Tree Strikes Again!

LAST EDITED ON Jun-12-06 AT 10:34 AM (CST)
 
Andy Borgogna
Well the Cardinal is no more. Once again I caught the tip of an over hanging Eucalyptus tree and it through the plane straight in on its nose. The good news is the engine is OK, but the plane was a total loss. This was the second time I have caught a tree where I fly, the first resulted in minor damage to my Smoothie. My son said to me after the crash "You know dad we should put a marker in the center of the circle so we know when we are drifting". How come I didn't think of that BEFORE I destroyed a really fine flying airplane? In fact the Cardinal flew so well I am ordering another one today. Live and learn I guess, and yes I will have a marker for the circle the next time I fly.

Below is a picture of the Humongous. I just started filling things in with puddy. Hope to have it flying soon.
Andy

P.S This is the first time I have attached a picture, I hope it works.

Sorry to hear of the loss of a good flying plane.

The Humongous is looking real good!

We have a couple of wanderers that fly with us. I have a couple of pieces of Red Carpet cut in about 2 ft. rounds that we mark center with.

One of those guys goes by the handle of Rootbeard!!!!!!!!!!

Kreth --

Yes, marking the center of the circle is a key to avoiding and correcting "wandering", and I usually use a rag I can feel with my feet.

Your idea is much better, and I will add rugs to my flight kit. Red shag.

Larry Fulwider
"If your hat stays on during the overhead 8, you flew it wrong"

Yep Your picture attachment workd at least twice as well as mine

Regards

Mike

http://www.machineconcepts.co.uk

Andy Borgogna
The picture attachment worked two good, there was only suppose to be one picture. Thanks for the suggestions guys, I really like the painted carpet idea. I think I have some at home I can use, and I will get some bright orange paint to make it stand out.

I just placed the order for the replacement Cardinal, and with any luck the Humongous should be ready soon. It's going to have a Saito .40a for power, hope that's enough if not I have an ST-51 wait in the wings.

Anyway thanks again guys.
Andy

Get a bright colored frisbee and drill a nail hole in the middle.

FWIW I prefer a nail with a peice of yellow or orange warning tape on it, then I fly just off it by a foot or two, so I can see it in my peripheral vision, but then, I trip over the painted lines in the parking lot, so why on earth would I want something else to trip over?
Mark

LAST EDITED ON Jun-12-06 AT 06:52 PM (CST)
 
Sorry to read about the loss of your Cardinal. Maybe you should include a chainsaw as part of your "field kit". H-m-m-m, twice, you say. My Dad always said that if you're not making mistakes, you're not trying enough new things; but please try not to repeat the mistakes.

Tree 2 Andy 0

See immediate problem!
Too much extra space on work bench!

Who among us has not flown a control line airplane into a tree?

Had a near miss with a combat model at Carkeek Park, many decades ago. I must be the only NW Skyraider not to have hit a tree with a CL model. Managed with plenty of FF models, tho. Steve

I think we could cut Northwest flyers some slack on this issue, considering the severe tree problem here.

Had a direct hit with a home made foamie. I shouldn't have been flying on the field anyway. But just to get my fix in I did fly the plane. With 60 foot lines I had to do almost a wingover every time round. Got a lil dizzy and WWWWAAAAACK! I sustained more wounds than the plane did from "climbing the tree". Not a scratch on the plane. Just a few marks on the prop. NEVER AGAIN!!!

Rob Costido

>Who among us has not flown a control line airplane into a
>tree?

Never a tree. Now hawks, them I've hit! That's a different situation, 'cause they hunt things down.

when we were kids we flew in the neighbor's front yard. they had a cement driveway that arced thru the front yard and made a natural runway for half-a sized planes. we strained many outboard wings thru the oak tree that sat at the edge of the yard.

"i ain't got it! really, i ain't got it!!!"

I haven't, but I nailed a hurdle on a school field one day when I was about 13. It took the outside wing off the Flite Streak.

Andy Borgogna
I feel much better knowing I am in such good company. Somebody mentioned "Trees 2 Andy 0". I guess that's what irked me so much, I didn't learn my lesson from the first hit. The trees were nice they gave me warning, they could have totaled the Smoothie but no just some minor nicks. Did I learn? Did I take corrective action? NO! So the trees sent me a second notice only this time with a little more force. I promise to one and all "I will not fly again without a marker in the center of the circle." Anyway, what more can the trees do to me? What a dumb question......
Andy

I thought the reason some flyers were so excited about the big .90 4-strokes was they can swing a really large carbon prop and stop having to worry about things like eucalyptus trees...?

Dave Hull
LA_Flyer

>Who among us has not flown a control line airplane into a
>tree?

Wise guy!

Kick a man when he is down!

My brother flew his Super Clown into a tree TRUNK once (due to Ureely slipping)--wings folded around the tree, prop nut about 1" into the trunk. Just hung there like it was hugging the tree. Funny now, tragic then.

I flew at a school yard when I was a kid big elm trees all the way around but I had more than enought room for my 1/2 A till on day I decided to do a wing over. The plane went up and dissapered It was still running so I gave the lines a good jerk. Then all H*** broke lose the plane came strait at me at the last second it veered and went after my lancher DAD I never seen him move that fast befor or since. A coupl of days later a friend got a Cox plastic Cessna we hooked up the "strings" and let it go it went every where except out on the lines. It did hovering and fast swoopy turns up then down and every where. So we unhooked the lines and flew it again and again. Till it finaly hit the school and broke. We were laughing so hard we couldn't hardly restart it. A bunch of hooligans.LOL

I put on a flying demonstration at our museum in Moose Jaw once. Picked the best spot to fly (between two rows of trees). Yep, flew into the trees. Shoestring just sat there with the McCoy rh purring away, so I yanked the handle and the plane came out flying. The crowd went wild! Thought it was part of the act. Man was that funny!

LAST EDITED ON Jun-15-06 AT 03:06 PM (CST)
 
Once bolted my stooge to the end of my flight box. Seemed a good way to keep the plane in place. It worked. When I landed the plane stopped right at the flight box, or rather a quarter of a inch into the other end of the flight box. Oh no, another bag of balsa. Maybe I should have stepped back a couple steps.
Then there was the time my wife who thought I was as idiot playing with childrens toys, told she could fly my stunt ship also because it was obviously just too easy. I put her in the center and started the engine and let go. Of course what happened was predictable. The ship went up and loose on the lines and she just let go of the handle shrieking like women do. It was a large field, I reached out and my hand went right in between the lines. I was trying to get myself to refrain from closing my hands on the lines and cutting myself when the darn handle suddenly appeared right side up in my right hand. Luckely I froze in position, which happened to be neutral and before I knew it I was in control and flew out the tank.
The next week I went to a contest in Brunswick Georgia with Tom Dixon and took 3d place with the same airplane.

Andy

Been there and done that... only a light pole. Developed the habit of dropping my hat where the handle is at takeoff point.... and never stepping on my hat. I'm always careful to move a few steps back to clear it. Keeps me from hitting my stooge too. Won't say,.... but you can guess.

bob branch