‘The Pietenpol Air Camper was @ viens by Berard Hi. Picton pol in Spring Valley, Minn, and first_presented” in’ 1930” by "Modern Mechanics magazine. The “Air Camper" was one of the fist successful, widely Accepted home built ying machines. [ts Powerplant was a cenverted Ford Model Kr"water-cooled automobile engine, developing approximately 40 ~horse- Power. Construction was all wood, with Some sheet aluminum used to cover the leading edge of the wing, as an engine cowl, and on top of the fuselage. While 2 factory-finished Air Camper could be Obtained from the Pietenpol factory for round. $780, the raw materials were heap, and anyone Who Was good at tinkering would find it simple to build. Infact, nothing developed in the follow: ing 40 "years to match the old Als Camper's “combination of "simplicity, PIETENPOL AIR CAMPER BY SID MILLER Free Flight Scale model of the really first successful home built aircraft. Built from magazine performed very well and we know that this little Camper, built from our plans will do equally well! MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS # October, 1973, ‘The old and the new.—best possible example of the older aircratt in comperison with present day planes is shown in this view of the Comper. ruggedness, low cost and docile per- formance. The, ode! in ths article is, based upon the Air Camper as presente Peter MS Bowers and drawn by Robe Parks in the August 1969 issue of American Aircraft Modeler. It (Pete's ‘Air Camper) was built in 1932. from Modern Mechanics plans and obtained by Pete in 1956. He and a friend totally rebuilt and restored it over a period of years, until in 1968 at the Merced Fly-in, it took first place in the class for “Golden Age Monoplanes 1919-1934.” Pete made only one noticeable change other than the use of a three piece wing (fixed center-section and removable outer panels); the wire brac. ing was climinated at the right side of the cockpit in favor of two diagonal struts running from the front center spar to the rear of the engine mounts, Wsawinnoras seen by this photo of the Camper with its winni ‘ond place trophy in the 1972 Scale Masters Con tans, it He painted his Air Camper with “Diana Cream" wings, horizontal tail and wheel discs, the remainder with maroon (fuse- lage, ‘rudder, struts, etc.). Both colors lable in butyrate dope from ‘markings are simple—license ‘#688Y in black on upper right and lower left wings plus both sides of mdder; on both sides of fin—“1930 Pietenpol—restored 1968” in white. He also typed in a short history and instal ed it under plastic in the front cockpit. Note that the radiator up front was not found to be a problem which explains why no windshelds. It is easy to see around when straightahead vision is needed and it takes the chill out of the slip stream. The pilot knows whether he slips or skids his turns when he feels cool air strike one side of his face or the other. Just for comparison isan enviable wiPIETENPOL, the cruising speed was about 70 m.p.h ‘Why was the Air Camper chosen for a Free Flight Scale model? Wel, it all goes back a couple of years to the first Chicago Aeronuts Indocr Scale contest in many years. As chairman of the Indoor committee, I was trying to spark a new interest in’Indoor Scale models and purchased five plans from Micro- dyne Models. These were brought to the next club meeting where quite a bit of interest was shown, The Air Camper caught my eye and I proceeded to build it, The model was easy to build, light, and simple to trim out. Although at the time I had no information as to color scheme, markings, etc.,just a threeview and dimensions on the plans, yet it scored 67 Seale points. This placed it third in a field of 15 entries (high was 84) from some fine builders. The most pleasant surprise was yet to come—the model R.0.G.'d and consistently flew a stable pattern. Although the best time that day was only 45 seconds (it was 20 feet up, under a 30 foot ceiling and climbing when it hit a scaffold), the model has continued to be a most stable flyer with average times of 55-60 sec- fonds. The reason for all this reminiscing is to indicate why it was my choice as a Free Flight Scale subject. To summarize; it is different and yet typical of the many fine home builts of the era, moment arms and parasol wing make for a good flying model, and it had proven itself in Rubber Scale. “The final incentive came along when 1 discovered Pete Bowers’ article (Aug. 69, AAM), with all the photos, draw- ings, and info to do a good job. T decided on a scale of 1-1/4” to equal | ft., which gave the following dimensions: Item Model Wing—Length 3: Wing—Chord 6-1/4" 219 sq. in, 11"notto 34" AM scale (Scale stab would be 9-1/2" x 3-7/8") Rudder—Length 3" 7" 7 Rudder—Width : Fuselage—Length 194" Fuselage—Width 2M" Landing Gear— width ar” oy Dihedral o 23° The above information will be of invaluable assistance in preparing a pres- entation for Scale judging should you desire to use your Air Camper in com- petition. It is worth noting that the Air Camper was easy to trim (more said later), fun to fly, and took second place in the prestigious Chicago Scalemasters ‘Annual All Scale Meet. I: not only came within six points of Ist (out of a total of 444 pts.) but flew consistently and R.O.G.'d ina 20-25 m.p.h, wind. ‘Suggestions and recommendations as made by the Scale judges have been incomporated in the plans and in this article. These three close-up photos of the Camper disclose details of the cockpit and rigging, scale tengine details, and the diesel power plant used to move our machine around the’ skies MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS e October, 1973¥/ Midget Racer a Bucker Jungmeister sO-6h engines Sea 3839 We've Got One For Everyone! Le (THE MINI-FLITE COMPANY « 48 PRINCETON STREET ¢ RED BANK, NEW JERSEY 07701, Mini-Vee cay Formed Mul 2 thannal $22.95 WHY TAKE A CHANCE? The odds are 6 to 1 in your favor with FIREBALL #30 HOT (3 volts) for foster starts #820 STANDARD (2.4 volts) for general use #C15 COOL (1.5 volts) eres pre-ignition All are available in long or short reach. Stick to FIREBALL for the best odds in ‘obtaining the best engine runs. @ FLASH STARTING © UNEXCELLED POWER @ LONGER LIFE @ LOWEST DRAIN Iréball | GLOW PLUGS SWANSON ASSOCIATES Pietenpol Air Camper CONSTRUCTION ‘The only major decision that has to be ‘a model's finish, plus. the mon flisht trims this is Davies Charlton “Dart” which displaces .036 cubic inches and swings a 7” x4 P wood prop fat about 8000 rpm. It handles the 9 02" Ait Camper with ease, starts and runs easily on fuel, comes with its own needed) and fs ‘engine {aod tach are realy raat Gy nal oedr from Stanton Hobby Shop, Ine., 4734 N. 0, ll. 60630, and Hobby # $1.50 per pint, It you keep the fuel in your ‘MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS # October, 1973Se BB canta caneana ONE DESIGN. More than five hundred Sold — and #10 can still beat #500! Length 70 in, mast 72 in. sail area 1100 sq. m., displacement 28 ib. Prefinished fiberglass hull, deck, cabin and eet $165.00 fi. SOLINGH. Seat ‘rom the exciting new Olympic lass ‘three-man Keel boat. Length 80 mn, mast 60 in, sail area 800 sq. in, dsplacoment 18 1B, For American’ Model "Yachting Association 50/800 "M"” clas racing, Prefinished fiberglass hull» and deck, ‘machined east.ron Keel $125.00, BOTH KITS include finished Dacron Sails, spruce spar blanks, stainless raging, brass fittings, and die-cast aluminum fdr, For two. or three-channel 1/e ‘Operation with the. Vortex sal control SEE YOUR HOBBY DEALER! AIL CONTROL UNIT with gel/cetl® ‘ 375.00 Complete Hi-Start For Launching R/C Sailplanes LAUNCH PAIL INCLUDES EVERYTHING YOU NEED 100 foot length of surgical tubing 400 feet of monofilament line. Line storage reel. Nylon Parachute. Detailed instruction booklet, Stake & All Fittings. ;ovides 500 foot altitude from release point Smooth launches help keep models inact. No. 504 STANDARD — $29.95 For models to 3 pounas No. 505 HEAVY DUTY ~$31.95, For models rom 3-5 pounds AIRTRONICS auatity Plus PERFORMANCE 145% E. Montecito Ave. / Serra Madre, Calif. 91024 / (213) 355-6700 refrigerator when not in use, it will last a year of fying. If you are leary of diesels (although the “Dart” is a beginner's dream), 1 would recom mend jon 049 as the next choice. ‘The reason for allthis discussion is, if you 80 0 the Cox you will have to change the spacing of the bearers (holes in firewall) or you may decide to go to radial mounting and ‘iminate the bearers completely. ‘AS you go over the plan to familiarize yourself with the model, you will find it is Mraightforward in its construction with no special tools, jigs, or gimmicks necessa Although che’ model is on the sturdy side and it is not critical to weight (but keep tail ax light as possible), try to choose your wood carefully ‘The model was built with Titebond except the engine compartment, landing gear, and ‘metal parts where epoxy was used. False coat the inside of the engine compartment With epoxy. ‘Fuselage: Make two sides over a Sarin- ‘wrap protected plan. It is usuelly desirable to build both sides at the same time and separate when dry. While sides are drying, cut cut formers A through 1. The two sides are glued to formers B (firewall), C and E which are all the same width and should give you a good Straight box. Then pull and glue the tail posts together, making sure to. Keep fuselage sec tions rectangular and longitudinally straight Glue in c1oss braces, top and bottom (1/8" sq.) and add remaining formers. The stringers are then fitted (note only. former "G" is notched and “I” a piece of 1/8 sq. sanded to shape.) Landing gear is made and glued in place, ‘cockpit detal ‘cabane struts ued in place, fusslage sheeted from AG externaly, with cross. grain on the bottom only). Finally the two side stringers and nese Block added. Wing: Since all ribs are identical it is desirable 9 frst make a template of alurst um or plywood. Construction is. straight forward with leading edge, two bottom spars and trailing edge laid down first. Glue all ribs in place, add top spars, 1/4 sheet tips, and 1/16” sheet leading edge planking. Inset 1/8 sheet (ignore ply note on plan) in four areas ceiving strut anchors and in center section Where cabane struts are glued to ribs. Epovy. aluminum tubing in outboard wing panels and Wire in center section, making sure they fine up accurately. Please note it would be dest able to hive the ailerons and hinged wing ‘seetion (fer easier entry to the rear cockpit) made separate and hinged (like the rudder and stab). It would add to the seale points and Hight timming Tail: Rudder and stabilizer are not conven: tional in design but easy to build. They se made {0 a method invented and written up oy Eric Coates, Scale editor for the Acromodel er magazine of Great Britain (August 1971 WORLD WAR II R/C SCALE _— PLAN inemany packages. exunna7 0 8 we Mate Over 60 60" Hurricane 5.95 x various node! 3 Zero ae MS 333 sccestorias for Ser Spite a0 Reale control, 83" Mosquito S93 Free Flight and S2ie" Skyratder 333 Utontral 56" Gladiator "Gine™ 5.99 are at all dealers. ne hobby. shop is Convenient, send 25e for illustrated catalog. 57” Tiger Moth * 5.95 Y Kit includes fibreglass cow, include canopy, hardware, mandeut parts, itusirated Catalog ~ 25 cents BUD NOSEN ‘Bex 105N, Two Harbors, Minnesota $5616AUTO-START—70 Auto-start - 70 introduces to the aircraft modeler, a high torque, reversible, ‘small (only 2¥2" dia.), lightweight, 12 volt electric starter which will start any engine, .049 to .80 with ease. A must for all r/c pylon racing, as well as finger saver for the sport flyer. Especially good in extreme cold or hot weather, where starting is a problem. Auto-start comes in two models. M-1 is complete with cord, clips, switch installed. New improved drive unit, 2 sizes inserts for spinners or without. M-2 is the same as M-1, but comes with small hi-emp., rechargeable 12 volt battery. Ohio residents add 4% sales tax M-1 $29.95 M-2 $45.95 PENFORD PLASTICS CORP. Po Oa eae eee Reo ignie). Its the best way yet to build a scale thickness, warp free tailplane that will remain ‘warp free T. Select a suitable piece of straight- grained medium hard 1/32 sheet and. place tinder the plan with a piece of carbon paper in betwee 2. Draw over all the spar positions, lead~ ing ‘and trailing edges and rib positions 19 tuansfer them, via carbon paper, to the 1/32 in. sheet. 3. Cut out the sheet to outline shape. 4, Draw a mirror image of the structure ‘on the reverse side of the sheet. This is easily one’ by poking a pin through the sheet at teach Hib position where it joins the leading and trailing edges and join up all holes. '. Glue the structure to one side of sheet using Titebond to prevent warping. Leading edge 3/32 sa, spars'1/8 sq. trailing edge 1/16 Sq. and sibs 1/16" x. 1/8" Spars. should be medium hard, but the rest fairly soft 6. When structure is diy, turn over and repeat procedure. 7. Any “hard points” to hold bracing 914-248-5142 nat UT = {ist GOLDEN-ERA CONTEST OCT. 6th and 7th—-PROCESSING at 9 A.M. SPONSORED BY THE SOMERS R/C CLUB AT THE SOMERS R/C MODEL AIRPORT RT-100 SOMERS, NEW YORK FOR SCALE AND SPORT SCALE MODEL AIRCRAFT OF THE 1921-1939 YEARS. P40's AND THE LIKE HAVE TO HAVE MARKINGS OF THE PRE-SECOND WAR AIRCRAFT. AMA SANCTION #415, C.D. LOU PERRETTI PRE ENTRY FEE PERMITTED $5 TO SOMERS R/C CLUB c/o LOU PEPPETTI C.D. BOX 116 LINCOLNDALE, N.Y. 10540 For infor call or write C.D. (mall pieces of aluminum tubing) and 1/16 Sheeting at center are added now. 3. Using a sanding block, the whole struc ture is now tandd othe sito tape, js ike a ‘chuck. glider” ving although wi Considerably leseffort and dust. 3. Finally join the stb t0 the elevator with’ stiff atminumm “ish “scale” hinges Epoxied to the core, They go. trough ie spars and on top of 1/32 shee core. COVERING Use fine sandpaper to smooth all outer wood surfaces and round former, stringers, Wing leading edge, struts and races (0 prope? shape Cover the model with white, medium weight sikspan worked wet, Apply to coat 1 30/80 dope to entire model, Take off any fuzziness with very fine sndpapet DETAILS & FINISHING Epoxy simit and rigging points in place. Sirs cockpit interiors with walnut ol stain Give center section of wing on cabane struts Epoxy landing gear strats to landing gear wie 914-248-7431 ‘and epoxy spring brass tail skidin place. Paint model-three t0 five coats. of ‘thin paint should do it. Remember~ Sig Diana Cream on ‘wing, slab, and’ wheel discs, remainder’ Sig Maroon, Add instruments to cockpit panels, rigging (black elastic thread) for brace wires, stab, rudder, and aileron control cables. Pin heads Simulate cowl rivets. Build and install radia- tor. I used 1/4 sheet, scored to look like a radiator, wrapped top’and bottom with 1/4" wide paper, and a piece of aluminum topped by a 1/4" balsa dist to represent the filler eap and neck, Dummy engine was made from 3/32” sheet balsa, pins, electrical wire, and. alumi rum tubing. Make sure it will clear your eylinder head. Axle is a single piece of 1/16 music wire approximately 8" long which rests on the landing gear where the gear is wrapped and soldered. Itcan either be Wrapped with elastic Cord to represent “bungee” shock cord on I airplane or wire-wrapped and soldered. A. heat way ‘to mount your wheels (I used 2-1/2" Williams Bros. Vintage Wheels), is 10 dip on a washer and then a piece of 1/16" inside diameter brass tubing and solder in place. Put your wheel, on next, then cut the tubing off about an 1/8" longer than the axle and squeeze flat with a plier. Makes a real neat, scalelike way of holding your wheels License numbers were cut out of black MonoKote trim film, but white lettering on fin would have to be hand-lettered. Check details in body of article dealing with real Air Camper. FLYING The model should balance at or slightly forward of the point shown on the rib detail. not, add weight to, nose (glue lead inside cowl) until balanced. On a calm or nearcalm ay, test glide your model over long grass. Use the’ stabilizer to adjust for any stall (bend down slightly), or dive (bend up slightly). 1 tused the nidder offset about 1/8" to the right for the glide. The model flew to the left under power and circled right in the glide. ‘Once the slide is satisfactory, and you hhave un the engine enough to be familiar with it—with the engine running smoothly (but not peak rpm) ahd about 15 seconds of fuel remaining-hand launch the model on a level path into the breeze. ‘A’Top Flite nylon 7.x 4 was used for flying with the Dart diesel. The model should have'a gradual climb with circle 10 the left. Down. thrust is built into the model to compensate forthe speed/ift variation be- MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS # October, 1973‘SSNa 150 AEROBAT R/C Sport Scale ALL BALSA KIT 65" WING SPAN -45—.60 ENGINE SIZE 3323 FREDERICKSBURG RD., SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 78201 AREA CODE 512 Performs like the real one... As a TRAINER or for SPORT AEROBATICS! PHONE 733-8377 2000 ZULU ‘ween powered flight and gliding, bur it be necessary to add more down thrust if y model power stalls or goes into a series of mild power stalls. This is easly accomplished by inserting washers at the rear bolts of the ‘beam-mounted Dart or between the engine and firewall for the radial mounted Medallion (049. The power-on flight adjustments should ‘be made by working with the engine thrust line setting, thus leaving the glide adjustments JOIN THE CROWD SUBSCRIBE NOW MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS Serving the Model Now In Its 43rd Year ler World-Wide ‘A Complete Modelers’ Library at your fingertips. RADIO CONTROL, FREE FLIGHT, U |CONTROL, ENGINE REVIEWS, FIELD & BENCH ARTICLES, HIGHLIGHTS OF MAJOR SHOWS AND CONTESTS MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS 1 North Broadway White Plains, N'Y. 10601 Postage: All Other Countries Add $525 Per Year hdl Postage: | Do Not Write In This Space Name Address City. State. ‘Subscription processing norms takes from 6 to 8 weeks, undisturbed The Air Camper is meant for Aying, so experiment with Might adjustments und your ‘model performs well. ‘Once adjusted, your model will take off from any reasonably flat Surface and land realistically too. My model has over 30" Mights (live in competition), Under all kinds of weather conditions, and Stl Joos new In conclusion: 1 know many modelers have’ thing” against Scale models, and Pethaps rightfully so. At so many: NATS, 1 have sen beautifully built models, represent ing. hours of work, demolished ona fist Might. When 1 set out to design thix model, 1 set crsain goals Pick a model that by layout, proportions, momeat arms, etc. meets the siandards of & good Tree Tight model. (IC had. already Proven itself to,be a consistent, stable Myer as Im Indoor Rudder Seale model) “tshould be interesting, different, attract attention. Cabin models (high wing) ly well ‘nut hew muuch more interesting are a parasol Wingand open cockpits "Construct it in a manner that i simple, rugged, not too heavy, and sil with enough etal to gain those Scale points The Pietenpol Ait Camper meets all these crite Ons Some jo directed to: me at 524 Corinthia Cle Grove Village, I. 60007 final word of caution: limit t fuel in the tank or be prepared for zing. Questions or comments may be Ek MODEL AIRPLANE NEWS # October, 1973