RE: Violett Pattern Prototype - Blast from past
ALCON,
Can't help with any info on what appears to be a BVMBobcat predecessor- from the photos taken at the '74 Toledo Expo. Maybe BV himself can shred some light on this- Harley?
The original Bobcat was an FAIF3D pylon racer that Bob and his pylon partner, Cliff A. Telford designed in the early 1970's. The model's name is a contraction of their own- Bob& CAT. Incidentially, this team won the FAIF3D World Championships twice before the rules were changed to outlaw the design features.
Bob worked closely with Joe Scozzafava (sp), the designer of the Scozzi fan unit, to develop suitable jet airframes for this unit. The "Sundowner", "Compass Cope" A-4 Skyhawk and, possibley the Bobcat predecessor, were all steps or stages in the process. The current Bobcat design was revealed at a late '80s Toledo Expo as a entry-level turbine jet, primarily for the 12 lb thrust units such as the Wren 54/RAM 500/SimJet 1200/ etc.
My personal regret with turbines was not to buy, build and flya Bobcat and, instead mucked around for too many years with turbine conversions of unsuitable DF models. Live and learn I guess.
Digressing a half century or more, BV and I used to compete together in controline speed, where he usually won the Senior Class (younger than 18)and I was 2nd. We also competed against one another in FAI and Formula 1 pylon racing, where he was clearly the victor.
Art ARRO