Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
04-23-2003, 09:41 PM
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Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
Hello,
I have been trying to locate an Airtronics Olympic 99 kit for quite some time now, and have finally located one (actually my wife did) online up for auction. I would like to find out your thoughts on the kit, and what price I should expect to pay. I had one in 1970 and had many, many hours of enjoyment out of it, until one day it got into such a strong thermal we lost it out of sight, never seen again.
Please give me your thoughts as soon as possible, since I only have a little more than a day to try for it.
Regards,
Larry
I have been trying to locate an Airtronics Olympic 99 kit for quite some time now, and have finally located one (actually my wife did) online up for auction. I would like to find out your thoughts on the kit, and what price I should expect to pay. I had one in 1970 and had many, many hours of enjoyment out of it, until one day it got into such a strong thermal we lost it out of sight, never seen again.
Please give me your thoughts as soon as possible, since I only have a little more than a day to try for it.
Regards,
Larry
04-24-2003, 12:20 AM
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kit
Check out White Wings I think that is the company that now makes it. Updates have been made to the kit. And the price will be better and the kit will be new.
04-24-2003, 12:24 AM
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Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
The Olympic 99 was my first r/c plane. At the time, it was considered the trainer of all trainers - you could almost walk faster than it flew, hands-off stable, gentle stall, easy to maneuver, 2-channel simplicity.
It's highly-cambered NACA 6409 airfoil and low wing loading make it appropriate only for calm thermal flying or nearly dead-air sloping, since it won't penetrate for @*%#.
As a trainer plane, IMO the Olympic's only drawback compared to the best (foamie) trainers today is that it's a fully built-up crunchie, i.e. a beginner will pay for his flying mistakes. As a nostalgia classic, you can't go wrong.
It's highly-cambered NACA 6409 airfoil and low wing loading make it appropriate only for calm thermal flying or nearly dead-air sloping, since it won't penetrate for @*%#.
As a trainer plane, IMO the Olympic's only drawback compared to the best (foamie) trainers today is that it's a fully built-up crunchie, i.e. a beginner will pay for his flying mistakes. As a nostalgia classic, you can't go wrong.
04-24-2003, 02:15 AM
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Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
Larry,
The Oly 99 is a great piece of nostalgia. Not only was it a great trainer, it won more than it's share of contests back in the early '70s. As has been mentioned, it is a very slow flyer, especially by today's standards. But what a nice slow flyer it is. Save it for those calm summer days, and remember what R/C soaring was like back then. It's a time machine.
The kit was Airtronic's first. Like all the kits that followed, it was superb; it would compare well to some of today's kits even. You almost hated to mess the kit up by building it.
The Whyte Wings re-release mentioned was the Oly 2, not the original 99. Skybench is now selling the "2", and Dream Catcher sells plans for the "99", but not a kit.
I'm also watching the kit on auction, not to buy but out of curiosity. I have a 99 kit myself that I've been considering selling, so I'm curious how high that one will go. They are getting pretty rare.
Cheers,
Dave
The Oly 99 is a great piece of nostalgia. Not only was it a great trainer, it won more than it's share of contests back in the early '70s. As has been mentioned, it is a very slow flyer, especially by today's standards. But what a nice slow flyer it is. Save it for those calm summer days, and remember what R/C soaring was like back then. It's a time machine.
The kit was Airtronic's first. Like all the kits that followed, it was superb; it would compare well to some of today's kits even. You almost hated to mess the kit up by building it.
The Whyte Wings re-release mentioned was the Oly 2, not the original 99. Skybench is now selling the "2", and Dream Catcher sells plans for the "99", but not a kit.
I'm also watching the kit on auction, not to buy but out of curiosity. I have a 99 kit myself that I've been considering selling, so I'm curious how high that one will go. They are getting pretty rare.
Cheers,
Dave
04-24-2003, 10:31 PM
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Olympic 99
Hello,
Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it I am just wondering, what should I expect to have to pay for it? From the looks of kit, the inside of the kit is untouched.
Larry
Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it I am just wondering, what should I expect to have to pay for it? From the looks of kit, the inside of the kit is untouched.
Larry
04-25-2003, 01:27 PM
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Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
On an collecotr's item, you pay what you pay. It depends on what the market will bear.
I lucked out about 4 years ago and bought a couple of old sailplanes at an estate sale. One was a Windfree, the other was an Oly99, both built in the early '70's. I was planning to cut the nose on the larger glider and electrify it, but I noticed the undercambered wing and the symmetrical stab and decided that I had something unique. I checked and asked around and found out it was an Oly99.
I ended up restoring both of these classics and fly them at Nostalgia meets.
Skybench sells a new kit of the Windfree and I recall that Dreamcatcher may have _plans_ for the Oly99. I plan to build a "new"
Oly and Windfree and save my antiques for nostalgia events.
I would love to also build an updated Oly and Windfree with modern carbon spars and an airfoil that can penetrate and fly them in RES events.
I lucked out about 4 years ago and bought a couple of old sailplanes at an estate sale. One was a Windfree, the other was an Oly99, both built in the early '70's. I was planning to cut the nose on the larger glider and electrify it, but I noticed the undercambered wing and the symmetrical stab and decided that I had something unique. I checked and asked around and found out it was an Oly99.
I ended up restoring both of these classics and fly them at Nostalgia meets.
Skybench sells a new kit of the Windfree and I recall that Dreamcatcher may have _plans_ for the Oly99. I plan to build a "new"
Oly and Windfree and save my antiques for nostalgia events.
I would love to also build an updated Oly and Windfree with modern carbon spars and an airfoil that can penetrate and fly them in RES events.
03-05-2007, 06:50 PM
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RE: Airtonics Olympic 99 kit thoughts
Plans are avalible again for the origanal Olympic 88-99 I just purchased a set from the link Below
http://www.aerosphereonline.com/mm5/...Yes&Quantity=1
Richard Browning
http://www.aerosphereonline.com/mm5/...Yes&Quantity=1
Richard Browning
