Competition question on line length.

[jim gilmore]

I have never flown any competition, though I prefer small models. Is the a limit on length ofr line that makes smaller models unflyable? after all I would never attempt totry a baby ringmaster on 50; lines ?
is there any requirment that lines must be over 30' ?

[minnesotamodeler]

35' is pretty much the norm for 1/2A these days; I fly my .020s on the old standard of 27'.  A strong 1/2A (Teedee, Norvel, etc.) often will be flown on 42' lines.  The only events that require a set length are speed (for timing purposes), racing and combat (for a level playing field).  Most anything else, fly what works best.  My .061-powered stunters use 48' lines.  I have used as long as 52' but that's pushing the limit I think; requires a fairly calm day.

[Brett Buck]

I have never flown any competition, though I prefer small models. Is the a limit on length ofr line that makes smaller models unflyable? after all I would never attempt totry a baby ringmaster on 50; lines ?
is there any requirment that lines must be over 30' ?

  There is a limit on how long the lines should be, but it's based on the performance. I had very good results with a 1/2A Mirage/Medallion 049 on .008x52, but a Lil Jumpin' Bean doesn't like that.

    I don't have access to the current pull test table but there is a minimum length for competition (I want to say 26 feet but look it up in the rulebook). The max length is 70' from handle to center, which is about 67 of actual lines from eyelet to eyelet for a typical 60-sized plane. My plane uses 64' lines right now, and that's just what gives me the best performance. It will fly on 66' 6" pretty well, but I like the added precision on 64s. 2.5 feet is a HUGE difference in the feel, and even a foot is a pretty distinct change.

    Brett

 p.s. 25 feet is the minimum length for competition. I don't think that is going to be a limiting factor for anyone.

As an aside, I might suggest that you are setting yourself a pretty rough road trying to compete in regular stunt with a 1/2A. If that's what you have got, by all means go ahead, but if you are going to do it for serious you need to consider building a bigger airplane. I have seen *a few* pretty decent 1/2A flights (Heman Lee flew most of an *extraordinary* pattern back in WAM Fund day in 2003 - better than defending champion Baron at the 97 NATs with his engine-ejecting 1/2A)  and they have a bit of an advantage in terms of corner radius over bigger airplanes. But just about everything else is much more difficult. Once again, run what you got, and I am not trying to discourage you in any way - take it for what it is worth.

[Paul Smith]

http://www.modelaircraft.org/events/compreg.aspx

If you're planning on entering contests, you need to study a lot more than just line length.  The link above will give you what you need:

Safety Code
General Rules
Control Line General
The event you want to enter.

[jim gilmore]

1 I'm neither planning to compete nor readsy. Mom is got me stuck in nyc here but i was curious if their was a limit on line length.
When i was in my late teens I flew a topflite hurricane with golden bee and loved it. but I only used the cotton lines way back when. I could do eights,loops and inverted easily. never tried squares. But on that short lines I was going pretty fast. Though I was not looking to try it at 35 or 40' is all.

[PJ Rowland]

Hi brett.

I run 64.5 centre to centre, - ive found this to be the magic number for myself.

Im curious, what is everyone else flying with?

[Brett Buck]

I run 64.5 centre to centre, - ive found this to be the magic number for myself.

Im curious, what is everyone else flying with?

    Dave, Ted, Phil, Jim, and I are all in that ballpark, and Howard and I had a discussion on the topic a few weeks ago. I normally carry 63, 64, and 65 and occasionally switch back and forth. It's about a toss-up between 63 and 64 - as long as I am careful to keep the maneuver sizes down, I generally go back to 64s. 63s keep the maneuver sizes tight enough to keep the airplane from "wandering" in the rounds because they have to be forced  a bit. On 65s, the squares look a little more square but it has too much tendency to wander and if I was going to do it I would probably have to run the CG forward to keep adequate feedback, with the other problems that entails. Bear in mind, we all have to use .018s and line whip is a big consideration. If I could run smaller lines (like the Yatsenko lines - smaller but not too stretchy) it might be a different story. Bear also in mind I have stuck with this because I have been running essentially the same equipment since 1999 with no real changes, so one would expect it to be pretty constant.

     Brett