Here is a link to my article about the 2023 NEAT Fair. Hope to see you all at NEAT Fair 2024; the 25th anniversary of this event!
https://www.modelaviationdigital.com..._2024/4163120/

I found myself in Ohio last weekend and finally made it to the USAF Museum. Definitely a bucket list destination for aviation geeks, and admission is free!...Continue Reading

Had another great time at NEAT this year. It was the usual hijinks and tomfoolery. My wife even joined for a bit and got some stick time on “The Great Raspberry”.

Typical of my projects, this one was slow and started/stopped multiple times before completion. The Whitehead #21 was believed (by some) to have flown August 14, 1901, a full two years before the Wright brothers. The flight reportedly took place in Bridgeport, CT, a few miles from where I live. Many local historians have conducted exhaustive research about Whitehead and his aeronautical experiments, the most prominent being William O’Dwyer. His book “History by Contract” revealed a that the Smithsonian and the Wright estate do have an actual contract that allows the Wrights to repossess all artifacts related to their estate if the Smithsonian recognizes anyone other than the Wrights as being the first to fly a heavier than air, powered aircraft. O’Dwyer accused the Smithsonian of not performing their due-diligence by not properly investigating Whitheads claim, and also conspiring to cover up evidence that supported Whiteheads flight. Whatever side of history you believe, it is an interesting story that will never have a definitive conclusion.
The model has a 45” wingspan and is constructed of spruce and balsa. It is powered by two Astroflight mighty micro geared 10’s running on 3s 910mAh packs. It is covered in silkspan and weight 1.5 lbs. It has elevator control and differential thrust for yaw control. I brought it to the NEAT Fair and only managed one powered descent from a hand launch. I will make another test flight when I have a calm day and will hopefully get photo/video evidence of the #21 in flight (unlike Gustave Whitehead in 1901).

Here is a video posted by a club mate with some footage of my Macchi M-16 in flight
https://youtu.be/EJW2lzEWi20?si=Ycfe5seg-YqBzhp_

My wife humored me yesterday and accompanied me to the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City, NY. What a magnificent collection! If you find you self in the greater NYC area, it is definitely worth a visit.
https://www.cradleofaviation.org/...Continue Reading

At the Neat Fair last year, I was making a flight at dusk with my Flybeam. There was another pilot flying a foamy P-51 through the pattern. We ultimately collided, and the P-51 got shredded while the Flybeam was relatively unscathed. I thought it would be fun to make a logo for the Flybeam. Perhaps I should give it a name; Nocturnal Nuisance or Midnight Menace?

Try some built-up sliced ribs for your next project!
https://www.modelaviation.com/Sliced...od-of-Building

Ever since we moved into a house with a pool, I’ve had ideations of building a small RC model that could take off and land from it. I reduced the Jupiter Duck plan to 60%, giving the model a 16” wingspan. It is built from 2mm depron with bamboo skewers for bracing. I originally had a 1S Spektrum brick in it, but replaced this with 2S. The finished model has a color scheme loosely based on a pre-WWII French naval pattern. The trim is done with tissue and markers with an over coating of polycrylic for water resistance. The name on the side, “Bombardier de Palourdes”, translates to “Clam Bomber” as a tribute to the seagulls that drop clams all over our clubs runway to break them open. Flying weight is 2.5oz.

Had a great time at the NEAT Fair as usual. Thanks to Tom Hunt and his crew from the SEFLI Club for sponsoring this iconic event. Thanks also to Paul (Datazman) for chronicling everything with his photographic talents. It was very enjoyable to hang with my club mates from the Connecticut Silent Fliers and Country Squire Modelers. The highlight of the weekend was watching one of the kids I helped break into the hobby make many successful flights. I brought my newly finished E2 Taylor Cub and won best civilian scale with it. I was both shocked and honored. I'm already looking forward to next year...

Here are a few photos of a recently acquired Hercules reed transmitter. It’s an interesting piece of RC history! It’s really incredible that modelers had success flying with these old sets; they must have given their biceps a workout too considering the size and weight of the transmitter.

Just a few more odds and ends to finish up and the Eaglet will be ready for a test flight. The holiday season so far has not been conducive to hobby time; hopefully soon...

I have made some more progress and I’m inching closer to the finish line. I decided to go with the Canadian Snowbirds color scheme. Model is the classic Goldberg Eaglet which has been re-engineered by Balsa Workbench here on RC Groups. Looking forward to a maiden flight in the near future...

Can you guess what I'm building? Coming along nicely so far...

I guess the “stay at home order” isn’t all bad; I had a chance to finish my Gnome HLG. Looking forward to some no-frills soaring..:

I thought I'd share a few photos of my most recent project. I built two L'il Roughnecks for a gentleman here in CT. For those unfamiliar with the design, it was originally published in the November 1963 issue of American Aircraft Modeler Magazine and was afterward kitted by Sterling. It was designed to fly with a single-channel escapement radio and a Cox .010. I'd always wanted to build one and as luck would have it, I got to build two! The buyer wanted the airframes bare so he could do the finish-painting. As you see them, the assembled airframes with no radio gear or power unit have 3 coats of 50/50 nitrate dope and weigh about 3.5 oz each. If you'd like to build your own, the plans can be downloaded here for free on Outerzone.

Great day Saturday! My grandfather, Bud Chappell, was posthumously inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame. Thanks to his flying buddy Pete Bozzo for sponsoring him. I do believe he is smiling down in disbelief...

Here is an old interview from 2012 that I did with Carl Bachhuber during the time I worked for RC Pilot Magazine. Carl is one of the nicest, most genuine people you will ever meet in modeling.

Feature: CarlBachhuber (3 min 36 sec)

I thought I'd share some pictures from my visit to the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach. The collection is exceptional and most of the aircraft are flyable (and are flown regularly). It's certainly worth the trip if you find yourself in the area....Continue Reading

I had a chance to interview Dave Platt for MAN a few years back on a trip to Florida. Dave was very gracious and showed me around his famous workshop and the shed where he keeps many of his models. The interview was condensed to about 3 minutes and was posted on the MAN website for a while. The actual interview was more like 30 minutes so for anyone who's interested, I have posted the interview on Youtube in 5 segments. Here is a link to the first segment:

A Day With Dave Platt clip1 (3 min 8 sec)