Hot Gnat (oz3126)
About this Plan
Hot Gnat. Rubber stick model.
Quote: "Having had the distinct pleasure of proxy-flying jack McCracken's magnificent rubber speed job at the '73 Nats over a 200 foot course ROG, I was moved to compete in the Flightmasters meet later in the summer. After looking down 200 feet, the Flightmasters' requirement of only 88 feet and hand-launched at that, seemed pretty easy. About a one-hour building period produced a rework of my old Poly Wog (oz4371) design with a symmetrical aerofoil and a spine to resist high-speed testing crashes. The project was topped off with throw-tabs, a-la-HLG. I figured that there was no percentage in starting at zero and finishing at 100 for an average of 50 mph.
The wing was mounted using a saddle of 1/16 sheet on each side of the fuselage to allow for a rubber-band mounting - and sliding back and forth for balance during testing. As soon as the plane was flying an 88 foot course without gaining more than a few feet above launch altitude, the wing was glued on solid.
A celluloid aileron trim tab was added to help control torque reaction, though the plan was still prone to roll on high speed runs. This is known as dirty pool by purists, but lies well within the province of possibility for getting there 'fustest with the mostest.' I believe that rolling along the longitudinal axis coupled with my gentle launching toss may result in a rules change for next year's contest. Bill Hannan even made the comment that he felt the prop was holding the plane back! NFFS rules at the NATS precluded hand-launching or more than one 360° roll.
Weight is a large factor in a speed meet, the lighter models being the more successful. The Hot Gnat weighs 4 grams sans rubber. McCracken's Nats winner was a fragile stick-and-tissue ship with a light wing loading.
It might be noted that a thrust button is added rather than using tubing. Epoxied over thread windings, the button does not push back in a crash, and I find the Peck Polymers nylon button a perfect vibrationless bearing at high (or low) speeds..."
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Supplementary file notes
Article.
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(oz3126)
Hot Gnat
by Bill Warner
from Model Builder
March 1974
9in span
Rubber F/F
clean :)
all formers complete :)
got article :) -
Submitted: 09/07/2012
Filesize: 877KB
Format: • PDFbitmap
Credit*: theshadow
Downloads: 1081
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User comments
This has to be the most insane use of a rubber powered model! So, I know what I'm going to build next.Brooke Linford - 11/10/2022
Hi Mary, Attached is a photo of my crude version of the Hot Gnat [main pic]. This is a test bed for a one design, mass launch speed event we plan on holding this winter. I expect carnage to ensue! Thanks for the great website!
Brooke Linford - 15/11/2022
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- Hot Gnat (oz3126)
- Plan File Filesize: 877KB Filename: Hot_Gnat-MB-03-74_oz3126.pdf
- Supplement Filesize: 1290KB Filename: Hot_Gnat-MB-03-74_oz3126_article.pdf
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Notes
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