First full flight.

Yesterday I flew at the field in Zachary. The Nomad 11 and the Mandarin. The Stalker engine in the Nomad ran very well after trying different props. The Evo .60 in the Mandarin ran well also but I had sealed the gaps in the control surfaces which made a big difference in the way it turned. I also changed the lines from 63 feet to 65 feet. This morning I went to the local park with both planes. I had installed a muffler from another engine and a lighter wood prop. Both worked very well. I had timed the Mandarin on 2 ounces of fuel yesterday and got 3 minutes. So today I filled the tank with 4.25 ounces and got in the full pattern of maneuvers with a few laps left over for safety's sake. That engine in the Nomad 4 used the same amount of fuel which I figured it would. This weekends weather is perfect for flying.

Things are happening.

Last Saturday I went to the Zachary field with the intention of moving the good trailer out of the way of the second circle. We hooked up a chain fall to the trailer but the tires had deflated and sunk into the ground over the years. It wouldn't move. Luckily someone with a Kubota tractor happened by and helped us move it out of the way. It was all the tractor could handle. I measured from the other circle and established the location for the new circle and put a marker at the spot. I got in a flight from the new circle and headed for home.
  On Wednesday I got a call about Allan's family selling off what they could of his hobby stuff. I bought two ARF's and two engines. I put one of the engines on the Nomad 11. I'll try to get it flying tomorrow.
  I stripped the covering off one of the ARF's and set about sealing the wood from oil penetration. I sprayed the first color, white, today and will have to wait for it to cure before spraying the red and black. Those colors are placed such that I can do them almost at the same time.
  I got an email from the AMA confirming the dates for the March contest here at South Park. I measured the field there for two circles. I have all the stuff from the smashed trailer so I don't have to go and get it when the time comes.

A blessing in disguise.

On Monday morning November 5 2018 I went to the Zachary field and saw the damage to the clubs storage trailer. The pecan tree that was between the two trailers was rotten to the core and in a storm it came down right on top of the trailer. Dead center. After hooking a chain to the framework and pulling with my truck several times and locations we were able to get at the goodies inside.
  Now with the tree out of the way there is enough room for another "unobstructed" circle.

More great compliments.

At the El Dorado contest this past weekend I brought the Nomad 5 and the Legacy 40. I had found the controls loose in the Hound Dog and didn't figure out how to fix them early enough to test fly. I had to cut a hole in the top of the fuselage and another in the bottom to get at the bell crank to tighten things up. Now I have to fill and sand and touch up paint the holes.
 At the contest on Saturday I flew the Nomad in windy conditions and along with the person that borrowed my plans were several others that live in Texas. Very high quality flyers and builders plus engine makers. I guess they all watched me fly the Nomad and got highly impressed the way the plane flew and handled the wind. The engine maker said I have an "engine run to die for". Very high praise indeed. All the others gave me lots of compliments on the way the plane flys. I got third place in the profile event.
  We didn't hang around long after flying and went to eat. Upon arriving Sunday morning I was handed the third place plaque and the Pilot's Choice award for the Nomad.It's one award that I never expected to get. My building and finishing skills are average at best but the way the plane flys is what won me the award.
 It is the 5th plane I built of that design and the three profile planes of that size all fly about the same.  Number 5 has a half inch shorter nose that numbers one and two.