Mike MacCarthy’s CallAir A- 9, with the leadouts hidden and the leadout guide removed for static
judging. With working flaps, throttle, touch-and-gos, and taxiing, this model only needs one more
option to complete the score sheet.
How to prepare for the Nats
by Fred Cronenwett
clscale7@gmail.com
One of the things I like best about Control Line (CL) competitions is that you see things that you
might have never thought of or even
considered doing. I have picked up
innovative ideas or learned new things at
every contest I have attended.
If you have flown in a CL Aerobatics
contest, you know that everyone flies
the same maneuvers in the same order.
The score sheets in CL Scale list six
blank options. This means that you have
to choose what options you want to do,
and in what order. If you only list five
options and leave one blank, you will
receive zero points for the sixth option.
Options are lumped into two
categories: mechanical and flying. The
flying options include a touch-and-go,
missed approach, high flight, taxi, inside
loop, Lazy Eight, wingover, or other
aerobatic maneuvers.
Mechanical options are easier to
do at the flying field, but require
more building time to make them
work correctly. These options include
retractable landing gear, flaps, a bomb or
tank drop, rotating turrets, torpedo drop,
parachute drop, crop dusting, or other
scale operations that are unique to the
aircraft being modeled. Remember that
throttle control and multiengine also
count as options and can be used (see
my February 2017 column).
There is a long list on the score sheet
of what can be called out, based upon
the airplane you have built. Retractable
landing gear and touch-and-gos count as
two options and are typically listed on
two lines of the score sheet.
Score Sheets
There are currently two versions of
the score sheet available. The AMA rules
have a set attached to the 2017-2018
CL Scale rules; the National Association
of Scale Aeromodelers (NASA) website
has another set of score sheets that add
up to the same number of points, but
are laid out differently for the judges.
Ask the contest director (CD) which
form he or she will use so you can fill it
out before arriving at the contest.
Practice Flying at Your Local
Flying Site
When you go to your local flying
field and something does not work, it
is usually not a big deal, but during a
contest it can be a problem, especially if
you have driven a long way to get there.
There have been cases where items have
been left at home or something does
not work properly. These things can
sometimes be difficult to fix on the road.
Pull-test your lines and do a safety
inspection of the aircraft. Just because
the model was okay the last time you
flew it does not mean that it doesn’t
need some attention.
Several days before a contest, I go to
my local flying field and run through
the same things I would do at a contest.
I make sure I have all of the items
required for static judging, such as
documentation and static propellers. I
assemble the airplane, put in a test flight
to make sure everything is working, then
take all of the boxes and equipment and
pack the car.
Consider taking a spare parts box
that has extra engines, spare flying lines,
parts, or tools that you might need at the
contest. You should also make sure that
your flying lines meet the current rules
for diameter and length.
Be prepared for the CD to perform
a safety inspection of your model and
measure your lines. With the flying lines
attached to the model, the airplane will
be pull-tested to 5Gs.
Local Contests—Two Rounds Flown
Local contests that are flown in one
day have different schedules from what
is used at the Nats, which is a three-day contest. At a local contest, you will
be given three attempts to make two
105 Model Aviation APRIL 2017 www.ModelAviation.com
CONTROL LINE SCALE
