Stooge #1

Ballin's "Bat" StoogeBy Ted Ballin

(Ted Ballin is the secretary/treasurer of the Strat-O-BatsMAC, and this first appeared intheir newsletter. Hence the"Bat" in the title--ed)

This is an elegant rubberwinding stooge of moderate costthat is compact, light, strong,quick and easy to make.

The main element is theBogen 3016 photographic mono­pod (M-P) (1), available by mailorder from photographic supplyhouses for about $15 (see theads in the latest issue of PopularPhotography).

I slightly modified the M-P tomake the stooge, but not to theextent that I could not use it forphotography, if I chose.

First, remove the bottom leg(the third section) of the M-P byloosening the top bolt of itsclamp with an 8mm socketwrench. When loose, the bottomleg will slide right out. The nowtwo-section M-P will open toabout 40", just right for a stooge.

Next, cut the nylon carryingstrap away from the black Delrinlug (2) at the top of the M-P. Ifyou do not wish to destroy thestrap, drill two 5/32" holes asshown (3) in the sketch forattachment of the guy ropes.

Some of the 3016's have arubber-like hand grip aroundthe top of the M-P. This can beremoved (as I did) or left on ifyou prefer. The M-P comes withan adapter nut on top to matchthe M-P to cameras havinglarger tripod sockets. Removethis and save.

Next, cut and drill the U­shaped model holder from 3/32"thick aluminum. Half-hard alum­inum is preferable; I obtainedmine for pennies from theBoeing surplus store (6061-T6,which is the most common alloyused in the aircraft industry).

If you fly only small rubbermodels like Coupe, 1/16" issufficiently strong and can be

Ted Ballin and one of the threestooges

obtained from most hobby shops.To cut and drill the aluminum Iused a portable saber saw with anon-ferrous blade and a portablepower drill, but a hacksaw and ahand drill will work as well; onlytake a little longer.

You can vary the shape of themodel holder to suit yourdesires, but a fairly narrowholder (4) as shown will beeasier to bend, and bending3/32" 6061-T6 ain't easy! I didit using small maple (any hard­wood will do) children's blocks, abench vise, and a very largehammer.

Do not make the bends toosharp, or you will split thealuminum! Be sure to round offthe corners, file down all edgesand remove flash from, or lightlycountersink, the drilled holes.

Use a 1/4-20 nut and lock­washer (5) to fasten the alumin­um model holder to the M-P, andtorque the nut down tight. Youwill need to have some sort ofmetal stake to hold the M-Pupright on the ground. An 8"spike will work, but I used a 10"common tent stake, availablefrom most discount and sportinggoods stores. (6)

For a snug fit and to preventdamage to the M-P tubing, slidea short length of plastic plumb­ing pipe or plastic tubing overthe nail or spike as shown. (7)

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Obtain about 14 feet of 1/8braided nylon cord (from anyhardware store). (8) Seal theends to prevent fraying (with amatch, or more elegantly with aheat shrink tubing), cut into twoequal pieces, and tie one end ofeach piece to the plastic lug atthe top of the M-P, or, alterna­tively, tie them to holes drilledin the aluminum model holder.(3) Use a non-slip knot like adouble half hitch.

Cut a small piece of 1/2" to 1"thick piece of foam rubber asshown (9) to fit the bottom ofthe model holder to protect yourmodel from the projecting nut.(5)

Some form of model supportis useful. I made mine frommaterials I had on hand: a pieceof 1/2 x 3/32"x approx 13"spruce glued at right angles toapiece of 15/16" x 3/32" xapprox. 3 3/4" spruce (reinforcethe right-angle joint as shownwith a small angle-iron) (10).

Drill holes and fasten to thealuminum model holder asshown on the sketch (11) with asmall round-head screw, a wash­er and a wing nut (6-32) slip ona short piece of 1/2" pipe insula­tion as shown (lO).

Obtain two spikes or tent pegsto hold down the guy ropes asshown (8). I proof tested thecompleted stooge to 130 in-oz oftorque, strong enough for Wakesand Unlimiteds.

***

TipFrom Terry Thorkildsen

To get a brass tube to bendeasily for your rear DT line,place it in the open flame ofyour gas stove and hold it withpliers until it gets cherry red.Remove it from the heat andlet it cool, It will be annealedand easy to bend

to scale)(not

BALLIN'S "BAT" STOOGE

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Stooge #2

An Inexpensive ModelBy George Calvert .

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(Use an aluminum tube forthe motor peg in your model.The model is anchored forwinding by a 1/8" or greaterwire through the holes in the TeeBraces and the aluminum motorpeg.)

MaterialsOne 7/8" broom handleOne 2" x 4" x 6" wood blockTwo Tee BracesThree 1/4" bolts, washers & nutsOne large screw eyeOne small screw hook6 ft 1/8" rope/cordTwo aluminum tent stakes

(Thanks to Bob Dunham forthe idea.)

6. Put the Large Screw Eye inone end of the block and tie twopieces of the cord to it for guyropes.

4. Mark and drill three 1/4"holes that match the Tee Braces.Make sure the center hole isdrilled through the broom stick.

7. Put the screw hook on oneside of the block. This is forhanging your winder. I laid mineon the ground, stepped on it andbroke it. Hang up the winder.8. Use a separate block of woodto aid in driving the stooge intothe ground. Drive in the tentpegs, hook up the guy ropes andyou're ready to wind.

2. Cut the broom stick to thelength (height) that suits you.

3. Taper one end of the broomstick to a dull point. Sand thevarnish off the end that you willstick in the block hole. Makesure you have a snug fit.

Coat the stick end that goes inthe block with white glue andslip it into the block till the topof the block and stick are flush(even). Put it away and let dry atleast overnight.

5. Mix up some epoxy and coatthe inside of the Tee Braces. Boltone on each side of the woodblock, making sure the holes inthe two upright legs of the Teeare lined up. Let epoxy dry.

(From the Tulsa Glue DobbersFree Flight Group newsletter,May 1992.)

Construction1. Drill a hole to match thebroom stick through the centerof the block.

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Stooge #3

The Indoor ModelBy Alan Wong

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This stooge is for indoor models and was designed by Alan Wongof the Boeing Hawks. It first appeared in the Hawks' newsletter. Theoriginal is not very big, about seven or eight inches long--CW

Tipfrom Terry Thorkildsen

Faa fpadRre you tired of hBving your timer turn to

junk from the high frequency vibrBtion gener­Bted by hot engines?

This seems to be more of B problem with theIBrger engines--.15 Bnd up. I f you moun t B Dr.Scholl foot Bnd Shoe PBd behind the timer, itdBmpens the vibrBtions. It hBS B self-Bdhesiveon one side which you CBn stick to the timer Bndglue the other side to the fuselBge using CRglue. MBke sure the hole for the timer is IBrgerthBn the timer CBse.

You CBn put B triBngle stock in front of thepBd for streBmlining.

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