Conversations around the Thanksgiving table tomorrow will, at some point, surely, turn to memories and funny stories from the olden days. Just like, equally surely, conversations do at club fields and flying events. There isn’t enough room in the museum to fly a model, and eating in the gallery is […]
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Byron Originals Mustang Restoration
Several years ago, the Acquisition Committee approved the donation of a Byron Originals P-51D Mustang from the collection of Gordon Ingram. After its acceptance, multiple conversations between the donor, the museum and a shipping company planned out the model’s arrival. Unfortunately, the shipment was not smooth, and the Mustang arrived […]
Continue readingAn Honor to be Weird and Wonderful
The Academy of Model Aeronautics and National Model Aviation Museum are honored to be a part of Minnetrista Cultural Center’s “25 Weird and Wonderful Reasons to Love Our Community” exhibit celebrating Minnetrista’s 25th anniversary. The exhibit features 25 mini-exhibits about places and things around Muncie and surrounding communities. These top […]
Continue readingHoliday Hours 2013
The holidays are approaching, and I’m sure everyone is planning for holiday travel. Keep in mind that the museum’s schedule is different during this season to allow staff to celebrate with their families. Here’s the changes: Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 2013: Closed Black Friday, November 29, 2013: Open 10 a.m. […]
Continue readingBing Autoplan Conservation, pt. 2
A dedicated, but attention shy, museum volunteer has stepped up to help draw a set of plans for the Bing Autoplan. And since plans are useless unless they are as accurate as possible, we spent several hours recently examining the Bing Autoplan in close detail. Right now the plans will […]
Continue readingWAA-08 SQuiRT Joins Museum Collection
During an adventure lasting 5 years, 145 days, 21 hours and 50 minutes, the Wings across America 2008 SQuiRT helped educate countless people about model aviation, and helped build camaraderie between the over 800 participating pilots. On October 18, 2013 the SQuiRT began a new adventure as part of the […]
Continue readingWhen you build… wrap-up
The debate on whether to build from plans or buy an ARF is very current right now. Keep in mind, though, that it is not a new debate. In the “Model Matters” column in the December 1940 Air Trails the question was brought up that: “Have improved kits reduced the number of boys who […]
Continue readingWhen you build… tips from the past pt. 3
Air Trails Hobbies for Young Men was a popular source for model building information in the 1950s. A monthly “Sketchbook” column allowed readers to share original building and flying tips. Polyhedral Wings “Easy spar-joining trick for polyhedralled wings – Ideal for rubber models and light gassies … no gussets necessary […]
Continue readingWhen you build… tips from the past pt. 2
It is surprisingly difficult to get good building tips from the older model building manuals. Primarily because the models discussed in those sources are generally A-frame pushers, tractor monoplanes or non-flying scale models. Some basic wisdom survives the decades, though. Cutting Tools Elmer Allen in the 1928 book, Model Airplanes: […]
Continue readingWhen you build… tips from the past, pt. 1
In honor of yesterday’s (10/10/2013) Plans Build Webinar and Model Aviation’s October issue on scratch building, the museum presents some handy building tips, circa 1940. The importance of sanding “When designing and building the model the main idea is to get a well-balanced plane with as little drag as possible. […]
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