Air Currents

April 2014
Air Currents
Jim Haley's Factor 3D Airplane ... Photo by Steve Iverson
The Official Newsletter of the
Diablo Valley Radio Controllers
3500 John Henry Johnson Parkway
P.O. Box 9411, Pittsburg, CA 94565
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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President's Corner...
Hi friends:
It looks as though our winter is coming a
little late, but we need the rain. Our winter
was very mild which enabled us to fly more
often than a normal winter.
I have seen more new faces on the fight line
lately. The increase in DVRC membership is
an indication that as a club we are doing
something right. We welcome our new
members and are more than willing to help
them get the most enjoyment from our hobby.
Our next event is the “Seven Eleven”. Jack Schonberger is our CD for this event which is
scheduled for April 19th
A few housekeeping reminders: We are still in need of members to sign up for field clean
up. The goal is still two members each month. The Maintenance Schedule is posted in the
compound area on the bulletin board. You can add your name to the one that is posted
there. The gates are to be locked by the last member leaving the field. As a reminder the
locks are not secure until at least one of the dials is rotated. It is best to rotate all of them
while you are holding the lock closed. Last item, “Pack in Pack out”: It is club policy
that each member take with them what they bring to the field. That includes: crashed
aircraft, drink bottles and cans, food containers, fuel containers, etc.
The current flying season looks promising; I look forward to seeing everyone at the field.
Fly safe and have fun.
Ron
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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Note from our Safety Officer ....
I want to congratulate all pilots for 3 months of no personal
accidents that I am aware of; even though there have been
some aircraft damaged. Just a reminder to all; especially the
new members, that the club rules state that there is to be NO
flying of aircraft in the pits and that aircraft should be
flown west of the runway, with the exception of take offs and
landings. Thanks to all for your cooperation and support.
Happy Flying.
Safety Officer Gene Aughtry
Upcoming Events ....
Sat April 12 @ 10:00AM - Membership Meeting (Visitors Welcome)
Sat Apr 19 @ 9:00AM - Seven Eleven
Sat May 03 @ 9:00AM - FrankenMort (see attached article from Tony)
Sat May 10 @10:00AM - Membership Meeting (Visitors Welcome)
Interesting Links...
Attached is a link from Michael Phalan. Nine minute
video of real, beautiful old planes flying and
landing. Also some old cars.
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=pvxXto5TPok
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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More Interesting Links...
Russian AN-225
Mriya Aircraft.
Amazing. . .Just look
at the size of this baby!
An-225 Mriya (which
is referred to Dream
from Ukrainian) is the
heaviest airlift cargo
aircraft ever taken off
in the sky. The
maximum takeoff weight is 640 tons. An-225 was designed, due to the
necessity to create the air transport system for the Soviet reusable Space
Shuttle Buran.
http://gelio.livejournal.com/193025.html
A visitor came to our club recently and took
some great footage of DVRC including a
close call with our power lines! He was
flying a Quadcopter with FPV gear and a
gimbaled camera. The green hills are
beautiful!
Over Powerline wires - called "Brown Pants" because he forgot about them..
http://youtu.be/fel3y01z89o.
This next video shows images of DVRC and Molhulland Ridge in Moraga...
http://youtu.be/lKq6_wKLCbc.
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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2nd Annual FrankenMort Coming May 3rd!!
Hey ya`ll, It’s that time of year. Spring time is upon us and everyone is
coming out of their workshops with a homebuilt FrankenMort! Yes, that’s
right. There will be a 2014 FrankenMort. Most of you remember the event
from last year. Some of your planes flew Great! Some of them did not fly
great. The event was a success! The term FrankenMort was dubbed by me for
some of the unusual aircraft Mort Tyler has built and this event is partly in
his honor.
The Rules are simple; Build a flying machine out of anything and
everything. It can be totally scratch built or jumbled up pile of scrap parts,
the stranger the better. There are no requirements of how you power your
flying machine; free flight, rubber band, electric, glow, or turbine. No off the
shelf ARFs or kits allowed, but you can use ARF/kit parts. Judging will be
in two parts (I am looking for volunteer judges!), static score including
creativity and uniqueness, and flight time score .Your creation should be
able to maintain 30 seconds of flight and is judged on a sliding scale. The
event will be May 3rd where you will show off your creation for show and
tell. We will then adjourn to the field for flight. So run my children, run
and spread the word. There will be a 2014 FrankenMort. Now go and build
yourself one. BUT REMEMBER ONE VERY IMPORTANT RULE: Have fun
with it!!!!!!!!
- Tony Parsons
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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Club Pictures...
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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More Pictures.....
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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And More.....
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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What the Heck is FPV?
What is FPV? Is it a new sandwich, like a BLT? A new disease – “Frozen
Potato Virus”? Or is it a new texting acronym like LOL, LMAO, or TTYL
(talk to you later)? No, FPV simply stands for “First Person View” – a new
way to fly your aircraft as if you were sitting inside it.
Most of you have seen me flying my
e-flite Taylor Craft with a camera
mounted on the top wing. With a
camera transmitter and set of
goggles to relay the image to me, I
can fly the plane as if I was sitting
inside it. It’s an unbelievable
experience that makes you feel like
you’re really flying! Many people
find flying FPV easier than flying
from the ground.
Once you get use to the camera optics of taking-off and landing (the ability
to judge speed, height, and distances) it’s quite easy to fly. A spotter next to
you will help with other aircraft, your speed, and your location – initial
disorientation is very common.
The cost can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand
depending on your set up. More expensive set-ups include things like a OSD
(On Screen Display) that show location, height, speed, battery voltage,
battery current, battery current drain, a digital horizon, etc., and probably a
wireless link to your iTunes.
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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Basic Set-Up….
A basic set up consists of a camera,
camera transmitter, and Goggles (with
a camera receiver already built into the
goggles). The camera and camera
transmitter are powered through the cell
balancer connector on your lipo battery
pack - the current drain is minimal.
Some also add a Go-Pro Camera to their
setup to capture some nice HD video of
their flight.
Camera: The camera can be a small security camera found on HobbyKing's
website. A camera with a nice resolution is ideal. The camera lens can be
upgraded to a wider angle lens.
Camera Transmitter: You need a way to feed your video from your aircraft
to the ground. This is done via a small transmitter + antenna. The things
you need to consider when choosing a transmitter are the frequency, and the
power output. There are 4 different frequency bands to consider – 900MHz,
1.2GHz, 2.4GHz, and 5.8GHz. The lower frequency bands can go long
distances and can penetrate obstacles, but require large antennas. 2.4GHz
transmitters are crowded and cannot be used with many of the RC
transmitters used at the club (to many things operating in this frequency
band). 5.8GHz is best for the beginning FPV pilot. It’s perfect for short
range, line of sight, flying. It works with 2.4GHz RC Transmitters ,is easy
to setup, and only requires a small antenna. The power needed is usually
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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between 200mW to 600mW. 500mW can give you a range of 2-3 miles plenty for a beginner!
Goggles: The two most popular goggles are FatShark and HeadPlay. To me
the FatShark goggles are easier to set up and use – they are "plug and play."
The HeadPlay goggles have better resolution than the FatShark and are well
liked by many for their crisp resolution.
Here is a link for the FatShark Predator V2 Complete Setup for the
beginning FPV pilot. This package has everything you need to start. It
includes a Camera, 5.8Ghz Transmitter, and Goggles. The Cost is $280.
http://hobbywireless.com/fatshark-glassesgoggles-c-52_123_124/predatorv2-fatshark-video-glasses-starter-kit-p-918.html
Most pilots make a “Back Pack” for their
camera and camera transmitter so they
can switch easily between different
aircraft. Many 3-D printer shops have
customized mounting gear that you can
order for your specific aircraft.
On-Screen Display, Diversity, and Head Tracking are the next step for those
already involved with FPV flying.
I hope this basic write up helped capture the initial information and setup for
the new FPV flyer. Maybe it’s your time to get involved with the new age of
flying?! Now go out and have some fun!
-Steve Iverson, DVRC Member
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES...
February 8, 2014
President Penn called the meeting to order at 9:59 am. Other officers present
were Jim Haley, VP and John Tester, Treasurer. Penn asked all to sign the
attendance sheet. It was a windy, rainy day with fewer people than normal;
only 18.
Penn asked if there were any guests present, but there were none.
The Secretary was not present, so John Tester agreed to take notes for the
minutes. Mel Nash agreed to read the minutes of the last meeting, which
was 11 January. When he finished the minutes were approved by the
members present.
Mike Phelan walked to the front of the room and told John to sit down, which
he did, and Phelan reported to the membership what he and Ted Edginton
had learned during their audit of 2013 financial records. He was very
complimentary of the Treasurer’s work and found the records in proper order.
Following Phelan’s comments a motion was made to approve the January
report, and it carried.
Committee Reports:
1. Jim Seibert, Flight Operations Officer, wanted to recognize new members,
Mike Blackman, Peter Rubino, and Kevin Trexler, but only Blackman was
present to accept his Flight Badge and be photographed. Note: Trexler came
into the meeting later and was then introduced.
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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2. Ron Williams, Field Maintenance Office, was not present to report.
3. Gene Aughtry, Safety Officer, urged all members to announce their takeoffs or landings loudly so other flyers could hear and avoid conflicts. He
also asked that people who called out “on the runway” warnings be given a
safe trip back to the pits.
New Business:
1. President Penn called Mel Nash to come to the front and presented him
with the Man of the Year award for his outstanding performance as
President in 2013. Mike Phelan spoke in support of Mel’s services to the
club. He told of coming to fly on a windy day and finding Mel using a
gardener’s blower to clean the entire pit area by himself.
2. Mel Nash reported that he had again been approached by an official of the
Antioch city government, asking if our club would participate in the Fourth
of July activities next summer. There are supposed to be no charges in an
event that begins with a parade and ending up at the Fair Grounds where we
could display our planes. Gene Aughtry spoke in support of such an event
to improve our image in the community.
3. The Coffee & Donuts event is scheduled to take place on the 15th of
February, and Gene Aughtry is the CD. Gene explained in detail the rules of
the Donut Drop and what aircraft could compete.
4. Bob Wolfe asked many questions about the Open House. Mel Nash
explained that the plan was to participate in the Pittsburg Seafood Festival
and to promote our Open House which would take place in a few weeks ahead.
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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It was mentioned that last year’s Open House event was cancelled because we
could not find a leader to manage it. Steve Anderson gave his view that this
Open House, if we do it, would be very simple where visitors would come to
observe flying and there would not be a BBQ served. Bob Wolfe, who had
been the CD in a previous Open House, said he would volunteer as CD if he
could pick the date in the month of October. Jeff Schepers said he would do a
BBQ whenever it is needed.
Show & Tell:
1. Jim Seibert showed a small brown and yellow plane which Bob Wolfe had
given him. Wolfe said he took scaled down dimensions from the Big Stik to
build this little model. Jim had installed a small electric motor and provided
control of the ailerons and elevator, but without rudder control. He will fly it
soon.
Raffle:
Steve Anderson had purchased a Great Planes Super Sportster 40 Mk II ARF
with 55.5” wing span and a Great Planes Factor 3D EP ARF with a
wingspan of 38”.
Steve invited the members to make suggestions about what types of prizes
should be offered. There was a delay in the drawing because two persons had
not completed their purchases. John Tester commented that he had suggested
to Steve that he buy only one expensive plane or engine and provide two
much less expensive prizes. If the plane was of market price of $160 to say
$220 it should draw good club participation.
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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Mike Phelan won the first drawing and chose the Sportster. Jim Haley was
the next winner and chose the Factor 3D. The third drawing was for a club
hat and was won by our President, Ron Penn.
President Penn closed the meeting at 10:55 am.
Submitted by John Tester for Carlos Gracia, Secretary
Are you still Reading?! Okay, Some Funnies!
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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Diablo Valley Radio Controllers
3500 John Henry Johnson Parkway
PO Box 9411
Pittsburgh, CA. 94565
www.dvrc.org
2013 Club Officers:
Board of Directors:
Ron Penn, President. 925-383-3232
Jim Haley, Vice President. 925-685-4097
John Tester, Treasurer. 925-930-8454
Carlos Gracia, Secretary. 925-640-8257
Ron Williams. 925-825-5845
Dale Parsons. 925-684-2248
Jack Schonberger. 925-672-4562
Anthony Cox. 925-783-3980
Mel Nash. 925-432-8364
Flight Operations:
Jim Seibert 925-822-7822
Membership Coordinator:
Jim Seibert 925-822-7822
Safety Officer:
Gene Aughtry 925-687-1762
Newsletter Editor:
Steve Iverson 925-963-9459
Field Manager:
Ron Williams 925-825-5845
Flight Instructors:
Ron Williams 925-825-5845
Eric Mocker 510-282-9116
Henry Lu 925-757-1657
Anthony Cox 925-783-3980
Jim Seibert 925-822-7822
Mel Nash 925-432-8364
Ted Edginton 925-356-6834
Dale Parsons 925-684-2248
Ray Davis 925-352-7229
Greg Gallegos 925-783-1072
For DVRC driving directions and some club information, check out this link:
http://youtu.be/Owc7yDVYhc4
DVRC Newsletter - April 2014
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