How about the Hawk kits??? are they about done and are "being built ... somewhere ... as we speak ..."????????

Jack, she looks superb, and I trust she flies as good as she looks.

Well done.

I believe the Hawk kit is just about done. Mark Miller says the fuselage plug / mold is just about done, but he's moving to St. Louis. I believe the kits won't be released until after his move.

Jack

First winch launch will be tomorrow at Moriarty, NM. I will probably take it semi easy for the first one. A bit harder teh second time, and pedal down and hold fo rthe third. I want to know for sure if the flutter is gone. I actually think this wing is stiffer than my Blue Hawk, but we'll know tomorrow, for sure.

Confusius say:

You launch for show, you land for dough!

But ya gotta launch and stay 10 before landing for dollars kicks in... Plus, my high speed let downs with my Hawk always raise a few eyebrows when the moldie drivers discover it's a woodie! Yep, ya gotta be able to get down sometimes, too...

Getting all those things built into a woodie... Priceless...

JW

I had really hoped to winch launch this model today, but the receiver wouldn't fit. i have receivers ordered but they are on backorder from FMA... bummer.

So winching will have to wait until the receivers get here and I can get over to Amarillo or back to Albuquerque...

Jack

I flew mine today, and had some good flights. Brought it way down for a fast low pass, and she sure is quiet...

I use a strip of teflon plumbers tape on the steel joiners to tighten the fit, and no flutter. I think the problem I had was just the short joiners with a loose fit.

Walter won Hand Launch this morning...

AJ

Well, in case you haven't seen it, the Yardbird has a kid sister, called the Bantam. Those guys in the southeast are cooking up a contest with a limit of 100" span, and $150- for construction, not counting radio. I like that kind of challenge, so when Chuck in Aaaallllaaabbbaaaaaammmaaa contacted me asking for advice, I just got busy and drew it up after we exchanged numerous emails. So far it's been fun. With a blending of Dr. Drela's airfoils, (thank you, sir), it should be a pretty good performer for a 100" machine...

So the cat's outa the bag...

Jack

Well, they were a little strong in Eastern New Mexico last night. Delores, the girls, (our dogs), and I spent about 30 minutes in the reinforced closet last night while the rising, swirling air tore up our new home town. Our worst experience was having to smell Molly's breath... ... Lucky for us, the nearest damage was about a mile and a half away. One auto supply and a camper dealer were wiped out. Several homes on the south end of town were damaged or destroyed and there are some folks in critical condition. Please remember them in your thoughts and prayers.

My railroad wasn't damaged and we were prepared with generators and so on. I was out most of the night and got home around noon. It was absolutely beautiful this afternoon but I wasn't feeling up to going out to fly.

Gonna fly this thang tomorrow. I've made some trim changes and found some odd little warps in my wing that I've worked out. I have also put about 1.5 degrees washout in the intermediate panels... we'll see...

We're OK... Thanks goodness...

Jack

Wow! Those things are nerve wracking!!! Glad y'all are OK and hope the other folks recover.

Went out today and flew several times. Wind was about 12 and the sky was cloudy. She penetrates nicely and what lift I could find I could work. The slight, and I do mean slight, washout paid off well. I am anxious to see how it will do at 6000' over at the Albuquerque club's field just south of Moriarty. Starting to get the kinks worked out of this one.

Jack

Crashed the Yardbird today... ... It went in from about 100' due to some unknown radio situation. I suddenly didn't have it. I was in a steep bank going fast and it wouldn't recover. It continued down until it impacted the desert at near vertical. The left wing at the last poly joint and the nose hit at the same time. The main wing bolt didn't break, but the alignment bolt sheared as the wing twisted around after the impact. I was sure she was totalled.

The damage wasn't bad at all. I was shocked. The fuselage isn't damaged anywhere. There are some slight compression failutes in the trailing edge on the left wing tip panel. I have twisted until I am sure there is no D-tube damage. The alignment bolt stub tore the sheeting on the bottom of the main panel. I still need to look at the spoilers, but I think they are OK. A small chunk of the canopy block is missing on the bottom. I am now convinced that this is the toughest wood fuselage I've ever seen... and worth the trouble. I checked it for splits and cracks, but there are none.

Back to work on the Bantam...

Jack

Wow!

Solid!

I wouldn't be flying again until I had my gear checked. Didn't you say you'd just bought a new 9303?

I had flown the Yardbird 4 times and the Dragonfly 3 times. I had been wanting to practice with the Yardbird so I flew it again, and it had been in the air about 15 minutes when this occurred. It may have just tucked in on me without my realizing it, since I was hot doggin' it coming down. I will probably be increasing the rudder size by 1/2" in chord... and yep, I'll get my radio gear checked out.

Jack