Hat Band

[Jmk89]

Does anyone know whether there is a plan available for JOD's Hat Band Coupe d'hiver model?

[billdennis747]

Yes I've seen one but can't remember where. It was National Free Flight Society Model of the Year 1970 so that would be a good place to start

https://www.freeflight.org/product-category/plans/

[Jmk89]

Yes I've seen one but can't remember where. It was National Free Flight Society Model of the Year 1970 so that would be a good place to start

https://www.freeflight.org/product-category/plans/

Thanks, Bill.

I couldn't see it there or on the AMA site

The search goes on!

[g_kandylakis]

I 'l have a look at the plans gallery backup later

[Jmk89]

Thanks, George

[g_kandylakis]

Well, for nothing actually.

Nothing in the old Plans Gallery, I am sorry to say.

George

[billdennis747]

Write to the author of this

https://www.modelaviation.com/What-to-Build

Follow up the contacts on the NFFS website; there is someone in charge of plans
I'll ask Gavin Manion

[cvasec]

Here is a quote from the article....
"As far as I know, no drawings of the Hat Band are available"
..but he might have drawn one!
Ron

[billdennis747]

Yes, Gavin thinks there is no plan. So how did that chap who wrote the article build his? Contact him.

[Jmk89]

Yes, Gavin thinks there is no plan. So how did that chap who wrote the article build his? Contact him.

The guy in the article (Louis Joyner, I think) seems to say that he used the material from JOD's description in the 1970 Sympo report plus the three photos published. So maybe there is no plan and he just used "constructional outline drawings".

Before I contact the author, I think I might do some more research - for example, I'm sure there are photos of JOD and Hatband in AeroModeller which might be clearer than those in the Sympo article.

For those interested, here's an extract from that report

[billdennis747]

It's frustrating because as the fog of my memory clears, I remember John sending me a sketch of the model for some reason. Yes there are photos in AM in the 60s when there were annual reports on the group trips to the French contests.
Bill

[Jmk89]

Thanks Bill.  Some of those photos should help getting the fuselage length correct as well as the dimensions of the tailplane. 

One thing that I'm curious about in the Louis Joyner article is the idea of the front fuselage being completely sheeted in 3/32" balsa.  The article says:
"The fuselage construction for both models was similar. The front section that contains the rubber motor is a square box made from 3/32-inch balsa (use the lightest wood you can find!). The corners of the box are 3/32-inch square balsa (use the hardest you can find). These longerons extend all the way to the rear. Balsa spacers tie the four longerons together. The Hat Band used vertical and horizontal spacers. ... After covering, the airframe weight[was] a rather porky 89 grams for the Hat Band. Most of this excess was from the 3/32-inch balsa that was used for the front fuselage section. (Rules state that you must use the original material thickness or thicker.)"

These details do not seem to be derivable from the three photos in the Sympo article, so I wonder where Joyner got that information.
 
My recollection of JOD designs (eg Borderline, Delinquent and Teacher's Pet) is that his fuselages were usually stick and tissue and any "surplus" weight would go into diagonal spacers rather than creating balsa tubes.  But maybe with 70 gr available he went the whole hog with sheeting.  But I am surprised that the sheeting wasn't 1/16" (like Derl Morley used for Garter Knight, Bill and Shirley Horton used for Tyra and Dave White used for Baron Knight) or even 1/32".  I'm also surprised since JOD mentions using the pylon for ballasting the model - putting it there suggests that the  model was underweight and I'd be surprised if that would happen if 3/32"sheet was used.

I think I can work out the diameter of the prop from the pictures - because it folds under the wing but what I can't see is the pitch of the prop.  Maybe that is mentioned in those articles that John wrote for AM in the early 2010s, after he retired from competition flying. 

Anyway, I'll do some more research and then write to Mr Joyner to see what he has to say (I like to have got as far as I can on my own before asking for help )

[billdennis747]

Interesting structure details. I'm surprised at the 3/32" forward fuselage - John knew all about saving weight but it should be possible to build down to weight; there were no trackers or timers then.
One thing I'd challenge is the hard longerons. No need - each one should weigh between 0.9g and 1g. Otherwise the balance point shifts back, as does the wing. Perhaps that's why John used a heavier front end. One thing is for sure, he would have had a reason that he could justify at length!
Bill

[billdennis747]

Finally, I wonder why this was model of the year? I think Dave White's Baron Knight seemed more successful, and ubiquitous. Incidentally, when I did a My Coupe, I realised it was essentially a BK with minor changes.
My guess is that the Hatband was a straightforward scaling-down of his 50g Wakefield so it might be worth looking at that too.

[dputt7]

   I had a look through my copy of Free Flight Quarterly Coupe D'Hiver Special but could not find anything on Hat Band.