Putting It All Together

By: Frank Granelli

It was long, long ago, but for 3 of my first 4 years flying models, I traveled to the RC flight line with all my worldly flight support possessions in a paper bag. Sure, I had built a field box (photo 1) my first year. It was made from ½ in. plywood, used eight giant Ever-Ready® 1.5 volt dry cells, was about the size of a country bar’s counter but was much heavier. It was also prone to fall apart at times. (For those interested, the airplane is a Jensen “Das Ugly Stik” designed by Phil Kraft, powered by the original “Max 60 Gold Head” using a nylon propeller and controlled by an MRC F-700 radio. This was my trainer airplane and it taught me to fly. It lasted eight years until the stab fell off in flight for the second time. (The red car is my 426 Hemi powered Road Runner with a “383” hood to make it a sleeper.)

 
Photo 1    Photo 2

After the first year trying to lug that monster around, I gave up and just threw whatever I needed into the brown sack. Photo 2 shows the infamous sack in the background behind my Top Flite P-39 Aircobra... Also in the background is a very young Richard Landis, now father of Team JR Pattern flyer, Dan Landis, with his Tony Bennetti-designed Troublemaker.

To refuel airplanes, I used a 4 oz. turkey baster with silicone tubing glued in the tip. Glow power was from a single giant Ever-Ready® 1.5 volt cell and engine cranking power came from a “chicken” stick. Refueling was slow as was starting, but it all worked and didn’t weigh 2.5 tons like the old box. When the bag fell apart, it was easily replaced unlike the old box.

I finally purchased a fiberglass flight box that weighed less than three pounds empty and used that box for nearly 30 years. The box was continually upgraded with power panels, better batteries, electric starters and fuel pumps. But finally time, limited storage area, and the need for a better appearance in Sport Aviator photos, made replacement necessary. I decided to go out and buy a new field box and all new field support equipment.

Photo 3

I looked through the available choices at the hobby shop. There are many fine field box choices available today. Plus, since I was buying this stuff for my own personal use, I had my choice of what to get. Photo 3 shows just about everything I bought (you might want to click on the photo to get a better view). You might want to know that the total cost for all this equipment was $238.00 plus tax. That is fairly reasonable considering that I only bought heavy duty equipment intended for hard and prolonged use.

We will cover many of the accessory items in smaller stories in the Baggage section later. The topic now is the field box itself and only those accessories absolutely required to get into the air.

Photo 4

There is not a lot of assembly work required to put the Great Planes “Master Caddy” together. Photo 4 shows just how it comes from the box. The only real work happens if the selected power panel does not fit into the large square opening designed for it, (shown on the left small box in the photo). Since there are so many different sized power panels available, Great Planes had to make the hole to fit the smallest sizes. Other than this, the entire box is a straight forward screw and glue project.

Photo 5

Photo 5 shows the only parts used in the portable power panel box. This “power caddy” is the major reason I choose the Master Caddy over other available field boxes. This section contains the power panel and the 7-amp, 12-volt battery that powers everything. Since I fly at many fields, (when invited), I have to be ready to start my airplane on the flight line as well as in the pits. Some fields prohibit starting in the pits as a safety measure. When I fly at those fields, I can carry the fueled aircraft and the portable power box out to the flight line and leave the heavy box with tools and fuel bottle back in the pits.