I am new on this board and have found it very interesting. I have been away from CL Stunt for 34 years, but am getting the bug again.
I have seen some references on this forum about the Spirit of Saginaw, which was published in FM magazine in the January, 1973 issue. It was my airplane, influenced by Jack Sheeks' many great designs.
I am a native of Indianapolis and was fortunate enough to discover Jack and form a friendship with him. Actually, I idolized the man who could spit out a new scratch built stunter every couple of months. At the time, I was a hack who had been building profile kits and smashing them more often than not. I couldn't fly inverted and couldn't do much more than a loop. Jack became my hero and I pestered him often. Never did he ever complain, but, instead, provided me with his guidance in building and flying. There were a couple of his planes that really appealed to me. One was the Supersonic Stunter and the other was the Asheeks. Both were sweptwings with a jet style. In fact, I eventually bought the Stuntliner from Jack, or rather, swapped an outboard motor for it. I never dared to fly it for some time, but it was a piece of "The Jack" which I could marvel at.
In 1967, I started traveling in my new job. I would build profiles in motel rooms, even as far as doping them in the late night hours. I was actually evicted from one motel because the fumes were making people complain.
I used to carry a Banshee in the trunk of my company car and seek out a field or school lot after work each day. I didn't have a stooge, but I rigged up a way to hold the plane on the ground by setting a heavy toolbox down between the outboard wing and the stab. Once the engine was started, I would run out to the handle before the model vibrated loose and walk backwards, thereby crabbing the plane towards me and setting it free. It was an interesting exercise and of course, dangerous. Did I say I was a hack?
My obsession with flying and learning the pattern never wavered, but it cost me many airplanes. Such were the dues paid for my lust.
In 1968, I was officially transferred to the Detroit area and chose to move to Saginaw. One of the first things I did in my new city was find a hobby shop to support my needs. As luck would have it, the shop owner was a modeler himself and he dabbled with CL planes. In fact, he was president of a small local club of fun flyers. He invited me to attend their meetings. Long story short, most had never heard of Jack Sheeks, but I brought the Stuntliner for show and tell, along with a few copies of FM magazine, every one featuring a Sheeks design. Nobody in the club could fly the pattern. Some had never heard of it and some could do half a wingover and lazy eights. Most of the planes were small kits, poorly built and barely able to fly, but the club had a good time. Despite my status (hack) which I kept confidential, it wasn't long before I was the new club president and the appointed test flyer of every new plane in the club. It was also my job to solve problems and show others how to improve their build quality and flying ability. Wow. Good thing I was a few hundred miles from home.
Somewhere around the time I moved to Michigan, Jack presented me with a rolled up drawing of a sweptwing that he made just for me. It was to be my going away gift and the beginning of my independence.
I kept the drawing rolled up, but continued to pursue the hobby with my profiles. I began entering contests in the Detroit area and was very successful bumping guys out of last place. I was able to be in the presence of Big Art and his fabulous flying family, Don Bambrick, Leroy Gunther, and now and then, Billy Werwage, who would come up from Ohio. These people also became my idols because they could do so well that which I struggled with. However, I kept my distance while observing and listening to the wonders of the stunt circle.
One time I brought the Stuntliner and Art recognized it right away as a JS original. I never tried to hide the fact that I bought the plane from Jack. Unfortunately, I was not capable of flying the Stuntliner as it was intended, so I didn't even attempt a complete pattern and was able to bring the plane home in one piece.
I graduated to building from plans. I built a Coyote and painted it bright orange with black trim. It was a good plane for me and provided me with the experience of interpreting a drawing and cutting and fitting my own parts from materials I selected. There were others that I can't remember right now. The day came when I unrolled the sweptwing plans and decided to give it a go. I named it the Spirit of Saginaw.
It wasn't long before I was cutting ribs and assembling the I-beam. I built the plane with a few calls made to Jack to ask questions and fill him in on my progress. Jack was always more than happy to help. The plane finally took shape and I ended up with a beautiful plane that was fairly built. My finishing skills were still in the larval stage. I painted it with Aero Gloss Diana Cream dope. Over and over and over I painted that plane. I figured a little paint was good, a lot would be better. What the hell, I was still a hack. I stuffed a new Enya 35 with the small venturi in the nose and was ready to test. I don't remember how much air time I had on it, but I took it to a Detroit area contest and entered it. Well, it was too heavy, wasn't trimmed, I was a hack and couldn't find the wind in a hurricane. The result? Half a wingover and the plane fell out of the sky and literally exploded on the blacktop. Big Art came over and offered condolences, but my plane was junk and the engine severely damaged. I cleaned up the mess and went home.
I made another half-hearted attempt at building another plane, but this time chose to make the fuselage out of 3 pieces of 1/2" stacked together and fully sheet the wing. Near it's completion, I happened to go back to Indy for a weekend and I brought it to show Jack. Well, he pretty much said it wouldn't fly much more than in circles. It was just too heavy. He didn't tell me anything I didn't already suspect. It was a turkey. I never completed it, but used it as a donor for controls and hardware.
Time went on. Jack had another new plane in the August, 1971 issue of FM magazine. It was a profile Magister with a V tail and was a good looking plane. I spoke with Jack on the phone and told him I would like to build it, but use the features and visuals of the sweptwing. I bought the plans and laid a sheet of tracing paper over them, leaving in the basics, but changing the shape of the fuselage. I also laid the stab and elevators out flat and drew in a conventional jet style rudder with the dowel rod pitot on the top, just like the sweptwing. It was a good looking airplane and I was excited. I bought a new OS Max 35 for power. Once again, the third in the series would be painted Diana Cream with red and black trim. But, this time, it would work. It would be the Spirit of Saginaw III.
Prior to completion of the model, I attended the Nats in Chicago in 1972. I met Jack and he introduced me to Don McGovern, the editor of FM magazine. Jack told him that I was a friend that had a new plane in the works. Don said when it was finished, to submit photos, plans and a write-up and he would see what he could do. Upon my return home, I quickly finished the plane, shot pictures, wrote an article and submitted it.
My first flight was on August 12 and I made 3 flights to test and adjust the plane. It was almost perfect right out of the gate. The next day, I took it to that same contest where I slaughtered the SSI and took 2nd place in Novice Stunt. The Gods of Stunt and Jack Sheeks had smiled upon me. From then on, I entered every contest within a day's driving distance, until the season ended. I placed in the top 3 almost all the time, mostly 2nd, but an occasional 1st. It was the beginning. In January, 1973, it was one of the feature articles in Flying Models magazine.
During the off season, I decided to build another plane, but a full fuselage. I was determined to enter the next Nats.
The next plane was based on the profile with some changes. I went with a 27 inch stab and sleekened the outline a bit. Come spring time, the new plane wasn't completed but I continued to practice and compete with the profile, again racking up spots in the top 3.
The new plane was barely completed before the Nats and the dope was still damp when I loaded the station wagon for the trip to Oshkosh. The model hadn't been flown yet, but my intention was to get some practice and trim flights in prior to the first day of competition. I actually put the tape stripes on in the motel. The model was finally finished and dubbed the Free Spirit.
As luck would have it, I never got practice. To make matters worse, I drew the #1 flight on my qualifying circle. I had never been so nervous in my life. My first Nats, brand new plane, never flown before, now in front of the finest group of model pilots in the country... and I was first to fly.
I did my best and the plane actually flew fairly well, but I was scared to death and left as soon as I rolled my lines in. As it turned out, I was very lucky and the judges were either cold or generous or a combination of same. Gene Shaffer drew the number 2 spot and his flight scored not much further from me, not because I was that good, but the judges had probably warmed up a bit. At the end of the day, I had qualified. The finals were predictable. I was last in 18th place, but at least I was in the finals. It was truly beginner's luck.
During that Nats, I had the good fortune to meet Bob Hunt, also at his first Nats. He had a gorgeous plane named the Genesis that he had designed and built with his own foam wing and finished with polyester resin. The plane was extremely light, I believe in the mid to high 30's. I talked to Bob at great length and asked if he would build a wing for me from my rib profile. He agreed and gave me his address to send it to. The price was $30, if I recall.
The Nats ended and I went home floating on a cloud. It was the last week of my vacation and I was winding down. On August 15, 1973, my wife and I went to a movie in a local mall. I had not been there before and was daydreaming a bit when we went to enter the cinema, which was surrounded by non reflective plate glass. I hesitated for a moment to read a poster and then turned to enter the theater. What I believed to be an open lobby was actually glass and I walked through it, breaking a gaping hole that cut me from my neck down to my legs. The most serious wounds were from a long piece that entered my right armpit and another that cut across the extensor tendons in my right hand. My knees were opened up and resembled hamburger. I ended up in the hospital and was released hours later, stitched and taped like a mummy. My hand was repaired with steel wires but they said it would be a long time before I could use it again and I would require PT. I would be doped up for months.
To be continued...
Topic: Spirit Of Saginaw History (Read 4889 times)