Phil's News Bits 14.09.09 Gloucester cooker

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though or tonight or apparently

this letter is posted at http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/phil/news49.htm it may look better and the links will work


Whose flying what and where on the slope, go to http://www.rcmf.co.uk/4um/index.php/board,247.0.html to find out.

why not join? and post, this will help the last few slope flyer together 

 

Gloucester MFC news
  http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/blog09/

September 13th Autumn Barbeque,


VIDEO
 http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=highpowerworker&hl=en&emb=0&aq=f# 

Helicopter linesman from David  

This a video I took last year on a warm summer's day, there was very little wind or thermal lift, so I was not able to get much height. The model was my 4 metre Pegase, French copy of an ASW19

http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/video/frocester.wmv 

Andy's Spitfire

 

Andy's Spitfire 



Slope & soaring 

Re. NE winds, we regularly visit the eastern edge of the Black mountains near Pandy. There is an excellent 2000 ft NE ridge which extends several miles from Abergavenny to Hay on Wye. It is unobstructed from the NE and is long enough that any drift must only gp over it, not around the sides - it works well even in very light winds. Med and myself went there on Sunday, the lift was very strong and smooth and I took these aerial pics. The downside is that it is a long drive (>1hr from Bristol) plus a harsh 800ft climb to the top which takes another 1/2 hour.

see photos

Selsley
I have taken some measurements at Selsley, The wind is square onto the slope at 338 degrees approximately NNE at about 10 degrees east it is very hard to use the slope lift, any thing farther east and you can only get up using thermal lift.
We will have to give Leckhampton a try GL53 9QL http://www.ppmfc.com/images/locations/slopesmap.jpg 

Hovering buzzard

http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/forums/british-birds/9484-buzzard-hovering.html 

Last week we saw a buzzard hovering kestrel style, this behavior has been seen before, but it was the first time I had seen it and believed that only kestrels did it. 
A bird forum says they only do it when there is a light up current of air

Monday
Frocester was perfect late afternoon, the wind dropped to near zero with plenty of smooth thermals. I flew my Starlight and Mike flew his Nano Flow and HLG. About 6.00PM light slope lift started.
 I was very lucky to  be able to fly in such good conditions as it was not forecast, I spotted the wind turbine facing NW and nearly stopped and rushed home to grab a model, unfortunately my brain was not in gear and I forgot my new home brew floater that's  been waiting 6 weeks for a test flight
I had to scratch with some small bubbles of lift to get up, later I picked up 3 thermals over the  trees to the left of the slope where the crows are often seen thermalling when there is no slope lift, one 400 metres straight out and one from over the trees at the far end of the paragliders bowl, this one stayed in the same place for ages slowly drifting NE, I returned to this many times and used the height up by chasing crows

Tuesday
A strong breeze at Haresfield, Don flew his Fox and Den his ASW27, until the radio packed up.  

 Wednesday  
Cam Long Down, the wind is 90 degrees to the slope when it appears to come from the Dairy Crest factory, I make this 21 degrees east very close to NNE. We should be able to fly CLD from 350 degrees to about 40 degrees east..
Landing is harder when the wind is square on, 
DSing is possible on this slope, and is easier with the wind from the south see http://www.ebley.plus.com/video/quickcamds.mov   

Wednesday 9th  Sept:
Phil and I arrived at Selsley at the same time and it was obvious that there was a lot of East in the wind making it un-flyable.

After a few taunts from Phil about excursion and laziness – I said OK it’s CLD then.

It was warm and after a relatively easy trudge to the top (Phil stopped en-route, claiming he had a phone call but I knew he was sneaking a quick rest!

We were treated to a NNE wind (10 mph?) bang on the slope.  

Phil made an interesting comment: After flying in a gale at Haresfield with his Zagi he had to add some clicks of down trim at Cam Long Down. I chucked my slipstream off, having last flown at Haresfield in the same gale and had to do the same. Just goes to show that wind speed and lift are unrelated from slope to slope.

Phil went on to fly his (no engine any more) Mini Ellipse and it was screaming, literally. He was praising it’s thermalling ability but it seemed to tip stall after the second or third tight banked rotation. Strange.  

I flew my Miraj and it went well, the lift is so smooth at CLD. Landing is a bit difficult, as you mostly all know but there is a nice soft wall of bracken just in front of the slope edge, if all else fails. 

Guy  

Thursday  

Friday
The wind was north East, the one direction we don't have a slope for, a little too east for Cam Long Down and too north for Rodborough.
I went to Leckhampton (GL53 9QL) and wind was square on, a 20 minute drive and a 10 minute walk. The lift was good, very smooth with a good view of Cheltenham see http://www.ebley.plus.com/photo/leckhampton1.jpg 
map

Phil  

Saturday
The wind was blowing west at 9.00AM, while driving back from Wotton Under edge I spotted the wind was blowing  NW at 10.30.
I went home and got a model and flew at Selsley from 11.00AM till 1.00PM, during that time the wind had picked up and gone NE. I had managed to get a good height and was able to fly between the areas of lift without needing the slope lift
Phil

Saturday afternoon I ventured out to Leckhampton.. There were a lot of PGs there spread out over the best part of the LZ. I tried further to their left and flew the Easy Glider in some good lift, eventually the wind dropped off and all the PGs packed in. EG still soared around quite well. Finally I plucked up the nerve to throw my new scale model, the 2M Fauvel, over the edge. She soared better than the EG, quicker response to the controls, a joy to fly. Parking it was still very awkward though so gently placed it in a handy little birch.

Tony

more photos at http://www.ebley.plus.com/photo/?M=D

Sunday  
There still seems a lot of confusion about northerly winds.

it's NNW Selsley, North or NNE Cam Long Down, NE  Leckhampton, ENE  Rodborough

We flew at Selsley, the lift was very poor early on, odd bubbles were found but mostly a walk down the hill, we think the mist delayed the thermal activity.

Mid morning a light breeze from the west started, at first very week, but built up enough for most models to fly, later it turned north and then NE, it was possible to fly but not pleasant

Mike's photo of my elderly Starlight landing 

andy-homebrew.jpg (49336 bytes)13/

Sunday I went in search of another slope with lift in the NE wind. I ended up in Kingsclere. Strong wind, occasionally blustery, No problem for the Fauvel though, spent a very happy afternoon there. Renamed the
model 'The Hilla' cos she soars so well. Also had a usable LZ.
Tony

Photos http://www.ebley.plus.com/photo/Hilla%20at%20Kingsclere.jpg 
 http://www.ebley.plus.com/photo/Hilla%202nd%20outing.jpg  

SCSA News
Next club meeting 8.00PM Wed 16th Sept, Bring a model you have just built or are building

 

FOR SALE

 http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/for-sale.htm , For use by club members and others in Gloucestershire, send to for-sale@glos-mfc.co.uk

 

newly listed  Items 

Wanted

List of items fore sail  for details  

3DX SOLD

Spektrum DX7
Pigeon 450 (Trex clone)
RCV 91CD Four Stroke
Edge 540 electric RTF
Connectors, Heat Shrink,  Connectors, Carbon Fibre 
Wanted, a Din to Square Futaba trainer lead. 
10" x 5" x 4mm thick gyro tape, this can be used to mount gyros, rec, servos and more . £3 a sheet  
Cyanoacrylate (Super Glue) thin type 20g container  . 75p a tube  
Zippy lightmax 2200 20c 3cell batteries fitted with deans plugs . £20  
flightmax 130mah batteries. For the mcx or vapor £3 each 
Flightmax 800 3 cell batteries suitable for Trex 250 £10 each 
HXT 900 micro servo 9g/1.6kg/.12 sec £4 each
Also a 6mm heli starter drive £5.00 again new never used.
Hitec focus 6, Sanwa vanguard 6, 
Sanwa RD6000 sport, field box with control panel,
Futaba crystals RX88, , RX71, RX71 dual conversion,
Wanted  RX84 crystal,



 

Events & Shows

This isn't intended to be the definitive list of all the events and shows in the country, just ones that might be of interest to club members

Sept - 12 & 13   AEROTOW at Middle Wallop
September 13th Autumn Barbeque  http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/ 
13TH SEPT Oxford model show
OUR ANNUAL SHOW IS ON THE  AND HAS ALL TYPES OF R/C MODELS. THERE WILL BE ALL DAY FLYING, TRADE STANDS, PYROTECHNICS, ON SITE REFRESHMENTS, INSIDE AND OUT, LICENSED BAR, CHILDREN QUAD BIKES AND MUCH MORE.
Sept - 26 or 27 AEROTOW at Siege Cross Farm
25-27th Sept 3D heli championship  J8 M5 http://www.3dchampionship.co.uk/ 
3rd October Indoor flying at Bentham 6.00 - 8.00PM http://www.glos-mfc.co.uk/ 
11th Oct XC West Mendip www.slopesoaring.org.uk/wmsa/
Oct - 17 or 18 Aerotow  at Siege Cross Farm




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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