways than one. Too many guys in Advanced know you are too good to fly there anymore. Time to move up the chain and play with the big boys already. Of course you will drop a little lower in the pecking order for a while, but at least you won't have your name on the Ringgold trophy multiple times.
Bill <><

>>My long range plans for making expert are in total disarray.
>>Steve
>
>Hi Steve, old buddy, old pal, old friend.........
>Of course you do realize that your next win will get you the
>boot in more ways than one. Too many guys in Advanced know
>you are too good to fly there anymore. Time to move up the
>chain and play with the big boys already. Of course you
>will drop a little lower in the pecking order for a while,
>but at least you won't have your name on the Ringgold trophy
>multiple times.
>Bill <><
>
There are days I feel like moving, because I feel like I don't have much left to prove in advanced, and heck, somebody has to finish last in expert. It would not really bother me. However, a large mutual acquaintance of ours feels very strongly that myself, and at least one of the other ringers in advanced don't belong in expert yet. That kind of puts a wrinkle in things, since I don't want to incur his wrath. So I don't know what to do-I feel that at some point I'm just robbing the other guys of a shot at the podium in advanced.-Then again, maybe everybody else wasn't really ready the first three contests of the year, and maybe I'd have gotten creamed if I could have gone to the October Charlotte meet. And who knows, maybe the experts around here would be all offended to have some guy who does not yet finish or fly at a high expert level polluting their ranks. Its a puzzle, thats for sure.

PS Bill, getting back to your original post, and along the lines of Charlie's reply, I think you could do pretty darn good with your USA-1. Plus, you can build those jobs in no time, allowing you to try conventional and piped setups easily. They have an element of uniqueness, too, since not everybody is all over cutting out five zillion little strip ribs!

Hi Stevie Boy,

>There are days I feel like moving, because I feel like I
>don't have much left to prove in advanced, and heck,
>somebody has to finish last in expert. It would not really
>bother me.

And I doubt very seriously that you would finish last.

>However, a large mutual acquaintance of ours
>feels very strongly that myself, and at least one of the
>other ringers in advanced don't belong in expert yet. That
>kind of puts a wrinkle in things, since I don't want to
>incur his wrath.

I won't go there, but that should be the least of your worries.

>So I don't know what to do-I feel that at
>some point I'm just robbing the other guys of a shot at the
>podium in advanced.-Then again, maybe everybody else wasn't
>really ready the first three contests of the year, and maybe
>I'd have gotten creamed if I could have gone to the October
>Charlotte meet. And who knows, maybe the experts around
>here would be all offended to have some guy who does not yet
>finish or fly at a high expert level polluting their ranks.
>Its a puzzle, thats for sure.

I wouldn't worry too much about "robbing the other guys", I would be more concerned about how much better I was getting. We play as hard a non-conference schedule as we can to prepare ourselves for the conference schedule and playoffs. You don't get to the highest levels while playing "bums".

>
>PS Bill, getting back to your original post, and along the
>lines of Charlie's reply, I think you could do pretty darn
>good with your USA-1. Plus, you can build those jobs in no
>time, allowing you to try conventional and piped setups
>easily. They have an element of uniqueness, too, since not
>everybody is all over cutting out five zillion little strip
>ribs!
>
>Steve

Yeah, I think the USA-1 moved WAY up on the build list! I really felt good flying it.
Bill <><

Steve and Bill,

You guys sound just like me. My problem is when I look out at the end of the lines, I flash back to my teenage years and expect the plane out there to fly the same way.

There are some who have solved that "PAMPA vs. Classic" battle by just building great Classic airplanes. I watched Kaz Minato fly a Humongous (OTS) design to a second place in Expert at the Brodak meet in 2003. I'm still in awe. I didn't know it was flapless until much later. IIRC, Roy Trantham has also kicked some serious tush in multiple classes with one OTS plane.

I wish I could figure out one great design that does it all for me. If you guys find it, please let the rest of us know.

Ron King

>Steve and Bill,
>
>You guys sound just like me. My problem is when I look out
>at the end of the lines, I flash back to my teenage years
>and expect the plane out there to fly the same way.
>
>There are some who have solved that "PAMPA vs. Classic"
>battle by just building great Classic airplanes. I watched
>Kaz Minato fly a Humongous (OTS) design to a second place in
>Expert at the Brodak meet in 2003. I'm still in awe. I
>didn't know it was flapless until much later. IIRC, Roy
>Trantham has also kicked some serious tush in multiple
>classes with one OTS plane.
>
>I wish I could figure out one great design that does it all
>for me. If you guys find it, please let the rest of us know.
>

Back when my Brodak Nobler was in one peice, I flew old time, classic and intermediate at one contest. Hard to beat a Nobler. DOC
DOC:)

Don't worry Steve, nothing you've built has not become obsolete, as long as it can use an up-to-date engine. Virtually all the published planes from the Nobler on make very good flying models if they are properly trimmed out with a modern motor. Some of the older designs would benefit from enlarging the stab area a bit, but that is all.

The big thing the heavy piped ships bring to the party is huge amounts of power, so they can be made to actually fly well in almost any weather. On a nice sunny day with gentle breezes everything flys well so the pipe isn't as much of an advantage.

>I have a major problem! I cannot decide on a plane to fly.
>
>I have flown quite a few and like several of them! Loved my
>short fling with my USA-1, have gotten that "comfortable"
>feeling with my Geo Juno (Saturn), had a blast with my
>Parrott P-47, liked my Argus, grew very fond of my SV-11....
>and on and on.
>I guess I am doomed to being a mediocre contest flyer who
>loves to fly a bunch of different planes.
>Gonna build probably two PAMPA planes and 2-3 Classic planes
>by spring. All different!
>
>Bill <><
>
>When the character of a man is not clear to you, look at his
>friends.
>Japanese Proverb

You sound a little like me now that I have been retired for a while. I am building planes right and left. Fly them when I get around to it and have a blast when they work. Its when I build one for competition, like, my Primary Force and it don't work. After changing engines, fuel and an addition to the uniflow it now works. I guess that is where I am having fun. DOC

Time to retrograde. Do a Barnstormer or the Double Whammy.

Bill consider building a Dave Gierke Novi. It is a simple plane by todays standards. I saw Dave's plane and built one myself and I built it as a I-beam.I built the wing like a Cobra with the ribs over the leading edge.I was told the Novi was not a I-beam but it looked like one and is a easy build. It flies as good as any other classic design.
The plans are on the classic and old time CD. I grew up in central upstate NY and also saw the Formula S that you wanted pictures off. I do have black and white negatives of all the old classic models from NYS. I evan have some of Hal DeBolt at Endicott NY with a RC and controline models.
Ed

>Bill consider building a Dave Gierke Novi. It is a simple
>plane by todays standards. I saw Dave's plane and built one
>myself and I built it as a I-beam.I built the wing like a
>Cobra with the ribs over the leading edge.I was told the
>Novi was not a I-beam but it looked like one and is a easy
>build. It flies as good as any other classic design.

>Ed

Hi Ed,
It's funny, but I have seriously considered that very same thing.
Thanks to Bigiron, I have plans to the Novi (I). I already had plans for the III and IV.
I like the looks of the original the best.
My Werwage Vulcan is in the "curing" stage right now, it should be a good one with the Aero Tiger 36.
There are several planes that were built like the Novi, full rib I-Beam. I would rather build them as a true I-Beam.
Bill <><

Bill,

Just build another USA-1. You know you want to.

Randy,
You are so very correct on that one!
Bill <><

Bill
Build 2 usa,s
Power them with good, premium emgines.
Wear them out

You looked good flyimg that usa

Charlie(do as I say not as I do) Pate

>Bill
>Build 2 usa,s
>Power them with good, premium emgines.
>Wear them out
>
>You looked good flyimg that usa

Thanks Charlie, the USA-1 came around REAL quick for me. I didn't have 10 flights on it when you saw it. Just wished that the judges would have liked the flights more! hahaha

>
> Charlie(do as I say not as I do) Pate

Sounds like that is the way to go.
Bill <><

ok my vote is for a "manx-cat" or "half fast II" ....walker "firecat" would be a good choice as well...jim