Radio Controlled Aircraft News
Helicopter Pictures from Fly-in held Sunday 3rd October
Colin Block has sent in some magnificent pictures of a Trex 700 helicopter doing its stuff at the recent Funfly event held at the club field.
SRFC Fly-in and Auction Event - Sunday 3rd October
We are holding a Fly-in and Fund raising Event on Sunday the 3rd October (11am onwards). If you have any RC related equipment you'd like to donate to the Club please bring it along. All equipment donated will be auctioned and the proceeds used to bolster the club's development fund. The BBQ will be fired up and burgers will be aplenty.
More SRFC Summer 2010 BBQ Pictures
Colin Block has kindly sent in some pictures from the Barbecue held recently at the field which I've added to the gallery.
SRFC Summer 2010 BBQ Pictures
Graham Dwyer has sent in pictures from the Barbecue held last Sunday. He also sent in a link to a YouTube video of the epic flight by John Armstrong & Terry Heffernan of his "difficult" DH-88 Comet!
Newcastle FunFly
SRFC Summer BBQ - Sunday 22nd August
We are holding the official SRFC Summer 2010 Barbecue on the 22nd August. As usual the food will be excellent, the weather perfect and we might have a flight or two. Put it in your Diary!
New Pictures
I've added some pictures to the photo gallery sent in by Garry Keogh. They are of his new Piper J-3 Cub undergoing its maiden flight. In addition Garry sent in a couple of pictures taken at Newcastle airport of some of the full-size planes that displayed at the recent Bray Air show.
Laois Scale Champs
Graham Dwyer has sent in a few pics of some very nice Scale models from the Laois Scale Championship held recently at Laois Model Aero Club. Well done to Graham who won the bronze medal in the Novice section at the event.
News Archive tidy up
I've finally got around to fixing the broken links in the news archive section of the site. It covers Club News for the years 2002 to 2009 (apart from 2005 which is mysteriously missing - Bob?).
From 2002 we have Bob Finley flying a very realistic looking Scale Irish Coast Guard Rescue Sikorsky S-61 helicopter. Also from that year are pictures from the Turkey and Ham Fun Fly.
From 2003 we have pictures taken at the Laferte event of that year. 2004 seem to have been the era of Weasel glider flying. From 2006 we have Garry the cook and the emergence of the Zagi that was to go on to dominate the Turkey and Ham Fun Fly events in future years.
In 2007 we have some nice pictures of the SRFC Heli Fly-In and in 2008 the move to the new field is documented. Garry also appears pictured in some very fetching bright red shorts.
In 2009 the Zagi dominates another Turkey and Ham and that Scale Sikorsky S-61 reappears.
July's Newsletter
July's Newsletter, expertly produced by Garry Keogh is now available. Contents include the latest club news, some excellent tips from Tim Costello and a message from our Safety Officer about how important it is to take care when around radio controlled planes and helicopters. Click the link to view the PDF.
Clubhouse renovations - July 1st
After years of planning and fund raising we have finally started work on an extensive program of renovating our club house. The main purpose of the work is to have a dry, modern comfortable and dry roof over our heads.
Thanks to Denis and Terry for repairing the leak on the club house roof. (and thanks to Colin Block for the photo)
Leinster Scale Championships
Graham Dwyer, Ian Mullen, Colin Block, Bob O'Donnell and Steve Leung have sent in a bunch of great new photos, including some from the Leinster Scale Championships held in Portloais recently. I've added them all to the gallery so click on the link below to check them out.
New look SRFC Website
The SRFC website has finally got a long overdue makeover. Hope you like it. If you have any suggestions or content for the site please send them to: srfcmail@gmail.com
3DX Heli
Pictures and Videos from the radio controlled helicopter event held on the 15/16th May 2010 at Waterford Model Flying Club
Support the Club - Tim Costello - January 2010
Now that Spring is on the way it is time to review the last year and decide what we are going to do in the coming one. The 11 year Sunspot Solar Cycle is on the rise again and promises settled weather for the next 5 years. This is good news for modelers who have solar panels on their house roof, or for the few of us who have those wafer-thin panels on their model's wing. The promise of free power is nearly here with no need for on-board Lipos or engines, rendering my recent acquisition of an OS Wankel as possibly a novelty item only.
This letter is also a plea to those great modelers who continue to support the club by renewing their subscription each year but cannot get up to the field as often as they would like. Don't worry about that, it happens all of us to some degree. I think it equates to a modeler who has great plans to finish building that special scale model. It is so easy for the months to roll by while you make a first-class instrument panel for instance or you search for the correct paint colour. But the end result will surely stun the guys in the club and in turn inspire them to try their hand at scale also. One immediate way to quickly return to the club field is to buy a RTF, Ready To Fly, model. These are even more complete than the ARTF, Almost Ready To Fly, type with servos, receiver and battery already fitted. Have a look at Sussex Model Centre and pop 'RTF' into their little search box. Your return to active flying will be assured - and welcome.You are all aware of the protracted negotiations with our farmer that have concluded with us having a new field but with a higher rental cost. Once we learned how to land low over the hedges there was no problem and it really has made us all better at landings. All the more reason for us to depend as never before on keeping up our numbers, quite simply to permit us to pay the rental for the field. When you compare our modest membership fee with, say, a Pitch and Putt club or a Contract Bridge group, then we are doing well. But just look what you get in exchange. The company of the nicest bunch of guys you could hope for. Good natured, witty and generous to a fault. Above all, none of that appalling clan-group activity or yore with the isolated grouping of the famous Grumpy old Men. No, our clubmen and women today are gregarious and knowledgeable in all the arts and crafts of aeromodelling - buying, building and flying. Above all though, is the number of us with children who have discovered The Great Truth. And that is the benefit of mental and physical well-being that a young person feels at being an aeromodeller, especially in the formative teenage years. Just think of the vast amount of expertise they will pleasurably and painlessly absorb and accumulate over the years: Draughtmanship, when designing your own model, Meteorology, how TV forecasts apply to the Sugarloaf area, Woodwoking, balsa, plywood and hardwoods, Cutting, drilling, sanding, Metalworking and Soldering, Electrical and digital Electronics, both mains and low voltage, Understanding Battery selection and handling, Engine operation, both model and leading to full-size, Fuel and Glue Chemistry, Manual Dexterity when building/assembling, Hand-Eye Co-ordination when flying, The Science of Aeronautics. The battle between lift, drag, weight and thrust while keeping an eye on engine thrust, revs. and horses. The Social Graces, mixing and working with others. I think you will find very few, if any, teenage tearaways or substance-challenged rebels, aeromodelling is just too fascinating and is a great filler of idle moments. This is indeed The Great Truth. So guys and girls, why not re-join the fold. Like in the definition of the best of friends, you will be welcomed as though you never were really away.