From our Museum Director: While researching a recent donation, happened across some great information and pictures of Orlan Corben. Before Piper, Cessna, Kitfox, and Vans, before AOPA, CAP, EAA, and the FAA, there was Ace. Two decades after the Wright Brothers’ first flight, flying had become a rich man’s luxury. […]
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2015 US Drone Racing Nationals Links
During the California State Fair in July 2015, the US Drone Racing Nationals made history. This event, which drew about 120 pilots competing for a 25,000 prize was the first large scale First-Person-View (FPV) race in the country. Want to re-live the event, or indulge your curiosity on what it […]
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1910 Jopson Motor: Flight!
The 1910 Jopson Gasoline Motor weighed 7.5 pounds and had a unique wick carburetor system installed in a tank without any sort of pressurization. Could it actually power a model airplane in flight? Yes! …. Or, well, we’re pretty sure. Photographs published in the book Model Aeroplaning: Its Practice and […]
Continue reading1910 Jopson Motor Carburetor
One of the most unique features of the 1910 Jopson Motor is the wick carburetor system in the fuel tank. A small plate on the tank holds a series of wicks that are immersed in the fuel and evaporate fuel vapor into the passing air stream, which is then pulled […]
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Zoe’s FPV Rat, part 1
Zoe Stumbaugh flying a heavily modified version of the 290mm Blackout Spider Hexacopter design that she named “Rat” won the 1st AMA-sanctioned First-Person-View (FPV) race in May 2015. The modifications Zoe made to the Rat were one of the main reasons she won. They included: • Adjusting the frame and […]
Continue readingZoe’s FPV Rat, part 2
Zoe Stumbaugh flying a heavily modified version of the 290mm Blackout Spider Hexacopter design that she named “Rat” won the 1st AMA-sanctioned First-Person-View (FPV) race in May 2015. Multiple viewpoints of the race are available – here’s a few: FPV video of the course, filmed by pilot GuruNate of Brown […]
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1910 Jopson Motor: Before & After
When Art Gaier first received the Jopson Motor it was missing pieces and looking pretty old and worn. After many internet searches and talking to people, he met and started conversing with the owner of another Jopson Motor in England. Between the two of them they had complete parts for […]
Continue readingNow on Exhibit: Jopson Motor
In the early 20th century, as model aviation was spreading as a hobby, there was also a growing interest in gasoline engines. And, of course, many people attempted to make gasoline engines small enough to fit into a model airplane. There were several successes, although none reached the production level […]
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Biplane Bomber plans!
AMA Plans Service now has a new plan for sale! The Ritchie-Wertz Company’s Biplane Bomber, designed by Charles Hampson Grant in 1919. The Biplane Bomber in the museum’s collection is damaged and missing the tail and a wing. Museum Volunteer Gary Rice has spent about six months drawing a complete […]
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1939 Inverted CL Flight
Roy Mayes is believed to be the first person to fly a Control Line model inverted. Mayes’ 1939 flight was with a Free Flight model converted to Control Line by the addition of a bell crank and elevator. In 2011, Ron Wittman built a reproduction of Mayes’ model airplane for […]
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