I have a serious problem. While I am sure that a psychologist would have a name for my affliction, I can only describe the symptoms. Whenever I go to a trade show or exposition such as the IMAA Expo. in Oshkosh, I am somehow compelled to buy kits. I see those gorgeous creations hanging over the manufacturer's booth and the next thing I know I am walking down the aisle with a large box under my arm. This time it was in Oshkosh and the Walt Moucha Models' booth. It was the Miss Los Angeles racer without covering showing off that beautiful stick type truss construction that got to me.

When I unpacked the kit, I was prepared for a stack of balsa lumber, and I wasn't disappointed. I found the wood to be of good quality with no bad pieces that had to be thrown out. The die cutting is clean and sharp. The plans are rolled blueprints and the printing quality is excellent. The wing registration numbers and other markings are press on mylar and show the Miss Los Angeles reproduction as built and flown by Mr. Bill Turner. The included booklet of 11 pages contains both instructions and 24 photos of the plane in varying stages of construction. Also included in the booklet is a good documentation three view line drawing of the original plane. Between the plans and the instruction book, construction is clear.

The plane is of built up construction with no surprises in store. The fuselage is particularly rugged with three layers of strength. The first layer is the normal truss construction of balsa longerons and cross braces. The second layer is lite ply inside the truss and goes from the firewall back through the wing saddle. The third layer is 1/32" ply sheet covering around the nose and back over the cockpit on the top. This construction should handle all but the most severe accidents.

This built up construction may sound slow and tedious to those who have never built a plane of this type. While truss construction does take a little more time than a slab sided, foam wing plane; the difference is not great. I framed out the Miss Los Angeles up to the point of covering in about 60 hours of bench time and I am a slow builder.

The only deviation I made from the plan was around the firewall (see photo #1 ). I am using a Supertigre 3000 engine that requires 5/8" spacers. I chose to install a second firewall holding both the engine and fuel tank. This second firewall then bolts to the front of the original firewall and the fuel tank slips through a suitably cut hole. I now have not only the additional spacing required but also easy access to the tank, ignition batteries and the CH Electronics module.

When I started building the wing I was faced with a decision: flaps or no flaps. The original Miss Los Angeles was a racing plane and needed only small ailerons. After all, the main job for the plane was to go fast and turn left. I was concerned that the small appearing ailerons would give me less response than I would want. The alternative was to use the flap area as part of the ailerons and fake the flap/aileron dividing line with a strip of black tape. I decided to go with the larger aileron and no flaps. I now believe this decision was wrong and that I should have installed flaps. But more thoughts on this subject later. You will have no problems if you choose to install flaps because they are simply the inboard segment of the ailerons. These flaps are very easy to build and install.

There is one place in the construction that can catch you if you don't read the instructions. This has to do with the headrest that runs from the cockpit back to the rudder post. Be sure you cover the fuselage before installing this headrest and the rudder. If you do not follow this sequence, you will have a very small fabric attachment base on the turtleback just under the headrest.

In the past I have been covering with Supershrink Coverite. However this time I selected Regular Coverite. The reason was my concern with the possibility of the Supershrink bending in the stringers on the top and bottom of the fuselage. Supershrink Coverite has a very high shrink force and I didn't want to take any chances. The Regular Coverite went on easily and shrunk down with no problems at all. I use a Coverite thermometer to set the iron for the correct application temperature and shrink with the iron set just under the fabric melt temperature. As a part of covering, I lined the cowl and pants interior with coarse fiberglass and polyester resin for strength and rigidity. I then covered the outside seam line with 1/2 oz. glass.

After priming with automotive water based primer, I applied a simulated rib stitching to the ribs. While this is a tedious operation, it is easy to do and does a lot to dress up the plane. The technique I use is to pin down a strip of Scotch Hair Set tape with the sticky side up. I pin this tape on a piece of paper on which I have marked the length of the ribs and the simulated rib stitch locations about 1" apart. I then cut small pieces of nylon fishing line about 1/4" long. These nylon pieces are placed crosswise on the tape at the marked locations - a pair of tweezers helps here. When all the nylon pieces are in place I lift the tape, turn it over and press it on the wing over a rib. Repeat for each rib being sure to line up the stitches from rib to rib. All that remains is to fill the tape with the primer. You will find that priming this hair set tape is like trying to fill a blotter, but it can be done with several coats. There are two things to be careful of while preparing this tape for the final finish color. The first is to put on the primer thin enough that you don't cover up the pinked edges of the tape. The second is to use care sanding that you don't cut through the tape on top of the simulated stitches. I also simulated the cowl break lines with 1/16" tape that I put on at this time before the final painting.

The finish painting is easy because the whole airplane is one color. I used Rust-oleum thinned 15% with mineral spirits. Application of the kit supplied pressure sensitive markings then completed the finishing. I did have to add a little weight in the tail to get the CG as specified.

The engine is a Supertigre 3000 with an OS 1.08 carburetor and a CH Electronics ignition system. I have found this to be a very reliable power combination. However, I have recently changed fuel brands. For those who have never run ignition conversions, the fuel used is the same as that used in the engines on glow. I am now using fuel from Patterson's Hobbies. I have discovered that this fuel has outstanding sparkplug anti-fouling characteristics. I had been having considerable trouble with sparkplug fouling while using my usual glow fuel. However, this fuel from Patterson's Hobbies has completely cured the problem.

I selected S-148 servos with one servo per surface for the control drives. This gives me redundant servos for the elevators and ailerons. The installation of SR batteries and a Futaba FG Series FM 7 channel radio brought everything up to the point of flying. To me, building is very enjoyable but flying is when the real fun begins

As I approached the first flights, I reflected on the comments of friends as they watched the construction develop. From their comments, it wasn't hard to gather that they thought that this plane was going to be a real handful to fly. This is a racing machine and it has that "mean" look. Fortunately, I was able to go into those first flights with complete confidence. After all, my courage and skill on the sticks is well known all the way from Frog Creek to Yehaw Junction. In truth - I had seen two of these planes fly at the Oshkosh Expo. and they were both rock solid in the air.

Before the first flight, I made several runs down our grass strip to see if there was going to be a problem keeping every thing in a straight line. My technique is to bring up the power slowly to about 1/2 throttle, let the tail come up and get rudder control. I then go to full power if everything is going the way I went. This gives me plenty of time to cut the throttle if I let the plane get very far from the center line. I haven't tried it, but I suspect that too fast an application of power will give some real directional control problems. Racing planes of the 1930s were not noted for their wide stance landing gears.

On the first flight I relearned the adage that a giant size scale aircraft will fly much like the full size airplane. The book "A Season of Eagles" speaks of the Brown racer as "a pretty stable" and a "fairly safe" airplane. I found the first flight to be real fun, but I don't recommend the plane to anyone not experienced with higher performance machines. The full scale airplane was called a "comfortable" plane to fly. But you have to remember that the comparison was made to other racing planes of the time - not in comparison to Cubs.

On that first flight, I found that I had an honest and responsive plane that was a real ball to fly. It was a tame flight in that I just flew it around getting the feel of the plane - nothing fancy. When it came time to land, the plane came right down the final with an easy flair for a gentle and surprisingly slow tail low landing. There was no tendency to snap at all and I slowed it down more than I intended before touchdown. In fact, I overshot the strip and landed on the over-run. I expected the plane to settle faster and the landing to be faster than was the case.

Earlier I said that I had opted for no flaps. After flying the Miss Los Angeles for about 50 flights, I now believe that the flaps are a good idea. It isn't that the flaps would make landing any easier because landing is no problem at all. It is because the plane is responsive enough without high aileron throws and the flaps would add something to the scale characteristics of the plane.

I have found my Miss Los Angeles to be an excellent airplane that is very enjoyable both to build and to fly. I have also discovered that this plane is a real conversation piece on the flight line. Other pilots will stop what they are doing to watch it fly. In fact, a full bore low pass is quite an attention grabber. Another point is that a giant model seems to pick up the character of the full size plane. If you want an all out aerobatics star, build an Ultimate or an Extra. But if you want a different style model of a very good racer that is also a lot of fun, then build a Miss Los Angeles.

I can recommend this offering from Walt Moucha Models but only if you have experience with higher performance planes. If you are beyond the trainer stage and quite comfortable with higher performance planes, I believe that you will find the Miss Los Angeles to be a welcome addition in your hanger.

	Specifications: 
	Name: Miss Los Angeles 
	Manufacturer: Walt Moucha Models 
	List Price: $159.99 plus $5.00 S&H 
	Span: 73" 
	Cord: 16" 
	Area: 8.11 Sq. Ft. 
	Weight: 16 1/4 lbs. 
	Wing Loading: 32.1 Oz/Sq Ft. 
	Length: 78" 
	Height 22" 
	Engine: Supertigre 3000 
	Carburetor. OS 108 
	Ignition: CH Electronics 
	Fuel: Patterson's Hobbies 
	Propeller. Dynathrust 18 x 10 
	Spinner: TruTurn 
	Covering: Coverite Regular 
	Primer: R-M Hydrosol Gray 
	Paint: Rustoleum 
	Radio: Futaba 7 Channel FM 
	Flight Photos: Jerry Greene