Indoor Team Racing (oz3525)

About this Plan

Rompin Kitlin (Red Lion). Indoor rubber RTP racer, from March 1961 Model Airplane News. This plan appeared as part of the article: "Indoor Team Racing".

Update 24/10/2022: Replaced this plan with a clearer copy scaled to full size at wingspan 16 in, also added article, thanks to theshadow.

Quote: "Indoor Team Racing, by BT Faulkner. Sure prescription for picking up that lagging interest and club attendance during the slow winter months. Rules and models indicate keen competition.

A new sport sweeping the Northwestern sector of Britain is indoor rubber powered team racing. These tiny semi-scale models offer a lot of fun and eye appeal and are flown indoors in a tiny space of only 16 foot square! Winter evening club meetings are livened to almost white heat when a race gets under way and two fast (usually big) footed modellers who have that winder whirring at full revs.

Lets have a look at the rules that were originally set out by the Cheadle Contest Group who started this rage.

(1) The model must be rubber powered and be of scale or semi-scale appearance.
(2) The model must have a cockpit or cabin and a fixed under carriage, with two wheels.
(3) The total weight in flying trim must not exceed two ounces.
(4) The overall length of the model is restricted to 20 in and the wing span must not be less than 60% of the length.
(5) The inside tip of the model is attached to a line of six foot radius by means of a wire hook, the centre of the line is attached to a three foot high pylon with a freely rotating centre bearing.
(6) The race is run over 30 laps, this can be increased when the pace gets too close.
(7) Timing commences when the competitor engages his winder in the prop loop, he may then commence winding. The race finishes when the model has completed required 30 airbom laps. The complete time for all subsequent winding is taken into account for total time.
(8) A lap when a model bounces does not count.
(9) A winder of maximum ratio of 4:1 is allowed.
(10) The lowest time for a race wins.

When a contest is organized each club entering usually provide a team of four and each member has two flights, a team prize for the lowest aggregate and the lowest individual is given.

The model presented here takes its inspiration from those snappy little Goodyear racers, and has built into it many practical features deemed necessary by a season of racing, it is actually third in line of similar models which have become longer to accommodate more rubber. It is not easy to get 30 laps in all at once. This involves rather a lot of winding which takes considerable time.

The model is designed round a range of 15 laps and uses a high pitched prop to convert the small powerfull motor into 15 fast laps. A rewind is necessary but the six strand motor will take only 500 turns, and this only takes 40 secs. Fast work is needed from the assistant to pick up the model and release it when the turns are packed in. A nose block that drops in any way is fitted to save time here. It is not necessary that the prop freewheel and so it is fixed. For props we mostly use a commercial plastic prop that cannot be easily broken, as this part of the model takes a beating from the floor.

All-sheet wings save construction timo and are the best for thin airfoil sections. Of course, if you want to save on airframe weight the wing can be built up, allowing you to use more rubber, in this case a thin symmetrical section would be best.

A very simple fuselage construction is used for the model presented. Sides are cut from 1/16 indoor stock, or hard 1/32 will do. Sides are joined by means of spacers and farmers and stringers are added for shape.

The cabin is carefully cemented into place, celluloid tape is useful for this. Add light weight tissue covering, kip if you have it looks well and dope one thin coat. Add decals to give that real racing look and the model is ready to roll.

Trimming with the original was easy. The elevator only needed bending up to give a smooth steady flight, bouncing with this model is non-existent, but can be traced to any of the following causes, warps, upthrust, line connection too far back, or any misalignment.

In this type of indoor flying there is plenty of scope for experimenting, to improve the range and to increase the top speed, a high pitch prop is one answer, this however means a slower acceleration losing valuable seconds. Some form of automatic variable pitch prop as used on full sized airplanes might pay big dividends if it is carefully made. Streamlining of the fuselage may help, but it is thought by the writer that the extra weight involved does not justify it. A nose spinner however does not add much weight and the effects may be very beneficial.

The big factor as with outdoor rubber models is the amount of rubber that can be packed into the model, and in this respect a light airframe will allow more rubber to be used, thus giving a greater available amount of power to the prop. Plenty of space is needed for the rubber to lash round in the fuselage, especially at the tail end and the opening at the ,nose should be of sufficient size to allow all the knots to be squeezed in on full turns - we can't mess about with a shoe horn in the middle of a race! If you can get hold of it, Italian Pirelli rubber is the most consistent and powerful on the market. It will take plenty of turns without breaking up.

The 'Rompin Kitling' model is named after local Pub, the Red Lion. Lions on Inn sign appears as baby cat jumping, hence the name."

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