Clunkmeister

Our Christmas raffle went over well the last six years, but we are going to tweak a few things to make it more fair and to attempt to calm down those who only come here to snipe some prizes at Christmas. So, I’ve made a few changes to the rules and once again, will attempt to keep it simple. So here is rundown of rules so everyone is refreshed and aware. 1. Anyone who wants to enter to win may do so, IF, they are an Active Member of LSM as of right now. Dec 08, 2024. 2. Active Member is defined as anyone who has contributed to LSM by posting 10 posts to LSM within the last calender year. I thought again of making it a WIP requirement, but decided again to nix that idea. The whole idea here is to promote a feeling of Christmas Spirit, get people posting more, and hopefully bring a better ending to 2024 So let’s make this fun! This in obviously not directed at those who have recently come here from LSP, Hyperscale, or wherever, if you’re new, you’re welcome to enter 3. Enrolling: Entering the raffle is easy. Just post "I'm in" and I'll mark you down. I’m going to change one rule: To be eligible for the gift raffle, you need to contribute. If you DON’T contribute to the raffle with a gift, your name will NOT be included in the regular gift drawings, but you WILL still be eligible for the Grand Prize. 4. Gifts: I’m not going to make this mandatory, but I will recommend a contribution of a new kit with a value over $30.00 USD, and under, say, $120.00. That gives a huge range of ideas. From Hasegawa to Revell, to Tamiya. If you give a kit from stash, that’s cool, but let’s make sure it’s not a busted up old stash Queen from 1967 with a smashed box and yellowed decals. The whole idea here is to have everyone get something nice. The LSM Grand Prize will be one brand new 1/32 new HKM A-20 kit. Yes, it’s more than 120, but I make the roolz and this will be THE one and only Grand Prize 5. Impropriety: To avoid any sense of impropriety, I am going to ask that all people who feel led to contribute gifts to please verify your gifts as listed correctly. If I list it wrong, please let me know so I can correct it in time. Anything LSM related is good in my book. Aircraft, AFVs, SciFi, Ships, are all OK. It makes my job easier when it comes to keeping track of who gave and won what. 6. More Impropriety: As the organizer and overseer of this operation, once again, I will again give, but will NOT be eligible for any gift drawings. 7. Winning is great. Giving is an awesome thing. 8. But remember, if you offer a gift, you're responsible for getting it to the winner. 8a. If shipping is outrageous, giver can substitute a gift card of similar value to the winner so he can source it locally. In the EU, for sample, Duties, Taxes, Brokerage, and VAT for items shipped from the US are astronomical for someone on a tight income in the EU. So consider for, say, a Brit, sourcing a gift card from Hannants. In the EU? One of the big German, Czech, or Polish model houses might be a good choice . If that isn’t an option, contact me and I’ll arrange to help with shipping and VAT charges as I can. 9. Gift givers and winners are to contact each other in a timely manner and winner must provide shipping information so the giver can get the package in the mail. 10. This is a fun Christmas Raffle, guys. If you pledge a gift, please make every effort to get it out in a timely fashion. 11. I will attempt to update the prize list and the names of those who entered the raffle on a daily basis. If there's more entrants than gifts, not everyone will receive a gift. If there's more gifts than entrants, then some will get more than one. 12. Drawing: Christmas Day in the USA, because that's where I live, and I work the day before, so the Aussies and the Kiwis gotta wait an extra day. Sorry guys! Grand Prize this year will consist of an HK A-20 kit, an absolutely unique and is the best kit the company has ever released This will be the one and only Grand Prize awarded. Grand Prize will be drawn from all names submitted, after the regular draw has been completed. The Viggen is offered as a simple THANK YOU for helping make LSM one of the buildingest? and by far one of the most welcoming and friendly Modeling Sites on the Internet. Pretty normal stuff, eh? I think this oughta be a fun thing and I really hope everyone has a good time with this! Ernie PS: if you won a prize last year and have not received it, please PM me on LSM and I will look into it. ALSO: One cheaper way of sending a gift is to purchase the gift once you know who won, at a model shop, distributor, or supplier, INSIDE the economic zone of the winner. This almost always turns out better for the giver, and is always MUCH better for the receiver. (No customs and duty). Thoughts

I’ll be setting up a Christmas raffle most likely later today. Last year, people were constrained by shipping costs, so I’ll most likely open it up to gift cards in lieu of big boxes if it involve sending out of your Country of residence. I simply want it to be fun, and fun gets lost when shipping gets to be twice the value of the prize itself. I can recommend “Pirate Ship” shipping. It saves a TON on shipping.

Shhhh, Border might be listening. Every time they bring something I love out in 1970s drunk Tamiya designer scale, I want to stick my head in a blender.

I know, but Airfix says they’ll never do 1/32 as the market is loaded with kitmakers in that scale. They pretty much have 1/24 to themselves these days

I’m thinking if ONLY Airfix would do that Lysander in 1/24…..

Now why am I feeling the urge to build the St Charmond?

Please remember that I am a simple, if somewhat learning disabled, slow learning Yank buffoon. I see nothing past my County Line, I think that if someone doesn’t speak American English, (can you even call it English?) I only need to speak louder and they will magically understand. I lose patience with Nations that don’t have my neighborhood pub in exactly the same place as I’m useful, I get mad because people drive on the wrong side of the road, and I absolutely 100% believe that every person in the entire world should understand my need to carry an arsenal with me everywhere I go.

Nobody minds the languages guys, but being that it’s a public forum, people from all over the world like to read this stuff and not everyone understands French as many of us do. 😂 My point being that English seems to be the default language. but then again, I’m an uneducated Yank who actually moved here from Canada, so in the eyes of many, that makes me doubly uneducated for what some would consider “poor life choices”

Gotta grow a neckbeard, Martin.

Thank you! You ever notice Ram drivers look a lot like their trucks?

A lot of Deja Vu here… my wife’s 55 Tbird currently in my evil clutches, close to my torch, welder, and paint gun… the Baby Bird is a factory red car with red and white interior and full power equipment im glad she loves it because like I told Iain Ogilvie, I need axle grease and a skyhook to get me out of these tiny cars Hopefully it will look like this in a few months. She won’t let me near that Crown until her little bird is done. But I do it all myself, so it doesn’t break the bank and keeps me out of the bars.

Nice 55 Crown Vic. Just like the one sitting in my back yard waiting its turn.

But like they say, Mopar don’t go far…..

That’s one serious collection of automotive art. Those bad by Mopars are something else!

Peter, the gear will be moved BACK to take weight off the tail wheel. That was an early, and successful mod to tame it a bit on the ground. plus, as most of them were built with an O-320 and a short mount for aesthetics, they’d end up tail heavy as well, making for some interesting stall/spin characteristics. The key is to unload the tail wheel, lengthen the main gear, and use a heavy engine. I’m really liking the sound of an IO-470. It’s heavy, it’s powerful, they’re cheap and plentiful, and reliable. Plus, it’s injected, so no carb ice. I looked at two: one off a 182, and the other off a 310. The 310 one comes with a constant speed prop,.. that’s fully feathering. Feather the prop on a draggy wire braced biplane and lengthen your glide by what? 10 inches per 1000 ft?

Just gotta find a decent Warner without breaking the bank. IO-470s are everywhere and cheap. Warners, not so much. You need an engine that weighs about 450-500 lbs with prop to keep the engine back close to the firewall and avoid the anteater look

We’re actively looking for a Warner 165 hp Super Scarab. We have a mount for an injected 6 cyl IO-470 if needed.

The Starduster Too has always had a reputation for being either a bit sporty ranging up to an ungodly terror on rollout if on pavement. It likes to swap ends, but much of that is due to pilots having little tail wheel time. It’s no worse than, say, a Luscombe or a Howard DGA, but definitely more than a Cub or N3N on wheels. Half the issue seems to be the lack of forward visibility in 3 point attitude. Guys have no clue what peripheral view mean. I’ve been told the rear (pilot’s) seat has the same view as the rear seat of a Scout or Citabria, and I have plenty of PIC time from the rear seat of those, so no biggie. the other thing is that in the 3 point attitude, the wing is still flying, not stalled, so any kind of firm arrival means a guaranteed bounce. The fix is to either wheel it on, or better yet, extend the mains by a few inches, which was done on this one, guaranteeing a stalled wing at 3 point stance.

The fabrication looks to have been factory performed, which is impossible, of course. The fuselage frame was blasted and refinished in epoxy, so it’s good. I’ll be checking the wings closely. They’re getting the metal parts removed and refinished, and all the wood is being revarnished. resourcinol was used as a glue, and it’s as good as it gets.

It’s cool how changing the engine, slickly modifying the interplane struts from I to N, and paint can give a whole new look. The other thing is using three piece windscreens instead of simple curved plexiglass.

The guys who started these project and never finished them are all passing on, and nobody’s interested anymore. They all want “right now”, not “in a few years”. Projects like this are simply too often junked. I had it thoroughly inspected, and the workmanship is second to none, and it’s one of the most popular sport biplanes ever designed, so it’s very straightforward. There are 4 based within 20 miles of me to use as a reference.

The design is timeless, and with a Warner radial, if you cover the front pit, they look like a Boeing F4B. With a flat 6, they look a little more civilized, but right out of the 1930s.

So I ended up doing some horse trading with a friend, and he took some 55-56 Ford parts, and I brought this home. A very large scale, as in 1:1 project. For those unaware, it’s a Stolp Starduster Too, a 2 seat plans built biplane from the late 1960s. They are generally considered to be one of the most beautiful and nicest flying biplanes ever designed, and are an incredibly capable machines. They are decent performers, capable of sport aerobatics, and have been powered by anything from a 4 cylinder Lycoming of 150 hp, to a big ol’ Jacob’s radial. One of the best engines for it is a Warner Super Scarab of 160 hp. I’ll be on the lookout for one, otherwise, we’ll stay with the Continental flat 6 out of a Cessna 310. It’s one of the most popular homebuilt aircraft ever designed, with over 1000 completed and flying. They’ve been around so long that some are actually being restored. This one was never completed, and is of amazing workmanship. She’s set up for a Continental IO-470U 6 cylinder engine of 230 hp. I’ve got a couple or three years of semi steady weekends ahead of me to complete her, but there is no rush. We’ll see.

I’d be open to it. Something that includes armor would be smart.

Mike, I keep looking in on this, and am hoping you get this one situated and whipped into shape! What a glorious model!