Part I
Propeller Models

Lots of hopeful thinking didn't change the laws of nature, and as the weekend drew near, our cherished good weather remained elusive. The rain repeatedly came and went, and there were few moments of sunny respite. The same was true for the strong wind, which never really took a breather, except during some unofficial flying on Friday. For the most part, the sky was just crammed full of ominous and often billowy clouds, the kind you don't like. This was not a great scenario for an eflight enthusiast at Aspach 2001, yet there was still plenty to see near the town of Backnang in southern Germany on 15 and 16 September. Despite Mother Nature's unwelcome atmosphere, this e-meeting was still, and still is, a place for world-class, leading-edge displays in eflight.

The WTC devastation in America earlier that week obviously tuned down the excitement and upped the angst. Yet, my post-event conversations have revealed the international crisis had much less effect on the event than one might think. A picture did evolve showing that some modelers really lost excitement with the consecutive bouts of frustration. Based on this, many Germans likely stayed home because of the crummy weather, which was a climatic repeat of last year, even though it rained a lot more in 2000! I've spoken to a few who were there in '00, but not in '01. After seeing the rainy forecast, they decided that two in a row wasn't worth the effort. What a difference it made. While Aspach 1999 featured 149 pilots and 249 models, and Aspach 2000 drew similar numbers with 143 pilots and 230 models, this year's event only saw 92 pilots and 133 models, which was roughly 40% fewer models and pilots than the previous two events! Lower spectator turnout was just as prevalent.

In light of this, there was discussion in the MFG Aspach organization about moving the event to another weekend, thereby hoping to avoid any increasing unpleasant weather trends in the third-weekend-in-September time slot. Herald Haltmeier, the MGF Aspach chairman, just recently informed me that due to possible conflicts with other calendar events, the club decided that Aspach 2002 would again be the third weekend in September. So, what's the chance of a third bad-weather Aspach in 2002? Well, hopefully it is slim. However, I can't help but thinking "three strikes and your out!"

So What's In This Review?

Plenty... I really had my hands full this year because, in addition to all the pictures I took, I also took some digital video that you can hopefully download. This is a new endeavor for both the E-Zone and me, and I hope it works. All the movies are QuickTime (.mov) formatted, and to keep the file sizes manageable, which range from 700Kb to 2.5Mb, yet easy to view, the movies are 320x240dpi and 12fps or 15fps with low-frequency mono sound. A model's Movie link is noted after its caption; not all models have a movie link, and they are not formatted for streaming. These movies also can't be viewed with MoviePlayer, so if you don't have QuickTime you can download it here: Apple Quicktime. Oh...and if some movies are a bit dark in contrast, blame the weather. (Most movies are also of propeller models.)

Of all the models at Aspach, roughly fourteen percent were ducted fan and eight percent were helicopters, so it's no wonder I have more pictures of propeller planes. There are enough EDFs to comprise Part II of this report, but unfortunately, I have no helicopter photos this year; my few helicopter pictures were simply not good enough. Another thing that you'll likely notice is that most models are scale. There are few, if any, quick-build commercial models like TwinJets or Zagis, which in Germany are the so-called Styro-Bombers. Over the past few years, Aspach organizers had simply become fed up with the proliferation of quick-build ARFs and RTFs hogging flight time from what Aspach is primarily about, the individual modeler's craft, creativity, and innovation. With a few exceptions, most e-models that could be bought in a hobby shop and have flying within a very short time were restricted from flying. Although a lack of these "dime-a-dozen" type models might have reduced the overall model count, it solely wasn't enough to keep modelers away from the event.

As always, the Eudenbach E-Meeting south of Cologne was about two weeks after Aspach, and I've included a few pictures from that event. These are noted with (EU) after the caption.

All measurements are listed primarily in metric, but this year I've also listed the wingspans in inches and weights in pounds. I also noticed a discussion group thread on the E-Zone requesting website links to conversion tables, and convert-me.com appears most helpful to me. Nonetheless, here are a few of the basic formulas for metric conversion:

25.4 millimeters (mm) = 1 inch
0.3048 meter (m) = 1 foot
28.375 grams (g) = 1 ounce
1 kilogram (kg) or 1000 grams = 2.2 pounds

If you desire more information about MFG Aspach e.V., check out their website.

The Models

Vickers Viscount 814
by Charlie Binder

As a Lufthansa flight engineer, Charlie Binder flew on many aircraft including the Convair 440 (featured in last year's review) and the Viscount 814 during their commercial airline heyday. It's no wonder that he has affection for these old commercial classics, as does Lufthansa; Charlie's big Convair now hangs in a Lufthansa Airlines showroom in Hamburg. However, the airline didn't get it until Charlie removed the retractable landing gear and strengthened it for his Viscount project.

The Viscount is scratch built from foam and covered mostly with chrome sealing tape found at building supply stores (it's not duct tape), which saved Charlie a lot of money. The wingspan is 3.15 m (124 in), the wing area is 92 dm2, and the wing loading is 139 g/md2. The length is 2.6 m, and the all-up-weight is 12.4 kg (27.28 lbs). Its power system consists of four Graupner Speed 700 BB Turbo Neodym motors, each with a Graupner 2.1:1 metal gearbox and a Super 11x6 prop. The Viscount uses two Schulze mbo-75 ESCs, each with 16xRC2400 cells (32 cells total). One control motors 1 and 4 (in parallel), and the other motors 2 and 3 (in parallel). Charlie built the landing gear retracts himself using a Graupner retract mechanism for sailplanes as a model, again saving a lot of expense. Flight time is around four minutes. Charlie uses a Futaba radio and the plane uses eight servos, three of which operate the landing gear. After Aspach, in preparation for Aspach 2002, Charlie started working on a scratch-built DC-3 with a 3-meter wingspan. Unlike the Convair and Viscount, this model's core structure will be mostly balsa with foam components (i.e., the nose, nacelles, etc.). It will however have the same type of self-built landing gear. (Movie) 2.5 Mb

Junkers D1 J4
by Andreas Zitz

Andreas Zitz told me that only one was ever built, and the real green and brown Junkers D1 J4 of 1918 was the last production plane of the First World War. Germany intended to build more, but the war quickly ended after this one rolled out of the factory. It was also the first plane in the world with aluminum skin. Andreas' model is a beautiful reproduction. It is painted with Acrylic and it's rather fragile, with a thin skin of corrugated cardboard. Nevertheless, this mimics the aluminum skin quite well and it saves a lot of weight.

This Junkers is 1:3.5 scale and scratch built, and the basic frame and formers are balsa. The wingspan is 2.54 m (100 in), the wing area is 130 dm2, and the wing loading is 59 g/dm2. The length is 1.85 m, and it weighs about 8 kg (17.6 lbs). The motor is an Aveox 1412/Y5, coupled to a self-built, two-stage 5.06:1 belt-drive gearbox, and Maro 24x10 prop. The ESC is also Aveox and the battery is a 30xRC2400 pack. The model had only flown a few times before, and didn't fly at Aspach because the windy weather was too risky for its delicate construction. The cardboard skin could have been easily dented by strong gusts of wind. Andreas said the flight times are around six minutes.

Handley Page HP57 Manx
by Juraj Tinka

The Czech maker of Jeti controllers and Phasor brushless motors, Juraj Tinka (his first name is pronounced like "your-eye"), never seems to be without a unique or unusual scale model or models. (Check out his Smolik 137 in '99 and Me-323 in '00.) His big HP57 is 1:4 scale and it took six months to build, whereas the little HP57 took about three months to construct. Both are scratch built from balsa, covered with Vlies (a material I am unfamiliar with), and sprayed with Acrylic paint.

The large Manx's wingspan is 3.1 m (122 in). The length is 1.3 m, and it weighs 7.94 kg (17.47 lbs). Power is provided by two Jeti Phasor 45-3 brushless motors, each with a JES 40-3p-Opto ESC, a 10.5x7 aero-naut prop, and their own 16x2000RC battery pack (32 cells total). It only uses four servos, one of which is in the left vertical fin (picture below) and deflects a small surface that controls any adverse yaw. The landing gear is fixed, and the flight times range from seven to fifteen minutes (left picture). (Movie) 1.8 Mb

The small Manx's wingspan is 1.82 m (71.65 in). The length is 84 cm, and it weighs 1.93 kg (4.25 lbs). Power is provided by two Phasor 15-4 brushless motors, each with an 8.5x5 aero-naut prop. As I understand it, via some crafty circuitry addition, there is only one JES 30-3p BEC speed controller and 8x1700SCR pack, yet each motor can be independently controlled. (I hope I don't have to swallow my words on that last sentence, but that is what my notebook states.) The landing gear is also fixed and flight times are anywhere from five to ten minutes. (Movie) 1.2 Mb

Fokker D-VII
by Uwe Bremer

This Fokker is a balsa kit produced by Flair, which is a company based in England. This Fokker is covered in Oratex. The wingspan is 1.55 m (61 in), and the wing area is around 70 dm2. The wing loading is about 60 g/dm2, and it weighs roughly 4 kg (8.8 lbs). It is powered by a Köhler Newtor 27/12 Aussenlaufer, which is an outside spinning motor, turning a 17x8 Menz prop. The ESC used is an Actronic 40-32 and the battery is a 20-cell RC2000 pack. Flight time is around six minutes thirty seconds. The cat in the pilot's seat is Sylvester (but there is no Tweety Bird).

Ford Flivver 3218
by Melf-Heiko Mast

This Flivver is two years old. It is scratch built from balsa and covered in Polytex. The wingspan is 1.96 m (77.17 in), the wing area is 70 dm2, and the wing loading is 57 g/dm2. The length is 1.38 m, and it weighs 3.95 kg (8.69 lbs). It is powered by an Ultra 1300-12 motor, a Kruse 2:1 Synchro Gear 800 gearbox, and a 16x6 Manz prop. The ESC used is a Schulze f43-45bo, and the battery is a 20xRC1700. Its flight times are around seven minutes.

Cessna Skymaster 225
by Mario Schauermann

This balsa model had direct-drive pusher and puller motors, but the pusher complicated flight characteristics and added weight. Therefore, Mario took it out and added a gearbox to the front motor. Now it's lighter and handles nicely. The wingspan is 1.95 cm (76.77 in) and is weighs in around 5 kg (11 lbs), which is around 500 g (1.1 lbs) less than before the motor change. The covering is an iron-on fabric. It uses an Ultra 1300-8 motor in a Power Gear 2:1 gearbox, turning an APC 13x8 prop. The ESC is a Schulze f-50bo and the battery is a 20xRC2000 pack. Its flight time is about five minutes.

SE-5A
by Klaus Seidl

This model might as well be an ultra-large aerobatic parkflyer. It's very, very light. Considering its size, it weighs about half of what you'd expect. In addition, whether flying fast or slow, it's extremely maneuverable. The construction, which Klaus carefully focused on in order to save weight, took about three months. His SE-5A is scratch built from balsa and covered in an iron-on silk material from Graupner, and then painted with Acrylic. The wingspan is 2 m (78.75 in). The length is about 1.4 m, and it weighs around 2.9 kg (6.38 lbs). The motor is an Ikarus 500-3 brushless in a self-built 4.2:1 gearbox, turning a 22x12 Maro prop. He is using a Jeti 70-3p ESC, and the battery is a 10xRC2400 pack. Typical current at full throttle is 33 amps and flight time is around 5 minutes. (Movie) 1.6 Mb

Gee Bee D-Sportster and Hawker Seafury
by Jürgen Bestenlehner

Jürgen modified this balsa model built from American plans and covered it in Oracover. He enlarged the wingspan from 95 cm (37.4 in) to 1.2 m (47.25 in). The length is 86 cm and it weighs 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs). The motor is a Viper 600 BB Mono Race 7.2v, with a Maxon 4.4:1 gearbox, which turns a folding aero-naut 13x11 CAM Prop. He is using a Slim-35be ESC, with a 10xRC2400 pack (pushed). Flight time is maximum eight minutes. The model in the background is a Hawker Seafury from Balsacraft. The wingspan is 1.21 meters (47.5 inches) and it weighs 1.55 kilograms (3.41 pounds.) Power is direct drive from an Aveox 1409/3Y brushless motor to an aero-naut 9.5 x 7 prop and 10 pushed RC2400 cells. Flight controls are rudder, elevator, aileron and motor.

Lazy Bee
by Trevor Hewson

Trevor came from England and added Aspach to a vacation in France and Germany. Although he was more interested in passively observing the event, Trevor still brought his Lazy Bee and flew on Friday when the weather was more accommodating. His classic 8-year-old Lazy Bee was built from plans. Power is from a Kyosho 480T (540-size car motor), Olympus 2.3:1 belt drive gearbox, and 9x6 APC prop. The ESC is a [Gordon] Tarling MicroStar 20 and is uses a 7x1700SCR battery pack. It weighs 964 g (2 lbs 2 oz.) and it has a flight time of about nine minutes.

Brown B-2 Miss Los Angeles
by Jürgen Bestenlehner

The red Miss Los Angeles is scratch built from balsa and covered in Oracover. The wingspan is 1.8 m (70.87 in). The wing loading is about 83 g/dm2. The length is 1.75 m, and it weighs 4.5 kg (9.9 lbs). The motor is an HP 355-50-9, which directly drives an Extron 16.5x12 wooden prop. The ESC is a Schulze Smart-75bo and the battery is a 28xRC2000 pack. It uses Graupner C-508 standard servos and the model took Jürgen about 500 building hours. Its flight time is around six minutes.

Pitts S2-A
by Andreas Decker

This Pitts S2-A kit is available from Höllein, along with similar designs like a Giles, a P-51, and a Me-109, which are designed and manufactured by Andreas at AFF. This Pitts is all balsa. With a 65 cm (25.6 in) upper wingspan and 58 cm (22.83 in) lower wingspan, the wing loading is approximately 38 g/dm2. The length is 61 cm, and it weighs in at 550 g (1.21 lbs) minimum. The motor is a Speed 400/7.2v, and it is using a Graupner FG 1.85:1 gearbox, and Graupner 8x4 Slim Prop. The ESC is a Schulze Slim 15be and the battery is a 10x600AR. Andreas had no documented flight time for me, but I would suspect around ten minutes. He is using a Multiplex Pico 4/5 receiver. (EU)

Albatross
by Christian Ramoser

This Czech kit sold by PAF in Germany appeared in last year's review, but this year I have a 28-second movie; the model has no new alterations. As noted last year, Christian enlarged the wingspan by 8 cm to 1.5 m (59 inches), and the tail is 16% larger too. Flaps and a second-step water hull were also added and all-up-weight is 1.24 kg (2.73 lbs). Power is supplied by two Speed 400 7.2v motors, turning 3-blade 5.8-inch VarioPROPs that are set with 2.9 to 3.3-inch pitch. Static thrust per motor is 450 grams at 12,000 RPMs and 13 amps. Each motor has a Kontronik Rondo for thrust mixing and they're hooked up to an 8xKR1400AE pack. Flight time is around fifteen minutes. (Movie) 1.2 Mb

Gee Bee
by Martin Hoeller

This little thing is cute! To keep the weight to a minimum, Martin created a basic fuselage skeleton out of little else but balsa stringers. The wings don't even have a leading edge, just a carbon fiber spar with webbing, and a small balsa trailing edge; every other rib was left out too. The cowl is foam, and much of the structural integrity comes from the iron-on Oracover. Because it is adhering to very little balsa surface, the skin regularly needs a blast of heat to keep it taut. Nevertheless, this thing flies nice...although, of course, it's not very crash resistant. Martin's Gee Bee is scratch built. The wingspan is 1.2 m (47.25 in), and the wing area is 15 dm2. The length is 90 cm, and it weighs 1.6 kg (3.52 lbs). Power comes from a Hopf Viper 500-16 brushless motor, a Maxon 3.7:1 gearbox, and a Rudi Freudenthaler 15x13 folding prop. He is using a Kontronik 3S 70-6-18 ESC, and the battery is a 10xRC2400 pack (pushed). Flight time is around five minutes and twenty seconds.

Twin Klemm L-25
by Franz Schmid

This giant model was here last year, but it didn't fly because of the terrible weather. This year it wasn't much different, but despite a strong wind, there were sunny breaks in the weather and Franz elected to fly. His scratch-built Klemm L-25 remains unchanged except he added cockpit windscreens and some small finishing touch-ups. The wingspan is 6.5 m (21.33 ft), and the wing area is 4 m2. The wing loading is 25 g/dm2, and it weighs just a few grams under 20 kg (44 lbs). Two Ultra 2000-5 motors turn one home built 4.8:1 belt-drive gearbox and a 32x21 Kraut prop. The ESC is a Schulze 120-180Ao Dino, and it uses two 24xCR3000 battery packs in parallel. It is constructed from plywood and balsa. (Movie) 2.0 Mb

Bearcat
by Holgar Peters

Holgar recently installed a self-built Torquemax LRK brushless motor. This Aussenlaufer, or outside spinning motor, is like the Köhler or aero-naut Actro motors. As he put a prototype together, Ludwig Retzbach highly detailed its development and construction in issues 4/2000 and 1/2001 of the German magazine elektroModell. The design provides tremendous torque and is well suited for big props in direct-drive applications. You can guess how this small model bolts around with just a relatively small Graupner 9x6 CAM prop!

Built from a Model Designs plan, this 10-year-old Bearcat is all balsa, and covered with Silkspan and diluted white glue. The wingspan is 1.2 m (47.24 in), and the wing area is 25 dm2. The length is approximately 90 cm, and it weighs roughly 1.3 kg (2.86 lbs). The ESC is a Jeti 40A-Opto (non-BEC), and the prop is a Graupner 9x6 CAM prop. It uses an 8x2000 Panasonic NiMH battery pack. At full throttle, it draws 25 amps, and its flight time is about ten minutes.

JR64 Diablotin Super
by Claus Tønnesen

The stunt-flying Diablotin comes in different variations from the company JR Models. Claus has featured his for quite a while and can really let this devil loose. He doesn't hesitate to display its short duration vertical hover a few times after whipping it around the sky. The balsa ARF kit is covered in Oralite. The wingspan is 1.55 m (61 in), and the wing area is 77 dm2. The length is 1.67 m, and it weighs 2.295 kg (5.05 lbs). The motor is a direct drive HP 300/30/A2 brushless, powering an APC Wide 13x4 prop. The ESC is a Schulze Future 45ko specially made for half-throttle flying. Unless hovering, Claus has to throttle way back, hence the half-throttle ESC design, or this snake can bite! It's simply too snappy to keep the gas at full while flying twists and turns. He is flying his Diablotin on a 14xCP1700 battery, and show flight times are roughly four minutes long. This setup is pulling 53 amps at full throttle. (Movie) 1.3 Mb

Bearcat
by Melf-Heiko Mast

Melf-Heiko's Bearcat is the same design as Holgar Peters' Bearcat, except that it's noticeably slower. Why you ask? Power is supplied by a Speed 600 Race 8.4v motor, PowerGear 2.5:1 gearbox, and an APC 10x8 prop. It's also covered with Oracover and weighs about 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs), roughly 200 grams (7 oz.) more than Holgar's Bearcat. He is using a Schulze Slim 35be ESC and the battery is an 8xRC2000 pack. The flight times for Melf-Heiko's Bearcat run around seven minutes.

de Havilland 84 Dragon
by Melf-Heiko Mast

This DH 84 is 1:4.8 scale, and scratch built from balsa and covered in Polytex from Jamara. Melf-Heiko built it two years ago during his 8-week winter vacation while at his university. The wingspan is 3.08 m (121.26 in), the wing area is 160 dm2, and the wing loading is 69 g/dm2. The length is 2.18 m, and it weighs 11 kg (24.2 lbs). Its Power comes from two Robbe Sport 650/8 motors, each with a Schulze 40 amp opto ESC and a 24xRC2000 battery pack, for 48 batteries total. The props are 13x7 APC (no gearboxes). Flight time is around 6 minutes, and a nice feature is a very bright 2-amp/12-volt landing light in the nose, which is powered by 7x500 mAh cells. Melf-Heiko uses a Graupner MC-20 radio and the model has four servos. (Movie) 1.7 Mb

Russian Yak-9
by Heinz-Gerd Kottmann

Although it's four years old, this 1:5 scale model didn't fly very well last year at Aspach due to center of gravity problems. Heinz-Gerd solved that and now it's a really stable beast. His balsa Yak is built from plans, and it's covered with a supply store textile iron-on covering. The wingspan is 1.98 m (77.95 in), the wing area is about 72 dm2, and the wing loading is around 90 g/dm2. The length is 1.7 m, and it weighs around 6.5 kg (14.3 lbs). The power system is an Ultra 2000-5 motor, and self-built 3.6:1 belt drive gearbox, turning a Menz 20x14 wooden prop. The ESC is an old Simprop S 90, and battery pack is a 30xRC1700. The retracts are self-built and the flight time is around five minutes. (Movie) 1.4 Mb

Junkers JU-52
by Jürgen Ide

Jürgen, assisted by his brother Hans-Dieter Ide, have been active in eflight for about 10 years. For the most part, they've only worked with scale models. This 1:9 scale JU-52 is a 2-year-old Fiber Classics kit. It was converted to electric power from day one. It has a wingspan of 3,25 m (127.95 in). The length is 2.1 m, and it weighs around 15 kg (33 lbs). The wing motors are Lehner 35/50/10s direct drive to 11x7 APC props, and in the nose is an HP 320/40/7 direct drive to an 11x6 APC prop. Each motor has its own self-built 40-amp opto ESC. All three were built about 10 years ago and each weighs in between 40 to 50 grams. The plane has 22x1700 sub-C cells per motor (66 cells total), and each motor draws about 23 amps. The plane is controlled with a Graupner MC-20. (Movie) 1.5 Mb

Me-163B
by René Maasbacher (left, pilot)
and Olaf Lenkeit (right, builder)

Olaf relied on many samplings from a Vega Sunshine Me-163B kit, and then he set out to semi-scratch build his own. The fuselage is fiberglass and wings are balsa-covered foam. Oracover with a woven-like surface (but I recall it's not Oratex) was ironed on and then airbrushed with Revell paint. The wingspan is 1.8 m (70.87 in). The length around 1.2 m, and it weighs 5.2 kg (11.44 lbs). The Motor is an HP 370/30/A3 brushless, direct driving an APC 12x11 prop. the ESC is a Schulze Future 58bo and the battery is a 30xRC2400 pack. Its flight times are between four and five minutes, and while it looks fat in the sky, it flies fast! (EU)

No Name Slow-Flyer
by Reiner Barkhofen

This unique little model is scratch built from balsa and covered in Oracover Lite. It has a 1.2 m (47.25 in) wingspan, 60 dm2 of wing area, is 98 cm long, and weighs 966 g (2.13 lbs). Power is delivered by two Speed 400/7.2v motors, direct driving the aero-naut 6x5 props. The ESC is from Simprop, and the battery is a 7x1400AE pack. The flight times are around fifteen minutes. Of course, the V-tail utilizes delta mixing. Reiner's radio is a Graupner MC-15.

Dornier DO-335
by Heinz-Gerd Kottmann

The last model in Aspach 2001 Part I crashed during its very first test flight on Friday, 14 September. Yet, just looking at the underside and landing gear shows what a nicely detailed model it was. Unfortunately, it simply took off with too little speed, quickly entered a takeoff stall, winged over, and nosed hard into the ground. Since the model's basic design needs to fly fast, the mishap was a simple speed misjudgment as pilot Heinz-Gerd Kottmann stood behind it at the end of the runway. Although badly damaged, the good news is that the Dornier has been rebuilt and is ready for another test flight. This time, Gerd has two new custom-built Aussenlaufer, or outside spinning motors, similar to the Köhler or aero-naut Actro motors. These will supply massive torque and additional thrust that the original 20-year-old Keller 40/10 brushed motors couldn't achieve. Heinz-Gerd would like to bring the model back to Aspach in 2002.

The wing and tail were scratch built from balsa, and covered in Silkspan and lacquer paint. The fiberglass/epoxy fuselage was a hard-to-find and limited Bossman semi-kit, originally molded by Hermann Rommler. The wingspan was 2.03 m (79.92 in). The wing loading was about 110 g/dm2. The length was 1.35 m, and it weighed 6.1 kg (13.42 lbs). The original Keller motors were wired in series, and they supplied power to the two, 12x6 CAM props. The current was 35 amps per motor. The ESC was a Schulze 45bo, and it used a 24x1700SCR battery pack. The retracts were self-built.

The next installment of this review is Aspach 2001 Part II, and it focuses on the ducted fan models. It includes more information on John Borgen's SAS Airbus A300-B4 and a few more movies. Stay tuned.

All photographs and movies herein are copyrighted © by James Frolik. Any questions? Feel free to e-mail me at my email address that is listed above.