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Sep 4, 2013 ... Fast forward to the '90s and I still had a survivor, an old beat up Walt Musciano Little Devil with a Super. Bee salvaged from my long ago ...
Issue # 3

September 2013

Thanks to all our readers that voted for the name and the colours of our latest Limited Production Engine Based on your input, we have manufactured a run of 100 “Terminator” engines with the serial numbers engraved onto the crankcases. There is only a limited supply of Terminators left in stock and they are available here: http://coxengines.ca/cox-.049-engine-terminator.html

The propeller is just a big fan in the front of the plane to keep the pilot cool. Want proof? Make it stop; then watch the pilot break out into a sweat

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From the Editor

From the Store Manager

In this edition we present: 

How to make a sport muffler by Roger Jordan



What’s up with reeds by Paul Gibeault



The Internet kick started my hobby by Rusty



The worst customer call by Theresa Tanner



Introducing the Cox Forum



Ramblings of the Store Manager



Willie and the Stumpjumpers by Kim Stricker

I am so happy to say that this month marks my first anniversary with Cox International and I must say that it has been a fabulous year! One of the things that I enjoy the most is hearing how Cox engines have played such a major role in the lives of our customers. I never tire of hearing how old a person was when they received their first Cox engine, or hearing how a customer spent countless hours with their friends, or fathers, or grandfathers learning to fly their first airplane.

We hope you enjoy our newsletter and we wish you

You can read more about this on the last page of this publication.

Happy Flying! Bernie

Cheers! Theresa

When flying inverted, remember that down is up, and up is expensive

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September 2013

The Internet kick started my hobby - By Rusty Knowlton In the October issue of Cox Engines Quarterly I wrote of my beginnings in modeling, which were not building, but rather flying plastic Ready-to-Fly models, RTFs as they’re called these days. If many of the modelers’ bios I read on Internet forums are accurate, I must have lived in the only neighborhood in America where all the kids weren’t playing with model planes. Odd, considering most of our Dads had just served in the Armed Forces in WWII and Korea and this had fueled the public’s fascination with aircraft of all sorts. But I plugged away at it, usually able to recruit a friend to launch my control line plane for me so I could fly with a cluster of onlookers throwing rocks at it as I dive bombed them, big fun but not recommended by the AMA. But I was on my own to figure out what made them fly. I flew and glued and learned to disassemble engines and clean schoolyard sand out of them. But flying RTF planes teaches a kid nothing about what makes a plane fly straight and level. For instance if one is clueless about a plane’s center of gravity, CG, then the next flight after a repair may very well destroy a model so badly it can never be fixed again. And so with the engine and a few other bits thrown in a box, the airframe was usually unceremoniously stuffed in a garbage can. That was good enough for me until after my flying hiatus for College and all the associated folly when I started building balsa models. The inexpensive RTF era had mostly passed and then I was buying an occasional kit at the hobby shop to fly with the engines left over from my long ago shattered plastic planes. Resilient little suckers, mine were all Cox Bees, reed valve engines of one configuration or another. The kit plans and instructions could get me in the air and level, but that was about it. They told me where to put the GG and they flew. To make matters worse I didn’t know one propeller from another. Pitch? Length? Thrust? The plan sheet was usually accompanied by a paper that showed a kid in blue ink doing loops and busting balloons but nothing in the way of how to make your model cooperate with such antics. After my first few attempts at loops turned into figure 9s, as we so lovingly call a loop where we run slam out of sky, I gave up on that and was satisfied with turning circles and dive bombing with imaginary munitions. I did learn one thing, Balsa planes are tough. That was a very good thing for me.

Weather forecasts are horoscopes with numbers

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September 2013

The Internet kick started my hobby - By Rusty Knowlton Fast forward to the ‘90s and I still had a survivor, an old beat up Walt Musciano Little Devil with a Super Bee salvaged from my long ago slagged P-40, by far my most flown and enjoyed Cox RTF, given to me by my Mom to replace my equally beat down Stuka. I was determined to make it better, faster, more airworthy. Unfortunately for it, I still knew nothing about aerodynamics. I just played by the TLAR method. You know… That Looks About Right. For instance the tail section broke off and I decided to make it indestructible. I bent a piece of sheet metal, not aluminum either, and lovingly shaped it to fit the tail section, epoxied it in place. It was a beautiful marriage of sheet metal work and Balsa. And come hell or high water, that sucker will never break again. Not there anyway. More than a decade separated from a set of plans, I had forgotten all about the CG. The next flight was more than exciting. A full tank of fuel, a new Black Widow (my first engine purchase) and an angry wild piglet on the end of the lines must’ve covered more distance up and down than round and round. I’m sure I must’ve done my first wingover during that flight. My wife said, “Wow that looked like a really fun flight!” I just looked stupefied at her for a moment before collapsing onto the ground. Time for a new kit, a brand new Stuntman 23. The Little Devil still hangs in the shop waiting to be reproduced to accommodate a Cox RR1 given to me by an Internet forum buddy. Anyway, the Stuntman was a great flyer with the Black Widow and, of course, the plans reminded me about balancing the CG. My son was now old enough to fly it with me and we had a great time, and by now he had a PT-19 too. Flying a plane called a “Stuntman” revived my desire to do loops and maybe even other stunts. I made up my mind to figure it out. I’d been at it too long to not be able to fly these things like they were meant to be flown. I started this story intending to illustrate how the Internet rescued me from my aerodynamic ineptitude, and now I’ve ended up prattling on about how I actually got there. I pounded and pounded the Stuntman 23 until I figured I needed another new ship. I logged onto the Internet to see if you could still buy models and if anyone else in the world was trying to fly them. I landed on a huge forum for Remote Control modelers and found a small closet of a subsection dedicated to control line flyers. Wow, I was not the only one!

Fighter Pilots believe in clean living. They never drink whiskey from a dirty glass

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The Internet kick started my hobby - By Rusty Knowlton It seemed friendly enough, and I had been on car forums enough to know how to act in such a community, so I dove in… literally. I was dog paddling in information about how to choose, build and fly control line stunt planes. I chose a Li’l Jumpin’ Bean from Brodak and started a build thread that grew, as I asked questions and got answers, to about seven pages and 103 posts. A month later I had a beautiful finished plane with built-up wings, a first for me that was built with the accumulated knowledge of so many long time builders and control line pilots. And now that knowledge was mine to use and pass on to others that came along behind me. I started other threads about engines, stunting, and, of course minor repairs. Not too many figure 9s later I could flip a loop at will, and then wondered what the heck was so hard about that. The fact is I had been taught many things about what happens with each part of a plane when it slips through the air and reacts to the commands of the pilot. And I’m not sure if, without the resource of Internet forums, I would have ever successfully built and flown a stunter like it was designed to do. Since the Bean, I’ve built several increasingly successful planes, small and large. My favorites are a pair of Baby Flite Streaks that I just carve up the air with, and the Bean has morphed into a twin tail boomed combat wing, six ounces of pure stunt evil. Like any community, an Internet forum is a resource that must be used with common discerning sense. You can compare opinions and cherry pick the best that fit the puzzle and keep others in mind for further consideration. New members seeking information like I was sometimes think I’m an expert. That’s flattering, but I try to be very careful to not state anything as fact if I have the slightest doubt, even if it has worked for me 100%. And many other forum members understand this too. Like any community you learn who adheres to that protocol and who to take with a grain of salt. But all in all it’s a whole lot of guys, unfortunately not many gals, who are excited about building and flying and want to help others get as good at as can be.

Aviation truism: Mankind has a perfect record in aviation; we never left one up there!

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The Internet kick started my hobby - By Rusty Knowlton It also has its detractors, and rightfully so. The good thing about an Internet forum is that it is an ocean of knowledge. You can learn about anything if you just search. And if you can’t find it, then ask a question. One of the bad things is also that it is an ocean of knowledge. Some feel that it promotes laziness, that instead of trying to search and figure things out, too many people just ask without trying first. This caters to our popular instant gratification mindset. One has to wonder if we are losing the art of tinkering to figure things out, not developing innovative skills. Is it too easy to ask on forums or yahoo answers to save the trouble of thinking? Wanting to be spoon fed? That sounds harsh, and I think the truth lies somewhere in between. It’s your responsibility as a modeler, builder, and pilot, to think things out and understand. For the lazy ones I mentioned, I bet my plane flies better than yours. :> Just kidding. Besides you can search out answers and get the information faster than waiting for someone to answer your question anyway. What I do know 100% is that Internet forums kick started my hobby; it helped me grow my hobby into a more advanced skill set than I would have ever had without it. And none of the forum crowd throws rocks at my planes while I’m burning circles! And where else but online could you find a Babe Bee with two crankcases hacked open and JB Welded together with an extra empty cylinder for $200. Till next time, have fun, learn, and share the hobby.

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A cheap sport muffler - By Roger L. Jordan Jr. Do you have a Cox .049 engine that you would like to “quiet down”? … You can “make” a muffler with parts you might be able to find at home. Materials required 1” dia. (approx.) thin-wall aluminum tubing; ½”L. (this tubing MUST be larger than the dia. of the glow-head; which is ¾” (.750”). Ideas: Old shower curtain rod, tent pole… see hint at the article’s closing) Std. (black-rubber) bicycle tire “inner-tube” material. (2” x 4” pc. when spread out flat) Small 1/4” O.D. alloy tubing (or a “drilled-out” .22 cal. shell casing) Common “paper” staples. Tools required Scissors 2” dia. circle template (example: A 6 oz. tomato paste can) Electric drill and drill bits, close to the size of your small alloy tubing 7/16” dia. hole-punch (approx. 2” L. pc. of 7/16” K & S brass tubing; “sharpened” on one end (sharpen with sandpaper) Small block of wood (base for the punch above) Hammer Standard paper stapler Hack-saw or tubing cutter Flaring tool (optional if you can’t find a .22 cal. shell casing) Small metal file and Sandpaper - med/fine. Note: It’s really helpful in our hobby to have a 0-1.000” micrometer or vernier/caliper for precision measuring, in this case for measuring our “pipe dia.” And for drilling it’s hole in the inner chamber, but you can get by without it for this project. Note step 4.

If you're ever faced with a forced landing at night, turn on the landing lights to see the landing area. If you don't like what you see, turn them back off

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A cheap sport muffler - By Roger L. Jordan Jr. Principal/scope: This muffler; once assembled, “pushes on and pulls off” easily over your glow-head/ cylinder without having to disassemble the engine and weighs approx. 7gr. in a “single-pipe” configuration. The body is the rubber parts, stapled together to form a “pocket” inside. The 1”diameter aluminum tubing serves as the “inner chamber” which has a hole drilled in its side for the pipe (the sm. tubing). It will make sense as we proceed. Step 1. Using scissors, cut two discs (circles) 2” in dia. of rubber inner-tube material. Stack them evenly and staple them together around the edges; leaving one gap of approx. ½” (your pipe will exit through that gap once assembled). Step 2. Place the rubber disc assy. on the block of wood and punch a hole in the center using the 7/16” dia. punch and hammer until the hole is “clean” (discard the sm. pc.). This assy. will be your muffler body (once assembled in Step 7 it will “push-on/pull-off” over the glow-head/cylinder, “stretching” to a snug fit). Step 3. Using the tubing cutter or hacksaw cut a ½” long. pc. of the 1” aluminum tubing so that you have a “ring”. File/sand edges smooth afterward. This will be your inner-chamber. Step 4. The “pipe” is made from the small (approx. ¼” dia.) alloy tubing. It should be at least ½” long, but less than ¾” long. Flare one end (tight as possible) or use a “drilled-out” .22 cal. shell casing for a pipe, which already has a flare or “rim” as it’s properly called, and measures between .224”-.226” in dia. A common 15/64” (.234”) drill will work (in step 5…) for a .22 cal. shell casing. Note: you can also find brass plumbing parts that fit this application. It’s the “flare” that’s necessary and keeps the pipe from falling out. (this is where the micrometer/caliper is useful to get a precise measurement of the pipe’s dia. for choosing the proper drill but you can trial-fit the pipe by drilling holes close to its size, in a piece of scrap material.) NOTE: If using a .22 cal. shell casing, obtain a few of them and drill out different dia. holes in each for different degrees of exhaust flow/performance.

The probability of survival is equal to the angle of arrival

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A cheap sport muffler - By Roger L. Jordan Jr. Step 5. Drill the “correct size” pipe-hole; through the side of the “inner chamber” (1” dia. alum. ring) “on center”. Make sure your pipe fits “snugly” through the hole (from the inside of the ring/chamber) and stops at the flare (or “rim” of a shell casing). At this point; MAKE SURE that this assembly fits over the glowhead/cylinder and then remove the pipe and put it aside. Although not necessary, you could “retain” the pipe in the inner-chamber by wrapping 2-3 turns of thin copper wire around the installed pipe and slide the coil “tight” to the outer chamber wall; securing the coil to the “pipe” with a drop of solder. Step 6. “Stretch-open” the rubber at the 7/16” center-hole you punched to expose the inside (pocket) and insert the 1”aluminum ring (inner-chamber) so that it’s “drilled hole” lines up with the “staple-gap” in the rubber body. At this point the assembly should be approx. 9/16” in thickness (you will need to “stretch” the rubber around a little and until it looks symmetrical, like a “flying saucer”). Step 7. Insert the pipe in the same way, through the 7/16” hole in the center of the rubber-body opening, then through the drilled hole in the ring and out through the staple-gap in the rubber body. (Note: if you opted to solder the pipe in step 5, insert the pipe-side first into the pocket and line up with the staple-gap). Conclusion: That’s it! Simply “push it on” over your .049’s glow-head/cylinder until it stops against the crankcase/tank-back. It will “enclose” the exhaust ports. The rubber will seal around the cylinder-wall like a gasket. You can, of course, experiment with dual pipes (be sure to allow for more “staple-gaps” in the body) or smaller pipes. A smaller pipe is quieter, but more “restrictive”. Experiment with different configurations. C/L fliers may have spare “lead-out eyelets” (sm. flared alloy tubes) which can be used for a “pressure-tap fitting” with small silicone fuel line to the fuel tank, along with perhaps a “single larger pipe” for the exhaust. You can “plumb-in” a plastic bendy drinking straw “exhaust extension” (CA it to the pipe) bend it 90deg. out of the muffler and run it down the length of the fuse; past the vert. stab. and attach it with small tabs of hook & loop. Imagine how much cleaner your airplane will be after a flight! The possibilities are endless.

It is noise that keeps a helicopter in the air. If the noise is turned off the helicopter will fall to the ground

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A cheap sport muffler - By Roger L. Jordan Jr. This “is” a sport/for fun design. The rubber, alum/alloy tubing and staples are unaffected by glow fuel and heat in this application. The muffler can be swapped between engines in seconds, does not impede needle valve adjustment and helps keep dirt/debris out of the engine. Hint: If you have trouble finding 1” dia. alum. tubing for the “inner-chamber”, locate some thin-gauge alum., brass or tin sheet stock and carefully cut w/scissors into a ½” x 4” strip that can be “curled” into a ring (sand any sharp edges). Place it “flat” on a block of wood and drill your pipe hole at 2” on center. Curl it into a ring; around a 1” wooden dowel (wooden tool handle, etc.) and drill a 1/8” hole through where the strip overlaps. Secure the ring with a 1/8” x 1/8 (short) aluminum Pop rivet, from the “inside” of the ring, by twisting the ring slightly to provide clearance for the rivet tool (don’t cut yourself). Straighten it out into a symmetrical ring afterward. The rivet should protrude “outward”, not inward. You could also “silversolder” a brass or tin ring together if you have the tools/skill. Disclaimers: I have only tested on reed-valve engines and am not sure how the muffler’s use would affect the performance and front intake on a TeeDee. Also: Over time, the use of this muffler may cause “light” scratching to the external cylinder wall with both “operation” (from pipes vibration) or recklessly “forcing it” on or off when installing/removing. You should “pull outward slightly” on the pipe while installing/removing the muffler to keep it from hanging-up on the “fins” of the cyl./glow-head. Periodically remove and disassemble the muffler to inspect/clean it. Thank You for your interest in my home-made muffler design. If anything in this article is unclear to you, I will be happy to answer any questions. I can be reached at the Cox Engines Forum - member name ”roddie” or email me at [email protected] Roger

Things which do you no good in aviation: Altitude above you. Runway behind you. Fuel in the truck. Half a second ago. Approach plates in the car. The airspeed you don't have

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A cheap sport muffler - By Roger L. Jordan Jr.

Ex. Dual Pipe

Step 2

Ex. Installed

Ex. Tank Pressure 1 Ex. Tank Pressure 2

Step 3

Step 5c

Step 4

Step 6a

Step 6b

Step 5a

Step 1

Step 5b

Step 7

Hovering is for pilots who love to fly but have no place to go

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What’s up with reeds—By Paul Gibeault In the never ending quest for reliability & performance, questions are often asked about reeds. The earliest (copper beryllium) reeds actually work quite well. The only fault is that they are limited to ~17,000 RPM or so. Given that most reed valve motors (at the time) were not expected to go any faster, they were quite fine for the purpose & often gave a correspondingly longer engine run due to the lower RPM level. Other than that, the only other issue is that they could corrode if raw fuel was left on them for a long time. They also needed care during installation as any crease put into them would often make them run worse, if at all. Some 'tuners' attempted to specifically crease the reed and/or use one & a half reeds (& other such combinations) to get past the 'reed-float condition which, as stated, occurred ~17,000 RPM. Results varied from somewhat better to much worse… Later on, Cox developed the clear Mylar reed in two shapes (cross & rectangular). I've used both interchangeably & can't find any noticeable difference. The cross shaped reeds were intended for the G-Clip installation (Golden Bee) whereas the rectangular reeds were found in the later 'nylon cap holder (Venom) type of installation. At present there is no faster reed than the Mylar type. (Good for 24,400 on my bench test circa 1995). The stainless steel reed is often no slower & possibly more damage tolerant than the plastic Mylar reed. I have noticed that the steel reed does tend to wear off the color anodizing on the reed seat. Although I prefer not to see this condition, I cannot really say if it's anything to really worry about; probably not. Some time ago I did receive some experimental (thin) steel reeds from Larry Renger to try out. There is a theoretical advantage to using a thinner material but my initial testing did not show a noticeable difference.

Epoxy: The stuff that has replaced the balsa after the flying season

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What’s up with reeds—By Paul Gibeault I had heard that a reed cut from 'floppy disc' material gave an increase, but it didn't show anything when I tried it. I also tried the Teflon reed & again it was no better & in some cases worse, at least for glow fuel use. I've heard about one or two other reed types available, but have not tried them & so can't comment on their performance. One VERY INTERESTING case came up when a customer returned his mouse engine (tuned by me) for examination. It had been a very nice running 19,500+ RPM engine when delivered (using a steel reed). When run again, it ran a very smooth but slow 18,500. Hmmm! Where did that 1,000 rpm go I wondered? Well, after messing around with several different pistons I was only able to gain another +500 RPM. Bringing it up to 19,000 RPM, but still short of the original target RPM. Then for some reason, I swapped the existing steel reed with a new Mylar reed. Boom, 20,000 RPM steady! AHA, I found the problem. Previous testing showed no difference in RPM like this, so why the change I wondered? Under 10X magnification, I was able to determine that the steel reed had a tiny dent in it; probably from ingesting a bit of sand or something... So my trouble shooting did the wrong thing for the right reason. I've now learned that slightly damaged reeds can cause quite a performance drop, although the 'steadiness' of the run is not affected. In conclusion, this is why I've said that fast running reed engines need to be kept pristinely clean at all times. However, on the dirty/sandy flying field, this is not always possible. So I've now added to my "Trouble Shooting" check list of things that can go wrong, to swap reeds if all else looks OK. Who would have thought?? Reedies, you gotta love 'em! P.S. I have to thank fellow mouse racer Bob Christ from Arizona for bringing this to my attention.

Crash: Quick method of removing radio and engine from a model to fit them in your new one

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The most difficult customer call—By Theresa Tanner A few weeks ago I received my most difficult customer phone call. It all began at about 7:45am when I walked into the office with freshly brewed coffee in hand and ready to tackle the day. The telephone started ringing before I had even reached my desk, and as I ran to pick up the line I was greeted on the other end of the phone by a very upset woman who in an extremely assertive manner (it wouldn’t be polite to say that she was yelling) informed me that she had been calling our office for hours and had received no answer. The lady then told me that she had left over ten messages on our machine and nobody had called her back and, she expressed, she was promised 24 hour service and shouldn’t have to wait for hours to talk to a live person. The lady then explained in no uncertain terms that she was going to cancel all service with us if we didn’t do something about her internet modem, which has been giving her trouble for days. The light bulb above my head finally clicked on as I realized what the issue was, a simple case of mistaken identity. I probably should have realized the error earlier, but as I said, it was early and I hadn’t had my coffee yet so I wasn’t at my best. I waited for a chance to be able to jump in and explain that we were not Cox Communications, but instead we were a small Canadian business which sells Cox model engines and parts worldwide. For the better part of fifteen minutes the woman on the phone explained all of the things she had tried to get her internet back up and working, and each time I tried to explain the lady got more aggravated because I was interrupting her. I realized that it was just going to be best to wait until she was finished and then launch into my explanation. At one point I considered researching her modem so that I could trouble-shoot the issue for her because she was so upset but instead I looked up the number for the company she actually needed to speak to. Finally the poor lady took a breath and gave me the opportunity to say “I’m so sorry, but we are not Cox Communications. We are Cox International and I am afraid you have the wrong number. Their number is 1 -800-xxx-xxxx”. “Well why didn’t you just say that to start with!” she screamed before slamming down the phone.

Crash: Synonym for "rekitting" a model

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Introducing the Cox Engine Forum For those of you that are not yet members of the Cox Forum, here is a link to it

“Cox Forum” The forum consists of hundreds of Cox enthusiasts where you can:   

Get advice Buy and sell Share stories and pictures

Just create a free account and are you are ready to connect with forum members. This forum is independent of Cox International and is not operated by us, although we do log in on a daily basis to answer questions, give tech support, showcase product innovations or simply to ask for advice for our own needs.



When one engine fails on a twin engine airplane you always have enough power left to get you to the scene of the crash



Never let an airplane take you somewhere your brain didn't get to five minutes earlier



Helicopters can't really fly -- they're just so ugly that the earth repels them



Flying is the second greatest thrill known to man; landing is the first!



It's better to be down here wishing you were up there, than up there wishing you were down here



If the wings are traveling faster than the fuselage, it's probably a helicopter and therefore unsafe



If something hasn't broken on your helicopter, it's about to

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From the Store Manager—Continued from page 2 The one thing that strikes me when I listen to these stories is that they all have one very important thing in common - how happy the memories are. It doesn’t matter if the story was about the first time a person’s finger was “bit” by a propeller or about losing a favorite free-flight airplane in a nearby field (knowing that if the plane couldn’t be found it would be turned into toothpicks by the farm equipment at harvest time) each of these experiences is remembered with great fondness. It is always a pleasure to hear a customer talk about his blue and yellow PT-19 control line trainer with the .049 engine – including how many lawns he had to mow to finally save enough to buy that plane, or hear the story of a tether car that a customer got for Christmas and how his father backed over it in the driveway two days later. I am sure that many of you have similar memories and I feel fortunate that you share them with us every day. One of our customers explained it so well when he said: “I can’t help but notice all of the faces of the senior members. They still show up regularly at the local flying field and can be seen in many of the wonderful photographs throughout the Model Aviation magazine, they still have the faces of little boys. They set up their planes and flight boxes then sit around and share the camaraderie of fellow flyers. After a few hours they pack it all up and head back home. Many of them don't fly anymore due to failing eyesight, shaky hands or unsteady balance but no one ever mentions it. A Cox .049 engine has always been considered a Rite of Passage in many circles. Continuing to be involved in the hobby and sharing expert opinions and help others to enjoy model aviation along the way is what remains of their well-earned dignity. Isn't it wonderful how Cox has helped them all get there? I hope when I am 80 or 90 years old I can still be found at the local runway explaining the basics of an .049 engine!”

I look forward to another year and, I hope, a great many more stories!

Flying the airplane is more important than radioing your plight to a person on the ground incapable of understanding it or doing anything about it

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