Gluing, sanding, staining

From August 6 to 10, the “Starter” beginner’s model was built at our clubhouse as part of the 2018 Summer Activity Pass. Six boys, with the help of three assistants, glued, painted, and sanded the model into a little showpiece. The model was equipped with the Multiplex SX-Smart, which is more than enough for a beginner’s model and is also very handy when you need to get things done quickly!

The building course ran from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. At noon, we stopped for a bite to eat at our local café to fuel up for the afternoon. On Wednesday afternoon, we were even able to test-fly the models on the Hornuss field near our cabin

test-fly the models before the first thunderstorm in a long time reached Wattenwil.

On Thursday, we decided to fly up to the Gurnigel to a west-facing slope. Unfortunately, the wind picked up a little too early, so we couldn’t fly anymore after lunch. We were satisfied for the time being. All the models managed several takeoffs and landings, and the damage was minimal.

From Thursday into Friday, the weather didn’t look promising. Our mountain range was shrouded in clouds all the way down. By 10 a.m., we had loaded the trailer with the models. Then we headed back toward Gurnigel to the same spot as the day before; the

The weather report had predicted an improvement and a west wind. The skies cleared, the wind was coming from the northwest, but we were able to fly. Dominik flew for over five minutes, and Niklas followed right behind him.

We—Peter Oppliger, Pole Schär, Peter Kohler, and I—enjoyed the week with the boys.

We thank the parents for their trust and hope that some of the participants have developed a taste for model building—and certainly for model flying—since all the young model pilots managed over fifty takeoffs and landings (and “occasional arrivals”) over the two days! We’d like to thank Insider Modellbau for their generous support, as well as the Dammweg Foundation in Biel for the excellent beginner’s model, the Starter!

*Anton Humbel*