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Author Topic: Ron Prentice  (Read 891 times)

Offline E Boehm

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Ron Prentice
« on: October 29, 2019, 01:37:35 PM »
I just learned of some very sad news out of England. Ron Prentice has passed away. Many will remember Ron for his long running control-line column “Mind the Lines” in Aeromodeller magazine. He also had a few stunt designs and a kit business. Ron came to VSC at least once and many of us here in the United States knew him well. He won early stunt contests in post-WWII England with his own designs, the Big Fry and Small Fry. Ron was a craftsman second to none. He made his living crafting stringed musical instruments, each a work of art. He was an amazing musician, playing double bass and bass guitar, with some of the biggest names in the business. He can even be heard playing the James Bond theme on the original sound track of “Dr. No”. I came to know Ron while stationed in the UK with USAF in the 1990s. We attended contests together and he would tell me stories of the London Blitz and the early days of rock and roll in the UK…all the while being so very humble about his contributions. Ron was also a keen free-flight modeler. One memory I will never forget was at Middle Wallop in the early 1990s. I was chasing his Wakefield model and on its last flight, despite seeing that the de-thermalizer had popped, the thermals carried it away anyway. Ron just smiled. One of the greatest gifts he ever gave me was a lesson in carving my own props for rubber models! The hospitality of Ron and his family was extraordinary. I was privileged to spend several nights in their home, a restored 14th century mill, complete with a working water-wheel built by Ron himself. On my last visit a few years ago, Ron gave me a small book he wrote about his life. I will reread it tonight.

Offline RC Storick

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Re: Ron Prentice
« Reply #1 on: October 29, 2019, 02:47:11 PM »
Sorry for your friends passing
AMA 12366

Offline FLOYD CARTER

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Re: Ron Prentice
« Reply #2 on: October 29, 2019, 04:01:31 PM »
That is indeed sad.  Ron and I were good friends, dating back to the '80s.  His SMALL FRY stunt model won the event called "All Herts Rallye", I think in 1949.  I built several versions of his "Fry" models, and still have several.

My wife and I visited Ron around 1992 when he lived in Taunton, in Somerset county, SW of London.  Of course, we had to discuss stringed instruments, because I am a violinist-- having been a member of several symphony orchestras.  His output of string basses numbered 50 before he retired from being  a luthier.  His instruments are prized by orchestra musicians.  He tried to talk me into building a violin, even giving me enough wood to make one.  I might do it someday.

Here is what SMALL FRY looks like.  Typical British strunter of that time, with lightweight construction and diesel power. 
89 years, but still going (sort of)
AMA #796  SAM #188  LSF #020

Online Dan McEntee

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Re: Ron Prentice
« Reply #3 on: October 29, 2019, 05:51:21 PM »
  I have to dig out the magazine to check the exact year, but I met Ron at my first VSC, 1991 or '92? I was flying a smallish model called 'Ruby" and Ron talked to me about it, and put a picture of it in AeroModeler magazine a few months later, although he didn't get my name correct! He credited the model to Fran McElwee, who I came to learn later on was an actual person of some renown in England. I think he brought over two sizes of his Small Fry design with him. I have the plans as presented in AeroModeler around the same time. Always read his articles in AM also. Another page of the history book has turned.
   Fair Winds Ron!
  Dan McEntee
AMA 28784
EAA  1038824
AMA 480405 (American Motorcyclist Association)

Offline E Boehm

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Re: Ron Prentice
« Reply #4 on: October 30, 2019, 06:22:54 PM »
Hello Floyd! Yes, he spoke of you quite kindly when I first stayed at the Mill in 1992, and again in 2007. I last saw him in 2016 when I had a work trip to the UK. He had just made a viol de gamba for himself and was teaching himself to play! Extraordinary guy! I bought a Small Fry kit, one of Ron's own making, on eBay several years ago. I told Ron that I had one of his kits and he immediately gifted me an appropriate sized diesel engine, one of his personal home made handles, and a set of lines. I cloned the kit parts, including the tin plate for the fuel tank, as I want to keep the kit in mint condition. I have not assembled it yet.  He also gave me several model related books.


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