HighPlains
Posts: 2715
Joined: 3/2/2003
From: Over da rainbow,
KS, USA
Status: offline
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Judging by the number of threads on the Quickie list for the past 90 days { 78} - vs. the 7 threads Q40 over the same period, one might think that Q40 is already a dying event. Is it do to higher speeds? I doubt it, since the top speeds are only slightly higher than 428 Quickie. Higher costs? One molded airplane costs about the same as another, engine about the same. Higher difficulty in flying? I think that Q40 are easier to fly than Quickie, though you might make the case that the landings are slightly more difficult. So what is left that presents a barrier to greater numbers of racers and more races? I only see the prop, and I would guess that most would agree.
At the last rules rewrite, I suggested and pushed for changing the fuselage height requirement to the rest of the committee. My reason was that at that time only Mustangs and Mustang derivatives were being built, since they were not exactly following the intent of the rules in terms of cross section with their “speed bump” belly pod radiators. The result was predictable, planes like the Polecat and other Goodyear/Formula One designs were now going to be competitive. I doubt that this change made the designers and sellers of those designs happy, but I believed that for the growth of the event it was necessary.
As far as predicting the future, as an engineer by training, yes I can predict the effects of rule changes. With the engines at a rather stable level of development, we have a fixed, limited amount of horsepower. With the airframe rules static, we have roughly stabilized the airframe drag. Since the propellers have been developed to a rather high level by some of the competitors, then not expecting a radical increase in speeds with composite props is reasonable and predictable.
Letting an event die because changes might not be exactly in your favor seems rather petty. Racing has been on the decline for a long time. We have out-priced, and out-tech’ed too many potential RC fliers from racing. Tony Pacini is correct about what it takes to have contests. Most clubs view racing at their field as a fund raising activity, and that takes entries. When they don’t make the money, they stop having races.
I proposed a Sport Formula One event in the last rule cycle. It would have been Formula One designs scaled up for .91 engines and only flown at about 130 mph. True, 424 Quickie is about this speed, but a lot of people seem to think that the model airplanes they fly should look like an airplane and not the box it came in. The proposal received a 6 for - 5 against final vote, so it failed to pass. It’s purpose was to get scale racing into the ranks of the average RC’er at the average field. Once you get a course on a field, then it is easier to bring in the faster events. This is because it would have allowed more people to buy into racing, even though they might not be flying the fast events. But several on the contest board seem to think that allowing other events will dilute Quickie and Q40. Perhaps they are right. But I am constantly surprised at the number of local warbird, trainer, one-design events that keep popping up at clubs across the country. Yet none of these types of events appears to help add to the ranks of pylon racers in Quickie or Q40. Why? Because they are outside the AMA rulebook events, so they have no national following. I intend on submitting the same proposal with some additional simplification the next rule cycle. Perhaps by then 422 will be just a memory as the original Formula One is today.
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All Forums >> RC Airplanes >> Pylon Universe - RC Pylon Racing >> QM-40 Racing >> RE: Plastic Props 
RE: Plastic Props - 
