CL Enduro

Does anybody on this board fly AMA control line endurance?

What's the record, these days?

Four stroke engines should help a lot..

This is one of those things that has interested me but I havn't done much about it. The AMA event is #332. Basically the rules call for:engine from 09 to 36, 4 oz fuel, line length 52,6 to 70, .016 monoline, or .014 solids, or 018 stranded. Has to be flown outdoors.

Current Open record, set 09-15-02 by Edwin Gifford, is 2 hours, 28 minutes and 2 seconds.

I had some emailing with someone a year or so ago. I understood that the hot setup was a Cox Medallion 09 with a 3/64 venturi running glow with diesel fuel. The major problem was keeping the fuel clean enough not to clog the needle.

I would love to know more about it.

The junior and senior records were both set using a 15 diesel.

LAST EDITED ON Jul-11-03 AT 00:41 AM (CDT)
 
Our club has an enduro contest once a year at Middlesex NJ. We fly a one ounce glow only class and, the regular AMA class. Flight times for the 1 oz. glows have gone past 30 minutes with an OS Max .12 or an early OS Max .15. Everybody is using the .014" x 52'6" lines.

Early wing load tests were done with an AMA scale racer with an AE .09 diesel. It flew at a 45 degree angle of attack 2 feet off the ground at 40 mph.

One thing I learned early on was at slow speed you can see the background going by and it makes you dizzy. Takes getting use to. Also, with the dead calm weather and, the quiet humm of the engine, your brain can start functioning on alfa waves about 20 minutes out if there's no distractions.

The next plane was purpose built with a 180 sq. in. built up flat bottom wing and lighter fuselage. It flew nice and flat at 35 mph. I did an hour and a half with it and the needle valve clogged. Engine development allowed me to get the speed down to 25 mph but, the plane wouldn't get off the ground for more than 10 feet at a time.

The third plane had a 250 sq. in. wing with a thicker airfoil. This allowed me to fly at 20 mph but, with some difficulty going down wind. I tuned the engine to fly at 25 mph. By this time my dad got interested and built his first plane, based on my latest R&D and, did quite well with it. It looked like a free flight plane with a box fuselage and dihedral. It was all white and he called it the great white. We use to show up at the flying field and ask "Can I just get one flight in before you get started? I'm only gona' half tank it".

I had worn out all my engines (each flight is 2 hours long!) so there was a period when I stopped flying. My dad kept going and built his second plane which had the same wing area but a much lighter pod and boom fuselage. He had also worn out his engines but had bought 2 new P.A.W. Texacos and, I helped him modified them for the event. When I saw the success he had, I also bought one and got back in the game.

He's 75 years old and, he flew that thing for almost 2 1/2 hours. I couldn't believe he did it. At the end he got tired and the plane hit the ground and quit with a bit of fuel still in the tank. It didn't matter, he was happy.

I put in a rules proposal to limit the tank to 1 ounce so the flight times would get back to being reasonable, I hope it goes through, maybe more people will fly it.

Dad's currently building another plane 'cause his old one got a little beat up and he wants to adjust for the new 1 oz. tank rule. I've got some new plans on the drawing board but, the plane I have now has gone close to 3 hours in practice (don't tell dad).

I considered 4 strokes at one time. I think the smallest one I found was a .20 made by RJL? It had either disk valves or drum valves for intake and exhast. I wanted to try one but, couldn't justify the expense at the time.

I liked the old rules. 4 pounds max for the model. Fly it as long as you can. Minimum engine size = .19.

My daydreaming was about a monoline flying wing, a little bigger than what you are flying. I like the 1 oz tank idea, and I think the minimum line diameters at present are overkill.

A flying wing is a very efficient design. I highly recomend a fuel shut off. I think my next model will have a 300 sq. in. wing with a thinner airfoil.
I'd be interested to know if monoline will work with almost no line tension. The model should be trimmed to fly up and to the right with zero line tension. A free flight plane with wire hanging out of the left wing tip is what you have if the breeze kicks up. The center circle rule limits how much you can pull it if it gets in trouble.

Monoline controls by twisting the wire. Line tension is irrelevant. I've heard that the line can be dragging on the ground and there is no loss of control. It's just what you need.

LAST EDITED ON Jul-12-03 AT 03:40 AM (CDT)
 
If there is no limit to line length, you could fly on pretty short ones and whip..

(This is disturbing.. I've just started reading this, and am already thinking up loopholes..)

I can't imagine flying a CL plane for 2 hours.. Wow.