E Correx

Spotted Andrew doing some after work parkie flying on the way home and had a gander at the these interesting Correx home builds. Reminded just good low wing racer style craft look in the air and flew really sweetly. What was most interesting was that Andrew uses the Turnigy cheapie as opposed to our Suppo motors - the propeller bolting up against a really, really, beefy support and pretty much obviates bent shafts after prop smacks. The two tone colour schemes also magic for sundowner flying.

Sy 1's "I used to be confused but now not so sure..."

No sooner had yours truly whined about the rain when the summer slope winds snuck up on us. An sms from Russ had Pete, Paul, Mark and Dave up at Springfield for the first Summer session on Saturday. Honestly thought the blow would flatten out the lift but conditions were excellent. Russ tested out a new Lazer Kiss for Pete Milne, after tearing up the hill with the Hotrod Toko.

Paul and Mark had their first slope run with the team buddy cord on Mark's Middle Phase.

Russ saved the best for last. A Toko wing on a Pete Milne Kiss fuselage. Looks the real deal for aerobatics without the T tail squirrel rolls and the longer moment length seemed to stabilise the axial rolls as well. The quickie cell pic does it no justice.

So inspired was Dave that he grimed off the plastic slope planes for the first time in ages (since Toss January?) and cycled up for Sunday. The view from the office suggested a Southeaster, which is generally brief before swing toward either of the two prevailing directions. The ships started to tweak slightly toward the NE and hesitation set in. A lunch time sms failed to "Russel" up any support and being loath to visit Derek's Dale alone, more hesitation set in. The SE seemed to settle in, if anything, so it was gamble on the Bluff for the SE but Murphy's Law it had swung SW but the time of arrival at the Bluff. Some frantic calls to Brian Duckitt saw a now 4:30pm arrival at Winston Park. Bill, Mike, Jonathan and Springfield legend Lynn Bowen had all enjoyed some pleasant flying and it was magic to derust with the Le Coquillaj after a long lay off from the Winston slope. Jonathan holding Le Coq with ever cheerful Lynn seated. Must have been a fairly long derust cause the left shoulder was kinda tweaked after, from holding the tranny!

Desperate measures

Kzn'ers are going through the normal phase of indifferent flying weather at time of the year. The little electron clan has been fairly lucky at the Saturday sunrise sessions but little else, otherwise. It was thus with some surprise to be heading to work at 6:00am in the damp and dreary morn after a rainy couple of days, to spy this enterprising fella bungee shooting a Zagi off the beach! Obviously very keen cause the shortish bungee, affixed at the outlet pipe, was only tossing the model up max ten metres, if that. A quick roll or suchlike and back to launcher for the next launch trudge. Time was pressing so it was a quick snap and on to work without chatting. The cell pic blows up badly but one can just make out the outline of the Zagi in his grip, a nano second before launch.

The new buddy cord in operation

The lads invested in a team buddy cord to counter the hassles of different modes and avoid the snatch the box syndrome. Only taken Dave about 35 years to get one and an instant success for Paul and Mark!
There had been mutterings about the frustrations of scale slope flying if the wind does not play ball so Mark went one step better and converted a cheapie Chinese soarer (secured off the excellent Berg blog, by the way) to Eflite 480 power. The craft is pretty light and performance surprisingly robust from this excellent value motor. Mark took Russ's advice and tweaked the dihedral to 2 degrees each side. Looks dead right in the air and flies magic.