Conference vmszoo::rc

    Re: .-1,
    
    Check the Old timer column in Model Aviation magazine.  It may well
    contain the information you need for hitching up with S.A.M. again.    

      |
      | |      00	 Adios,      Al
    |_|_|      ( >o
      |    Z__(O_\_	(The Desert Rat)

    I'm just in the process of joining S.A.M myself.
    
    The address is :
    
         Bob Dodds
         Society of Antique Modelers
         209 Summerside Land
         Encinitas, CA 92024
    
    Membership is $10.00 per year with 6 issues of SAM Speaks!
    
       --|--             Happy (con)Trails!
        (O)             
________/ \_______       Scott Cox
    
    P.S.  I still can't figure out of S.A.M. refers to antique models or
    modelers!  Oh well, if the shoe fits! 8^)
    

    Thank you Scott...
    
    
    -ph

    Update on S.A.M.
    
    Refer to .3 for Treasurer, membership & dues info
    
    From a recent issue of their newsletter:
    
    SAM SPEAKS is the official publication of the Society of
    Antique Modelers and is published 6 times/year.
    
    Editor: Bill Darkow
    1237 S. Grant St.
    Tacoma, WA  98405
    Phone: (206)272-6395
    
    Officers - President: Jim Adams, 2538 N. Spurgeon St.
                          Santa Ana, CA  92706
               Eastrn VP: Mike Granieri, 3 Dryden Rd. Box 78
                          Pottersville, NJ 07979
               Midwst VP: Bob Larsh, 45 S. Whitcomb Ave.,
                          Indianapolis, IN 46241
               Rky Mt VP: W.L. "Bill" Schmidt, 4647 Krueger
                          Wichita, KS 67220
               Westrn VP: Bob Angel, 1001 Patterson Rd., 
                          Santa Maria, CA 93455

    Ray, about your search for old engine parts:
    
    Surprisingly I couldn't get anything out of researching the 
    SAM SPEAKS newsletter, at least not with a quick review.
    
    I did find some ads in Model Builder and Flying Models,
    however, that may be of interest. I won't retype the ad
    contents but the ad source for your inquiry, as follows:
    
    Engines, ignition, old, used, etc. from R. Eierman, 504
    Las Posas, Ridgecrest, CA, 93555  (619)375-5537
    S.A.S.E. for list.
    
    Antique ignition & glow parts, catalog 100 pages, $8.00(?)
    Chris Rossbach, R.D. 1, Queensboro Manor, Box 390, 
    Gloversville, NY 12078  (No phone given)
    
    New & Used motor list, $1.00   T. Crouss, 100 Smyrna,
    W. Springfield, MA 01089 (No phone given)
    
    john

    John:
    		Thanks for the effort, I'm going to check them all out
    and see if I can get the parts that I need. Oh, by the way, when
    I got the engine from my brother-in-law, it had an old wodden prop
    on it. The prop is almost new, how about that, lucky huh?
    
    				Ray...
    
    

    
    Ray,
    
    I,m sure you're going to guard that prop as well, as the
    antique that it must be.  There's a fellow here at my plant
    who also has a couple of Ohlsson's, and he too has been looking
    for parts (although not too intently).  If and when you find a
    source would you let us know?
    
    john
    

    
    
    John, I sure will..
    
    		Ray...
    
    

    From the latest issue of SAM Newsletter, here copied for your
    pleasure, is an article entitled "Aeromodeling as an Art Form"
    written by Art Grosheider, Newsletter Editor, SAM 1 - Model Museum
    Flying Club, Denver, Co..      .......            ....:
    
    A recent newspaper article was headlined "Art World Shows Contempt
    For Society".  The author was reacting to the recent junk that was
    displayed and funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.
    
    He went on to say that, "One needs to grasp the sorry moral condition
    of art today to get a perspective on the history of art and its meaning
    to society."
    
    We have reached the point where it is just about impossible to offend
    anyone anymore, but every artist worth his salt yearns to create some-
    thing so offensive and so insulting as to earn him a clear judgement
    of genius for his success at being misunderstood.  The "art" display
    that involved walking on the American flag and the crucifix in urine
    are cases in point.
    
    When one looks back at the majestic sweep of art in history and its
    awesome accomplishments, how nasty and puny are so many of the prod-
    ucts and so much of the philosophy of contemporary art by comparison.
    
    Art was once thought of as a service to people and was measured by 
    the degree to which it was "ennobling".  Art once achieved greatness
    by embodying great ideas as well as mastery of the medium.
    
    So, what does all this have to do with model airplanes?
    
    To me, the designing, building and flying of model airplanes is an
    art form - though not recognized as such in this country.  I have done
    some painting, and it is far easier for me to paint a picture than to
    build a decent model - and the painting just hangs there.
    
    Like sculptors, we work in three dimensions, fashioning materials into
    a lovely and functioning whole.  If you want to see mastery of our
    medium, take a look at what is being flown at contemporary scale
    contests.  These are better than museum quality I've seen at the
    Smithsonian - and they fly!  I've seen models turned out by our members
    that are so beautiful they can bring tears to your eyes - yet the aver-
    age dweeb still thinks we "play with toy airplanes".
    
    Is what we do "ennobling"?  I don't know about the rest of you, but I
    am plenty ennobled by seeing what we build and how it flies.  I am
    ennobled by Joe Elgins beautiful Playboy every time I see one.  I am
    ennobled by the old airplane and engine designers who have given us so
    much pleasure.
    
    Are machines art?  You bet they are.  The Italians know it and their
    designs show it.  Make no mistake - what we do is an art form.  It
    isn't recognized as such, but maybe we're lucky at that because it
    hasn't been corrupted by the public. (Ed. note: what about the plague
    of plastic, cloned ARF's?)
    
    Maybe what we do is kind of kinetic sculpture.  In any event, it is an
    art form, however obscure.  Keep that in mind the next time you are
    building and flying.  You have mastered the medium.  You have created a
    thing of beauty.  Your creation soars with the birds and you have 
    ennobled yourself and your friends in the process.  Howe many contemp-
    orary artists can say the same?
    
    
    respectfully copied, john
    

    Re: .-1, John,
    
    THANX A JILLION fer' re-printing this great testimonial here.  I LOVE
    IT!!  It says all the things I think/feel about our hobby/sport/rec-
    reation and says it eloquently.  We should all carry a copy of this
    article in our wallets and produce it any/every time we're confronted
    by some uneducated rube who accuses us of [ugh!] "playing with toys." 

      |
      | |      00	 Adios,      Al
    |_|_|      ( >o
      |    Z__(O_\_	(The Desert Rat)

    Al,
        I'm deeply gratified that you read this piece by Grosheider,
    and hope that others too have read it, and dwelled on it a little
    bit.
        I hope you make it to the Oldtimers meet in Feb., many of us
    will be waiting for your report on it.
    
        Incidentally, in the last issue, alone, of MB I saw references
    to: Lanzo, Good, Korda, Taibi, Ohlsson, Pond, and others that I 
    don't recall at the moment, and in perusing the list of contenders
    and results in the SAM Newsletter - it was another walk down memory
    lane apropos the recent discussions we have all been enjoying in
    the notes files lately.
    
       I'm really not that active in the Oldtimer movement, but it is
    definitely worth my $10/year just for the reading pleasure I get
    out of SAM Newsletter.
    
       john

    More news from SAM.
    
    This taken from the Newsletter:
    
    SAM HALL OF FAME AWARDS
    
    Ten famous modelers were inducted into the SAM hall of fame at the
    1989 SAM Champs in Jean, Nevada;
    
             Irwin Ohlsson
             Dr. Walter Good
             Bert Pond
             Sal Taibi
             John Pond
             Dick Korda
             Maxwell Bassett
             Frank Zaic
             Gordon Light
             Chet Lanzo (deceased)
    
    
    Sep/Oct issue of SAM SPEAKS,  
    regards, john

    I just got the Nov/Dec issue of SAM SPEAKS, and thought you might
    be interested in this article about the A.J. FIREBALL.
    
    The following is represented verbatim:
    
    WHAT'S A U-CONTROL MODEL DOING IN SAM SPEAKS?
    by Bill Darkow
    
    You may have been surprised and a bit shocked to find an ad for a
    control-liner in what is essentially a free-flight and R/C publication.
    
    Well, it's not generally known, but the Jim Walker "Fireball" is a SAM-
    legal free flight!  Yes, that's right, and the documentation is
    provided by the U.S.Navy.
    
    The American Junior Aircraft Co. built Fireballs under contract with
    the U.S. Navy in 1942. 
    
    (Here I must caution sensitive modellers to read further at their 
    own risk)
    
    They were equipped with Ohlsson .23 ignition engines, painted bright
    orange and launched free-flight from ships at sea for target practice.
    (In case you haven't heard, war is not only hell-but it is extremely
    wasteful.)
    
    There is no record as to how successful this program was, but never-
    theless it was implemented.
    
    If you doubt a Fireball can fly successfully as a free-flight, check
    with Clarence Bull, winner of the Spirit of SAM Concours event at the
    1989 SAM Champs.  He'll be glad to show you how his Bantam .19 version
    performs.
    
    Who'll be the first to fly an R/C version?
    
    john.

    From "SAM SPEAKS", an article by Dave Gilbert, Houston 82
    
    "The Good Ol' Boys"
    
     I have found that in order to be most successful, Old Timer 
    models need to be recreated in the same atmosphere and spirit
    in which they were originally created.
    
     One way in which to accomplish this is to build them to a
    background of "Big Band" music.  Benny Goodman seems to be the
    most effective with "Flyin' Home", "Stompin' at the Savoy" and
    "One O'Clock Jump" being particularly noteworthy examples.
    Artie Shaw's "SUmmit Ridge Drive:and "Jungle Drums" will do it 
    too.  The model seems to come to life right on your workbench.
    There are probably others.
    
    (Ed. Note [Bill Darkow]: Naturally, I wouldn't pass along such
    a valuable and important tip without testing it first.  While
    Benny Goodman seemed to be OK, I found that Glenn Miller's 
    "In the Mood" got better results.  However, overexposure can 
    lead to a slight twitchiness in the tail section and a tendency
    to "Dutch Roll" rythmically in the glide.)
    
    John

    re .15
    
    Goodman and Miller work ok if you're building an old timer designed
    by someone from New Jersey, but for truly superior performance
    try building to the strains of the Monroe brothers (Bill & Charlie),
    Mainers' Mountaineers, Uncle Dave Macon, or Charlie Poole &
    the North Carolina Ramblers, to name just a few.
    
    Terry
    

    Re.: .15,.16
    
    I hate to sound like a Long-Haired "Square", but I go for
    the Really antique music when I build, - like: Mozart or
    Vivaldi.   Maybe even some Gregorian Chants.  
    
    Especially good if you're doing a model of Da Vinci's
    flying machine, or maybe a Pterodactyl !
    
    john

Maybe that's what I'm doing wrong.

I listen to such jewels as
  "My Word" from the BBC
  Dragnet
  The Six Shooter (Jimmy Stewart)
  Hopalong Cassady
  and my favorite of all is...

  The Jack Benny Show

Bye          --+--
Kay R. Fisher  |
---------------O---------------
################################################################################

    This from the last issue of FM, F/F SPORT column, by Larry Kruse,
    excerpted, without anyone's permission! : (Parentheses are mine-JN)
    
    Shifting Gears
      One of the attractive features of our hobby/sport is that it has so
    many facets that it is impossible for a died-in-the-wool modeler to
    ever feel that he'll be able to build all of the models he'd like to 
    build.  Not only that, but the very idea of being bored with it all 
    is virtually impossible to conceptualize.  Typically, however, a
    modeler who has been single-mindedly pursuing one aspect of the hobby
    for a period of time can really be refreshed by occasionally "Shifting
    gears" and focusing his or her attention to one of the other facets 
    for a while.
    
      (The author now goes on to describe how he, by chance, got talked
    into building an OT rubber for a SAM contest.) - and continues: 
    
    Since last fall, I've completed three Old Timers and have two more on
    the board.  In all. the experience has been so refreshing that I'm not
    going to give up Old Time free flight when I return to scale modeling.
    It's an area rich in the heritage of our hobby and one that I would
    highly recommend to novice and expert alike 
    
    (I can attest to this folks, having a stick n' tissue on the board,
    and puzzlin' out the fine points of construction, is satisfying -
    and educational - even for an old timer like me!)
    
    John

    I think it's nice to pay some homage to the 'Greats' in our
    hobby, so here's a list of this years additions to the SAM
    HALL OF FAME, as taken from the latest issue of SAM SPEAKS.
    
    David Baker
    Joe Beshar
    Wm. L. Brown
    Frank Ehling
    Joe Elgin
    Mike Granieri
    Charles H. Grant (deceased)
    Herbert J. Greenberg
    Joe Kovel
    Irwin Polk
    Nathan Polk
    Ben Shereshaw
    Earl Stahl
    Henry Struck
    Elbert J. Weathers (deceased)