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| The sport of Control Line |
| Is there more to do than just fly in circles? |
Welcome. The Mpls. Piston Poppers is a club for flying control line (c/l) model airplanes. We are based in the Minneapolis area. This club is open to all ages, colors, genders, and opinions. The only requirement is that you are a member of the AMA (Acadamy of Model Aeronautics)- this is for insurance reasons.
The club currently meets at the Hennepin Tech. College every Sunday afternoon and Wednesday evening during the non-winter months to fly. The club holds its meeting the last Thursday of every month in the EAA building of the Anoka Blaine airport at seven-thirty. We also hold a club picnic every year at our flying site and are part of Blaine Aviation Days. Another annual activity is our January first freeze fly where we go out to prove how much we love our hobby by flying our models in any weather.
visit the AMAs website?
www.modelaircraft.org
How do they work?
C/L planes have small motors for power. These motors run on a fuel mixture of caster oil and nitromethane. Therefore, there is a wide range of engine sizes and performance levels to choose from. There are also many different manufacturers to choose from for both engines and airplanes. The plane is controlled with a handle similar to a kite that fits in one hand and is a C shape. There are two lines coming from the handle that are made of small cable. These lines are usually between forty and sixty feet long. The lines connect to the airplane at a bellcrank assembly. The bellcrank is a "T" shaped piece with a small hole at both ends of the horizontal arms that the lines from the handle are tied onto. On the end of the vertical arm, which is shorter than the horizontal arms, there is a series of three slightly larger holes that have a pushrod inserted into one of them, the other end of the pushrod is connected to one of three holes in a control horn, a piece perpindicular and connected to the planes elevator. When one of the lines is pulled by the action of the handle being tilted up or down (the top being moved toward or away from your body when holding the handle at arms length). This same side of the bellcrank is pulled which either moves the pushrod slightly to the front or back of the plane, this movement tilts the control horn and ultimately moves the planes elevator to make the plane go up or down as it travels around you and you spin counter clockwise. C/L planes are fast and dangerous, so fly safe. If you don't have one yet, we have links to some dealers or ask the Piston Poppers e-mail at rccars@aol.com or RoWoodss_87@hotmail.com
types of C/L flying
Sport flying-
Sport flying is for those who, for what ever reason, do not wish to fly competitively. Sport is a very rewarding way to get started or advance your current skill.
skill level-ability to stay off the ground
Combat-
Combat is a fight between two pilots. This fight is done by tying a streamer to the back of each plane. The object is to get a "cut" on the other persons streamer by hitting it with your planes propeller. The person with the most "cuts" when either plane runs out of fuel wins
skill level-must be able to maneuver with another pilot with you.
Stunt-
stunt flying is a competition where one person at a time flies a set pattern of tricks that must be done with precision and concentration. stunt is a good place to advance skills needed for racing and combat.
skill level-someone who has been successful in doing a few tricks when sport flying.
Mouse racing-
Mouse racing is a race between several pilots at one time. The planes are powered by 1/2a size motors.
skill level-Mouse racers must be able to fly with several people at the same time.
more to come
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